As we come to the close of a turbulent year, the financial institutions of the world have assessed where the biggest growths in the investment market will arise. For European investment opportunities, signs point to the continent: Berlin, Frankfurt, Stockholm, Copenhagen and, strangely enough, Madrid.
It seems that Madrid has made a grand effort to attract investors and homeowners alike. Spain has always been a popular destination for British expats looking to enjoy some Mediterranean sunshine, and Madrid has been a hotspot for real estate development in 2017. Alongside its many cultural and historical buildings that attracts visitors, tourists and expats is a rapidly-developing real estate market.
The average rent price per square metre is around 29 Euros, compared to 51 Euros in Dublin and 60 in Paris. Madrid isn’t lacking in cheap office space: Madrid’s occupational market has seen a particularly buoyant period, with the first nine months of 2017 registering the strongest office occupier activity in a decade, reaching 359,000 square meters.
The upturn in the Spanish economy is of course vitally linked to this increased activity; Spain’s economy is outpacing the Eurozone, with GDP growth in Q3 registered at 3.1% and forecast to move towards the pre-crisis peak by year-end.
This economic stability has led to business confidence and the creation of jobs, particularly in the professional services sector, underpinning the increasing momentum in the office market. Already having reached strong levels, office take up is expected to reach 480,000 sq. m by year-end, the second strongest year in a decade.
It seems that Spain has learned its lesson from its misfortunes in the late 2000s: it’s cheap, attractive real estate just waiting to be taken by savvy property investors in the UK and Europe. Knightsbridge Ventures are a new property investment company bringing fresh new investors into Europe and overseas.