Barcelona’s property market is the hottest in Spain, claim industry insiders speaking at a conference at Barcelona Meeting Point this week.

“The real estate sector in Barcelona is going at a different speed to the rest of Spain,” said César Oteiza, co-founder of Spanish property portal Idealista.com, who argues that the Spanish property market in general is starting to recover, with Barcelona in the vanguard.

In the lead when it comes to all the national rankings for price increases, sales growth, and general oomph, some ask whether Barcelona is leading the way towards recovery and market health, or treading a well-worn path towards bubble and trouble.

Flats are renting out within 48 hours of hitting the market said Oteiza, by way of illustrating how hot the market is. “The real estate sector in Barcelona has a fashion appeal and dynamism that other parts of the country don’t have,” he said, with rental prices up 18% in recent times and yields of up to 7%.

Rising rents are driving up house prices, claimed another expert on the same panel, saying that short to mid-term rental yields are above 10%. Such good returns are attracting the attention of SOCIMIs, a type of Spanish Real Estate Investment Trust, further driving up prices.

As a result young adults up to 35 years of age are priced out of the market and have no option but to rent, we learnt. Most people buying homes in Barcelona today are between 35-55 years old or foreigners. But that situation is not unique to Barcelona. I’m sure it will sound familiar to young adults in London.