Rental prices in Barcelona have started to go the way of property prices, falling an average of 2% in the first quarter of the year, from 1,081 Euros/m2 at the end of 2008 to 1,060 Euros/m2 at the end of March, according to a report from Barcelona’s Chamber of Residential Property (Cambra de la Propietat Urbana de Barcelona).

The fall in rental prices comes after a year in which Barcelona’s rental yields rose strongly. Whilst property prices fell by double digits in 2008, rental prices rose by around 16% in the year, driving up rental yields significantly. With rental prices now falling, yields will start to stagnate or fall, depending upon what happens to property prices in the city.

Rental prices fell the most in the upmarket district of Les Corts (-6.3%), followed by the Ciutat Vella-Old Town (-5.1%), Sarria-Sant Gervasi (-4%), Gracia (-3.7%), and Sants-Montjuic (-2.9%). Rents actually rose a fraction in the central district of the Eixample (+0.6%), and by +1.8% in the beachfront district of Sant Marti.