The perfect storm that has been generated in the real-estate market benefits those who delayed homebuying faced with skyrocketing prices and the cost of mortgages impossible to assume. Now, the decision of European Central Bank (ECB) to lower the interest rates has caused a change of scenario marked by the fall of the Euribor and the mortgage reduction that citizens should take advantage of by choosing to buy, especially when the prices of flats are going to continue to rise.
“Now is a good time to buy a home“, he states bluntly Emiliano Bermudez, deputy general director of donpiso. Recommends to those who intend to buy, and who can do so, “that they do it as soon as possible and do not wait if they find a home that fits their needs.”
Wait for him mortgage interest continuing to fall could be expensive, since this reduction will not compensate for the price rise that analysts foresee in the short and medium term. A rise that in the second quarter of the year has exceeded the 3% year-on-year.
The Eurobank’s interest rate cut of 25 basis points in June, to reach 100% price of money in it 4.25%has given the starting signal for the 19% of citizens who paralyzed the process of buying a home in 2022 after the rate increase, according to data from Fotocasa, to consider return to the market.
In the opinion of Miquel Rieramortgage expert at HelpMycash, “This is a good time to buy a homebecause mortgages are cheaper than a year ago and their current interest rate is competitive in historical terms.” He acknowledges that they could fall further in the coming months, but “waiting can be counterproductive, since if the forecasts are met and the price of housing continues to rise, the buyer saves on interest you can overpay in the price of the property”.
The buyer who needs financing can find mortgages at variable interest rate that surround the 4%; to type permanentaround the 2.5%; already interest mixed under the 2% to five years the fixed part, which makes the latter “the queens of the market“, indicates Laura Martinezspokesperson for iAhorro.
In the heat of the drop in interest rates, the euriborwhich has closed June at 3.65%, which means a decrease of 9% in the interannual rate, adding four consecutive drops in 2024 and marking a trend that will extend throughout the year, until the end of December around 3.4% or 3.5%, predicts Stephanie Gonzalezpersonal finance spokesperson for Kelisto.
These drops will go hand in hand with a rising housing prices driven by increased demand and shortage of supply, According to data from Tinsa, in the second quarter of the year both new and used housing rose 3.1% year-on-year. An increase that will continue throughout the year, but at a less accelerated pace, as is already being seen in recent quarters. In the first quarter of 2024, prices rose by 3.3%; in the fourth quarter of 2023, 4.1%; and in the third, 5%.
In this context, and faced with the dilemma of buying or waiting for housing, all the analysts consulted by Infobae Spain They are of the same opinion: “Better buy now”. Of course, whoever can.
And as he recognizes, Francesc Quintanatreasurer of the Association of Real Estate Agents of Catalonia and founder Vivendex, “Nothing, absolutely nothing, indicates that housing prices are going to fall. Quite the contrary: everything points to prices continuing to rise. So anyone who is waiting or wondering whether to buy this year or next year, better do it now.”
Laura Martínez also recognizes that “it is a better option buy now cheaper And if in a year mortgages are cheaper, change your mortgage bank.”
One of the buyer profiles that does not have to hesitate to buy now, in the opinion of Ferran Font, Director of Studies at pisos.com, is the one who you do not need to mortgage to buy a flat and pay cash: “More than a third of the purchases that are being made now are carried out without the need for financing, and for these buyers, and given the limited supply of available properties, waiting can mean miss a good buying opportunity”. It emphasizes that prices continue to rise driven by low supply and “nothing suggests that they will fall in the short or medium term, but quite the opposite, which is why today it is recommended to buy”.
Elizabeth Hernandezpartner and director of Valords, is of the same opinion: “Considering the current combination of low supply, high demand and favorable mortgage financing conditions, now is a good time to buy.”
For those who find it difficult to make the decision of whether to buy or wait, Estefanía González recommends make numbers and calculate whether with the mortgage reductions and the rise in prices they are interested in waiting a little or taking the step to avoid price increases of the properties.
They also “must analyze their Current situation and ask themselves if buying now would allow them to have a lower mortgage expense than they now pay for the rentsince that is another savings factor that, along with the price of the house, must be kept in mind,” warns the expert.
Once the purchase decision has been made, the future owner who is obliged to finance it must choose the interest rate to take out for the mortgage: fixed, mixed or variable.
Ricardo GuliasCEO of RN Your Mortgage Solution, explains that most banks are promoting Fixed mortgages with “very competitive” interest rates to attract new customers, so it is “very likely” that these will continue to dominate the market in the next semester. But The mixed ones are “very, very attractive” In comparison, they are establishing themselves as one of the big star products in 2024 that I would recommend signing for 3 or 5 years.”
All these circumstances will, in the opinion of Maria Matosdirector of studies and spokesperson for Fotocasa, that “we will see again how the access to housing improvement when the conditions of mortgage credit were lowered and how the demand that was kept waiting will return to the market with force”.
