Many members of my family live in Spain (South of Barcelona). Property has been a dinner table topic for the last 6 or 7 years, however, views expressed have really changed of late with everyone noticing a decline of prices. It's not that surprising either given the sheer volume of building which has been going on over the last few years.
The fact is that nobody who I know is expecting the value of Spanish property in that area to increase in the short to medium term. Yes, Spanish property may be a good long term investment, but even if it is, why buy now? Given the inevitable sharp dip which the market is embarking on surely the best policy is to wait a couple of years. Yes, you miss out on use of the property, but the volume of rental properties available means that holiday villas can be rented for very reasonable prices in the meantime.
Yes, you could buy now and make money in 20 years, or you could wait a few years and potentially make a whole lot more money.
Brian, with all due respect, are you unware of the oversupply situation in Spain? Or do you have a vested interest in seeing demand increase?