Alex Trelinski
VALENCIA has become the biggest in-demand city for foreigners looking for long-term rentals in Spain.
A study from online property portal Idealista looking between January and March this year, revealed that the city attracted interest from 17% of clients, surpassing the traditional leader of Barcelona on 15.3%.
Next on the list are Madrid on 9.1% and Sevilla with 8.1%.
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The last such study was in 2023 when Valencia and Barcelona where on a par, while in 2022, the Catalan capital was top of the list.
The changing rental trends for foreigners were noted back in June 2023, when Valencia rose by 7.1% while Barcelona had a fall of 2.1%.
Rental prices are the key factor with a cost of €945 on average for a 70 m2 property, while that rises to €1,414 for the same size in Barcelona.
The breakdown of overseas renters in Valencia are led by Americans(14%) followed by Germans(9%)and French (8%).
Americans lead the foreign demand in the rental market in 22 of Spain’s 52 provinces.
Away from the cities, the Balearic Islands stays top for international demand coming in at almost 30% in the first quarter of 2025.
Second is Alicante province(27.4%) and Malaga(25.7%).
The figures show that tourist and coastal areas continue to be the main attraction for those looking to rent in Spain, combining climate, leisure and accessibility.
As for real estate sales, 43.67% of all deals in Alicante province between January and March came from foreigners, according to the Association of Registrars.
Prices averaged out at €180,740 for a 70 m2 property.
That was followed by Malaga with 32.75% of purchases from overseas, followed by the Balearic Islands with a 30.03% share of the market.
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