Malaga city is becoming more popular with people who want to buy a second home

The culture and leisure facilities, services and good communications are attracting buyers who are comfortably off and looking for homes in the centre or east of Malaga city

The real estate sector is reporting the appearance of a new profile of property-hunter in the city of Malaga: a couple, aged over 55, Spanish or foreign, comfortably off, and looking for a top-floor apartment in the historic centre or La Malagueta district as a holiday home.

Malaga is now high up on the list of popular places to buy a second home. Estate agents say this is because it has become a more important tourist destination in recent years, thanks to its museums, the traffic-free city centre, the increased number of cruises which call at the port and the fame of its gastronomy.

The city centre and the east side are those which are most attractive to property seekers. As a result, the Costa del Sol can no longer claim exclusivity for residential tourism in the province. The city has begun to attract people who want a second home but, rather than sunshine and beaches, are looking for “an urban setting, with good communications, services and leisure facilities,” said José Antonio Pérez, director of the Real Estate Chair of the Institute of Business Practice (IPE). And if that can be found beside the sea and close to other attractive places like Marbella or Granada, even better.

“The common denominator in this demand goes beyond nationality, because there are as many Spanish as Norwegians, Belgians, Germans looking for somewhere in the city… they are at a medium-high level in terms of wealth and are all over the age of 55,” he explains. The fact that Malaga has become fashionable as an urban tourist destination has a lot to do with their decision.

Source: SUR in English November 2015