2023-12-26 08:25:00
«The quotas of the rentals and of the mortgagesalmost couples right now in Cáceres, obviously make it is more worthwhile to buy a home “if you are clear that you are going to reside here and want to do so in a stable way.” This is how he explains it Joaquin Sanchez, general secretary of the Federation of Construction Entrepreneurs of the province (CNC Cáceres-Fecons). And the strong changes in the rental market, with payments of about 700 euros per month for apartments of about 90-100 square metersafter a 50% increase in two years, have put rents on par with mortgage loans, despite the pressure of Euribor.
In fact, with the price of rents, «a person who pays his fee from the age of 25 to 85 would pay the equivalent of three and a half houses, but would not have any at the end of his working lifeso he would have to continue paying the rent with his pension, and that is not even worth it,” he says. Juan Carlos Cotallorepresentative of the promoters in the Extremeña Regional Business Confederation (CREEX) and general director of Gestyona.
Many citizens who need access to housing are paying the same bill, citizens who also have one more condition in Cáceres: The rental market, which never registered an excessive supply, today barely has available apartments. From the Official College of Real Estate Agents of Cáceres they already explained to this newspaper that that market has “collapsed”and they relate it to the effects of new Housing Law. Be that as it may, Sales of newly built homes are picking up “and are doing well”indicates Joaquín Sánchez, who collects the impression of the promoters.
From ballast to ballast
It is true that new construction has remained stopped for years in the city. The brick crisis of 2008 left the activity of the sector inert when the ongoing promotions were concluding, among other things because there were no buyers. Then, the slight rebound was cut short again with covid. After the pandemic, the sharp rise in materials that began with the war in Ukraine has seriously affected companies in the last two years.
Even so, construction is beginning to pick up in Cáceres and the lack of rentals stimulates the sector. “It’s a good time to promote because people are starting to buy,” underlines the secretary of Fecons. “We sell everything we build,” reveals the general director of Gestyona, a company that builds successive blocks in Junquillo.
A tour of Cáceres shows this movement in construction. There are promotions going on in the Juan Pablo II Avenue, in New Caceresup to four in Casa Plata, others more in the JonquilMontesol or New City… They are apartments and also single-family homes “that have been so well received, especially as a result of confinement,” highlights Joaquín Sánchez.
Currently there are two buyer profiles that stand out from the rest. On the one hand, the young people who need an option and the rent no longer compensates them. On the other hand, the citizens aged 50 and over who live in single-family homes and want to move to an apartment for convenience, selling or not selling your previous home. And among them, CNC Cáceres-Fecons explains, there are currently a good number of buyers who They don’t ask for a mortgage because they use savings. This movement will mean that more and more cranes will be seen in the city’s skies.
Besides, The average price of housing in Cáceres has stood at €856/m2 during the first half of the year.. Although it represents a year-on-year increase of 6.1%, it is still at the bottom of the ranking as the eighth cheapest province (It is also the one with the least income per household and everything balances out). The new home is €1,512/m2 and the used one is €754/m2. As to The capital of Cáceres has experienced an increase to €1,495/m2.
Three apartments in Cáceres are equivalent to one in San Sebastián or Barcelona
These data, extracted from the Real Estate Registry Statistics (College of Registrars of Spain), also show a rebound in purchases. Between January and June, 3,911 properties have been acquired in Cáceres (+8% year-on-year). Of them, 572 correspond to new construction and 3,339 to second-hand. By the way Extremadurans occupy the first positions in the home acquisition wide: They are the second in the country to choose single-family homes (29% of the total) and also the second with the most houses over 80 m2. Mortgages are contracted in the region with average payments of €410/month, distance from the national average (676).
«Everything we make, we sell»
For now, the new construction is going well. This is confirmed by the company Gestyona, which has already delivered three blocks of 56, 64 and 48 homes in the El Junquillo urbanization, and is currently building 63. But alsowill start another 64 at the beginning of the year. “Actually, everything we put out, we sell,” acknowledges the general director, Juan Carlos Cotallo. And he explains why better times are ahead for the sector: “rentals have shown that when demand is encouraged and there is little supply, prices are exorbitant.” “Then, if the defaulting tenant is also favored and prices are limited, what has happened happens,” adds this developer with 42 years of work experience. In short, “renting is only suitable for those people who change their address a lot for work reasons; “The opposite means wasting money.” Therefore, the wind is in favor of the sale.
Hence, this company, the one that has marketed the most volume in recent times in the capital of Cáceres, is successively building and selling apartments. But it’s not that easy either. “You have to adapt to the times,” says Juan Carlos Cotallo. In other words: The sector must offer homes in line with what the buyer is looking for today, which is not what they were looking for a few years ago.and adjusted to the prices that can be paid in the city.
Thus, these public promotion blocks include pool, garden or barbecue, and all comply with the requirements of the Technical Building Code. For example, the last two promotions have ‘A’ energy certification (the maximum in sustainability and energy savings), double-glazed carpentry, forced ventilation, voice and data throughout the property, reinforced concrete (250 kg/cm2), accessibility in hallways, bathrooms and common areas… «A two-bedroom apartment can be around 80,000 euros. Those with four bedrooms are around 130,000 euros, which rises to 150,000 with a garage and storage room.details Juan Carlos Cotallo.
With these data, it seems that better times for buying and selling are beginning, but There is a factor that seriously affects construction: the lack of professionals in all areas. They need laborers, officers, electricians, plumbers, technicians, engineers… “We estimate that 10,000 workers are needed in Extremadura, 4,000 in Cáceres,” explains the secretary of CNC Cáceres-Fecons. A lack that harms the construction of new apartments, but also, and seriously, the renovations. It is worth remembering that In this city, 8 out of every 10 purchases are used homes and usually require improvements.
«In fact, professionals who are dedicated to reforms say that they are saturated, with works waiting for many months, some are already closing even in 2024,” underlines Joaquín Sánchez. After the great crisis of 2008 and the decline in construction, there has been no replacement and in recent years it has been difficult to find personnel. “It will get worse, because the squads have a fairly high average age”he warns.
«We can no longer cover the works»
“With the crisis, new generations of construction workers stopped being trained, in reality they had already stopped training before the crisis, I estimate that we have lost about three generations,” he adds. Luis Romero Silva, independent of the reform sector, who makes a worrying x-ray of the lack of labor in an activity that has come to have a weight in the national GDP above 10%.
«There is a huge void, many workers left with the crisis to other sectors to make a living, there were early retirements… There is no relief“No tilers, no formworkers, no electricians, no plumbers… There is a lack of all types of specialists.”he states.
Nor have economic conditions been supportive. «They don’t make it easy. The difference between registering a laborer and an officer is 30 euros, so tell me who is going to choose a person to teach him from scratch. With today’s labor costs, you cannot», says Luis. In fact, self-employed people and small businesses do not find it easy to make new hires even if they are experienced professionals. «The workers have so many recognized rights that sincerely we are not able to maintain them between taxes, insurance, occupational risks, the mandatory workplace harassment protocol…”. The self-employed, on the other hand, “does not have any rights”, which is why many have already decided to work alone. «You take the works that you can and you reject the rest. But this way, obviously, new generations are not formed,” Luis Romero laments.
No dates
These circumstances have generated a significant lack of professionals in renovations, highly demanded by those who invest in second-hand homes. It is difficult to find professionals for a bathroom, a kitchen, a roof…, and in their case, you have to wait months. «Right now we have all the works we want but we cannot cover them. It is impossible to organize when you are alone, because you never know when you are going to finish one job to start the next. That’s why You try to manage the times, you notify the next client but you can’t commit much more, you can’t give dates. You have to say ‘no’ to the people who call, today I have rejected a facade and a cover,” he acknowledges. Thereto you have to add the upload of materials, which has made home renovations extremely expensive.
The solution, with such wickers, seems complex. “As long as the State does not take charge of supporting training in companies, there are no guarantees that this will go ahead, because the workshop school system does not seem to work right now either,” warns Luis Romero.
From CNC Cáceres-Fecons they remember that through the Construction Labour Foundation Courses do not stop taking place to alleviate this lack, which extends nationwide (700,000 workers are missing in the sector). And be careful, because salaries “are well above the minimum wage”, there are up to 12 contract holidays, work is not done late on Fridays and there are special regulations for extreme weather conditions.
Real Estate Registry Statistics
1.495 €: Average price per square meter in home sales carried out in the capital of Cáceres during the first half of 2023, 16% higher than the same period in 2022. In the province as a whole, this average price is €866 (€1,512 for used housing and €754 for second-hand housing). . It is the eighth cheapest province. 3,911: Number of houses acquired in Cáceres from January to June 2023 (+8% year-on-year). Of them, 572 new and 3,339 second-hand.66%: Percentage of homes of more than 80 m2 purchased in Extremadura in the first semester. The region is the second with the largest properties. €410/month: Average monthly mortgage taken out by Extremadurans in the first semester. 6,978 loans were signed in the region during that period, for an average of €88,902 (€141,059 in the country as a whole).
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