Overview

• Home prices hit fresh highs, with INE reporting a 12.7% annual rise and Idealista citing an average of €2,498 per m² in August, as Balearic Islands (€5,068/m²), Madrid (€4,384) and the Basque Country (€3,287) lead while cheaper pockets persist in Sa Pobla (€1,956) and Castuera (~€395).
• Rental access keeps tightening as agencies withhold listings to manage demand; in Teruel about 32% of homes rent within 24 hours and a teacher reported a €100 surcharge, while Tarragona ranks among the toughest cities to find a room with 46 contacts per ad.
• The European Commission says it will present an Affordable Housing Plan before year-end that includes a legal initiative to regulate short‑term seasonal rentals, with Barcelona flagged for seasonal lets making up roughly half of listings.
• Madrid’s government proposes to lift buildability by 10% and density by 20% on protected-housing plots, extend Mi Primera Vivienda access to age 50, add 1,000 Plan Vive units and offer landlord incentives, measures officials say could yield about 15,000 affordable homes in four years.
• Spain’s market splits further as luxury rentals in Madrid surge: Barnes reports an 84% jump in investment in August, a record €40,000‑per‑month lease in La Finca and a tenant base that was 100% foreign in that segment.