For many years, foreign investors have been one of the main pillars of the Spanish property market. Excellent climatic conditions, an exceptional leisure offer, as well as the prestige of regions such as the Costa del Sol, annually attract thousands of people wishing to live in one of the best places to live in the world.
Second best result ever!
How important a role foreigners play in the Spanish property market is perfectly illustrated by the data published by the Registradores de España. In Q2 2023, one in six properties in Spain was bought by foreign buyers, with a market share of exactly 14.94%. This represents an increase of 0.42 percentage points compared to Q1 and the achievement of the second best percentage share ever!
In absolute terms, the number of property purchase transactions in Spain in the second quarter of 2023 was lower than in the first quarter of 2023, amounting to more than 151,000. Thus, we can note that the number of purchase-sale agreements concluded by foreigners fell slightly and amounted to more than 22,500, some 500 fewer than in the January-March period.
Poles have fallen in love with Spain
A breakdown of the results by nationality shows that most of them – thirteen of the top eighteen to be exact – are gaining in percentage terms. In Q2 2023, British (8.8 per cent), German (7.25 per cent), French (6.56 per cent), Moroccan (5.37 per cent) and Italian (5.22 per cent) recorded the largest market share.
Analysing the results of the market share of investors coming from each country, it can be seen that the main nationalities have lost ground in terms of percentage of market share, with a decrease in share recorded by 8 main nations, which translates into a more diverse distribution of nationalities. It is noteworthy that the share of Polish investors in the Spanish real estate market recorded the largest increase of all the nations included in the TOP10. It amounted to exactly 0.61 pp, which was the second best result of Q2 2023. Only Chinese nationals recorded a better growth rate (+0.62 pp).
The data collected by Registradores de Espana clearly confirm the fact that our compatriots are increasingly looking towards the Iberian Peninsula and the Costa del Sol – not only as a holiday destination, but also as a potential place to invest in local real estate. At the same time, for the past two years, Poles have regularly been included among the top ten nations most likely to buy houses and flats in Spain. In Q2 2023, our compatriots were once again ranked ninth, with a share of 3.92% of all transactions by foreigners. Thus, we overtook Swedes or Americans, among others.
Looking at the absolute numbers, Poles purchased 890 properties in the April-June period, and in the whole of 2023. – already around 1,500. If this trend continues in the following months, the number of transactions made in 2023 by our compatriots will beat the result achieved last year! You can read more about the preferences of Polish investors in another post on our blog.
Andalusia among the top destinations
From a territorial point of view, looking at the percentages of housing purchases by foreigners, there was some balance between increases and decreases by autonomous community. Eight of them recorded increases compared to nine with decreases. The Autonomous Communities that recorded the largest share of purchases by foreigners in Q2 2023 are:
- Canary Islands (30.64%),
- Balearic Islands (30.38%),
- Valencia (29.91%),
- Region of Murcia (23.56%),
- Catalonia (15.35%),
- Andalusia (14.19%).
Although the percentage share of foreigners in transactions in the five regions is higher than in Andalusia, when looking at absolute numbers, the southern region of Spain performs far better than most of the others – with the exception of Valencia. Figures from the Registradores de España show that in Q2 2023, foreign investors made a total of 4,356 property purchase-sale transactions in Andalusia, and in H1 2023. – more than 9,000.
At the provincial level, there was a slight predominance of increases in the share of purchases by foreigners, resulting in thirty provinces with increases and nineteen with decreases. The provinces with the highest share of purchases of flats and houses by foreigners during the period under review were:
- Alicante (44.67%),
- Santa Cruz de Tenerife (38.01%),
- Malaga (32.02%),
- Balearic Islands (30.38%),
- Girona (29.2%),
- Murcia (23.56%),
- Las Palmas (23.45%).
This is yet another data that illustrates the regular increase in interest in property in Spain from foreign buyers. Among them, Poles have established themselves as one of the top ten most popular nations for buying houses and flats – including on the Costa del Sol.
