• Culmia presents the second edition of its report, “The Homebuyer’s Journey in Spain,” which analyzes the current and future landscape for homebuyers in Spain and explores market trends.
• Nearly 20% say they have not applied for this assistance because they believe they are not eligible, while only 4% say they have applied for an ICO guarantee. To a lesser extent, 3% have applied for the assistance aimed at home purchases in rural areas provided for in the State Housing Plan.
• 54.5% of respondents believe that housing options on the current market do not meet their financial expectations , and 14% say they do not meet their needs in terms of space and design.
• Although homeownership remains the most common housing option across all age groups, other alternatives are beginning to emerge among the most sought-after options, such as affordable rental housing (16.7%) and publicly subsidized housing (7.5%).
• About 40% of users say that whether a home is healthy is a determining factor in their purchase decision. By age group, those over 65 are the most influenced by this factor.
• When asked what the home of the future will be like, 32% closely associate it with sustainability and energy efficiency.

June 25, 2024. – Culmia, the real estate platform that brings together all housing solutions on the market, has released the second edition of the report “The Buyer’s Journey in Spain, ” which reveals that 73% of Spaniards who have searched for a home in the past year have not applied for any of the financial assistance programs offered by the government to begin the home-buying process. Although this is true for most people across all age groups, it is most prevalent among older adults—those aged 45 to 65 and older—where approximately 76% say they have not applied for this assistance.

These are some of the conclusions of the report prepared in collaboration with the polling firm Sigmados, which provides an up-to-date and detailed overview of the profile of homebuyers in Spain based on surveys conducted among a representative sample of more than 2,000 citizens over the age of 26 across the Community of Madrid, Catalonia, Andalusia, the Valencian Community, the Basque Country, and Galicia.

In the context of housing assistance programs, and with regard to those who have considered applying for these programs designed to facilitate home purchases, the report notes that nearly 20% of Spaniards admit they did not apply because they were not eligible, while only 4% of them say they have applied for the ICO’s 20% guarantee. Finally, a mere 2% say they have applied for rural housing assistance under the State Housing Plan.

Among those who have applied for some form of assistance, such as an ICO guarantee, it is evident that this option is more prevalent among younger age groups, specifically those between the ages of 25 and 45, with an average of 7.5% having applied for these potential benefits, compared to only 2% of those over 45 who report having done so.

In addition to providing an overview of the residential market in Spain—and the profile of homebuyers in particular—the report examines emerging trends related to the home of the future and explores the significance of certain factors, such as digitalization, sustainability, energy efficiency, and new forms of interaction in this context.

During the search: Affordable housing, a growing trend

When it comes to price, one in two Spaniards (54.5%) believes that the housing options on the current market do not meet their financial expectations. This figure confirms the trend outlined in the previous report, which noted that all age groups agree on the need for more housing with more affordable prices and terms, with a percentage exceeding 70%.

Meanwhile, 14% of Spaniards say that current market options do not meet their needs in terms of space and layout, 8.2% say they do not meet their expectations for common areas, and 5.7% say that the current offerings do not meet their expectations for complementary services. Only 17.4% of respondents say that housing options on the current market meet their expectations.

The report highlights that the regulatory framework—such as the Housing Act—has led to an indefinite halt in home purchases for more than 37% of Spaniards, with the greatest impact felt among young people. One year after the law went into effect, the report notes that, among Spaniards who have considered buying a home in the past year but ultimately did not, 63.8% made this decision as a result of the Housing Act and its regulatory impact.

It also reveals that, although homeownership is the preferred option across all age groups—with 71% of respondents considering it a possible option for the future—this percentage decreases among younger age groups. The current market context is leading to the emergence of new housing options that were previously less in demand. In this regard, 16% of Spaniards consider affordable rental housing to be their primary option, followed by 7.5% who see subsidized housing (VPO) as a possible future option, 2.8% who consider coliving, and 2.3% who consider flexible rental. Which of the following statements best describes the extent to which the current housing supply meets your needs and expectations? 4 Younger people, those under 30 (60.4%), are the least likely to view homeownership as a viable option for the future, while those over 65 (75.8%) are the most likely to choose homeownership.

In addition, 61% of Spaniards say they have considered renting an affordable home or one that receives some form of public subsidy. By age group, the youngest respondents—those between the ages of 26 and 29—are the most likely (21.3%) to view affordable rental housing as their preferred option for the future.

The Search and Purchase Process: Should You Seek Advice or Not?

As the industry evolves, preferences regarding advice before, during, and after the purchase of a home are also changing. Seven out of ten people identify areas where a real estate developer or agency can provide support during the home-buying process—a finding that aligns with the results of the first report, in which support from the developer was one of the aspects that most helped customers during this process.

In particular, more than 23% believe that a real estate agency or brokerage firm is helpful because of its better knowledge of the market and the advice it provides, followed by those who think that working with a real estate agency allows them to learn about more housing listings (19.6%).

By age group, as Spaniards get older, there is a growing preference for searching for housing without external advice. Meanwhile, when asked, “Based on your current situation, which of these housing options do you consider a possible fit for the future?” this preference stands at 34.9% for those over 65, but drops to 23.9% for those under 30.

Meanwhile, when it comes to beginning negotiations for the purchase of a home, the report notes that more than 67% of those surveyed prefer to interact with the seller and complete the purchase process through personal contact with a professional.

When Buying a Home: Design and Sustainability Define the Most Sought-After Homes

The ability to customize a home is an important factor for more than 68% of Spaniards, although it is not a deciding factor in the home-buying process. Home design is a key consideration among respondents, with a higher priority among those over 65 (41.5%) compared to those under 30 (30.4%).

Space and size are the factors that Spaniards value most in a home, at 71.7%. This is followed by natural light (69.3%) and, in third place, the layout of the rooms (56.4%), followed by the home’s thermal comfort.

When it comes to the home-search process as well, about 40% of users say that whether a home is healthy is a determining factor in their purchase. Fifty-five percent of people over 65 say that a home’s healthiness is a determining factor in their purchase, a figure that drops among people aged 30 to 44, who say that a home’s healthiness is relevant but does not determine their purchase.

Chemical pollutants (27.9%) are the aspect of home health that causes the most concern, followed by biological pollutants (24%) and physical pollutants (20.8%).

In addition, 21.3% of Spaniards prioritize sustainability in the home-building process and consider it an essential factor in the home-buying process; this factor is of greatest importance to those over 65.

This is reinforced by the fact that 50.7% of Spaniards say that energy certification is a deciding factor when buying a home, even though they are not willing to pay for it. The main reason buyers prefer homes with a high energy efficiency rating is to save on energy costs, cited by 68.6% of respondents.

Regarding home automation, Culmia’s report “The Buyer’s Journey in Spain” also reveals that one in two Spaniards—50%— are looking for homes that include home automation features for efficient home management. This trend was already evident in the first edition of the report, where these features accounted for 3.1% of the most highly valued factors for reducing a home’s fixed expenses.

The Home of the Future: Sustainable, Efficient, and Smart

The second edition of Culmia’s report, “The Buyer’s Journey in Spain,” also explores Spaniards’ perceptions of the home of the future and analyzes emerging trends that will shape homes in the medium and long term. The report’s findings reveal that several ideals related to the home of the future are already being implemented today.

Among the essential values that Spaniards associate with the home of the future are sustainability and efficiency( 32%), an idea that is particularly prevalent among people over 65. This is followed by affordability (27.3%) and then energy self-sufficiency (21.2%). Regarding the latter, nearly 58% of Spaniards expect the home of the future to achieve energy self-sufficiency.

On the other hand, regarding the materials expected to be used in the homes of the future, the report reveals that most Spaniards believe homes will continue to be built with traditional materials, followed by other options such as wood, in second place, and solar glass, in third place.

In line with the rise of new technologies, more than 23% of Spaniards believe that the home of the future will be smart. As a result, 34.4% believe that computers, smartphones, or tablets will be the primary means of interacting with the smart home, followed by communication through virtual assistants.

Regarding the process of buying the home of the future, the survey suggests that it will involve hyper-personalized advertising, followed by viewing the home through augmented reality, and, third, the use of social media. It also raises the possibility that other channels may emerge in this process, such as viewing via holograms and the metaverse, as well as influencers.

As for advice, it is believed that in-person interactions will be the most common channel for customer service during the home-buying process in the future. This is followed by phone support and WhatsApp support. Across all age groups, people believe that in-person interaction will be the most commonly used support channel in the future, although this view tends to decrease among younger age groups.

Finally, regarding financing for future home purchases, Spaniards expect to rely on bank financing rather than other payment and financing methods such as using personal assets, property swaps, bare ownership, or crowdfunding or crowdlending.

As a new feature this year, the report also analyzed children’s opinions on the home of the future, offering a new perspective from the viewpoint of future homebuyers in Spain. Respondents highlight the use of artificial intelligence and robots to improve home efficiency, and they expect more spacious, flexible, and well-lit spaces—all enabled by futuristic technology.

Analysis and Outlook for the Home of the Future

The report was presented this morning at the WOW Concept space in Madrid by Virginia Fernández, CEO and co-founder of SMART REAL ESTATE.

The event also featured a presentation titled “New Forms of Housing for the Future” by Irene Trujillo, Vice President at COWORD, co-founder of LINKES, and co-founder of Mujeres in Hospitality.

This was followed by a panel discussion titled “The Industry and the Housing of the Future,” moderated by Sandra Daza of Gesvalt’s General Management, featuring César Frías, CEO of Morph; Virginia Gasch, founding partner of VG Living; and Cristina Ontoso, Director of Sales and Marketing at Culmia.

Next, David Hueso, Real Estate Tech Strategist and Advisor, Investor, and Digital Accelerator, delivered a presentation titled “Real Estate & AI.”