Housing
Sections
Highlight
Sections
Highlight
Of the 358,000 home sales and purchases that took place in Spain in 2024, 139,100 were made by foreigners, that's 10% more than in 2023. This has inevitably pushed up prices. In fact, the average cost of a home bought by foreign clients rose by 8.6% in 2024, to 2,362 euros per square metre, while those bought by Spanish buyers stood at 1,713 euros per square metre.
Valencia (41,400 sales), Andalucía (25,500) and Catalonia (21,500) were the three regions in which foreigners invested the most in housing in 2024, according to data from the general council of notaries.
In addition to Madrid, where house prices have shot up by 60% in the last ten years, it is in the most tourist areas of the country where prices are most under pressure. Data released by the Bank of Spain confirms that the Balearic Islands, Catalonia, Andalucía and the Canary Islands are the four regions where housing has risen the most, all with increases of more than 38% since 2014, without taking inflation into account. One of the causes identified by the Bank of Spain is that more than half of the homes in these areas are in the hands of foreigners, which means that the use is tourist.
The archipelagos of the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands have lost more than 50% of their residential capacity. In other very touristy areas such as Malaga or Alicante, the loss is around 40% and 35%, respectively. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs has forced Airbnb to remove more than 65,000 illegal ads from its platform, confirming that the boom in tourist rental platforms is pushing up prices throughout Spain, but with greater intensity in Madrid, Barcelona, the Mediterranean coast and both archipelagos. "There are thousands of homes out of reach of families because of the tension in housing prices due to tourist rentals," consistently repeats minister Pablo Bustinduy.
In 2024, home purchases by foreigners increased especially among Polish people (almost 44% more transactions than in 2023), Chinese (+26.5%) and Ukrainians (+26.3%). Also noteworthy were the increases among Dutch (+26%) and Colombians (+23.4%). In contrast, purchases by Russians (-10.6%), French (-2.0%) and British (-1.7%) fell.
As there are areas with much more demand for housing than others, the rise in prices is concentrated in certain areas. Unfortunately, the situation doesn't seem to be improving in 2025. Early indicators point to house price increases of close to 10% in the first quarter. According to the Bank of Spain, the current deficit between supply and demand reaches 550,000 homes. During the presentation of the annual report last week, the institution's former director of economy and statistics, Ángel Gavilán, stated that it will be "several years" before this gap can be reduced.
Gavilán said that the imbalance between housing supply and demand "contributes to the deterioration of accessibility", with its impact being greatest among young people in the geographical areas where economic activity is concentrated. Once again, this imbalance is not evenly distributed, but is concentrated in five provinces: Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Alicante and Malaga.
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Esta funcionalidad es exclusiva para registrados.
Reporta un error en esta noticia
Comentar es una ventaja exclusiva para registrados
¿Ya eres registrado?
Inicia sesiónNecesitas ser suscriptor para poder votar.