Galicia has the highest number of empty homes in Spain: three out of ten are uninhabited

In Spain, the country of owners, buying a house is an increasingly unaffordable challenge, especially for the young (and the not-so-young). According to the latest statistical data from the population and housing census, which he published yesterday AND NOTIn 2021, 75.5% of Spanish families lived in living place in ownership, a percentage that has fallen by almost seven points in the last 20 years, while in the same period the percentage of homes is below lease it rose almost five points, to 16.1% (almost every sixth).

In Galicia, these percentages drop to 74.4% in the case of owner families and 12.3% in the case of those who live in rent, since there is a higher proportion (13.3%) of households living in houses with other tenure regimes, either usufructuary or because a family member gives it to them for free.

These problems of access to housing contrast with another reality reflected in the study: in Spain there are 3.8 million empty homes, almost one in seven (14.4% of the total). And in Galicia, that share is exactly double, 28.8%, which makes it the community with the highest percentage of empty houses, almost three out of ten or, in absolute numbers, more than half a million: 506,370.

To make this estimate, INE uses data on household electricity consumption, which allows it to estimate not only how many homes are uninhabited, but also how many are used sporadically, such as other homeswhich in the case of the community is slightly more than 142,000 properties.

The problem of empty apartments is particularly pronounced in less populated rural municipalities, where the effect of depopulation is noticeable. Thus, there are 85 municipalities (30% of those with more than a thousand inhabitants, which were analyzed by INA) in which more than half of the homes are empty. The most extreme case is in Cuntis and Lazam, where the percentage of empty houses is greater than 75%. In the case of cities, despite the lack of housing and high prices, the number of empty houses hovers around 15% in A Coruña and Vigo. In order to try to reduce these numbers, the new housing law foresees surcharges of up to 150 percent Real estate tax.

Euribor ends in June above 4% and makes the average mortgage more expensive by 250 euros per month

C. Alba, Colpisa

The forecasts were fulfilled. And they do it to the detriment of those with mortgages with a variable interest rate, but also those who embarked on the adventure of seeking financing for the purchase of an apartment. After an unstoppable rise for a year, the euribor shed June to 4.134%, lifting the monthly average to 4.007%, the highest since November 2008, driven by rate hikes European Central Bankwhich will continue in July, suggesting that the mortgage indicator will also maintain its upward path.

Overcoming the psychological barrier of 4% in practice implies that a mortgage of 150,000 euros for 25 years and with a difference of 1% compared to Euribor, its quota will increase by 84 euros per month if revised semi-annually (from 793 euros to almost 877 euros, since Euribor ended at 3.018 in December). or more than 250 euros if the review is annual (from 625 euros to almost 877, because in June 2022 the indicator was 0.852%).