During an interview on TVE this morning, Housing minister, Beatriz Corredor, claimed that now that property prices are rising more or less in line with the IPC inflation rate, "it is the right moment" to buy, and urged property promoters to make an effort to ensure that vacant property prices "adapt" to the demands of the market.

Pointing out that there are currently 600,000-1,000,000 vacant properties in Spain, but only around 450,000 potential buyers, the minister encouraged property developers "to be able to adjust their prices" in line with the laws of supply and demand theory.

Ms Corredor admitted that it might not be such a good time to invest in the second-hand property sector, where prices tend to be less flexible owing to the elevated profit expectations of owner-occupiers.

She also said that it is "unsustainable" for 600,000 new homes to built in Spain each year, and that at 18% of annual GDP, the industry carries excessive weight in comparison to Spain's EU partners, where the average contribution of the construction industry to total GDP is much lower, at just 12%.

Ms Corredor was also forced to admit that the current financial crisis - rising prices, rising unemployment, rising interest rates, reduced economic growth - is making it difficult for "many more families" to either get on the property ladder in the first place, or afford their mortgage repayments once they do.