Data from the first quarter of this year shows an annual increase of over 100€, pending the effects of price caps in high-demand areas.
The price of rentals in Barcelona reached a new record increasing by 6.9% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2023.
It will take a few months to see the corrective effects of the rental price caps in the most high-demand areas, in effect since March 16th. However, the current situation confirms the unstoppable trend that has prompted authorities to intervene in the market to curb the price escalation. The average price of a new rental contract in Barcelona rose in the first quarter of this year to 1,193.41€ per month, marking a historic record.
The Generalitat has published the prices of new rental agreements signed in Catalonia between January 1st and March 31st, based on official records of the deposits made with Incasòl when a lease contract is signed. Across Catalonia, the average price of a rental during that period was 868.85€, 6.7% more than the same period in 2023 and 1.7% more than in the last quarter of the previous year. This general increase is largely due to the significant rises in Barcelona and its metropolitan area municipalities.
In the capital, where the threshold of 1,200€ per month was approached, the 1,000€ mark has been exceeded for seven consecutive quarters. Between January and March, prices rose by 9.75% compared to the same months in 2023, and this increase occurred across all ten city districts, with only three districts remaining below that reference figure: Horta-Guinardó (973.58€), Sant Andreu (939.88€), and Nou Barris (828.71€). The most expensive district remains Sarrià-Sant Gervasi (1,651.79€), while les Corts registers the highest annual inflation (16.63%).
In the last 5 years, rental prices in Barcelona have increased by 21.5%.
In two Barcelona neighborhoods, rents exceed 2,000€ per month: Pedralbes (2,188.68€) and les Tres Torres (2,048.54€). At the other end, only 3 of the city’s 73 neighborhoods have rents below 700€: Bon Pastor (679.20€), Ciutat Meridiana (603.60€), and the cheapest, Torre Baró (417.46€ per month).
Fewer transactions than the previous year
In the first quarter of 2024, 9,826 new rental contracts were signed in Barcelona, with the most in the Eixample district (1,897) and the fewest in Les Corts (381). There were 9.77% fewer transactions than at the beginning of 2023.
The Barcelona Urban Property Chamber attributes the “decline in the rental market turnover rate” to the lack of supply, which prevents tenants from considering alternatives to their current contract and forces them to maintain existing leases as much as possible. According to this entity, the rental market expanded by 1,946 homes (the difference between new leases and terminations), compared to 1,946 in the first quarter of 2023, a figure still much lower than the 2,841 in the same period of 2022.
The Barcelona Urban Property Chamber warns of the imbalance between supply and demand
The Barcelona Urban Property Chamber explains the price increase to the imbalance between supply and demand, adding the “improvement in the quality” of the rental stock and the larger size of the apartments entering the market. In new contracts, the average size was 75 square meters, the largest so far this century, and 3 square meters more than in the first quarter of 2023. The most expensive square meter of a rental apartment in Barcelona in the first three months of this year was in Barceloneta (21.63€/m²), followed by Vila Olímpica del Poblenou (21.36 €/m²) and Sarrià (20.69 €/m²). Overall, the average price in the city was 16.73€/m², 6.85% more than between January and March 2023 and 3.65 percentage points higher than the CPI. The cheapest apartments by size are in Torre Baró (4.90€/m²), Marina del Prat Vermell (7.24€/m²), and Bon Pastor (9.25€/m²).
Price increases in Barcelona extend to all of Catalonia, especially in the first and second metropolitan rings, which long ago ceased to be an economic refuge for those who cannot afford to live in Barcelona.
Most expensive municipalities in the metropolitan area
In addition to the price of rentals in Barcelona having reached a new record, nine other municipalities in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area exceeded 1,000 € per month. Sant Cugat del Vallès stands out, also being the most expensive municipality in Catalonia, with an average rental value of 1,419.06€ per month. Following are Sant Just Desvern (1,231.07€), Tiana (1.154,95€), Castelldefels (1,148.98€), Sant Joan Despí (1,122.71€), Gavà (1,083.41€), Montgat (1,058.25€), Esplugues de Llobregat (1,033.40€), and Begues (1,018.72€).
In Catalonia, there are eight municipalities where renting a home in the first quarter of this year was even more expensive than in the capital. In some of them, the small number of transactions can distort the results. The Maresme region concentrates many of the most expensive towns. At the top is Sant Vicenç de Montalt (1,768.78€ per month on average in 27 new leases), followed by Sant Cugat del Vallès (1,419.06€) and three municipalities in the Maresme region: Cabrils (1,335.05€), Premià de Dalt (1,314.05€), and Alella (1,290.52€). Closing the top 8 are Sant Pere de Vilamajor (1,237.50 €), Sant Just Desvern (1,231.07€), and l’Ametlla del Vallès (1,221.43€).
Girona, more expensive than Tarragona and Lleida
In other provincial capitals, the largest year-on-year price increase during the period considered occurred in Lleida (9.57%), reaching 568.33 €/month. However, the capital of Segrià is still cheaper than Girona (807.56€) and Tarragona (664.23€), which in the first three months of this year recorded increases of 5.94% and 5.58%, respectively.
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Source: La Vanguardia
