Rents in Spain have risen five times faster than young people's wages since 2008

Rents have risen five times faster than young people's wages since 2008: 54% compared with 10.8% up to 2024. The result is that the rate of household independence among 16 to 29-year-olds has fallen to 14.5%, its lowest level on record.

One figure explains quite well why young Spaniards still live with their parents. Between 2008 and 2024, rents rose by **54%**, while wages for under-29s grew by just **10.8%**. In other words, rents have risen five times faster than the salary of the person who has to pay them. The data comes from the housing report by the **Consejo General de Gestores Administrativos** (Spanish association of property administrators), which compiles statistics published in recent years on the residential situation in Spain.

The wage series for young people only runs to 2024 for a technical reason: the **Encuesta de Estructura Salarial** (Wage Structure Survey) by the **INE** (Spain's national statistics institute) is published with a two-year lag and is the indicator that allows comparison by age group. With the latest available data, the gap with rents is even wider. According to **Idealista**, rents have risen by **66%** up to September, while property for sale is up **23%** since 2008. Labour costs, measured by the INE's Quarterly Labour Cost Survey, grew by **36%** over that period, although that indicator does not break down by age.

## Moving out at 30.2

The result of that imbalance shows in who can leave home, and when. The youth household independence rate, among 16 to 29-year-olds, has fallen to **14.5%**, its lowest level since records began. The average age for leaving home now stands at **30.2 years**.

The report states it plainly: the situation of young people is one of the key indicators of the health of Spain's residential system, and the evolution of household independence reflects the balance between supply, prices, household purchasing power and how the market works better than any other figure. When that balance breaks, it breaks at its weakest point.

## 98.7% of wages going on rent

To get a sense of the real burden, a young person wanting to live alone would have to spend **98.7%** of their average salary on rent, according to the Emancipation Observatory of the **Consejo de la Juventud de España** (Spanish Youth Council), which puts the average rent at **1,176 euros** a month. Practically the entire salary, with no room for food, saving or unexpected expenses.

The property administrators describe the mechanism that feeds this trap: when part of the population cannot buy, pressure on the rental market increases; that rise in demand pushes rents up; and with higher rents it becomes harder to save for a deposit on a home. A cycle is created that prolongs the stay in rented housing and delays independence. Buying has also become more of a burden: according to the **Banco de España** (Bank of Spain), access to ownership reached **7.7 years** of gross salary in **2025**, the highest level since 2011.

## Housing is also holding back employment

The purchase price stands at **6.8 years** of average net income for households that do not own their home. The figure rises to **7.1 years** when the main earner is under 35, and to **7.6 years** when they were born abroad. For all households, the indicator stands at **4.3 years**. In other words, the burden falls on those who have nothing yet.

The delay does not only affect the property market. The formation of new households and the birth rate are postponed, and labour mobility is conditioned by the cost of housing. In large cities, companies face obstacles when hiring workers, especially in mid-salary or entry-level positions, where housing can absorb a huge share of income. The political debate has also taken up the issue: **UGT** and **CCOO** (Spain's two main trade unions) have made the rising cost of housing one of the pillars of their mobilisation, with **Pepe Álvarez** and **Unai Sordo** arguing that the pay rises agreed in collective bargaining do not make up for how much the cost of living under a roof has gone up.

None of this is a matter of opinion. It is domestic arithmetic: if rents rise five times faster than wages, the age at which people leave home pushes itself back. And anyone signing a rental contract or applying for a mortgage should look at their own specific case before making decisions, because national averages do not pay anyone's rent.