A home each?

The construction boom on the Costa Blanca is leading to a situation where some towns have more homes than residents, it was revealed this week

A report released by Caja España bank shows the situation is worse in the Marina Alta and the Vega Baja.

Torrevieja has a recorded population of 92,500 residents and there are over 100,000 registered homes.

In Jávea there are 25,000 homes built and a further 1,000 under construction for a registered population of 28,242.

A large percentage of these properties are holiday homes and around 10 per cent are empty, either for sale, to let, or abandoned.

Figures in other Marina Alta and Baja towns are rapidly catching up say experts, with development schemes approved or to be allowed by general town plans (PGOU). In the case of the majority of Costa towns, the figure is of less than two residents for every property.

Problems come with the fact that while every home requires additional expense in matters of public services and maintenance, the number of tax-paying residents does not increase proportionally leaving town halls with a hole in the coffers and local taxpayers with higher rates.