In Spain, housing activity is rising, with thousands of housing projects anticipated by 2024 as reported by Brains Real Estate, a leading property platform that compiles permit data from multiple local authorities across the country. The figure includes permits issued by municipal councils within the year, forming a comprehensive view of planned construction across regions.
For 2023, by November, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda indicated that the country would publish final annual data on work visas, with a target close to the 2022 level of about 100,582 visas. This pace suggests a similar outcome for the current year as well.
Various studies project that local councils may authorize roughly 110,000 new homes in 2024, marking a modest 1.5 percent rise for 2023 and the year ahead. The latest Real Estate Observatory from BBVA notes that the numbers achieved so far have exceeded earlier expectations, hinting at continued visa growth into 2025. In the euro area, optimism about a recovery persists, with forecasts suggesting a rise toward 130,000 visas as the economy stabilizes.
Nevertheless, headwinds exist for new construction due to a shortfall between issued permits and available demand. Alejandro Aguirre, chief executive of Brains Real Estate, explains that demand has cooled in the corporate market in 2023, while residential demand has also slackened. Despite this, demand in housing construction still outpaces supply. New data from Brains Real Estate shows where construction is likely to start, identifying locations where demand, cities, and ready land converge. This alignment is relatively limited, so prices for new construction are expected to remain firm in 2024.
By community and state
In the regional breakdown, the Community of Madrid leads with a high level of activity. Plans cover 91 projects and 6,220 homes slated to begin construction in 2024. Catalonia follows with 3,381 new properties, Andalusia with 1,823, and the Valencian Community with 1,339. Regions such as La Rioja, Cantabria, and Castilla-La Mancha show fewer than 100 homes ready to start in the near term.
At the provincial level, excluding the capital, the principal areas where new housing is poised to begin construction include Barcelona with 3,129, Valencia with 707, Alicante with 631, Córdoba with 581, Vizcaya with 506, Seville with 494, Badajoz with 480, Malaga with 442, Cádiz with 295, and the Balearic Islands with 289. Provinces like Guadalajara, Huesca, Lleida, Palencia, and Soria have reported no new construction permissions in the latest Brains Real Estate data.
Low supply
CaixaBank Research emphasizes that housing supply remains tight and insufficient to meet projected demographic needs. The report notes that the flow of new construction visas lags behind the growth of net households.
The bank’s economic research team adds that demographic growth, including a notable influx of foreign residents, has driven demand. An estimated 600,000 people arrived in a single year, the largest such wave since the immigration boom of the early 2000s. This population typically gravitates toward urban or tourist hubs with strong economic activity, which partly fuels higher housing prices in those areas.
Looking ahead, housing supply is not expected to accelerate in the near term. Project promoters indicate there is currently a shortage of suitable final land ready for construction and a construction industry stretched to support a surge in new supply.