Spain - Costa de la luz properties, Algarve Property sale

Economy
Main article: Economy of Spain
According to the World Bank, Spain's economy is the ninth largest worldwide and the fifth largest in Europe. As of 2006, the absolute GDP was valued at $1.084 trillion according to the CIA Factbook, (see List of countries by GDP (nominal)). The per capita PPP is estimated at $27,400 (2006), behind the major industrialized nations of the G7.
The centre-right government of former prime minister Aznar worked successfully to admission to the group of countries launching the euro in 1999. Unemployment stood at 7.6% in October 2006, a rate that compares favorably to many other European countries, and which is a marked improvement over rates that exceeded 20% in the early 1990s. Perennial weak points of Spain's economy include high inflation,[29] a large underground economy[30], and an education system, slated in OECD reports, together with the United States and UK, among the poorest for developed countries.[31] Nevertheless, it is expected that the Spanish economy will continue growing based on a bigger strength of the industry, the growth of the global economy and the biggest trade with Latin America and Asia.
On the brighter side, the Spanish economy is credited for having avoided the virtual zero growth rate of some of its largest partners in the EU.[32] In fact, the country's economy has created more than half of all the new jobs in the European Union over the five years ending 2005.[33] The Spanish economy has thus been regarded lately as one of the most dynamic within the EU, attracting significant amounts of foreign investment.[34] During the last four decades the Spanish tourism industry has grown to become the second biggest in the world[35] worth approximately 40 billion Euros in 2006[36] More recently, the Spanish economy has benefited greatly from the global real estate boom, with construction representing 16% of GDP and 12% of employment.[35] According to calculations by the German newspaper Die Welt, Spain is on pace to overtake countries like Germany in per capita income by 2011.[37]
However, the downside of this has been a corresponding rise in the levels of personal debt; as prospective homeowners struggle to meet asking prices, so the average level of household debt has tripled in less than a decade. Among lower income groups, the median ratio of indebtedness to income was 125% in 2005.[38]
Demography
Main article: Demography of Spain
Geographical distribution of the Spanish population in 2005In 2007 Spain officially reached 45 million people[39][40] registered at the Padrón municipal, an official record analogous to the British Register office. Spain's population density, at 87.8/km² (220/sq. mile), is lower than that of most Western European countries and its distribution along the country is very unequal. With the exception of the region surrounding the capital, Madrid, the most populated areas lie around the coast.
The population of Spain doubled during the twentieth century, due to the spectacular demographic boom by the 60's and early 70's. The pattern of growth was extremely uneven due to large-scale internal migration from the rural interior to the industrial cities during the 60's and 70's. No fewer than eleven of Spain's fifty provinces saw an absolute decline in population over the century. Then, after the birth rate plunged in the 80's and Spain's population became stalled, a new population increase started based initially in the return of many Spanish who emigrated to other European countries during the 70's and, more recently, it has been boosted by the large figures of foreign immigrants, mostly from Latin America (38.75%), Eastern Europe (16.33%), North Africa (14.99%) and Sub-Saharan Africa (4.08%).[41] In 2005, Spain instituted a 3-month amnesty program through which certain hitherto undocumented aliens were granted legal residency. Also some important pockets of population coming from other countries in the European Union are found (20.77% of the foreign residents), specially along the Mediterranean costas and Balearic islands, where many choose to live their retirement or even telework. These are mostly English, French, German, and Dutch from fellow EU countries and, from outside the EU, Norwegian.
Immigration in Spain
Main article: Immigration to Spain
According to the Spanish government there were 3.7 million foreign residents in Spain in 2005; independent estimates put the figure at 4.8 million people, or 11% of the total population (Red Cross, World Disasters Report 2006). According to residence permit data for 2005, about 500,000 were Moroccan, another 500,000 were Ecuadorian, more than 200,000 were Romanian, and 260,000 were Colombian. Other important foreign communities are British (8.09%), French (8.03%), Argentine (6.10%), German (5.58%) and Bolivian (2.63%). In 2005, a regularisation programme increased the legal immigrant population by 700,000 people. Since 2000, Spain has experienced high population growth as a result of immigration flows, despite a birth rate that is only half the replacement level. This sudden and ongoing inflow of immigrants, particularly those arriving clandestinely by sea, has caused noticeable social tension.[42][43][44][45][46]
Based on 2004 figures [47] Within the EU Spain has the second highest immigration rate in percentage terms (after Cyprus), but by a great margin the highest in actual numbers of immigrants.
There are a number of reasons to explain this, including Spain's cultural ties with Latin America, its geographical position, the porosity of its borders, the large size of its submerged economy and the strength of the agricultural and construction sectors which demand more low cost labour than can be offered by the national workforce. Another statistically significant factor is the large number of residents of EU origin typically retiring to Spain's Mediterranean coast. In fact, Spain has been Europe's largest absorber of migrants for the past six years, with its immigrant population increasing fourfold as 2.8 million people have arrived. According to the Financial Times, Spain is the most favoured destination for West Europeans considering to move from their own country and seek jobs elsewhere in the EU.[2] (see Immigration to Spain).

Culture
The Hemispheric at the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències, ValenciaMain articles: Culture of Spain and UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Spain
Spain is a largely mountainous country in the southwest of Europe, consisting of various geographically diverse regions and known for its culturally diverse heritage, having been influenced by many nations and peoples throughout its history. The Spanish culture has roots in Celtiberian, Latin, Visigothic, Roman Catholicism, in minority way, Islam, and an ongoing tension between the centralized state (dominated in recent centuries by Castile) and numerous regions and minority peoples. In addition, the history of the nation and its Mediterranean and Atlantic environment have played strong roles in shaping its culture.
Spain is, after Italy, the country with the second highest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the world, with a total of 40.

Education in Spain
Main article: Education in Spain The framework of Education in Spain is described in this article. State Education in Spain is free and compulsory from 6 to 16 years. The current education system is called LOGSE (Ley de Ordenación General del Sistema Educativo).

Geography

Main article: Geography of Spain
At 194,884 mi² (504,782 km²), Spain is the world's 51st-largest country. It is comparable in size to Turkmenistan, and is somewhat larger than the U.S. state of California.
On the west, Spain borders Portugal, on the south, it borders Gibraltar (a British overseas territory) and Morocco, through its cities in North Africa (Ceuta and Melilla). On the northeast, along the Pyrenees mountain range, it borders France and the tiny principality of Andorra. Spain also includes the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean and a number of uninhabited islands on the Mediterranean side of the strait of Gibraltar, known as Plazas de soberanía, such as the Chafarine islands, the isle of Alborán, the "rocks" (peñones) of Vélez and Alhucemas, and the tiny Isla Perejil. In the northeast along the Pyrenees, a small exclave town called Llívia in Catalonia is surrounded by French territory.
Mainland Spain is dominated by high plateaus and mountain ranges, such as the Sierra Nevada. Running from these heights are several major rivers such as the Tajo, the Ebro, the Duero, the Guadiana and the Guadalquivir. Alluvial plains are found along the coast, the largest of which is that of the Guadalquivir in Andalusia.
Due to Spain's geographical situation and orographic conditions, the climate is extremely diverse; it can be roughly divided in three areas:
The moderate Continental climate takes place in the inland areas of the Peninsula (largest city, Madrid).
The Mediterranean climate region, which roughly extends from the Andalusian plain along the southern and eastern coasts up to the Pyrenees, on the seaward side of the mountain ranges that run near the coast (largest city, Barcelona).
An Oceanic climate takes place in Galicia and the coastal strip by the Bay of Biscay (largest city, Bilbao). This area is often called Green Spain

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