Increasing property prices adding to the strain on Balearic housing

Specifically, a square metre was on average valued at 2,055 euros, whereas it was 1,875 a year ago. However, there are certain parts of the Balearics where this average is significantly higher. In Ibiza Town, for instance, it is up to 2,620 euros, the highest price in the country and above a national average at the time of the last housing boom before that ran out because of economic crisis.

Foreign demand is one particular reason for the rise in price, but this is contributing to the pressures on the islands' citizens. The group representing teachers in Ibiza and Formentera have complained about the "serious difficulties" that there are in getting hold of housing, especially if this is for teachers who are brought in for substitution purposes once the school year has started.

Teachers and other groups are saying that in many instances there isn't rental accommodation available during the high season, given that owners can rent out to tourists at much higher prices. There have been similar complaints about this in Majorca, with Puerto Pollensa being a case in point: the demand from tourists and the willingness of owners to supply them with apartments have made it virtually impossible for people to find long-term rentals.

Although the market will be pleased with the increased prices, the level of activity in March in the Balearics was not comparable with performance nationally. There was a rise of 2.5% in the number of mortgages arranged in March, whereas the figure was 14.5% in the country as a whole.