Spain: provincial and rural real estate demand on the rise

In June, 13.2% of online property searches in Spain went to places with less than 5,000 inhabitants, up from 10.1% in January, says Idealista, a Spanish property portal. This surge in interest is attributed to the coronavirus pandemic and the rise of remote work in the country, which have changed the nature of popular demand. Many people are looking to leave crowded cities, showing enthusiasm for real estate in small and rural towns.

Growing interest in provincial Spanish towns can be been shown in Ávila (from 52.1% to 63.5%), Burgos (from 22.9% to 33.8%), Cuenca (from 42.3% to 53.1%) and Álava (from 13.2% to 23.5%). Nevertheless, interest in Barcelona is also growing, rising from 4.7% in January to 6.5% in June.

Demand for rural properties has also increased in provinces like Ávila (63.5% of total searches), Segovia (58.3%), Teruel (56.8%), Toledo (53.7%), Cuenca (53.1%), and Huesca (52.6%).

As for the Autonomous Communities of Spain, enthusiasm for real estate in smaller towns grew in Castile and León (from 23.7% of searches in January to 33.7% in June). The regions of Navarra (from 18.1% to 26.6%), Castile La Mancha (from 35.5% to 43.4%), and La Rioja (from 20% to 26%) also benefited from this new trend. In Madrid, interest nearly doubled from 3.7% to 6.2%, while Catalonia got even more popular – from 9.7% to 11.9%.

The greatest number of searches in towns of less than 5,000 inhabitants went to Castile La Mancha (43.4% of all searches), followed by Cantabria (39.1%), Castilla y León (33.7%), Extremadura (29.3%), Navarra (26.6%) and La Rioja (26%).

Author: Julia Naymushina