Rental demand is growing in the outskirts of Spanish cities

Demand pressure on the existing supply of rental housing is becoming increasingly acute in the suburbs of major cities. According to idealista’s relative demand study for the third quarter, a rising number of towns on the outskirts of provincial capitals are now experiencing the highest relative demand for rental properties.

Rental demand is increasingly shifting to the outskirts of Madrid and Barcelona

It is once again clear that the towns surrounding Madrid and Barcelona are the most sought-after places in Spain for securing a rental home relative to the available supply on idealista. Twelve of the top fifteen are towns in these two metropolitan areas, headed by Leganés and Móstoles in the province of Madrid, and Hospitalet de Llobregat and Terrassa on the outskirts of Barcelona.

They are joined by other Madrid-area municipalities such as Getafe (5), Fuenlabrada (6), Torrejón de Ardoz (7), Alcalá de Henares (8), Alcorcón (12) and Alcobendas (13), with San Sebastián de los Reyes (24) also appearing further down the list. All of them register higher relative demand than the city of Madrid itself, which ranks 33rd.

Similarly, several towns still rank ahead of Barcelona, which appears in 21st place. These include Sabadell (9) and Badalona (11), while others, such as Sant Cugat del Vallès (35), Esplugues de Llobregat (68), Castelldefels (70) and Sitges (120) also feature among the most in-demand locations for rental homes.

Below Madrid city, rental demand is also notable in Majadahonda (42) and Las Rozas de Madrid (52), as well as Villaviciosa de Odón (93), Pozuelo de Alarcón (96), Boadilla del Monte (110), Villanueva de la Cañada (116) and La Moraleja (161).

The provincial capitals facing the highest rental pressure aren’t Barcelona or Madrid

The most sought-after provincial capitals appear in a second tier of idealista’s city ranking, where the two major capitals are not prominent. Guadalajara, influenced by strong demand in the Madrid suburbs, is the only provincial capital to rank among the top 10 most in-demand cities for rentals.

The rest follow consecutively between positions 14 and 19, after giving way to the cities on the outskirts of Madrid and Barcelona: Vitoria (14), Pamplona (15), Lleida (16), Zaragoza (17), Palma (18) and Tarragona (19).

Barcelona is still within the top 25 most in-demand cities, but Madrid is not, appearing at 33rd place. Other provincial capitals appearing above Madrid include Castellón de la Plana (27) and Toledo (30).

Still among the 50 most prominent towns in this ranking of demand for rental housing are other provincial capitals such as Santa Cruz de Tenerife (37), Bilbao (38), Girona (39), Burgos (41), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (45), Logroño (48) or Huelva (49).

In total, 48 provincial capitals appear on this list of cities in highest demand for rentals, with at least 200 rental ads posted during the past quarter.

Other cities that "win" in rental demand over provincial capitals

The situation in Madrid and Barcelona – where rental pressure is shifting from the capitals to their metropolitan areas – is not unique. Other provincial capitals, including some of Spain’s largest cities such as Valencia, Seville and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, are also experiencing a similar shift in rental demand towards their outlying towns, a trend now evident in 11 provinces.

In Valencia province, where the capital ranks 54th, five nearby towns appear in higher positions: Torrent (23), Paterna (25), Moncada (44), Puerto de Sagunto (47) and Gandía (53). Several other towns are also featured, including Cullera (89), Oliva (97), Alboraya (103) and Canet d’En Berenguer (119).

In Gran Canaria, Telde (22) shows higher demand than the island’s capital, which ranks 45th. Rental demand is also spreading southwards to towns such as Santa Bartolomé de Tirajana (144) and Mogán (150).

A similar pattern is seen in Tenerife. San Cristóbal de La Laguna (20) is the Canary Island town with the highest relative rental demand and, together with Granadilla de Abona, sits above the island’s capital, which ranks 37th. Other towns, including Arona (43), Adeje (83) and Puerto de la Cruz (117), also appear on the list.

Another clear example is the province of Alicante, which, along with Madrid, has the greatest number of towns in the ranking. Alcoy (32) and Elche (46) both rank ahead of Alicante city, which sits in 59th position. Other towns listed include San Juan de Alicante (61), Benidorm (64), San Vicente del Raspeig (73), Torrevieja (77), Santa Pola (87), Orihuela (94), Denia (105), Guardamar del Segura (107), Calpe (111), El Campello (122), Pilar de la Horadada (124), Altea (126), Finestrat (149) and Jávea (154).

In Seville province, Dos Hermanas (36) surpasses the capital in rental demand pressure, although these are the only two towns in the province to appear on the list.

In Cádiz, Jerez de la Frontera (50) and Algeciras (91) rank ahead of the capital (95), while Chiclana de la Frontera (114), Conil de la Frontera (128), El Puerto de Santa María (139), Rota (140), Chipiona (141), Sanlúcar de Barrameda (147) and Sotogrande (160) also feature prominently.

Elsewhere, Vigo (66) has overtaken Pontevedra (109), El Ejido (71) and Roquetas de Mar (74) lead Almería (85) – where Vera (133) also appears – and Plasencia (156) sits slightly ahead of Cáceres (158).

Data compiled and analysed by idealista/data, idealista's proptech, which provides information for a professional audience to facilitate strategic decision-making in Spain, Italy and Portugal. It uses all the idealista database parameters in each country and other public and private data sources to offer valuation, investment, recruitment and market analysis services.