MADRID: The number of home mortgages granted to prospective buyers in Spain increased by 19.8 percent in 2015 when compared with a year earlier, according to data published Friday by Spain’s Statistical Office (INE).
The INE said a total of 244,827 home mortgages were granted in 2015, with the amount of capital loaned rising by 24.1 percent to 25.934 billion euros (28.345 billion U.S. dollars) and the average value per mortgage increasing by 3.6 percent to 105,931 euros.
The INE also reported that the number of home mortgages in December reached 19,362, which meant a 21.2 percent increase year-on-year. Meanwhile, home mortgages rose by 0.6 percent from November to December.
Spain’s housing market has been seriously affected by the burst of the housing bubble in 2008. In 2008, 2011 and 2012 home mortgages fell by more than 32 percent, while falling less in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2013. The first time they grew was in 2014 when they rose by 2.3 percent. (1 euro=1.09 U.S. dollars)
