Foreign buyers power on in 2024

Foreign buyers powered ahead in the Spanish property market in 2024, showing renewed strength after a brief slowdown the previous year.

The latest figures from the Spanish Land Registry reveal that foreign buyers continued to play a leading role in the Spanish property market in 2024, with sales involving international purchasers increasing by 6% compared to the previous year. This marked the second-highest level on record, surpassed only by the post-pandemic surge in 2022 (illustrated in the chart above).

In total, 92,958 sales involving a foreign buyer were recorded in 2024, representing a year-on-year increase of 6% and a 38% rise compared to the ten-year average. These robust numbers suggest that the post-pandemic boom was not merely a flash in the pan. Although foreign demand took a breather in 2023, it came back with renewed vigour in 2024.

Brits retained their crown as the largest group of foreign buyers, with 8,728 transactions registered in their name. They were followed by Germans and French purchasers.

However, some of the biggest changes came from other nationalities. Purchases by Polish buyers surged by 36%, followed by Dutch buyers (+18%) and Americans (+13%). On the other hand, Norwegian demand collapsed by 63%, while Russian and French buyers decreased by 17% and 14%, respectively.

Drilling down into the final quarter of the year (Q4), the figures look even more impressive. There were 24,985 sales involving a foreign buyer in the period, up 27% year-on-year and 49% above the ten-year average. This made it the best Q4 on record for international home sales, and the second-best quarter overall.

Notably, the quarterly data suggests that the pace of foreign demand accelerated as the year progressed, implying that the market entered 2025 with strong momentum. As of now, there are no signs that foreign buyers are losing their appetite for Spanish property.