The price of houses in Spain rose 7.9% in the first eight months of the year and fell 0.2% between July and August. The average price came to €2,145 per square metre, according to data from real estate portal Fotocasa’s Real Estate Index.
This latest monthly drop in value (-0.2%) is the first in the past two years (since January 2022) and the overall price increase over the first eight months is the most moderate in 2023.
Director María Matos stressed that historically August usually shows moderation, due to the summer season when demand slows down. Nevertheless, it could be the start of a slowing trend that becomes more stable during the last four months of the year. A trend that will be especially visible with less intense housing demand, she added.
Growth of more than 10%
The survey shows that prices of homes for sale showed a year-on-year increase of more than 10% in six autonomous communities: the Canary Islands with 23.5%, the Balearic Islands with 18.7%, Navarre with 13.4%, the Valencian Community with 11.2%, La Rioja with 10.7% and Murcia with 10.5%.
This is followed by Andalucia with 7.5%, Cantabria with 7.1%, Aragon with 4.7%, Catalonia with 4.6%, Madrid with 4.4%, Galicia with 4.2%, Basque Country with 3.9%, Extremadura with 3.5%, Castile-La Mancha with 3.1%, Asturias with 2.8% and Castile and León with 1.6%.
You pay the highest price for existing homes in the Balearic Islands and Madrid, with prices of €3,778 and €3,508 per square metre respectively.
Price increases in the provinces
In 94% of the 50 provinces surveyed, house prices rose year-on-year in August. In 14 provinces, the increase exceeded 10%: Santa Cruz de Tenerife at 32.1%, Balearic Islands at 18.7%, Alicante at 15.7%, Málaga at 15.5%, Soria at 15.2%, Teruel at 14.3%, Navarre at 13.4%, Las Palmas at 13.0%, Tarragona at 12.0%, Cuenca at 11.2%, Cadiz at 10.8%, La Rioja at 10.7%, Murcia at 10.5% and Lerida at 10.3%.
Eleven of the provincial capitals showed an increase in house prices of more than 10%: Soria with 22.0%, Santa Cruz de Tenerife with 18.9%, Palma de Mallorca with 18.0%, Málaga with 15.7%, Pontevedra with 14.9%, Alicante with 14.0%, Avila with 12.9%, Valencia with 11.6%, Santander with 11.2%, Huelva with 11.1% and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with 10.2%. The only provincial capital with a year-on-year decline was Zamora, with -2.5%.
Increase in more than four in five municipalities
The average price of existing homes rose in 83% of the 642 municipalities analysed by Fotocasa. In 64 of these municipalities, the value of homes increased by more than 20% year-on-year and in three municipalities by more than 50%, namely San Miguel de Salinas (Alicante) by 116.8%, Pozuelo de Calatrava (Ciudad Real) by 99.9% and Rojales by 79.6% (Alicante).
On the other hand, the three municipalities with the biggest decreases are Montgat (Barcelona) with -18.4%, Güejar Sierra (Granada) with -18.4% and Pulianas (Granada) with -16.9%.
