Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Spain’s Housing Squeeze Deepens as Madrid Leads Price Surge and New Tenant Rules Begin

Updated rental law requires 30 days’ written notice for rent increases, giving tenants grounds to refuse hikes not properly communicated.

Overview

  • Madrid closed 2025 as the country’s fastest‑rising market, up 20.9% year over year, with the price pressure spilling into the metro area as Torrejón de Ardoz jumped 22.6% and Parla and Fuenlabrada posted double‑digit gains.
  • Barcelona remained the most expensive provincial capital to rent at €29.34 per m² in Q4 2025, while sale prices rose fastest in working‑class districts such as Sants and Nou Barris.
  • The 2026 update to Spain’s rental law is in force, obliging landlords to notify increases at least 30 days in advance; tenants can reject improperly notified hikes, and updates use CPI for pre‑26 May 2023 contracts and the reference index for later agreements.
  • Catalonia intensified market intervention by extending caps to seasonal rentals and is preparing a first‑quarter proposal to curb purchases for investment using fiscal and planning tools, a plan that has drawn pushback from property groups.
  • Andalusia reported about 22,700 housing starts between January and September 2025 and will implement a new regional housing law on January 24 to expand affordable supply, free up land, streamline approvals and bolster legal certainty for owners.