|
|
Article: Builders' nightmare; Spain's property crash.(The bubble bursts)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- December 6, 2008
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
The biggest risk would be to buy
The housing bust gets ever bigger
SPANIARDS are not used to housing busts. Since property seemed for so long to be a one-way bet, some still find it hard to grasp that prices can ever fall. Recently 2,000 people spent a chilly night sleeping out to sign up for "cheap" new homes due to be built in the Madrid dormitory town of Fuenlabrada. They could have found lower prices on the internet.
The market is dropping fast. Property fairs tout discounts of as much as 60% on new-built homes, or even "buy one, get one free" offers. "All the statistics show a fall," concedes the housing minister, Beatriz Corredor. Yet ...