Ten years´ wages needed to buy a flat in Balearics

News desk BALEARIC residents have the hardest time in Spain when it comes to buying a second hand home, taking into account family income and taxes, as it costs them more than ten years' salary to buy a medium sized flat. The average for Spain is the salary of just over seven years. But in some regions, such as Castille-La Mancha, Andalucia and Catalonia, it costs just over six years' salary. These figures were revealed in the latest report from the valuers TINSA covering the second quarter of this year. It said that the price of previously owned homes in the Balearics has risen by 16 per cent in the last year, although this is lower than the average for Spain, which stands at 17.29 per cent. Despite this, the average cost of a second hand flat in the Balearics is still one of the highest in Spain at 1'956 euros per square metre, beaten only by Madrid (2'937.2 euros), the Basque Country (2'399.8 euros) and Catalonia (2'253 euros). The report said that Andalucia and Valencia were the regions with the biggest increase in the price of previously occupied homes with increases of 22 per cent in the past 12 months in both regions. The lowest increases were in Asturias (ten per cent), La Rioja (11 per cent), and the Basque Country and Canary Islands (12 per cent each). In Orense, Galicia a flat costs 591.4 euros per square metre.