The price of property complete with squatters in Granada province: from 5,000 to 500,000 euros

Luxury villas right near the beach, centrally located flats in the Recogidas district of Granada city and a lot of properties in the Los Periodistas district are some of the most eye-catching ads that fill the specialised filter for property sales on the Idealista property website.

However, there's just one catch: these properties have squatters currently living in them. Amidst the housing crisis, sales of squatted properties have increased fivefold in just one year. The phenomenon was first detected in Granada province in 2024 and has skyrocketed since then. Last year, there were fewer than fifty, 40 to be precise, and currently Idealista, which introduced a specific category into its search, has 232 properties available in these conditions, a growth of 477.5 per cent.

Seventy-two per cent of the supply is concentrated in Granada city and the municipalities nearby. Only 22.9 per cent of the total number of properties offered in these conditions are located in the city itself. , Casería de Montijo, La Paz and Cartuja.

A year ago, the advertisements were placed by only one specialised estate agency, but now there are almost a dozen companies offering these properties in the province. The sale price of a squatted house is well below market value, between 40% and 60% below the usual cost per square metre, although they also come with a long list of disadvantages and uncertainties for the buyer.

The prices at which these properties are being offered vary widely. The cheapest is sold for a mere 5,250 euros in Alhama de Granada and is 114 square metres, when a single square metre in the province is worth around 2,500 euros. In contrast, the most expensive is in Loma del Gato in Almuñécar, which is on the market for 550,000 euros and the estate has 500 square metres built on a plot of 2,500 square metres.

It is not the only luxury property on the Costa Tropical, another property is situated next to Cotobro beach and its 140 square metres have been valued at 248,300 euros. In Playa Granada, in one of the most popular areas of Motril, a flat is on the market for 115,000 euros. However, a similar property in the same residential area is valued at over 300,000 euros.

In Granada city a four-bedroom flat in Calle Muladies is valued at 421,000 euros. In Bola de Oro, a detached house now advertised for 299,000 euros has fallen in price by more than 20 per cent in six months. Finally, in Recogidas, in the heart of the city, there is a flat for sale with a tenant living there and the sellers are asking for 188,000 euros.

Given the impossibility of viewing the flat in person, the buyer doesn't know what they are buying. It is not possible to make an accurate valuation when taking out a mortgage, as they can only rely on the land registry references and the condition of the property is unknown.

The majority of buyers tend to be market experts who are professionally involved in purchasing properties to renovate them and, once they have removed the tenant, they sell them on.

According to Ángel Muñoz, president of the Granada Real Estate Association, with the lack of housing supply, some individuals are opting for this type of property. However, at present, the percentage for sale is still negligible compared to the rest of the market. It should be noted that there are at least 13,000 houses for sale in the province, compared to the residual volume represented by squatted properties.

"It is a minority, but it has increased. Unfortunately, this phenomenon exists, even though some politicians deny it. It is bought more cheaply because the buyer assumes the situation of having to vacate the property. Obviously, that is why these types of transactions take place," he says.

The seller must indicate in the deposit agreement and in the deeds that the flat is illegally occupied. Given the situation of these properties, eviction proceedings should be initiated. If the process has already begun, it should be noted that the buyer is subrogated to the legal actions already underway.

According to Cosmopolitan Properties, a real estate agency operating in Malaga and Granada, "it's a special product that's not for everyone. Buyers are usually experts in dealing with squatters, with whom they reach an agreement or wait for the legal process to bear fruit," says the agency. It adds that the phenomenon of selling squatted properties began five years ago. "Buyers end up making a considerable profit," they acknowledge.

There are only three options for getting rid of the tenant: follow the legal procedure, which is the slowest; contact the squatter and give them money in exchange for leaving; or contact a company specialising in evictions.