Murcia Makes Top 25 in Worlds Best Real Estate Market

Nestled amongst a bevy of exotic Latin American locations, there was a surprise entry into the World’s Best Real Estate Markets 2012 – Murcia in Spain.

Created by the boffs at International Living, the index takes into account value for money, appreciation potential, income potential, costs and ease of buying and believes Murcia has got what it takes to make you money in 2012. "Finding ourselves amongst a who’s who of emerging nations, the likes of Brazil, Mexico and Uruguay, is flattering but not altogether unsurprising.

Murcia does make good sense right now for a catalogue of reasons, not least the Paramount Theme Park which will be the largest in Spain and second largest in Europe when it opens in 2015. Interestingly the author gave Murcia a score of 85 out of 100 for value for money, only nine others in the top 25 could match or beat it. With prices from just 50,000 euros, that’s around 41,000 pounds, for a two bedroom semi-detached home with roof terrace on a golf course – there’s your justification.

If a buyer is looking at Spain, Murcia is the current best bet." The World’s Best Real Estate Markets 2012 is careful not to recommend locations that, although undoubtedly cheap, have pitfalls such as unstable governments, dicey property laws or astronomical buying costs and taxes. In Spain, the property purchase process is regulated by the notary system and, provided you use a decent independent lawyer and a professional estate agent – very safe. What’s more, buying costs are generally only around 10% of purchase price to include VAT or Transfer Tax, lawyer’s and notary fees.

"Murcia, whilst not as mainstream as say the Costa del Sol or Costa Blanca, is a market on the up and plenty of things are conspiring to make the future rosy. Prices are at their lowest point in a decade and you can snap up golf-Side homes within reach of the beach and the Paramount Theme Park site for a tiny fraction of the equivalent in Marbella or pricey Mallorca – a three bedroom villa with swimming pool can be bought for around 125,000 euros.

The new Corvera International Airport, is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2012 and the Regional Government has requested that the proposed Mediterranean Corridor high-speed AVE rail link stops here making it the first airport in Spain to be crossed by a high-speed rail link and the third, after Barcelona and Madrid, to have a rail link at all. This is all creating a huge momentum for holiday and investment homes and our sales team is pleasantly busy."