Spain's housing prices up 70% and rents up 45% during the Fraudez era

Buying a home in Spain costs 74% more than in mid-2018, and renting one more than 40%, with wages up only 23% and cumulative inflation of 27.3% eating up almost all of that gain. Household purchasing power has been virtually stagnant for eight years while housing prices hit record highs.

Buying a home in Spain costs 74% more than in mid-2018. Renting one, more than 40%. Over the same period, wages have risen 23% and cumulative inflation stands at around 27.3%, so household purchasing power has been virtually frozen for nearly a decade. Housing has become Spaniards' top concern, according to CIS polls.

## The price of buying a home is up 74% since mid-2018

According to Idealista reports, the square metre of housing for sale in Spain cost 1,694 euros in June 2018. By August 2026, that figure had reached **2,924 euros**. That is 1,230 euros more per square metre in just over eight years, a 74% rise that has been distributed unevenly across the country.

The map is not uniform. In **the Balearic Islands**, prices have risen 104.2%, with the square metre selling at 5,595 euros. It is by far the region with the highest growth. Areas with the most tourist pressure and largest populations, such as Madrid, Catalonia, the Canary Islands, the Basque Country and Málaga, also concentrate the greatest affordability strain for families looking to buy.

To reach the signing, the down payment comes first. A buyer now needs 21 months of gross salary to cover the down payment and its taxes and qualify for the corresponding mortgage. Nearly two years of full pay go into the starting point alone. And variable-rate mortgages remain tied to the Euribor, which became more expensive with the rate hikes decreed by the European Central Bank.

## Rents are up more than 40% and wages are not keeping pace

The average price of renting a square metre in Spain stood at 10.4 euros in mid-2018. By August 2026 it exceeded 15.1 euros. The increase, in round terms, is more than 40%, slightly less than buying but still above wage growth.

Wages have risen 23% over the same stretch. Inflation, 27.3% since mid-2018. The subtraction does not add up: household real incomes are stagnant or nearly so. Think tanks such as **Funcas** and **Fedea** estimate that purchasing power has grown, at most, between 1% and 3% in almost a decade.

The result is a gap that will not close. Some 53% of Spaniards believe they will only own a home if they inherit one, according to a study by **Raisin**. The latest CIS poll places housing as the country's number one concern, ahead of any other issue.

## Eight years of income to pay for a home

The relationship between prices and incomes has stretched to an unusual point. Oxford Economics calculates that Spanish households need the equivalent of eight years of their full income to buy a home, one year more than in 2023. In towns in Madrid, Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, the Basque Country or Málaga, that burden doubles.

Another indicator tightens the picture: **272,000** families have been evicted by court order since Sánchez has been in government, equivalent to about 90 a day. The eviction of **Maricarmen Abascal** has put the issue back at the centre of public debate and confirmed that housing now tops the list of citizens' concerns.

The pressure is not evenly distributed within Spain. The regions where prices have risen the most are also those with the highest percentage of households spending more than half their disposable income on housing, whether buying or renting. It is a problem that mainly affects young people and middle incomes.

## Less supply and rising forecasts

The population keeps growing, largely due to immigration, and the housing supply is not keeping up. The Banco de España (Bank of Spain) estimates that by 2028 Spain will have a shortfall of one million homes. This is not a problem of a single year or a single law.

With that underlying imbalance, the forecast points to prices continuing to rise. **BBVA Research** expects 2026 to close with a 12% increase and 2027 to end above 5%. Overall inflation hit 4.3% in August, so the pressure on people's pockets is not coming from housing alone.

The Government has passed a royal decree-law on housing. Given the figures, it is hard to believe that a single law will fix an imbalance that has been building for eight years. On matters of money and mortgages, it is advisable to check any decision with an adviser before signing.