Residential real estate prices are rising in Spain at their fastest pace in six years, according to Spain’s Ministry of Development. The strengthening housing market is partly the result of more mortgage lending. The number of home loans issued rose 19.7% in March compared with the same month in 2014, according to Spain's National Institute of Statistics. The average price per square meter rose 5.9% in the first quarter of 2015 compared with the same period a year ago, according to the Ministry of Development. In Madrid's luxury market, prices were up 4.9% in the first quarter compared with a year earlier, according to Knight Frank's Prime Global Cities Index.
RELATED: Tips for Americans Buying in Mallorca Foreign buyers are proving to be an important driver of sales. Transactions by international buyers living in Spain increased 17.2% in the first quarter compared with the same period a year ago, with a total of 13,462 deals. The number of these deals has increased for 15 consecutive quarters, according to the Ministry of Development. Non-resident foreigners were involved in 951 transactions in the first quarter, up 10.2% from a year ago. Both groups of international buyers accounted for 16.9% of sales in Spain in the first quarter, with their favorite areas being Alicante, Málaga, Barcelona, Tenerife and Madrid. More: Latin Americans Fuel Luxury Rebound in Madrid The six properties, all listed on Mansion Global, range in price from $19.2 million to $56.3 million. Visit these links for the complete listings. Alcudia: $56.3 million Bendinat: $28.2 million Santa Eularia: about $23 million Marbella: $20.3 million Calvià: $20.3 million Marbella: $19.2 million Listings on Mansion Global as of June 19, 2015
Correction: Knight Frank’s Prime Global Cities Index showed Madrid’s luxury prices rose 4.9% in the first quarter compared with the same period a year ago. A previous version of this article incorrectly said the increase was 1.9%. Separately, updated data from Knight Frank show that Spain’s house prices fell 0.1% in the first quarter compared with the first quarter of 2014. (June 22, 2015)
Write to Andrea López Cruzado at andrea.lopez@dowjones.com