The fall in house sales in the Balearics has left a hole in the government's 2023 accounts.
By the end of the third quarter, revenue from property sales tax and document processing was 597 million euros. The forecast for the first nine months of the year was 730 million. For the whole year it is 979 million. Last year, there was record revenue of 981 million.
The slowdown in the property market is for different reasons. One is the increase in housing prices. While this has been working to the government's benefit in recent years because of the percentages it takes, the never-ceasing increase is now acting to its disadvantage.
Sales in September, for example, were down 29%. Fewer buyers can afford the prices. In addition, there has been the rise in interest rates, while banks have become more cautious in their lending.
Where the foreign buyer market is concerned, it still accounts for roughly a third of all sales, but it too has experienced a slump in transactions.