Friday, December 12, 2008

Hundreds of Costa Blanca estate agencies forced to close

Two hundred estate agents on Costa Blanca forced to close due to crisis

Estate agents from Torrevieja, Guardamar del Segura and Orihuela Costa have this week presented their case for strengthening collaboration in the region in the face of the deepening economic crisis. So far 21 businesses have joined the initiative in an attempt to avoid having to close their agency. The idea behind the collaboration is to homogenize the process of sales, to unify contracts and fees and to make the market more transparent.

Five years ago real estate companies along the Costa Blanca expressed their interest in collaborating with rival agencies but, in the middle of the property boom, this never materialized. However, now that the economic panorama has changed drastically the opportunity to strengthen collaboration is more attractive.

The crisis in the property market is clearly demonstrated by some figures. Many properties are selling at as much as 30% below the asking price, and the number of transactions has gone down by 50% and in some areas by as much as 70%. Approximately half of the estate agents in Torrevieja and the surrounding area have been forced to close over the last few months (a reduction of 200).

The new collective announced today in local Costa Blanca newspapers that one of the first measures it will introduce is the creation of a shared group of properties for sale with the objective of making the local market more dynamic. They have also started publishing a monthly magazine with listings of property for sale.
posted by Euroresidentes at 11:27:00 AM

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home