INE: House Prices Rose By 4.7% In 2016

8 March 2017 – Expansión

House prices rose by 4.7% on average in 2016 with respect to the previous year, their third consecutive annual increase following six years of decreases and the highest rise since 2007, according to the House Price Index (IPV) published today by Spain’s National Institute of Statistics (INE).

By house type, second-hand house prices rose by 4.4% in 2016, to register their highest increase since 2007. In the case of new homes, average prices rose by 6.5% in 2016, also recording their highest rise since 2007.

During the fourth quarter of 2016, private (unsubsidised) house prices rose by 4.5% with respect to the same quarter in 2015, whereby increasing the YoY rise recorded in the third quarter (+4%) by half a point. In this way, house prices recorded eleven consecutive quarters of positive YoY variations.

New house prices rose by 4.3% in Q4 2016 compared to the fourth quarter in 2015, in other words, by three points less than during the previous quarter, whilst second-hand house prices rose by 4.5%, one point above the increase recorded in the previous quarter.

In inter-quarterly terms, private (unsubsidised) house prices rose by 0.4%, in other words, by four tenths less than in the previous quarter. Following this quarterly increase, house prices recorded four consecutive quarters on the rise.

House prices rose last year in every single one of Spain’s autonomous regions, as well as in the cities of Ceuta and Melilla. The most marked price increases were observed in Madrid (up by 8.6%), Cataluña (7%), the Balearic Islands (6.2%), Melilla (5.3%) and Ceuta (5.2%). On the other hand, the lowest increases were recorded in Castilla-La Mancha (0.8%) and Castilla y León (1.1%).

In quarterly figures, private (unsubsidised) house prices decreased in ten autonomous regions as well as in Melilla; they rose in four regions and in Ceuta; and they remained stable in Andalucía, Aragón and the Community of Valencia. The largest decreases were recorded in País Vasco (-1.6%) and Extremadura (-1.5%) and the greatest increases were seen in Madrid (+1.5%) and Cataluña (+1.2%).

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake