Spanish Business News

Repossessed houses in Spain are worth 43 percent less on average than the valuations assigned on the mortgages for the properties, according to Fitch Ratings.

Price declines range from 20 percent to 58 percent, analysts Juan David Garcia and Carlos Masip in Madrid wrote in a report analyzing 8,235 properties funded by loans from banks including Banco Santander SA (SAN) and Bankia SA. The mortgages are in asset-backed securities with high loan-to-value ratios.

“Fitch does not expect lending to recover in 2012, as financial institutions are more focused on optimising their balance sheets, while their access to funding is limited,” the analyst wrote. “Lending is likely to remain concentrated on existing high-quality borrowers and on potential buyers of banks’ repossessed properties.”

Read the full article at Bloomberg