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PROPERTY SEARCH

Date Published: 13/03/2025

Only 8% of Spanish homes sold to foreigners in 2024

In total, 715,429 homes were bought in Spain last year, a 12% increase on 2023

The Spanish real estate market experienced a boom in 2024. According to data from the Ministry of Housing, a total of 715,429 homes were sold in the country last year, a 12% increase from 2023.

Of these, just 8%, or 56,139 properties, were purchased by foreigners residing outside the country.

But while this represents a small 2.2% increase compared to 2023, the figures seem fly in the face of President of the Spanish Government Pedro Sanchez, who caused uproar by proposing an increase in the tax rate to 100% for non-EU non-resident home buyers.

The government has also promoted the elimination of the so-called ‘golden visas’, which were introduced in 2013 to encourage foreigners to invest in Spain. These visas, which allowed foreigners to purchase homes valued at or above €500,000, will be eliminated on April 1. The government believes that they have strained the real estate market in specific parts of Spain, favouring the purchase of homes by holidaymakers over residents.

The majority of home purchases by non-resident foreigners in 2024 were concentrated in the provinces of Malaga (18.7%) and Alicante (34.8%), which accounted for 53.5% of all purchases.

As Gonzalo Bernardos, professor of economics at the University of Barcelona, noted, "Spain is still in fashion. Foreigners continue to buy."

Mr Bernardos was speaking at the presentation of the annual report on the real estate market by the firm Engel & Völkers, which has detected a growing interest in investing in Spain among buyers from emerging markets such as Poland and the Czech Republic. This is particularly evident on the Costa del Sol, where they are joining traditional Belgian, Dutch and English investors. They attribute this trend to the war in Ukraine and the threat of a potential Russian offensive in these areas.

They also highlight the surge in Latin American buyers in the capital, which has become the "epicentre of luxury real estate."

As the expert explained, "Madrid is the world capital for Latin Americans leaving Latin America. Before, it was Miami, but now, with Trump, the United States has become an unattractive country."

The Spanish capital's appeal to these "deeply wealthy and highly entrepreneurial" buyers is undeniable, with many Mexicans and Colombians investing in luxury properties.

Looking ahead to the rest of 2025, most real estate experts expect the market to repeat the dynamism experienced in 2024, with around 825,000 sales predicted for the year as a whole.

Mr Bernardos described the situation as a "real estate festival" and predicted a price increase of around 12% for second-hand homes and 15% for new construction.

Despite this, he emphasised that "there is by no means a real estate bubble."

In other news: Spain will only offer travel discounts in cities that have Low Emission Zones

Image: Freepik

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