The latest INE (National Statistics Institute) figures show that Spanish property sales fell by 27.1% in September compared to the same month last year. In August the decrease was a staggering 36.8%.
The overall decline in property sales for the first nine months of this year is put at 28.2%. Spain enjoyed a ten year property boom before things began to go wrong last year.
Most Spaniards are on adjustable-rate mortgages and were hit by increased interest rates. Now we have a global financial crisis, a credit crunch, an economy on the brink of recession and, due to the boom years, an oversupply of houses.