Non-resident Ukrainian citizens are currently not among those who invest the most in properties in Spain, compared to Russian citizens who are among the top 6 investors. However, between January 2021 and June 2021, the average price they bought for a home was €2,241 per square meter, the highest level since the end of 2012. It is worth mentioning that this record was set in 2008, when Ukrainians reached a figure of up to 3,314 euros per square meter. In 2021, the number of sales was 714 and 771 in the first and second half, respectively. These are increases of 23.3% and 30.9% compared to the same periods of the previous year.
Like Russian citizens, Ukrainians prefer the Mediterranean coasts, islands and big cities like Madrid and Barcelona. That is why the economic consequences that Ukrainian citizens will suffer as a result of the war will exacerbate the effects already produced by the reduction of Russian operations in these regions.
For comparison, Russian citizens have bought about 2% of total purchases from foreigners in recent years. On the other hand, the Ukrainians move an average of 1%. Instead, they have carried out just 110 operations since the start of the pandemic, while the Russians have carried out 420. The highest number was recorded in early 2016.
It remains to be seen what the impact of the war in Ukraine will be on the real estate in Spain, but among the effects of the war it has already been seen that both Russian and Ukrainian citizens accelerate the purchase of housing in Spain, for fear of banks going bankrupt. In the long term, however, luxury home sales in some parts of the country are sure to feel the impact of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, according to Gerard Marcet, a founding partner of a consultancy agency in Barcelona.
