HIPOTECALC ANALYTICS / IHEC

Home purchase effort in Spain · Q3 2023

How many estimated annual household incomes an 80 m² home costs at asking prices. A comparable measure across 100 Spanish municipalities.

By Equipo Hipotecalc · Published 8 September 2026

Source cutoff: 7 September 2026 · Edition 2026-09-07-v1 · Methodology 1.0

Retrospective report for Q3 2023, published on 8 September 2026 using data available at the 7 September 2026 cutoff. It was not published in the quarter analysed.

Sample median
3.77×
Annual household incomes · Q3 2023
Quarterly change
-1.8 %
Q2 2023
Annual change
Same quarter, previous year
Municipalities
100
Fixed sample, population 2025

The quarter in context

In Q3 2023, the median IHEC across the fixed sample of 100 municipalities was 3.77. Half of the municipal observations lie on either side of the median. It is a summary of this sample, not the average effort of Spanish households. The index divides a reference asking price for 80 m² by estimated annual household income.

Marbella recorded the highest ratio (9.59), followed by Donostia/San Sebastián (8.11) and Arona (7.78). At the other end, Talavera de la Reina recorded 2.13. The difference between the highest and lowest ratios was 7.45 annual income multiples.

What changed from the previous quarter

Compared with Q2 2023, the sample median changed by -1.8 %. The index increased in 15 municipalities and decreased in 85. These counts describe changes in a modelled price-income ratio, not changes in the number of households able to buy.

The largest quarterly change was in Marbella: +3.8 %, with an index of 9.59. The same national income factor applies across the sample; differences in municipal changes therefore reflect their different asking-price paths. They do not demonstrate locally observed income growth.

A year-on-year comparison is unavailable for this quarter within the supplied series.

How to interpret these results

The reference home has the same floor area in every municipality, but not necessarily the same quality, location or characteristics. Prices are asking prices and the income denominator is estimated. The index excludes financing, taxes and living costs. No causal conclusion about policy, tourism, employment or mortgage rates follows from this ranking alone.

Estimated IHEC: six highest-effort municipalities in Q3 2023; 80 m² asking price divided by estimated annual household income.
Estimated IHEC: six highest-effort municipalities in Q3 2023; 80 m² asking price divided by estimated annual household income. Source: Hipotecalc calculations, Idealista and INE.

Full quarterly ranking

Click a column heading to sort. The arrow indicates the direction; ranks stay unchanged.

Q3 2023 · IHEC · Estimated annual income multiples
1Marbella9.59+3.8 %
2Donostia/San Sebastián8.11-0.8 %
3Arona7.78+1.8 %
4Estepona7.74+2.6 %
5Fuengirola7.73+0.1 %
6Palma7.14-0.8 %
7Benalmádena6.97+1.6 %
8Barcelona6.95-2.2 %
9Madrid6.67-1.5 %
10Mijas6.47-0.7 %
11Málaga5.88+0.7 %
12Torrevieja5.83-0.1 %
13Bilbao5.75-3.0 %
14Cádiz5.65-0.8 %
15Orihuela5.60-1.9 %
16Hospitalet de Llobregat, L'5.25-4.2 %
17Cornellà de Llobregat5.08-1.9 %
18Barakaldo4.99-3.2 %
19Vitoria-Gasteiz4.70-4.3 %
20Puerto de Santa María, El4.69-1.0 %
21Pamplona/Iruña4.65-2.4 %
22Coruña, A4.63-2.4 %
23Santander4.62+0.8 %
24Santa Coloma de Gramenet4.59-0.9 %
25València4.56+0.6 %
26Sevilla4.53-2.2 %
27Badalona4.51-5.0 %
28Coslada4.47-1.7 %
29Chiclana de la Frontera4.46-1.0 %
30Sant Boi de Llobregat4.41-2.8 %
31Alcorcón4.39-4.4 %
32Mataró4.32-4.8 %
33Leganés4.30-2.5 %
34Alacant/Alicante4.25+0.1 %
35Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las4.24-1.4 %
36Salamanca4.23-3.1 %
37Sant Cugat del Vallès4.22-3.1 %
38Getafe4.21-0.4 %
39San Sebastián de los Reyes4.17-3.1 %
40Vigo4.14-4.2 %
41Granada4.11-2.7 %
42Pontevedra4.03+1.0 %
43Sabadell3.97-2.5 %
44Fuenlabrada3.94-2.2 %
45Gijón3.93+0.1 %
46Móstoles3.93-3.0 %
47Girona3.92-1.4 %
48Ceuta3.91-3.3 %
49Torrejón de Ardoz3.81-2.1 %
50Santa Cruz de Tenerife3.81-0.3 %
51Alcalá de Henares3.72-2.8 %
52Terrassa3.65-3.6 %
53Rubí3.62-5.8 %
54Parla3.54-2.4 %
55Santiago de Compostela3.50-0.4 %
56Vélez-Málaga3.46+0.4 %
57Zaragoza3.44-1.6 %
58Logroño3.44-1.6 %
59Rivas-Vaciamadrid3.41-3.0 %
60Alcobendas3.39-4.0 %
61San Fernando3.37-0.9 %
62San Cristóbal de La Laguna3.35+0.1 %
63Burgos3.34-1.0 %
64Valladolid3.28-2.2 %
65Córdoba3.26-2.1 %
66Telde3.26+1.3 %
67Melilla3.26-1.0 %
68Oviedo3.26-3.2 %
69Ourense3.25-4.0 %
70Rozas de Madrid, Las3.22-1.2 %
71Elx/Elche3.21-0.6 %
72Tarragona3.17-2.7 %
73Santa Lucía de Tirajana3.14-0.8 %
74Jerez de la Frontera3.11-0.5 %
75Albacete3.09+0.3 %
76Guadalajara3.06-0.6 %
77Badajoz3.04-2.6 %
78Roquetas de Mar3.03-1.6 %
79Gandia2.99-1.0 %
80Valdemoro2.95-4.8 %
81Huelva2.95-1.4 %
82Almería2.94-0.6 %
83León2.93-1.2 %
84Ejido, El2.93-1.6 %
85Pozuelo de Alarcón2.87-1.8 %
86Lugo2.84-0.6 %
87Cartagena2.74-3.7 %
88Toledo2.73-1.0 %
89Dos Hermanas2.72-1.4 %
90Torrent2.72-0.6 %
91Cáceres2.67-2.7 %
92Reus2.64-0.7 %
93Murcia2.61-3.8 %
94Algeciras2.58-2.5 %
95Castelló de la Plana2.57-2.9 %
96Manresa2.45-1.9 %
97Jaén2.41-2.6 %
98Lorca2.39-1.5 %
99Lleida2.25-1.7 %
100Talavera de la Reina2.13-1.1 %

FOR JOURNALISTS & RESEARCHERS

Cite this analysis

Hipotecalc Analytics. Hipotecalc Home Purchase Effort Index (IHEC), Q3 2023. Edition 2026-09-07-v1. Calculations by Hipotecalc using Idealista asking prices and INE income/household data. Municipal quarterly income is estimated. https://www.hipotecalc.com/en/analytics/house-price-to-income/reports/2023-q3

CSV includes derived index results and attribution, not the complete underlying source database. Municipal pages download the full series; the chart shows the six highest-effort municipalities.