Malaga Property Report March 2023

Welcome to the latest Guide to Malaga report on the Malaga property market. In it, we take a snapshot of the situation in the city with the latest data available. Our report offers insight into prices for property in Malaga, the latest sales figures and what sort of return you can expect from buy-to-let. And we include highlights from recent reports on the market in the city.

Why a Malaga Property Report?

Malaga province has been a popular location for foreigners to buy property for decades. But homes in Malaga city are recent arrivals on the must-buy list. Since Guide to Malaga began back in September 2015, we have noticed an exponential rise in interest in the city’s property market.

Post lockdown it appears to be even higher- we’ve had more emails than ever asking for advice on where, what and how to buy. Interest is high among Northern Europeans keen to buy in Malaga. We’ve compiled this report in response to this demand for information. And as always, if you need any more, get in touch.

Property prices in Malaga

Figures for changes in property prices in Spain always tag behind in time so many are often at least 3 months old. In this Malaga Property Report we quote the latest available.

Average prices

In Q4 2022 (latest available), the average price per m² in Malaga was €2,314. This is up 6.6% in the year, according to the Registrars Association latest quarterly review. Figures are based on prices registered in title deeds. 

Tinsa (Spain’s largest valuation company whose data is also based on valuations) reports that prices went up by 7.6% in the year to Q4 2022 in Malaga city, compared to a national rate of 8.5% and a provincial rate of 8%. Prices stood on average at 14.8% below their peak in Q4 2008.

Malaga city and province both posted some of the highest quarter-on-quarter increases for any coastal or resort location in Spain. Statistics from Idealista show a rise of 8% in asking prices in the city since January 2022. According to Idealista, asking prices for Malaga property for sale averaged €2,365 per m² in January this year. 

New-build prices in Malaga 

Off-plan and new properties tend to come with higher price tags than resale homes, a trend clearly visible in the city. According to the latest report from the OMAU (Q4 2022), prices for new builds rose by 6.12% in the year to reach an average of €3,763 per m² at the end of December. The most expensive new properties were in the east of Malaga (€5,491 per m²), although those in the west, particularly around Malaga Towers, weren’t far behind (€5,203 per m²) and a rise of 7.63% in the year. 

Biggest price hikes

The areas with the highest annual price rises were Carretera de Cádiz (up 12.2%) and Teatinos(up 11.4%) in the year to January 2023. These figures confirm the continuing trend to move out of the city centre into the suburbs. However, the Centre has recovered from the pandemic slump and is back on its upward trajectory as the 10.7% price rise shows. As usual, the East had the most expensive property with a square metre price at €3,275, up 9.1% in the year. (Figures from Idealista and based on asking prices.)

Property sales in Malaga

The latest statistics (Q4 2022) for Malaga province from the Registrars Association are as follows:

• Sales totalled 9,019 between October and December, down by 17.4% compared to the same period in 2021. However, the annual figure is well ahead of the same period in 2019, indicating that the property market has exceeded pre-pandemic levels. 
• There were 1,581 purchases of new-build properties in Malaga, the third-highest figure in Spain, behind just Madrid and Barcelona. 
• Foreigners accounted for 34.05% of all purchases, the third-highest in Spain and slightly higher than Q3. British buyers made up the largest percentage
• Malaga had the highest number of sales per supply per 1,000 properties, according to Tinsa’s Q4 report. The province registered 44.7 sales per 1,000 properties on the market, compared to a national average of 27.3. 
• The province had the fifth-highest sales after Madrid, Barcelona, Alicante and Valencia. 

Rental returns in Malaga

The Tinsa Q4 2022 report found that Malaga city offers a 4.5% return with the highest (5.1%) in Ciudad Jardin and the lowest in Puerto de la Torre (3.7%) and the East (4%).  

Rental rates have skyrocketed by 22.4% since January last year and in February 2023, the average rent per square metre was €12.10 (Idealista). The most expensive rental properties in Malaga were in the Centre (€13.60) and the East (€12.70). After many months of price drops, rental rates have started to rise again in the centre. 

Malaga province has 31,736 holiday lets according to INE calculations, the second-highest in the country and well ahead of destinations such as the Balearics and Barcelona. 

Where’s the property market in Malaga going?

2022 definitely continued on the same track as 2021 when sales in the province rose by 25.5%. With the arrival of Vodafone and CitiBank in Malaga, along with continued foreign demand, this year looks set to post similar results. However, supply could be an obstacle – all the agents we have spoken to report that new listings are few and far between in the city, particularly in sought-after areas. 

In addition, rising mortgage interest rates are expecting to put the brakes on sales to some extent, particularly among the resident market. However, analysts agree that investor capital is still very presence in the city and on the Costa del Sol, so demand is expected to continue to be high. 

As to whether you should buy now, the answer will, as always, depend on your personal circumstances. Some buyers may want to take advantage of rising rental rates and tourism by investing in buy-to-let short or long-term. Others might like to wait and see. 

Whatever your reason and your timeline, one thing’s for sure – Malaga is a great place to live whether you buy or rent!

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