From January to April of this year, there was a significant increase in housing prices in Barcelona and Madrid. Although a slight slowdown is expected in the summer, from September until the end of the year, growth is expected to return to an upward trajectory again.
In 2021, Spain's real estate sector is recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. But, in total, about 674,000 residential houses were sold in Spain last year. Of these, 9% were in Madrid and Barcelona.
Controlling the growth of rental rates in Barcelona has instead led to an increase in the number of properties for sale. But the increase of supply does not prevent prices from continuing to rise.
In Madrid, areas along the M-30 highway were recovering actively after the pandemic, resulting in supply shortages, rising prices and the beginning of gradual migration to areas far from the city center and suburbs.
In general, in Spain, the monthly change in secondary market housing prices increased by 0.5%, and in annual terms — by 1.7%. Thus, in April 2022, the average price level in the country reached 1,910 euros per sq.m.
This data was provided by the Fotocasa real estate portal. According to the company's index, the price of housing in the secondary market of Madrid, compared month-to-month, increased by 0.6%. It reached the level of 3,245 euros per sq.m., which is 4.4% more than in the same period of 2021.
Top 3 most expensive provincial capitals of Spain
María Matos, Director of Research and press secretary at Fotocasa, reports: "Within another month, we will definitely see that prices for residential real estate from the secondary market continue to grow both monthly and annually. There are some indicators of decline, but they are extremely insignificant. The rise in housing prices is a trend that we are seeing in 2022 both due to the enormous demand and due to the shortage of supply on the market."
However, Matos assures that prices will continue to grow slightly: "We should not forget that in 2021, home sales records have been broken. It was the best year in the last decade, but for the same reason prices will rise slightly this year, even with high demand. Nevertheless, in April 2022, growth reached 1.8%, in annual terms, which was the highest since the beginning of the year."
According to the market analysis conducted by Fotocasa, the most expensive residential real estate on the secondary market is sold in Madrid and the Balearic Islands. Prices are 3,235 and 2,918 euros per sq.m, respectively.
They are followed by Baskonia (2,888 euros), Catalonia (2,570 euros), the Canary Islands (1,871 euros), Cantabria (1,862 euros), Andalusia (1,816 euros), and Extremadura (1,147 euros). And Murcia and Castile-La Mancha close the rating of the most expensive autonomous communities with 1,225 and 1,080 euros per sq.m., respectively.
The three most expensive provincial capitals included San Sebastian, Barcelona, and Madrid with 5,870, 4,425 and 4,073 euros per sq.m., respectively.