Spain’s de Guindos Says Home Prices to Fall With Bank Cleanup

A cleanup of real estate on the books of Spanish banks will contribute to a decline in property prices that will make homes available to more people, Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said.

Spanish banks are “filling up” with real-estate assets such as apartments that aren’t going to market because they’re not being priced properly, de Guindos said in an interview with state broadcaster TVE today. When they are priced at their real value “we’ll find that the price of housing in Spain will fall more, there’ll be an adjustment and it will be available for a lot more people,” he said.