Costa Blanca Property Market Report Q3 2026: Prices, Demand & Buyer Nationality
What buyers need to know about pricing trends, demand shifts, and who's buying on the Costa Blanca this quarter
Costa Blanca property prices are still rising heading into Q3 2026, with Alicante province asking prices hitting a record €2,811/m² and foreign buyers now accounting for 44.65% of all transactions in the province — more than three times Spain's national average. Demand from Dutch buyers is surging while British demand cools, and Costa Cálida is emerging as the value alternative next door.
Prices: where the Costa Blanca stands this quarter
Spain's national average property price hit €2,429/m² in the latest Registradores quarterly figures, up 8.9% year-on-year. Alicante province is running well ahead of that: asking prices reached €2,811/m² in mid-2026 according to portal data, a new high for the region. Appraisal firm Tinsa's regional breakdown — the most detailed town-level data currently published — shows most Costa Blanca hotspots posting double-digit annual growth.
| Area | Avg. price/m² | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| Alicante province (avg.) | €1,877 | +18.3% |
| Benidorm | €2,786 | +20.5% |
| Alicante city | €1,980 | +16.1% |
| Orihuela Costa | €1,986 | +15.4% |
| Torrevieja | €1,859 | +15.0% |
Note the gap between Tinsa's appraisal-based averages above and the higher asking prices quoted by listing portals — asking prices run ahead of confirmed sale prices in a rising market, so treat portal figures as a ceiling and appraisal data as a more conservative read on what's actually closing.
Demand: how many homes are foreign buyers buying?
Foreign buyers accounted for 15.98% of all Spanish home sales in Q2 2026 — the highest share on record — with more than 26,800 purchases in the quarter alone. That pushed H1 2026 foreign purchases to 51,627, up 4% on H1 2025 and the strongest first half ever recorded. Alicante province captured a disproportionate share of that demand: foreigners made 44.65% of all purchases here, the highest rate of any Spanish province and nearly three times the national average.
Torrevieja remains the single most-searched coastal town in Spain among foreign buyers, according to idealista's listing-view data, ahead of established markets like Marbella and Calvià.
Who's buying? Buyer nationality breakdown
British buyers remain Spain's largest foreign buyer group, but only just. In H1 2026, British buyers completed an estimated 3,567 purchases nationally, down 10% year-on-year, while Dutch buyers reached 3,489, up 12%. The gap narrowed sharply in Q2 alone, when British purchases fell to 1,843 — Dutch buyer growth is now one of the most dynamic trends in the Spanish market, with the Netherlands' presence up almost 50% since 2023, concentrated heavily in Alicante province.
Demand from some other nationalities has cooled: Polish buyer activity slowed by roughly 12–13% year-on-year in the latest data, part of a broader pullback among several emerging buyer groups, while Russian buyer numbers continue a multi-year decline of over 30% annually. Moroccan, Romanian, German, French and Italian buyers round out the largest groups nationally, together with British and Dutch demand accounting for the bulk of Costa Blanca transactions.
Costa Cálida vs Costa Blanca: where's the value?
For buyers priced out of the Costa Blanca's coastal hotspots, Costa Cálida in neighbouring Murcia remains 30–50% cheaper for comparable coastal property. Average prices there sit around €1,776–1,904/m² depending on season, up roughly 7.5% year-on-year — meaningful growth, but starting from a much lower base. French buyers currently lead foreign interest in Murcia, a different nationality mix than the Costa Blanca's British-and-Dutch-led market, which is worth knowing if you're comparing the two regions.
What this means if you're buying now
Prices are rising across nearly every Costa Blanca town, but the rate of increase varies enough between areas that it's worth comparing more than one town before committing. Foreign demand is at a record share of the market, which supports resale values but also means more competition for well-priced listings in the most searched towns like Torrevieja. Because DirecSpain connects buyers directly with agencies' own listings without adding a buyer's commission, working through a commission-free route can offset some of this quarter's price growth compared to buying through layered intermediary channels.
FAQ
Are Costa Blanca property prices still rising in 2026?
Yes — most Costa Blanca towns are showing double-digit year-on-year price growth as of the latest Q1–Q2 2026 data, driven largely by strong foreign demand and limited new supply.
What share of Costa Blanca property buyers are foreign?
Foreign buyers made up 44.65% of all transactions in Alicante province as of mid-2026 — the highest share of any Spanish province, more than three times the national average of 15.98%.
Which nationality buys the most property on the Costa Blanca?
British buyers remain the largest foreign buyer group nationally, but Dutch buyer numbers are rising quickly and the gap between the two has narrowed sharply through 2026.
Is Costa Cálida cheaper than the Costa Blanca?
Yes — comparable coastal property in Murcia's Costa Cálida runs 30–50% cheaper than the Costa Blanca, though prices there are also rising, up roughly 7.5% year-on-year.
Sources: Colegio de Registradores de España (Q1–Q2 2026), Tinsa appraisal data (Q1 2026), idealista listing-price and demand data (2026).
