Property buyer targets £18m in Mallorca boom

An entrepreneur from Edinburgh who set up his own business focused on luxury property in Mallorca is looking to see the value of homes he has helped to buy total about €20 million (£18m) this year, buoyed by a flourishing local market.

Buyers are attracted by Mallorcas relative affordability and high standard of living. Picture: Simon Birt.

Richard Heaney is the founder of Elan Palma Property, which facilitates buying properties on the island, after doing deals in the UK and seeing a slowdown in the London market.

The majority of his customer base is from the UK, including Scotland, looking to buy second homes and attracted by Mallorca’s relative affordability and high standard of living.

It is estimated that 40 per cent of the destination's property buyers are from overseas, from Germany and Scandinavian countries, for example, as well as the UK.

"The majority of clients are those not retiring but looking to relax a little bit and have a lovely second home to enjoy the lifestyle of Mallorca," Heaney said, adding that 2018 proved a productive year for his business.

"At the higher end of the market I think people have got more money than ever before."

The average price of a property purchase he is involved in is around the €6 million mark, and he is eyeing €20m in total purchase value as a “conservative” target. Property consultancy Knight Frank in its Mallorca Insight 2019 report said it expected to see residential sales prices continuing to rise this year

Heaney has also been making some in-roads on the investment side, for example helping with requests to buy a residential property with a view to turning it into a boutique hotel, for example. Other assets being sought are ports and marinas.

"I’d say probably this year 10 to 15 per cent of my business in terms of time will be taken up by this kind of commercial investment side of things."

In summary, he said: “There’s a lot going on out here. The market’s moving in the right direction and I think I can see it moving very well for the next ten years [or so]."