I think there are going to be some great bargains in Spain in 2008, as I do think also in the UK.
I know from talking to the banks that repossessions are increasing quite quickly during 2007.
Personally, I'm making friends with the lawyers, bankers and their repossession contacts, and expect to take a punt on some selected opportunities.
An agent told me on my last trip that anything above the €150K mark is going to be really hard to shift. I'm a bit of a cheapskate, and buy at the bottom end of the market both in the UK and Spain (for investment, not living in). The rationale in both markets is the same. Can long term rentals sustain borrowing costs? In both markets, I see many opportunities to effectively borrow nearly 100% of funding costs, and still get the opportunity to cover all outgoing costs.
My target in 2008 is to buy gross value of £800K in the UK (about 10 properties) and about gross value £300K in Spain (about six properties). The challenge is to get them all at effectively No Money Down, though I'm not unrealistic. If the % BMV is high enough, I'll invest.
