Forecasts for the real estate sector indicate that the balance of 2021 regarding the sale of second-hand homes in Barcelona will be favorable, given the boom that the residential segment has registered in the last twelve months. The recovery, in the absence of the latest data for the year, may redirect the number of transactions to pre-pandemic levels and approach the 13,000 operations registered in 2019, according to Ferran Font, director of the studies service of the real estate portal pisos.com.
In the third quarter of last year alone, a total of 4,000 sales were carried out in the city, "a quarterly figure not seen since 2017", which represents an increase of 19% compared to 2019, and 71% over the same period of 2020.
Prices in the second-hand sector have behaved differently, with average drops of between 1% and 2%, reaching 3% with some exceptions. Thus, the average price per square meter would be around 3,400 euros. A moderation that only confirms the trend observed between 2018 and 2019, says Font, who specifies that the slight revaluation detected at the end of 2020 has in no case consolidated during the past year.
The forecasts "will be confirmed as the figures for the last quarter advance", although "we remain pending how covid evolves, the reception and management of the Next Generation funds and to see how the start of the new housing law impacts", specifies Font.
By districts, the variation in the number of transactions and the evolution of prices has been very diverse. Regarding operations, for the year as a whole, only in the areas of Sant Martí and Sant Andreu is activity lower than in 2019, that is, fewer sales have been closed than two years ago. In contrast, there has been greater dynamism in the Eixample.
Regarding prices, increases have been observed in the neighborhoods of Horta-Guinardó (4.73%), Sarrià-Sant Gervasi (3.48%) and Sant Martí (3.26%), while the area of decreases had Gràcia (-5.27%) as protagonists, Sant Andreu (-4.04%) and Nou Barris (-3.65%).
The decrease of more than 5% in the price per square meter in the Gràcia neighborhood stands outFor the year as a whole, the most expensive neighborhoods were Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, where 5,649 euros per square meter were paid; Les Corts, with 5,338 euros per square meter; and Eixample, with a price of 5,279 euros per square meter. The areas with the most affordable housing were Nou Barris, with an average of 2,448 euros per square meter; Sant Andreu, at 3,073 euros per square meter; and Horta-Guinardó, with 3,214 euros.
In the current economic context, for the director of the studies department of the real estate portal pisos.com, it is necessary to take into account two important variables. On the one hand, Font warns that with significant inflationary pressure, prices may be pushed upwards in the coming months. On the other hand, "no radical changes are expected in terms of European monetary policy, so mortgages will remain cheap, with the fixed rate gaining more and more ground."