Global rating agency Fitch has indicated its confidence that the Spanish mortgage market will improve as the general economic recovery gathers pace.
Its market index report revealed that the default rate on mortgage loans in Spain had fallen to 1.2% in December 2014, down from 1.7% in December 2013. The trend in late-stage arrears, including mortgage defaults, also came down during that period, to 6.2%.
Fitch’s report also stated that “national home prices increased for two consecutive quarters for teh first time since Q3 2007, with quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.2%”. It went on to say that properties sold in the first three quarters of last year had depreciated by nearly 70% from their original valuations, representing no further decline from 2013.
All these figures are expected to add momentum to the Spanish real estate market this year, further boosted by sustained low interest rates, improving unemployment figures and an increase in the number of “bargain-hunting” foreign investors.
