Costa del Sol Quarterly Price and Transaction Tracker: Q1 2026

Costa del Sol property prices rose at a double-digit annual rate in the first quarter of 2026, with Málaga province reaching 2,600 EUR per square metre in Tinsa valuation data and registered transaction volume holding near post-2007 highs. This tracker pulls the latest figures from Spain’s three primary property data sources, the INE Housing Price Index, the Colegio de Registradores Estadística Registral Inmobiliaria, and the Tinsa IMIE Mercados Locales index, into one quarterly read with a visible last-updated stamp. Last updated: 25 June 2026, reflecting Q1 2026 final data published by the INE on 8 June 2026 and the Registradores in May 2026.

What happened to Costa del Sol prices in Q1 2026?

Málaga province, which covers the Costa del Sol from Nerja to Manilva, recorded an average valuation of 2,600 EUR per square metre in the first quarter of 2026, a 13.99 per cent year-on-year increase, according to Tinsa’s IMIE Mercados Locales data. That outpaced the Andalusia regional average of 1,656 EUR per square metre (up 10.3 per cent) and sat close to the national IMIE average of 2,248 EUR per square metre (up 14.3 per cent year-on-year). For a 90 square metre apartment at the provincial average, that implies a valuation of roughly 233,986 EUR.

The INE’s transaction-based Housing Price Index, which covers actual registered sale prices rather than valuations, rose 12.9 per cent year-on-year nationally in Q1 2026, the highest annual rate since 2007. Second-hand housing, which dominates the Costa del Sol resale market, rose 13.5 per cent, while new build rose 9.1 per cent. Both rose 3.5 per cent quarter-on-quarter, and the INE notes a methodological change to base 2025 equals 100 plus an updated statistical model that distinguishes whether the buyer is European and whether the property sits in a tourist province, a variable that directly captures the Costa del Sol’s buyer mix.

The Colegio de Registradores recorded an average registered price of 2,429 EUR per square metre nationally in Q1 2026, a new all-time high, up 8.9 per cent year-on-year and 3.2 per cent quarter-on-quarter. Its repeat-sales price index (IPVVR), which tracks the same properties sold twice to isolate genuine price movement, jumped 17.6 per cent year-on-year and now sits 36.5 per cent above the 2007 bubble peak, having more than doubled since the 2014 lows.

How many homes sold on the Costa del Sol?

Málaga province recorded 8,714 registered housing sales in Q1 2026, making it the fifth largest provincial market in Spain by volume, behind Madrid (19,792), Barcelona (19,684), Alicante (12,614) and Valencia (10,185), according to the Registradores ERI. Andalusia as a whole registered 36,119 sales, the largest regional market with 20.1 per cent of the national total of 178,096. That national figure is down 1.9 per cent year-on-year but remains the third highest quarterly result since 2007, with the trailing 12-month total at 701,828 sales.

The INE’s separate Transmisiones de Derechos de la Propiedad statistics, which count transfers registered in the property registry rather than notarised sales, recorded 61,295 housing sales in March 2026 alone, down 2.2 per cent year-on-year, with new build down 10.2 per cent and second-hand up 0.2 per cent. The Registradores and the INE both flag a stabilisation in volume: 30 provinces recorded quarterly transaction declines against 20 that rose, though 41 provinces still registered year-on-year increases.

The table below summarises the Q1 2026 read across the three primary sources.

Metric	Q1 2026 value	Source	Year-on-year change
Málaga province valuation	2,600 EUR per m2	Tinsa IMIE	+13.99%
Andalusia regional valuation	1,656 EUR per m2	Tinsa IMIE	+10.3%
National IMIE valuation	2,248 EUR per m2	Tinsa IMIE	+14.3%
National HPI (transaction-based)	Index 2025=100	INE	+12.9%
National repeat-sales index	New all-time high	Registradores IPVVR	+17.6%
National average registered price	2,429 EUR per m2	Registradores ERI	+8.9%
National registered sales	178,096	Registradores ERI	-1.9%
Málaga province registered sales	8,714	Registradores ERI	n/a
Andalusia registered sales	36,119	Registradores ERI	-0.1% (per INE)

For a buyer weighing the Costa del Sol against other Spanish markets, the Málaga rental yields tracker breaks down what those prices translate to in buy-to-let returns by area, and the cost of buying guide adds the 12 to 15 per cent transaction cost layer on top of the purchase price.

Who is buying Costa del Sol property in 2026?

Foreign buyers accounted for 34.3 per cent of registered housing purchases in Málaga province in Q1 2026, the second highest foreign-buyer weight of any Spanish province after Alicante at 44.65 per cent, according to the Registradores ERI. That puts Málaga ahead of the Balearic Islands (28.89 per cent), Santa Cruz de Tenerife (26.05 per cent) and Girona (24.7 per cent). The Registradores note that tourist intensity is the key factor driving foreign buyer concentration, which directly explains the Costa del Sol’s outsized share.

Nationally, foreign buyers made up 13.92 per cent of all registered purchases in Q1 2026, roughly 24,800 transactions, up 0.40 percentage points quarter-on-quarter. UK buyers remained the largest single nationality at 6.82 per cent of foreign purchases (1,668 transactions), followed by the Netherlands at 6.56 per cent, Morocco at 6.21 per cent, Germany at 6.09 per cent and Italy at 5.54 per cent. EU buyers accounted for 58.31 per cent of all foreign purchases, with the rest of Europe adding 16.82 per cent, Africa 9.10 per cent, Asia 6.48 per cent and South America 5.68 per cent.

The nationality mix matters for the Costa del Sol specifically. The dominance of UK, Dutch and German buyers aligns with the relocation and second-home flows covered in our UK buyers post-Brexit guide and the relocation playbook. The Registradores also record average prices paid by world region: North American buyers paid the highest average at 4,583 EUR per square metre, followed by Oceania at 3,160, Asia at 3,041 and EU buyers at 2,890, all above the national average of 2,429 EUR per square metre.

Is the market cooling or still rising?

The headline read is that price growth is still in double digits nationally but transaction volume is flattening, a pattern the Registradores describe as stabilisation at high levels rather than a downturn. Three signals support that framing. First, 30 of Spain’s 50 provinces recorded quarterly transaction declines in Q1 2026, though 41 still posted year-on-year increases. Second, new build transaction volume fell 10.2 per cent year-on-year in March (INE), partly because new supply has lagged price growth. Third, the Registradores explicitly note that demand is not insensitive to price and that high growth generates doubts about its medium-term sustainability.

Against that, the price indices show no sign of deceleration yet. The INE HPI quarterly rise of 3.5 per cent matches the Q4 2025 quarterly rate, and the Registradores IPVVR quarterly rise of 5.3 per cent actually accelerated. Tinsa’s monthly IMIE releases through spring 2026 show the national rate holding at 15.4 per cent in both April and May 2026, suggesting Q2 2026 will likely print another strong year-on-year figure when the INE releases it in September.

For the Costa del Sol specifically, the combination of limited new supply, sustained foreign demand at over a third of transactions, and the province’s valuation growth outpacing the Andalusia regional average points to a market that is still appreciating but where transaction volume may plateau before price does. The Nueva Andalucía price tracker shows the micro-market level data behind that provincial read.

How does the Costa del Sol compare to other Spanish markets?

Málaga province’s 13.99 per cent year-on-year valuation growth (Tinsa) places it above the Andalusia regional average (10.3 per cent) and close to the national IMIE average (14.3 per cent). The INE HPI, which uses a different methodology based on registered transaction prices rather than valuations, recorded the highest regional year-on-year increases in Aragón and the Región de Murcia at 15.6 per cent, with Castilla y León and Ceuta at 14.9 per cent. The lowest increases were in Cataluña and Navarra at 10.5 per cent and the País Vasco at 10.3 per cent.

The Registradores ERI shows Málaga’s average registered price per square metre is not separately published in the quarterly summary, but the province ranks fifth nationally by transaction volume and second by foreign buyer weight, which is a stronger signal of the Costa del Sol’s market character than a single price average. The province’s combination of high volume, high foreign share and above-regional-average price growth distinguishes it from inland Andalusian markets where prices are lower and foreign participation is thinner.

For buyers comparing the Costa del Sol against Sotogrande or Estepona specifically, the Sotogrande vs Marbella comparison and the New Golden Mile guide carry the sub-market detail this provincial tracker does not.

What should a buyer take from the Q1 2026 data?

Three practical reads. First, the price trend is still upward at double digits, meaning a buyer waiting for a correction is paying an opportunity cost in appreciation that, at current rates, exceeds most financing costs. Second, transaction volume is stabilising, which means less bidding competition than in 2025 but no supply glut either; the Registradores note 20 provinces still posted quarterly transaction increases. Third, foreign buyer weight in Málaga at 34.3 per cent confirms the Costa del Sol remains a internationally driven market where price discovery happens as much in sterling, euros and dollars as in the domestic Spanish mortgage market.

This tracker will refresh each quarter as the INE, Registradores and Tinsa publish their next releases. The INE Q2 2026 HPI is expected in early September 2026, the Registradores ERI Q2 2026 in August 2026, and Tinsa publishes monthly IMIE updates with a quarterly consolidation.