And Now The Good News

When Spain won the Euro champs recently the front page of one of the newspapers said "46 million people say thank you". Spain's population when I was studying was stuck resolutely at 38 million with the second lowest birthrate in Europe. 8 million people have come into the country in just over a decade and they require housing and services. The base of the pyramid is therefore strong as price drops bring properties into the range of these recent immigrants, as long as banks are lending, and that is the issue at the moment. The banks have totally lost confidence in the same lemming like way that they all jumped on the bandwagon in the first place.

However, notaries in and around Valencia for example have reported an increase in signings in the last month or so after Banco Santander opened up the taps to borrowers a bit. Where Santander goes the rest of the financial institutions follow in Spain. In northern Spain where the overdevelopment of the Costas has not happened prices are holding up. Yes they will get caught up in a ripple effect but not in a maelstrom.

Another example is Sagunto north of Valencia. It is not the most beautiful place in the World in my opinion but OK as it has a beautiful Moorish/Roman fort at the top of the hill and the old Jewish quarter is lovely. They are starting work on the largest freeport in the Mediterranean with between 40 and 70000 jobs to be created as a result. This will being people into the area and price drops will be minimal from now as demand will outstrip supply, they have already dropped but by less than other areas and are currently holding up well.

Spain will always be a favourite for Brits as it is a home from home and you can get satellite TV, football at the right times and be back in blighty for important things very quickly. The young professionals that can work from anywhere due to the internet will still look to bring up their families with bilingual children in sunnier climes and less perceived crime. People will still want to retire or semi retire here as fuel bills are cheaper and lifestyle is also cheaper, not as cheap as it used to be but cheaper.

And to finish off being a tad controversial, what is wrong with those who offer nothing to the Spanish economy being forced out because life is getting too difficult for them. These are the same people who spend all day in the UK deriding excessive immigration and those immigrants coming over here to take our jobs etc etc... Come to Spain, learn the language, bring a profession, add something to the mix and mix with the Spanish, they are extremely friendly.

Have a life plan and work on it and Spain will most likely work for you.