Who is buying the coast now, and what still isn't law

We keep half an eye on the market the way you might keep half an eye on the weather: not because we sell property, but because it shapes every conversation we have with people thinking about a life here. This is a plain update on where things stand in July 2026, on both the Costa del Sol and the Costa Blanca, drawn from the figures that have come out this year rather than from anyone's forecast.

Nothing here is a signal to move quickly. We simply think it is useful to know what is actually happening before you start looking, rather than picking it up in fragments from wherever you happen to read next.

Prices are still climbing, but unevenly

On the Costa del Sol, the headline number from Idealista's second quarter figures is a shift in demand rather than in price alone. Rincón de la Victoria has overtaken Málaga city as the most sought-after market on the coast, with average asking prices there reaching 3,390 euros per square metre, a rise of 9.1 percent over the year. Málaga city itself rose 9.4 percent to 3,784 euros per square metre, but generated fewer enquiries per listing than its eastern neighbour.

Further along the coast the pattern holds. Torremolinos rose 11.1 percent to 4,038 euros per square metre and Benalmádena 9.1 percent to 4,140 euros, according to the same Idealista data. Mijas, long considered good value, climbed 13.7 percent to 3,637 euros per square metre. None of these are small movements, and they tell us that demand has not eased off simply because prices have already risen a great deal since 2023.

On the Costa Blanca the pace is steadier but still upward. Engel & Völkers puts the average price for houses in the region at around 2,682 euros per square metre this year, up from roughly 2,523 euros twelve months ago. Torrevieja, one of the coast's most active resale markets, saw prices rise 4.56 percent since the start of the year, according to Euro Weekly News. It is a market moving up in smaller steps than the Costa del Sol, which suits some buyers better than others.

Who is actually buying

British and German buyers remain the two largest groups of foreign purchasers in Spain by volume, a position they have held for years. What has changed this year, according to figures from the Property Registrars reported by Euro Weekly News, is that Dutch buyers have moved ahead of both in registered transactions when residents are included, with Belgian and French buyers not far behind in the wider field.

We would not read too much into any single quarter of nationality data. But it does match what we hear on the ground: more Dutch and Belgian visitors asking practical questions about schools, healthcare registration and winter rental yields, alongside the British buyers who have always made up the backbone of coastal demand.

A tax that still is not law

The proposal that keeps coming up in conversation is the plan, first floated by the Spanish government in early 2025, to apply a surcharge of up to 100 percent on property purchases by non-EU, non-resident buyers. It remains exactly that: a proposal. As of this spring it had stalled in Congress for lack of the votes needed to pass, and it is not currently in force.

If you are budgeting for a purchase this year, plan around the rules as they stand today, not around a bill that has not yet found a majority.

We mention it because it keeps arriving in inboxes as settled fact when it is not. Buyers from outside the EU, in particular from the UK, Norway and further afield, should simply keep an eye on the news rather than adjust a budget for something that may never pass in its current form.

Infrastructure moving slowly, but moving

The long-discussed coastal train linking Málaga, Torremolinos, Fuengirola, Marbella, Estepona and Algeciras is still at the feasibility stage, with the first phase of the study due to report this year. Marbella remains Spain's largest city without a rail connection, so this is a project worth watching rather than banking on. Nothing about current pricing in Marbella or Estepona assumes the line will be built on any particular timetable, and neither should you.

What this means if you are starting to look

Supply in the established, well-connected pockets of both coasts remains tight, which is one reason prices have kept climbing even where they were already high. That does not mean every town is moving at the same pace, and areas a little further from the obvious names, such as Rincón de la Victoria or parts of the Costa Blanca away from the front line, are worth a proper look rather than a quick dismissal.

If you are buying to live rather than to speculate, the practical questions matter more than the headline growth figures: how the property performs in August heat and January rain, how far it sits from a working town centre, what it actually costs to run for a year. Those answers do not change with each quarter's data release.

We are always glad to talk through what any of this means for your own search, coast by coast and town by town, without any pressure to move faster than feels right. Get in touch when you are ready, and we will help you make sense of what you are seeing.