The sale and purchase of housing started the year with a decrease in Catalonia. In January, 7,743 operations were formalized, which represents 10.3% less than in the same month of the previous year, while the average price per square meter continued to rise and stood at 2,474 euros, 10.9% more.
Fewer operations and increasing prices
The decline in sales was noticeable both in the apartment market and in the single-family home market. In the case of apartments, 6,176 operations were registered, with a year-on-year fall of 11.1%. The average price reached 2,807 euros per square meter, 10.6% more than a year earlier.
In parallel, single-family homes totaled 1,566 transactions in January, 7% less than in the same period of the previous year. In this segment, the average price stood at 1,839 euros per square meter, with an increase of 8.4%.
Mortgages maintain the rise
Facing the decline in sales, the signing of mortgage loans to acquire housing maintained a positive evolution. In January, 5,003 mortgages were formalized, 2.5% more than a year ago. Catalonia also concentrated 19% of the total mortgages authorized in Spain.
"A moderation in the growth of mortgage loans after more than a year and a half on the rise" - Raquel Iglesias, vice-dean of the Notarial College of Catalonia
First signs of brake in the market
The evolution of January points to a start of the year with less intensity in Catalan real estate activity. The fall in operations contrasts with the maintenance of prices at higher levels and with a mortgage market that continues to grow, although at a more contained pace.
"A certain slowdown in real estate activity at the beginning of the year" - Raquel Iglesias, vice-dean of the Notarial College of Catalonia
The data thus leave a start of the fiscal year marked by fewer sales, a sustained rise in value per square meter, and financing that continues in positive territory, but without the momentum of previous months.