Guide to Costa de la Luz Property Market
Tourism
Spain has become the most visited global destination with 96 million people passing through its airports in 2006, exceeding France and the USA for first position. This number has increased by 22% in only 5 years and low-cost flights have greatly assisted the boom with incoming passengers increasing from 2.6 million in 2002 to 42.4 million in 2006.
Hotel occupancy that year was 58% with 4.7 million people in self-catering accommodation and 12.6 million staying in properties for free (owned by themselves or a member of their family). 85% of people who come to Spain have done so before. 75% have visited more than 3 times and over 65% plan to return in 6 - 12 months.
A large percentage of Spanish tourists come from Northern Europe. In 2006, British and German tourists accounted for 49% of the total numbers visiting Spain, which has increased by 40% since 2004. A useful breakdown of total Spanish tourists for 2006, in millions and in order of highest to lowest was: England - 16.1, Germany - 10.1, France - 9.1, Italy - 3.3, Netherlands - 2.5, Belgium - 1.9, Portugal - 1.7.
86% of visitors went to the coast of Spain in 2006 and this generated 48.2 billion Euros for the economy. Golf tourism is becoming much more important and in the last 3 years Spain has seen an uplift of 60% in revenues generated from this area.
Immigration
With 4.3 million foreigners officially registered in Spain at the moment, this represents over 12% of the populous. 40% of these people live close to the sea and nearly 33% come from the European Union. It is thought that in Spain there are more than fifteen million British property owners.
Holiday homes
Research by Savills, a leading property group shows that people in the UK have spent more than 52 Billion GBP on overseas holiday homes for temporary use. The Spanish market accounts for approximately 25% and this demonstrates the strength and viability of the market for the long-term future.
Supply and demand
In 2006, more than 800,000 new properties were delivered in Spain but this figure is down 30% in 2007, which will help to control supply and demand and stabilise prices. GDP is predicted to grow by 2.6% in 2008.
Summary
The economic foundations and financial services industry in Spain are standing firm in the light of global uncertainty. Mortgages are widely available and properties still change hands regularly. Spain will remain one of the worlds most popular tourist destinations and so property in the country is still an excellent long-term investment. With prices correcting and stabilising, there has never been a better time to buy.
The Costa de la Luz
The Costa de la Luz is one of the most beautiful, traditional and undeveloped parts of Andalucia. Very popular with national tourists it also attracts discerning Europeans looking for the real Spain. The enormous and beautiful Donana nation park is located here and Huelva is the most western part of the region - often referred to as the Spanish Algarve for its proximity to Portugal.
Huelva province in brief
- 120 km long coastline
- 10,000 km2 area
- 450,000 people
- Main city called Huelva
- Distance to Seville from Huelva: 85km
- Distance to Faro from border: 65km
Huelva has 15 truly outstanding beaches to enjoy, many of which have the blue flag award for cleanliness and are located amongst spectacular scenery and national parks. The local white washed towns are beautiful, welcoming and most importantly have working populations so they are not seasonal and you can enjoy the fantastic atmosphere, food and services all year round. With over 10 excellent courses to enjoy and several more in the pipeline, Huelva also offers world-class golfing facilities at half the price of those in the Algarve or Costa del Sol. In addition there are:
- Comprehensive water sports facilities
- Several marinas
- 5 fishing ports
- 8 yacht clubs
- Water and go-carting park
- 6 scuba diving & underwater sites
- 6 recommended sites for windsurfing and kite surfing
Property
Property prices in Huelva are well below the national average and famously good value when compared to the neighbouring Portuguese Algarve and Costa Del Sol. Local authorities have been very careful not to allow much development and urban areas occupy less than 13% of the coastline.
Travel & tourism
Huelva is the fastest growing tourist destination in Spain and is also the fastest growing golf destination in Andalucia. As such plans were approved in 2008 to extend the local airport for international flights. Not that it needs this - the Costa de la Luz and Huelva already have excellent connections to Europe through Faro and Seville international airports which are respectively 40 minutes and 1 hour away by motorway. Since 2003, flights into Seville have increased by 99%, with 4.5 million people arriving in 2007. In 2006, 5.1 million tourists flew into Faro, an increase of 6% from 2003. All 26 UK international airports have regular flights into Faro and Seville and 8 new routes were launched in 2007.
Excellent weather
With average temperatures of 18.1 degrees, Huelva has one of the best weather systems in Spain and gets more than 300 days of sunshine per year. This makes it perfect for outdoor activity and even though it is on the Atlantic coast, sea temperatures rarely go below 17 degrees because the natural sea shelf is so shallow.
Summary
The Costa de la Luz presents an excellent opportunity to buy property in a traditional and unspoilt Spanish area with well established flight routes from northern Europe. Prices are lower than the rest of Spain and in the current economic climate there are some fantastic prices being negotiated for lifestyle and long-term investment properties. Why wait?
About the Author
Robert Shaw, Marketing Manager, Spanish Algarve Properties. +44(0)2085293635. We sell Property In Algarve & Costa Luz with a wide range of villas & apartments available.
Costa Luz & Algarve Property Agents
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