Wednesday, 17 April 2024, 10:04
After a slight drop in the third quarter of last year, the price of housing has risen once again in Malaga province, according to the latest data.
In the first three months of this year, the average price per square metre of a property for sale in the province has climbed to 2,412 euros, according to estate appraisal firm Gesvalt. It is 1.2% more than the figure recorded at the end of 2023 and about the same figure as a year ago, when the valuer’s studies showed an average price of 2,419 euros per square metre. The data shows the 4% drop in the prices of property for sale in Malaga in the third quarter of last year was a one-off event.
Additionally, rental prices continue to soar in both Malaga city and throughout the province. According to Gesvalt data, the average rental price at provincial level is 14.32 euros per square metre, which is 13.5% more than a year ago and 3.2% more than three months ago.
However, the increase in rent is most noticeable in Malaga city, where the average cost has risen to 14.41 euros per square metre, 16% more than a year ago, according to the data.
In Malaga city, the average price of housing for sale stands at 2,374 euros per square metre, which is 8% more than in the first quarter of 2023 and 2.5% more than in last year’s year-end report.
According to Gregorio Abril, Gesvalt’s regional director for Andalucía and Extremadura, house prices in Malaga are set to continue “the upward trend of recent months, but at a more moderate pace than in recent years, tending towards stabilisation, after the slight slowdown in demand caused by successive interest rate increases and a general economic slowdown”. “Once this phase has been overcome, and with the prospect of the next interest rate cuts, demand has once again been reactivated in a market that remains under pressure, pushing prices up again,” Abril said.
One of most active real estate markets in Spain
Malaga is one of the most active real estate markets in Spain, “with demand, both national and international, very active, compared to a supply that, despite the efforts of the city council and the great developer activity, is still insufficient to satisfy it”, the real estate expert added. “All these factors lead us to believe that there will not be a change in trend in the coming months and it is not possible to foresee when price rises will be limited.”
As for the unstoppable rise in rent, Abril pointed out that this is a “more paradigmatic issue than that of buying and selling”. “While supply is more limited than for sales, there is a transfer of demand from the buying and selling to the rental market, due to the number of buyers who are unable to afford the purchase of a home at current prices and decide to opt for renting as a way of life. Our forecast is that the current trend will continue over the next few years,” he added.
Throughout the province, Marbella continues to lead in rental prices with an average of 18.8 euros per square metre, 12% more than a year ago. Also noteworthy is the rise in rent in towns such as Torremolinos and Benalmádena, possibly due to the increase of prices in Malaga city leading to an increase in demand for rentals in these municipalities. In the case of Torremolinos, rent has risen to 14.6 euros per square metre and is now at the same level as Estepona, with a year-on-year increase of 12%, the data shows. At the other extreme, Velez-Malaga offers rents at half of those registered on the Costa del Sol, with prices around 7.5 euros per square metre.
In terms of homes for sale in Malaga municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants, Marbella continues to lead the way with an average cost of 3,202 euros per square metre, followed by Benalmádena, with 2,423 euros per square metre. In contrast, in the eastern part of Malaga province, the price drops to 1,391 euros, according to the data.
By Stephen Johnson, Economics Reporter For Daily Mail Australia
05:11 01 Feb 2024, updated 09:59 01 Feb 2024
- Perth house prices up 17 per cent in a year
- No longer the cheapest state capital market
More affordable Australian cities outside of Sydney and Melbourne that attract new residents from interstate instead of overseas have seen the strongest surge in house prices.
Perth is no longer Australia’s most affordable state capital city market with its median house price jumping by 17 per cent in the year to January to $708,335, CoreLogic data released on Thursday showed.
In January alone, house prices rose by 1.6 per cent, with CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless describing Perth as a stand out for its persistently rapid rate of capital gains.
Prices in the West Australian capital are now at a record high, having earlier peaked in 2014 after the last mining boom before stagnating for years.
The middle price in Perth still buys something with a backyard less than 10km from the city centre in an inner-city suburb like East Victoria Park.
‘The western capital continues to see housing demand outweigh supply,’ Mr Lawless said.
In the coastal satellite city of Mandurah, south of Perth, property values have surged by 21.2 per cent to $596,579 during the past year.
This occurred as Brisbane‘s mid-point house price rose by 15 per cent to $888,628.
In the southern suburbs, stretching from inner-city Annerley to Stretton, home prices soared by 20.7 per cent to $1,053,461.
Both Perth and Brisbane are growing because of interstate migration, as new overseas arrivals flock to Sydney and Melbourne.
These provincial capital cities had the biggest house price increases even though the Reserve Bank in November raised interest rates in November for the 13th time in 18 months to a 12-year high of 4.35 per cent.
Real estate values in Australia’s state capital cities are increasing despite the most aggressive interest rates since 1989 because of rapid population growth.
Sydney, Australia’s most expensive capital city market, saw its median house price over the year rise by 12.8 per cent to $1,395,218.
This occurred after a record 518,000 net migrants, on a net basis, moved to Australia during the last financial year.
Sydney has Australia’s biggest influx of new overseas residents but also the biggest exodus to other states.
Cities with a colder climate had weaker property price increases.
Melbourne, another major recipient of new foreign arrivals, saw its mid-point house price rise by a lesser 4.3 per cent over the year to $942,750.
Hobart is now Australia’s most affordable state capital city with its median house price over the year falling by 0.5 per cent to $692,619.
Adelaide, however, had a double-digit increase with its mid-point house price rising by 10.2 per cent to $774,969.
Canberra, Australia’s second most expensive capital city market, saw its median house price rise by a more subdued 1.9 per cent annually to $968,248.
Darwin is still Australia’s cheapest capital city market with the Northern Territory capital’s median house price rising by just 0.3 per cent to $578,342.
AMP senior economist Shane Oliver said a lack of supply would see Australian house prices continue to grow in 2024, but at a slower rate.
‘Our base case remains for softer home prices this year, but the housing shortage and increasing confidence in rate cuts may keep average house price gains modestly positive,’ he said.
But with inflation last year falling to a two-year low of 4.1 per cent, Dr Oliver said Reserve Bank of Australia rate cuts in late 2024 could see prices climb again at a fast pace.
‘Expect a renewed upswing from later this year in response to lower mortgage rates,’ he said.
‘Falling inflation adds to confidence that rates will be falling from mid-year, but bear in mind that RBA communication will likely remain cautious on inflation and rates for a while yet.’