Home mortgages signed fell by 18.2% in May and average interest rate moderated to 3.25%

Jul 19. () –

The number of mortgages taken out on homes fell by 18.2% in May compared to the same month in 2023, to 27,425 loans, the lowest for a fifth month of the year since 2020, with an average interest rate slightly more moderate than that of the previous month, according to data released this Thursday by the National Institute of Statistics (INE).

Specifically, the average interest rate for mortgages on homes reached 3.25% in May, compared to 3.38% in April, recording its lowest value since August of last year.

With the year-on-year decline in May, the number of mortgages on homes is back at negative rates, its biggest drop since November 2023, after having risen by 28% in April, the highest since January 2022.

The average amount of mortgages on homes fell by 0.3% year-on-year in the fifth month of the year, to 141,457 euros, while the capital loaned fell by 18.5%, to almost 3.881 billion euros.

In May, 44.6% of mortgages were issued at variable rates and 55.4% at fixed rates. The average initial interest rate was 3.07% for variable rate mortgages and 3.42% for fixed rate mortgages.

On a monthly basis (May over April), home mortgages fell by 19.9%, while the capital loaned fell by 18.7% and the average amount rose by 1.5%.

In the first five months of the year, the number of mortgages to buy a home has fallen by 4.5%, with a decrease in the capital loaned of 6.7%.

ANDALUSIA AND CATALONIA SIGN THE MOST MORTGAGES ON HOUSING

By autonomous communities, those that registered the highest number of mortgages on homes in May of this year were Andalusia (5,496), Catalonia (5,241) and Madrid (5,494).

Last May, all communities signed fewer mortgages on homes than in the same month of 2023, with notable declines in Asturias (+33.3%), Cantabria (-32%), Madrid (-27.8%) and Galicia (+23.7%).

THE TOTAL NUMBER OF MORTGAGED PROPERTIES INCREASED BY ALMOST 27%

According to data from the statistical agency, the number of mortgages on rural and urban properties (the latter including homes) fell by 21.3% in May compared to the same month in 2023, to a total of 35,125 loans.

The capital of mortgage loans granted fell by 13.2% in the fifth month of the year, to 6,388.76 million euros, while the average amount of mortgages established on all properties rose by 10.4% year-on-year, to 181,887 euros.