Rental property is seeing a surge in demand
The cost of renting a property in Spain increased in April by 0.8% to end the month on an average cost per square metre of €7.29, according to data released by property portal, fotocasa.
The annual increase, when compared to April 2015, is actually 4.5%, one of the sharpest rises of recent months.
Beatriz Toribio, from fotocasa studies, said “The rental market is growing strongly in Spain, both in supply and demand. Therefore, prices are rising across the board in much of the country,”
The causes are many but include strong demand for rental properties, the inability for much of the population to purchase a property and the high returns offered by renting out a property.
Since rental costs peaked in May 2007, when the average cost was €10.12 per m², the price has accumulated a fall of -27.9%. Using that as a base, there are six communities that have fallen more than the average. Aragon, for example, has seen rental prices fall 40.1%, while in Valencia the cost per square metre of rental housing is currently 31.4% below the peak costs.
By region, April saw 14 which recorded increases ranging from 4.3% in the Balearic Islands, to 0.1% in Cantabria. Meanwhile, three communities saw price falls ranging from -0.1% in Navarra, to -0.3% in the Basque Country.
Price Ranking
In April, Catalonia displaced the Basque Country as the most expensive community to rent housing with a cost per square metre of €10.22, per month. The Basque Country has only slipped one place and follows closely with a cost of €10.15 p/m², per month. The third most expensive region was Madrid where a square metre of rental property will set you back €10.13 per month.
At the opposite end of the scale is Castilla-La Mancha where the average monthly cost per square metre is €4.67. In Extremadura the average cost is €4.50 per m².
Municipalities
Of Spain’s 262 municipalities, 150 recorded rental price rises in April, while 99 recorded price falls. The other 13 municipalities saw prices remain stable in April. Santa Pola saw the largest increase with prices rising 18.5%.
The town with the highest rental price is Eivissa where the monthly rental of a square metre is €15.68, followed by Barcelona with an average cost of €13.88 p/m². Conversely, the cheapest city to rent in April was Almendralejo, in Badajoz, with a cost of €3.55 p/m², per month, followed by Alzira with a cost of €3.65 p/m².
