Only 630 homes were sold in May, which is the lowest amount since September 2013, when there were 612 real estate transactions, according to data published by the National Statistics Institute, or INE.
Sales collapsed by almost 60% in May compared to the same period in 2019, making it the 5th biggest drop in sales nationwide. The state average fall in Real Estate sales is 53.7%.
Real Estate agents reopened on May 11th but buyers were slow to book viewings.
"The sale and purchase operations are not immediate,” says Natalia Bueno, President of the Association of Real Estate Property Agents, or API.
The Real Estate market has clearly slowed down and although sales are expected to pick up in June and July, Bueno says "last year's figures will not be reached.”
Residents
Bueno says first time buyers are worst affected and that things are very uncertain in the Real Estate Sector.
"Many people have lost their jobs or are affected by a temporary employment regulation, or ERTE and have frozen their plans to buy a home," she said. “Right now, people are waiting for prices to drop in the coming months.”
That's affecting sales and investors and there are several other factors in play.
"People are afraid of losing their jobs and those in ERTE are waiting to see how their situation will turn out,” said Bueno, who pointed out that foreign sales in May were only a quarter of what they were at the same time last year.
Steepest Decline
The year-on-year decrease in home sales registered in May is one of the most pronounced in history; the only other time there was a drop of 60% was in mid-2009 when the housing bubble burst.
Of the 630 homes sold in May in the Balearic Islands 99 were new homes and the rest were second-hand.
No comments
To be able to write a comment, you have to be registered and logged in
Currently there are no comments.