Málaga-Marbella, the Part of Spain Where Buying a Home Takes the Most Effort, According to the OECD

The effort required to buy a home in Málaga and Marbella is the highest in Spain: according to the OECD, buying a house in this urban area takes 4.52 more years of disposable income than the national average. No other Spanish urban area comes close to this ceiling, not even Madrid or Barcelona.

The figure comes from the OECD's biennial report "Regions and Cities at a Glance 2026", which compares prices, incomes and housing supply across the urban centres, suburbs and rural areas of its member countries. For anyone buying or investing on the Costa del Sol, the reading is twofold: it confirms the strength of demand in the area and, at the same time, makes it necessary to plan financing more carefully. Below, we put it in context with the real prices in our catalogue by municipality.

What exactly does the OECD say about house prices in Spanish cities?

Housing in Spain's large urban centres costs 24.9% more than the national average. That is a slightly smaller premium than the OECD average, where cities are 27% more expensive than the country as a whole. At the other end, Spain's metropolitan suburbs are 23% below the average, and areas far from any functional urban area are 38% below.

In other countries the gap is much wider. Denmark tops the list, with cities 63.6% more expensive than the national average, followed by Hungary and Finland. At the other end are the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, where the difference is barely there. Spain therefore sits in a middle zone: the gap between city and the rest of the country is clear, but not extreme.

How many years of salary does it take to buy a home in Málaga?

The OECD does not measure effort in euros, but in years of household disposable income. By that measure, the Málaga-Marbella area needs 4.52 more years than the Spanish average to pay for a home, the highest figure in the country. It is followed by Palma de Mallorca, with 4.33 additional years, while Madrid adds 2.7 and Barcelona 1.6. At the opposite pole, Castellón requires 4.8 years less than the average, so between the most expensive and the most affordable area there are about nine years of income.

The explanation is familiar to anyone who follows the market in the province: prices driven by international demand and the arrival of new residents, against local salaries that grow at a different pace. A foreign buyer, or an investor with income earned outside Spain, does not feel that effort in the same way as a family living on a Málaga salary.

How much does housing cost today in each Costa del Sol municipality?

To put concrete figures on the OECD's diagnosis, we have taken the medians from our Costa del Sol market report, which is updated every month with the properties for sale in our catalogue. These are asking prices, not escritura (title deed) prices, but they give a good picture of the level at which each municipality is operating.

Marbella sets the ceiling, with a median above €6,000 per square metre. Fuengirola, despite being a small municipality, exceeds the provincial capital in price per square metre thanks to its seafront and the scarcity of land. Málaga, Estepona and Benalmádena cluster around €4,500-5,000/m², and Torremolinos and Mijas currently offer the most moderate values in this group, although they remain well above the Andalusian average.

Why is housing more expensive in cities?

The OECD points to a combination of factors: little available land, demanding planning regulations and neighbourhood opposition to new developments. In addition, since 2011 housing supply in large metropolitan areas has grown more slowly than their population, despite starting from already high prices. The organisation cites Madrid and Lisbon as examples of a particularly marked imbalance.

The Costa del Sol fits this pattern. New-build supply does not manage to cover demand, developable land is scarce between the sea and the mountains, and each new development takes years to go from licence to handover of keys. That is why the resale market continues to absorb a good share of transactions, and prices hold up even when the cost of financing rises.

What does this figure mean if you want to buy on the Costa del Sol?

A high level of effort does not mean that buying is a bad idea, only that it is wise to do so with clear numbers from the start. These are the key points we review most often with our clients:

• Work out the purchase costs on top of the price: on resale properties, the ITP (property transfer tax) in Andalusia is 7%; on new builds you pay IVA (VAT) at 10% plus stamp duty on documented legal acts.
• Compare neighbouring municipalities: between Marbella and Mijas the difference per square metre exceeds 40%, with similar services and transport links in many areas.
• Consider the outskirts and the interior: the OECD confirms that outside urban centres housing is noticeably cheaper, and in the province of Málaga you can see this just a few kilometres from the coast.
• Secure your financing before negotiating: with a mortgage pre-approval you can act quickly when the right property appears.

At EVS PROPERTY GROUP we work every day with domestic and international buyers in Málaga, Marbella and the rest of the Costa del Sol. If you would like to know what budget you need in each area, or receive a selection of properties tailored to your case, write to us and we will help you find the option that best fits your buying effort.

Source: idealista/news (4 November 2026), based on the OECD report “Regions and Cities at a Glance 2026”.

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