With general consensus contributing to the Spanish property market’s downward spiral, the importance of estate agents and developers highlighting the plus sides to potential property buyers has been more pressing than ever. But in the Costa Brava they don’t have to: the statistics speak for themselves. The website Kyero.com states that the average price of property in Girona, a province within Costa Brava for the second quarter of 2008 was €383,000 (£308,000): 59.3% above the national average. Good news for investors is that these high purchase prices are joined by superlative rental yields. Tom Maidment, director of Lucas Fox Costa Brava, claims: “Tourism demand is so high that owners can expect to cover their costs even when letting their properties for just the peak summer months.”
The reason for such inflated sale values and holiday appeal? “A location hard to beat,” according to James Warland of Global Property Associates. “The rather higher price of buying Costa Brava property compared with other parts of Spain reflects the outstanding added value the region provides.”
Costa Brava, in the far north-east corner of Spain, stretches from Blanes, north of Barcelona, to Roses, near the French border, along 160 kilometres of rugged coastline. One of the major attractions of this location is the convenient accessibility. Excellent motorway links to the rest of Europe are accompanied by fast rail links, soon to be improved by TGV-style connections with London, Paris, Girona and Barcelona. Flights are pleasingly diverse, with the option to fly to Barcelona or one of Spain’s fastest growing airports – Girona; while Perpignan in France is less than 40 minutes from the Pyrenees border.
Such close proximity and easy access to France and the rest of Europe has done much to save the region’s classic identity. While the package holiday crew gladly usurped this Mediterranean sun-spot in the 1960s, fortunately the Costa Brava generally avoided the towering collection of high-rise monstrosities that have degraded much of Spain. In fact, ten years ago the coastal towns of the Costa Brava signed an agreement to pursue environmental protection along with tourism, making the area less at risk from overdevelopment. There are more developed towns in the south, such as Blanes and Lloret de Mar, but avoiding the large-scale tourism is easy – simply follow the wealthy Spaniards, French and other Europeans, who are drawn by the affluent villages, historic cultural diversity, delightful countryside and endless sandy beaches.
The climate is also more comfortable compared to southern Spain. There are greater seasonal changes for a start, with short, mild winters, and average temperatures for July and August are generally below 30 degrees Celsius. Although not the hottest Costa in terms of temperatures, the buying hot spots are about as scorching as you can get.
James Warland highlights: “The Bay of Roses, below the foothills of the Pyrenees, is renowned for its outstanding sunsets, two of Europe’s finest marinas (drive your boat right up to your back garden), a private airport, and the delights of hill walking, mountain biking, water sports and skiing.” By comparison, the pretty white-painted fishing villages around the hilltop medieval town of Begur make up one of the most beautiful stretches of coast throughout the whole of mainland Spain.
As for the investment prospects and expected capital growth, Tom Maidment comments: “The Costa Brava property market is likely to stand up considerably better than the southern costas, but growth is going to be slow in the short-term and we’re likely to see a market correction and a drop in prices before any kind of capital appreciation. It’s hard to say how much prices may fall but there has been a small shift downwards this summer – particularly for properties priced under €1.3 million [£1.04 million]. However, several high-end properties in Begur have sold at asking price recently; demonstrating that quality product in good locations can retain value. Most people within the industry are expecting the market slowdown to continue for another 12, possibly 18, months before a turnaround. This means that current buyers are buying as a lifestyle decision, but as prices begin to fall, opportunities will undoubtedly arise for canny investors.”
First published in November 2008.
Some information contained within this article may have changed since it was first published. Homes Overseas strongly advises you to seek current legal and financial advise from a qualified professional.
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