The average price of second-hand housing in Spain has risen by 7.5% year-on-year during the second quarter of the year, leaving the price per square metre at €2,138, according to the latest idealista price index. As a result, Spain has reached a new record high, after beating the figures of the previous real estate boom cycle for the second month in a row.
Up to seven provincial capitals set new all-time highs in the sixth month of 2024 – Madrid, Barcelona, Palma, Malaga, Cadiz, Valencia and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. These seven cities are also registering record rent prices for permanent residences.
In June, it cost €13.4 per square metre per month to rent a property in Spain, representing an average increase of 13.2% year-on-year. Up to 34 Spanish provincial capitals reached record rental prices at the end of the second quarter but only these seven recorded peak rental prices in both the property and rental markets.
This article examines the property prices and rents in these stressed markets, where the shortage of supply and the greater pressure of demand are most noticeable.
Property and rent prices reach all-time highs in Barcelona
Barcelona is the most expensive capital city in Spain to rent a property, costing €22.1 per square metre per month. It also has the third-highest average property price, having reached a new record of €4,430/m2. In the Catalan capital, tenancy prices have increased by 17.8% year-on-year, one of the highest among the cities analysed, while rent has risen by 7.2%, the lowest increase recorded among the seven cities analysed.
By districts, Ciutat Vella (€24.5/m2), Eixample (€23.7/m2) and Sant Marti (€22.3/m2) are the most expensive areas to rent in Barcelona centre. Gràcia (€21.7/m2), Sants-Montjuïc (€19.9/m2) and Sant Andreu (€16.6/m2) are the six districts with the highest prices in Barcelona.
Meanwhile, the highest property prices are in Sarrià-Sant Gervasi (€5,847/m2), Eixample (€5,478/m2) and Les Corts (€5,390/m2), which have still not reached their peak, except in the former. Gracia (€4,859/m2) and Sant Marti (€4,174/m2) have also reached record property prices.
The biggest increases in rent prices over the last year were seen in Sants-Montjuïc (18.8%), Eixample (18.3%) and Sant Marti (17.6%), while Nou Barris barely rose by 3%, behind Horta Guinardo (10.2%) and Sarria-Sant Gervasi (10.7%).
In turn, Eixample stands out in terms of the evolution of property prices, with an increase of 12%, followed by Sant Marti (9.7%) and Les Corts (9%). However, prices fell by 4.8% in Nou Barris, while they only rose by 2.1% in Horta Guinardo and by 2.9% in Ciutat Vella.
Record property prices and rents in Madrid
In the Spanish capital, the average rent is the second highest in the country at €19.8/m2 per month, and also the second most expensive to buy a home at an average of €4,514/m2. The rise in rents in Madrid (17.9%) is the second highest of the cities analysed, while the 12.4% increase in property prices represents the third-highest figure on this list.
Up to 16 of Madrid's 21 districts have registered record high rents this month, particularly Salamanca (€24/m2), Chamartin (€20.2/m2) and Retiro (€20/m2). Although ahead of them, central Madrid (€23.5/m2) and Chamberi (€22.6/m2) have not reached record levels.
The most affordable districts in Madrid are currently Vicalvaro (€13/m2), Villa de Vallecas (€14.3/m2) and Villaverde (€14.4/m2), where the latter reached its all-time highest average rental price.
The biggest increases in rents were in Usera (22.8%), Moratalaz (21.3%) and Arganzuela (19.1%). No district has gone below double-digit rises, the "softest" increase being 12.8% in Barajas.
As for the property market, there are 13 districts with record prices. The most expensive is Salamanca (€7,846/m2), followed by Chamberí (€6,665/m2) and Chamartin (€6,285/m2). Still above €6,000 per square metre is central Madrid (€6,170/m2), but not quite reaching its peak.
The most affordable districts to buy a house in Madrid are Villaverde (€2,070/m2), a record figure for this area in the capital, followed by Puente de Vallecas (€2,367/m2) and Usera (€2,497/m2), both without reaching record highs.
The biggest property price increases in Madrid were in the most expensive areas of the city, as shown by the 18.4% increase in the Salamanca district, 14.9% in central Madrid, 12.2% in Chamberi, and 12.6% in Moratalaz. Another five districts have double-digit rises, such as Moncloa (10.5%), Arganzuela and Carabanchel (both with 10.4%), as well as Tetuan (10.3%) and Chamartin (10.2%).
On the other hand, Vicalvaro barely grew by 0.2% year-on-year, but did show record prices in the area, while Barajas grew by 5.1% and Fuencarral by 5.4%.
Valencia confirms that rent and property prices are at record highs
Valencia has recorded the highest rise in rent prices of these seven large capitals (19%), while it is the city with the second highest increase in property prices at 14.7% year-on-year.
Although its prices are still far from those of Madrid and Barcelona, Valencia has the maximum property (€2,554/m2) and rental prices (€14.1/m2).
In the rental market, where prices have risen the most, 10 of Valencia's 16 districts have record figures, such as the highest in Ciutat Vella (€17.9/m2), L'Eixample (€16.7/m2) or Poblats Maritims (€14.4/m2), which have also registered some of the most notable rent increases, with 22.6%, 24.2% and 13.2%, respectively.
Also, above 20%, the increases in Campanar (24.6%), Jesus (22.8%) and Quatre Carreres (21.3%) stand out. All Valencian districts have seen rent increase by more than 10%, like Madrid, with the lowest being 13.1% in L'Olivereta and Benimaclet, and 13.2% year-on-year in Poblats Maritims.
As for property prices in Valencia, the L'Eixample district has the highest average price (€3,764/m2), followed by Ciutat Vella (€3,536/m2) and El Pla del Real (€3,439/m2), while the most affordable are Rascanya (€1,749/m2) and L'Olivereta (€1,760/m2). Nine of the 16 Valencian districts recorded maximum prices.
Meanwhile, the highest increases corresponded to Camins al Grau (25.7%), Rascanya (21.9%) and Patraix (21.1%). Only two Valencian districts grew by less than 10%: Quatre Carreres (7.4%) and Algiros (7.7%).
On-trend Malaga with never-seen-before property and rent prices
The phenomenon affecting the city of Malaga has pushed its residential market to record rent and property prices, (€14.5/m2 to rent and €3,016/m2 property prices). The Costa del Sol's capital has the highest rise in sales prices of all the capitals analysed (19.9%) and a slightly more moderate 16.5% increase for rent.
The districts that have a large stock of properties have recorded the highest prices for property sales. The East district is the most expensive in Malaga (€4,029/m2), followed by central Malaga (€3,771/m2), Teatinos (€3,181/m2) and Carretera de Cadiz (€2,153/m2). This last district leads the price hikes (20.7%), ahead of Campanillas (19.1%) and Cruz de Humilladero (18.7%).
As for the rental market, the highest prices can be found in central Malaga, with a record €15.7 per square metre per month, the third highest increase in the city, behind Bailén-Miraflores (20.4%), which also reached a record, and Cruz de Humilladero (15.6%), which has not yet reached its peak.
Teatinos (€12.9/m2) is the third district in the city to reach a record high, but there are other more expensive districts, such as Este (€14.9/m2) or Carretera de Cadiz (€14.2/m2), which have not reached their highest rents this month. Only the Campanillas district (€10.6/m2) has registered a slight fall in rental prices of 0.1%.
Palma and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: examples of the tension of the residential market on the islands
The markets in the remaining three capitals each exhibit a unique blend of characteristics. These include their residential significance in tourist areas and specific features such as being island capitals or cities with limited capacity for further expansion, like Cádiz. In these capitals, the rental market is smaller than the property market, and there are fewer districts with sufficient supply to allow for meaningful data comparisons.
Rental prices in Palma reached €17 per square metre per month for the first time, after rising by 17.8% year-on-year. The most expensive district is Portixol-Molinar (€19/m2), followed by Genova-Bonanova-Sant Agusti (€18.5/m2), the district where prices have risen the most in the Balearic capital (20.9%).
Meanwhile, in terms of property prices, Palma has some of the highest prices in Spain at €4,144 per square metre and an annual increase of 9.4%. Up to 11 of the 15 areas that appear on idealista reach maximum prices. The most expensive district is Son Vida (€7,447/m2), although it has only risen by 2.1%. It is followed by Portixol-Molinar (€6,693/m2) and Ciutat Antigua (€5,797/m2). Still above €5,000 per square metre are Genova-Bonanova-Sant Agusti (€5,528/m2) and Sta Catalina-Son Armadans-Maritim (€5,032/m2).
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, however, has seen rents go above €13 per square metre for the first time, after a rise of 13.5% in the last year. The most prominent points in the island capital are Puerto-Las Canteras (€15.5/m2), Central Las Palmas (€12.4/m2) and the historic centre of Vegueta-Triana (€12/m2). Prices on the beach in the city increased by 12.4% in the last year.
On the property market, prices also exceeded the ceiling of €2,300/m2, after experiencing an increase of 8.3% year-on-year. The Puerto-Las Canteras area is once again the most expensive in the city, costing €3,441/m2 and a 10.6% increase, only surpassed by Tafira's 11.1% rise to €1,936 per square metre. The central area (€2,585/m2) and Vegueta-Triana (€2,356/m2) are the two most affordable districts.
Finally, the average rental price in Cadiz is €11.4 per square metre per month, after a 6.1% increase. The area of Playa Santa Maria del Mar-Playa Victoria has the most expensive rent, costing €12.1 per square metre. Meanwhile, the average property price in the Andalusian city now stands at €2,885 per square metre, up 11.1% year-on-year.
Five of the city's nine areas have reached record highs, with Playa Santa Maria del Mar-Playa Victoria at €3,724 per square metre, followed by Cortadura-Zona Franca at €3,704 per square metre and Ayuntamiento-Catedral at €3,049 per square metre, where prices have risen by 20.9%, the highest in the city of Cadiz.
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