Foreign demand for property in Spain remained near record highs in 2024

Spain’s property market continued to attract strong international interest in 2024, with foreign buyers delivering one of the highest annual totals on record despite a small dip in market share.

The latest data just published by the Spanish notaries’ association shows that foreign buyers were involved in 139,102 property transactions last year, representing a 6% increase on 2023 and a 29% rise compared to the ten-year average.

It was the second-best year on record for foreign demand (behind only the post-pandemic bounce year of 2022), underlining Spain’s enduring appeal to international homebuyers. Annual sales according to the notaries are illustrated in the chart above.

Local demand grew at an even faster pace, with 559,279 properties purchased by Spanish nationals—up 14% year-on-year. As a result, the market share of foreign buyers slipped from 21.1% in 2023 to 19.9% in 2024. Even so, this remains close to the top of the historical range over the last decade, which has seen a minimum of 16.5% and a maximum of 21.1%.

British buyers stay ahead, while Eastern Europeans surge

British nationals retained their top spot among foreign buyers with 11,912 purchases, making up 8.6% of the foreign market. They were followed by Germans and Italians. Among the richer nationalities tracked, Norway and Switzerland recorded the lowest volumes in the second-home segment.

Polish and Ukrainian demand increased the most, while Russian purchases declined sharply (-18%, thanks to Putin’s war), followed by a drop in demand from French buyers who have their own problems at home.

Valencian Community and Andalusia dominate regional sales

The Valencian Community led the regional rankings with 41,422 sales—up 4% year-on-year—accounting for 30% of all foreign transactions. Andalusia came second with 25,573 sales and 18% of the market, representing a 5% annual increase.

Swedes and Americans lead in spending power

In terms of budgets, Swedish buyers paid the highest average price per square metre at €3,330, closely followed by Americans at €3,247. Both nationalities increased their spending by over 10% compared to the previous year. British buyers, by contrast, recorded the lowest budgets in the second-home and expat segments, though they were also up 10% year-on-year.

Compared to Land Registry figures

Notary figures align with data published by the Spanish Land Registrars’ Association in February, which also reported a 6% increase in foreign demand last year. However, the two sources diverge significantly on transaction volumes: the registrars reported 92,958 foreign purchases, while the notaries recorded 139,102—around 50% more. Why such a discrepancy? The two institutions count different stages of the transaction process and apply distinct methodologies, meaning both figures can be valid within their respective frameworks. That said, the notaries’ data is generally considered a more accurate reflection of actual sales completed within the period.

In any case, both datasets confirm that 2024 was an outstanding year for the foreign segment of the Spanish property market, with momentum appearing to build heading into 2025.

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