In the first quarter of 2026, prices for housing in Spain in coastal municipalities, excluding provincial capitals, rose by 13.5% year-on-year, reaching 1,992 euros per square metre.
As a result, the cost of buying a home reached 40% of the disposable income of an average household, and the first signs of demand exhaustion appeared, according to a report prepared by valuation company Tinsa by Accumin.
Supply shortages continue to put pressure on prices
The coastal housing market, largely shaped by the dynamics of the holiday-home segment, combines intense price growth with stable demand that is beginning to show signs of exhaustion.
This points to a shortage of supply as the main factor sustaining price pressure and making access to housing increasingly difficult for people with average local wages.
By geographical area, the strongest annual price growth was recorded in the Balearic and Canary Islands – 14.1% each – and on the Mediterranean coast – 13.9%.
They were followed by the northern coast of Spain and the Atlantic coast of Andalusia, both with nominal growth of 11.7%.
Some coastal municipalities have already exceeded 2007 levels
Regarding the peaks reached during the 2007 property bubble, the report notes that house prices on the coasts remain 30% below those levels in real terms.
However, in nominal terms, almost one hundred municipalities, mainly located in the Balearic and Canary Islands and in the provinces of Alicante, Malaga, Cadiz and Pontevedra, have already exceeded the levels seen in that period.
Buying a home requires increasing financial effort
At the same time, the financial effort required to cover the first year of mortgage payments exceeds the recommended maximum threshold of 35%, reaching particularly high levels in the Balearic Islands – 59%, Malaga – 57% – and Alicante – 46%.
By contrast, the most moderate indicators are mainly found on parts of the northern coast, in Murcia, Valencia, Castellón and Almería.
The development of Spain’s coastal areas is becoming increasingly uneven.
While the financial effort required to buy a home across the country as a whole remains close to equilibrium, affordability in some coastal areas has reached high levels of tension.
Where permanent-residence and holiday-home markets overlap, priority is given to the higher returns offered by the holiday-property segment.
Resale housing and coastal transactions
The average price of resale housing, calculated by the valuation company’s technical network, stood at 3,150 euros/m², 11.6% above the national average.
In 77% of the analysed areas, experts see potential for growth, while in the remaining 23% they detect signs of stagnation or of having reached a peak.
In 2025, 204,089 home purchase transactions were completed in coastal municipalities, representing a 1.7% increase compared with the previous year.
Sales to foreigners, although down by 3% overall, grew on the Atlantic coast of Andalusia – 11.4% – and in the north – 10.9%.
Building permits increased
As for supply, the number of building permits issued on the coasts rose by 21.7% compared with the previous year, reaching 29,101.
The strongest growth was recorded on the islands – 39% – and on the Atlantic coast of Andalusia – 23%.
The top three municipalities were Mijas – 1,670, Estepona – 1,278 – and Gijón – 854.
Price growth and limited supply are especially visible in popular coastal areas, where demand for apartments in Spain remains high.
