Record number of property purchases in Spain by foreigners in 2024

According to a study by real estate portal Idealista 2024 saw a new record for the number of property purchases in Spain made by foreigners. This growth reversed the decline in purchases in the previous two semesters. The survey also provided many insights.

New record property purchases foreigners 2024

Spain remains very attractive to foreign property buyers. Foreigners bought some 69,412 properties in the first half of 2024 – 1.8% more than the previous year – representing one out of every five property sales made in that period (20.4%), a record property purchases by foreigners in Spain.

This growth reverses two consecutive semesters of decline. The growth was mainly driven by foreign residents, who made 40,389 purchases. An increase of 4.2% over last year. Non-residents saw a decline of 1.4%, totaling 29,023 transactions.

Britons remained the largest buyers in terms of number of transactions, but increasing interest was noted from buyers from the US, Portugal, Italy and Ukraine.

In Europe, between 2016 and now, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal and Ukraine mainly dominated. In the Americas, the U.S. and Colombia stood out in particular, and Morocco led the way in Africa. The “others from outside the EU” category also reached its highest level during this period.

Morocco mainly stood out in terms of transaction volume: Moroccans bought some 5,452 houses (7.9% of all transactions with foreign buyers). Morocco ranks second overall, behind Britain (8.4%) and ahead of Germany (6.8%).

Italy follows with 4,332 homes, followed by Poland (3,105) and Ukraine (2,058). Transactions by Polish and Ukrainian buyers have risen 70% in two years, as bolg of the war with Russia.

Home purchases by Americans fell by 1,363 transactions to below 2,000 in the first half of the year, due in part to the favorable euro-dollar exchange rate. Similarly, the Irish (1,186), Colombians (1,073) and Portuguese (921) recorded less than 2,000 transactions. The ‘other countries outside the EU’ category accounted for over 7,700 sales.

Autonomous community of Valencia as record holder, Andalusia second place

With 21,224 real estate transactions, the autonomous community of Valencia is in the lead (more than 30% of all real estate purchases by foreigners). This is partly due to the mild climate and attractive property prices in hotspots such as Alicante, Calp and Valencia.

Yet Andalusia (including the Costa del Sol), which generally has higher property prices, also remains very popular among foreign buyers. Some 12,637 foreigners bought a property in this sunny region which made for second place, down 0.2% from the previous year.

Record prices

Not only was there a record number of purchases by foreigners in the first half of 2024, they also bought at record prices: €2,895/m2 (11.4% more than the previous year).

The foreigners who spent the highest amount per m2 were: Swedes (€3,330/m2), Americans (€3,247/m2), Germans (€3,114/m2), Norwegians (€2,969/m2) and Swiss(€2,966/m2). Buyers from Russia, Poland, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy and the United Kingdom also paid more than the average price paid by foreign buyers (€2,249/m2).

The above buyers did not necessarily pay more than the market price for their homes, but were more likely to buy in projects with more facilities or in better locations that caused a higher price per square meter.

This trend in real estate price growth is good news for real estate investors: Those who have already bought can sell or rent at higher prices, and those who are still looking for real estate have positive prospects for home values if this trend of rising prices continues.

Conclusion Record real estate purchases Foreigners

The first half of 2024 marked an all-time high in the number of property purchases by foreigners in Spain. With 69,412 purchases, a 1.8% increase over last year, these figures show a recovery after two semesters of declines. Foreign residents in particular contributed to this growth, while interest from non-residents fell slightly.

Although British buyers still dominate, there is a clear rise of buyers from countries such as the US, Portugal, Italy and Ukraine. The popularity of the best-known regions such as Valencia experienced growth (thanks to attractive prices) and Andalusia remains relatively unchanged due to its favorable climate and high standard of living. At the same time, real estate prices are breaking records.

Rising demand and prices offer positive prospects for investors, both for resales and rentals. Spain thus reaffirms its status as a top destination for foreign property buyers.

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