Spanish property market 'still moving'

A spokesman for a Spanish property portal has said the market in the country is still going and the extent of its decline has been considerably exaggerated.

Martin Dell of Kyero.com said the market has slowed, but noted that there is still plenty of buying and selling taking place.

He commented: "There are still many people interested in buying Spanish property, it is just now they are better informed and more discerning."

Areas that had concentrated heavily on off-plan in the boom years are the ones that have taken on the brunt of the suffering, while the rest are doing much better, he concluded.

Mr Dell also noted that most transactions happened without a hitch, despite some negative publicity.

This analysis was backed up this week by Knight Frank, which in its latest worldwide survey of the property market noted that the Spanish property problems are geographically concentrated and that in the second quarter of 2008 the average price was 2.4 per cent up on a year earlier.