Spanish house price growth matches 2007 peak as pre-owned homes lead increase

Property values continued their upward trajectory in early 2026, while expectations of higher fixed-rate mortgage costs are forecast to place additional strain on affordability in the months ahead

Wendy Dávila

Spain's housing market continued to climb in the first quarter of 2026. Property prices rose by 12.9% year-on-year to March, matching ... the increase recorded at the end of 2025 and reaching levels last seen in 2007 before the housing bubble, according to the National Statistics Institute’s Housing Price Index.

The latest increase was driven primarily by pre-owned homes, which recorded their strongest rise in 19 years. Prices in this segment increased by 13.5% compared with the same period last year, up four tenths on the end of 2025.

New-build housing also rose, though at a slower pace. Prices increased by 9.1% year-on-year, 2.1 percentage points less than in the previous quarter, marking the most moderate rate since the fourth quarter of 2023. In both segments, demand remained strong as buyers continued to compete for a limited supply of available homes.

Analysts attributed the sustained growth to insufficient housing stock, strong purchasing demand and favourable financing conditions.

Property portal Pisos.com reported no signs of a slowdown in price growth, noting that values had surpassed previous peaks seen during the housing boom.

However, mortgage broker Trioteca indicated that the cycle could shift in the coming months as rising fixed-rate mortgage costs reduce access to housing.

Long-term increases

The price of free-market housing has now increased for 48 consecutive quarters on a year-on-year basis. All autonomous communities and Spain’s two autonomous cities recorded double-digit annual growth rates.

Compared with the previous quarter, free-market housing prices rose by 3.5%, 1.7 percentage points higher than in the final three months of 2025. This was the strongest quarterly increase since the second quarter of 2025.

Rents also continued to rise. According to Pisos.com’s monthly rental report, average rental prices increased by 12.16% in May to 14.64 euros per square metre, driven by limited supply and sustained demand.

These figures were released on the third anniversary of the Law on the Right to Housing, which sector experts say has reduced available stock, pushed traditional rental housing towards short-term and tourist lets and contributed to further pressure on prices through tighter supply conditions.