Spain sees drop in foreign home purchases but higher prices on the coast

Foreign buyers in Spain purchased roughly 27,000 homes at the start of the year, a 17.6% decline from the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda. The fall affected both resident foreigners (16,273 transactions, down 14.4%) and non‑resident foreigners (10,704 transactions, down 21.9%). Overall foreign‑buyer share slipped from 17.8% to 16.5% of all sales, still about one in six purchases.

Despite fewer transactions, the average price paid by foreign buyers rose 8.3%, from €197,915 to €214,403, an 8% increase over the year. Coastal provinces concentrated 22,286 foreign purchases, a 17.1% drop, yet their share of national foreign sales rose from 82.1% to 82.6%. In 19 coastal regions with full data, resident foreign spending increased in 16 provinces, falling only in the Balearic Islands, Girona and Huelva. Ziad A. Nassar, deputy CEO of Huspy for Europe, noted that demand remains high and that expanding housing supply, especially on the coast, is essential. The broader market fell 11.3% in volume, while price growth continues, albeit at a slower pace.