The average house price in Spain continues to rise, and the rate of increase is accelerating.
According to the Real Estate Registry Statistics from the Association of Registrars, the average house price accelerated in Q2 2024, rising by 2.9% to €2,057 per square metre, up from 0.8% in the previous quarter.
This increase is largely attributed to a 3.8% rise in used housing prices, while new build prices increased by 0.3%. This marks the fourth consecutive quarter of price increases.
The annualised results for the past 12 months reveal a more consistent trend, with the average house price in Spain reaching €2,004 per square metre, marking a 2.6% year-on-year increase. This is the highest average since mid-2008, according to historical data from registrars. New housing prices have set a new record at €2,194 per square metre, while used housing prices are at €1,958 per square metre, the highest since late 2008.
Registrars note that new housing constitutes only about 20% of transactions and often includes sales agreements made up to two years in advance. Therefore, the trends in used housing prices are generally more indicative of the market’s current state.
Provinces with the most expensive and affordable housing
In Q2, the highest average house prices by autonomous community were in the Balearic Islands (€3,534/m²), followed by Madrid (€3,390/m²), the Basque Country (€2,928/m²), the Canary Islands (€2,528/m²), and Catalonia (€2,500/m²). Conversely, the most affordable housing was found in Castilla-La Mancha (€876/m²) and Extremadura (€813/m²), the only regions with average prices below €1,000 per square metre.
At the provincial level, the highest prices were in the Balearic Islands (€3,534/m²), Guipuzcoa (€3,423/m²), Madrid (€3,390/m²), Barcelona (€2,869/m²), and Vizcaya (€2,925/m²). On the other hand, the lowest average prices were in Ciudad Real (€675/m²), Cuenca (€687/m²), Caceres (€774/m²), and Teruel (€780/m²).
According to registrars, 38 provincial capitals have seen positive year-on-year price increases. The most expensive cities are San Sebastian (€5,554/m²), Barcelona (€4,441/m²), Madrid (€4,207/m²), Palma (€3,471/m²), and Bilbao (€2,989/m²). Conversely, the most affordable average prices are in Zamora (€1,014/m²), Ciudad Real (€1,062/m²), and Jaen (€1,120/m²).
Fewer home sales
According to the report, between April and June, 146,273 property sales were recorded in the land registries, marking a 3.4% decline from the previous quarter. This reflects a continuation of the downward trend observed in the latter part of 2023, though at a more moderate pace.
New housing sales totalled 29,175, a 6.6% decrease from the previous quarter, while used housing transactions amounted to 117,098, showing a 2.6% quarterly decline.
Data from the 12 months show that 567,784 homes were sold, representing a 1% drop from the 573,494 transactions recorded in the same period the previous year, thus maintaining the overall downward trend despite the relatively better quarterly performance.
Fewer mortgages registered
Regarding housing mortgages, the number of transactions dropped to 108,910 in Q1 2024, a 14.3% decrease compared to the previous quarter, which saw a 21.1% surge.
According to registrars, with these data, and as expected, the percentage of mortgages taken out on registered home transactions has decreased significantly in the last quarter, specifically by 8.1 percentage points, standing at 63.8%; in line, moreover, with the proportion recorded throughout 2023.
More foreign demand
Foreign demand for housing reached 14.8% of total transactions, up 0.6 percentage points from the previous quarter and well above the historical average of 12% since 2014.
In absolute terms, the number of transactions by foreigners has risen, surpassing 21,700 compared to just over 21,500 in the previous quarter. The British remain the leading buyers with 8.4% of transactions, followed by Germans (7%), Moroccans (6.1%), Romanians (5.3%), and French (5.2%).
In terms of foreign demand by autonomous communities, 13 saw an increase in their share. The highest percentages were recorded in the Balearic Islands (33.4%), Valencia (28.8%), Murcia (23.6%), Catalonia (16.1%), and Andalusia (13.7%).