Q1 2026 data shows prices up 10.3% year on year, with foreign buyers still close to 30% of all purchases

The first quarter of 2026 confirmed what anyone watching this market closely already expected: prices are still rising, stock remains thin, and foreign buyers continue to account for nearly a third of all purchases. The API Baleares quarterly report, published in May 2026, gives us the clearest available picture of where things stand, island by island, district by district.

If you are considering buying a property for sale in the Balearics, the numbers here are worth understanding before you start viewing.

Price: the headline figure and what it means

The average transaction price per square metre across the Balearic Islands reached 4,173 €/m² at the close of Q1 2026, up 1.7% from the previous quarter and 10.3% year on year. The 12-month average of 4,079 €/m² is the highest the series has ever recorded.

New build and second-hand properties are moving in the same direction, though at slightly different speeds. New build hit 4,086 €/m² (up 8.5% annually), while resale properties reached 4,077 €/m² (up 10.8%). The gap between the two has effectively closed, which tells you something about where demand pressure is sitting right now.

The appraised value, tracked separately by the Ministry of Transport, reached 3,810 €/m² in Q4 2025, up 14.9% year on year. The INE house price index showed a 13.4% annual rise over the same period. Whichever measure you use, the trend is the same.

Palma prices by district

Palma municipality reached a transaction price of 4,202 €/m², its highest recorded figure, with 12.5% annual growth. The asking price picture is sharper still. At the close of Q1, the average listed price across the city stood at 5,511 €/m², broken down by district as follows:

• Old Town (Centro): 6,605 €/m²
• West (Ponent): 6,106 €/m²
• Playa de Palma: 5,348 €/m²
• North (Norte): 4,246 €/m²
• East (Llevant): 4,186 €/m²

In absolute terms, the listed average price per home in the West district is now 1,350,170 €. The Old Town sits at 1,173,743 €. The East remains the most accessible district at 473,308 € on average.

The premium municipalities

Outside Palma, the asking price data confirms which areas are driving the top end of the market. Andratx leads the islands at 9,606 €/m² listed, followed by Sant Josep de sa Talaia in Ibiza at 7,378 €/m² and Santa Eulàlia des Riu at 7,368 €/m². Calvià comes in at 7,037 €/m² and Sóller at 6,410 €/m².

In terms of average asking price per property, Andratx tops the list at over 3.1 million euros. Sóller averages 1.64 million, Sant Josep de sa Talaia 1.46 million and Calvià 1.4 million. These are listed prices across all property types, not just luxury, which gives a sense of what the baseline has become in these locations.

For buyers focused on properties for sale in Mallorca or properties for sale in Ibiza, the gap between primary and secondary locations has widened considerably over the past two years.

Asking price evolution by municipality: Jul 2025 to Mar 2026

The table below, drawn from Idealista data compiled in the API Baleares report, shows how listed prices per square metre have moved across the main municipalities over the past nine months. The chart makes the divergence between markets visible: Andratx operates in a different range from anywhere else on the islands.

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Transaction volumes: still substantial, slightly slower

Q1 2026 recorded 3,643 purchases across the Balearics, a 2.2% rise from Q4 2025 but down 6.5% from Q1 2025. The rolling 12-month total stands at 14,378 transactions, roughly 11.4 purchases per thousand inhabitants. For context, the peak years of 2022 and 2023 exceeded this, but we are still well above the lows of 2013 and 2014.

The quarterly improvement was driven entirely by new build: 827 completions in Q1, up 2.6% year on year. Resale fell 8.9% to 2,816 transactions. New build now represents 22.7% of all purchases, the highest share since Q4 2019.

Island breakdown

Mallorca registered 2,612 transactions in Q1 (down slightly from Q4 2025). Ibiza and Formentera combined for 486, and Menorca for 391. Over the trailing 12 months, Mallorca accounts for 10,823 transactions, Ibiza and Formentera for 1,878 and Menorca for 1,642.

By municipality (trailing 12 months)

Palma remains by far the largest single market with 5,140 transactions and a 33.2% share of total Balearic volume. The next largest are Calvià (1,205), Llucmajor (649), Eivissa town (604) and Santa Eulàlia des Riu (504). All of these numbers come from Ministry data covering the four quarters to Q4 2025.

Palma recorded 1,106 purchases in Q1 2026 alone, up 4.4% from the previous quarter, though still 12.1% below Q1 2025. The 12-month Palma total of 4,536 transactions is down 2.1% annually.

Foreign buyers: still close to 30%

Foreign nationals accounted for 28.9% of all purchases in Q1 2026 (down from 31.5% in Q4 2025) and 29.6% over the trailing 12 months. In absolute terms, that is 1,052 foreign purchases in the quarter and 4,252 over the year.

The nationality breakdown for full-year 2025 shows Germans leading with 39.1% of all foreign purchases, followed by British buyers at 9.4%, Italians at 5.4% and Swedes at 4.2%. This breakdown has remained relatively stable over several years, though German buyer dominance has grown compared to the pre-pandemic period.

The slight quarter-on-quarter drop in foreign demand is consistent with seasonal patterns and with the wider moderation in transaction volumes. There is no structural reversal in international demand, just a normalisation from the exceptional levels of 2022 and 2023.

Stock on the market

At the close of Q1 2026, the islands had approximately:

• Palma: 3,633 properties listed for sale
• Calvià: 1,475
• Ciutadella de Menorca: 665
• Manacor: 611
• Eivissa town: 592
• Andratx: 565
• Llucmajor: 561

Within Palma, the West district (Ponent) has the largest stock at 1,476 listings, East (Llevant) 673, Playa de Palma 553, Old Town (Centro) 544 and North (Norte) 387. The overall supply position has not changed dramatically over the past year, which is part of why prices continue to rise.

New construction: pipeline ahead of current demand

Visas for new construction in the Balearics over the 12 months to February 2026 totalled 3,770, up 18% annually. The ratio of visas to new build sales now stands at 1.26, meaning the current production pipeline is running about 26% ahead of where demand is absorbing new supply. This is a different picture from what we saw in 2021 and 2022, when demand clearly outpaced anything coming out of the ground.

Homes started in the 12 months to Q4 2025: 4,218 (up 25.8%). Homes completed: 2,482 (down 10.9%). Construction costs rose 3.5% over the year, with labour costs up 6.3% and materials up 2.5%.

Mortgages and financing

The mortgage market remains active. Over the past 12 months, 10,457 mortgages were secured on Balearic residential properties, 2.7% more than the prior year. The mortgage-to-purchase ratio stands at 72.7%, meaning roughly three in four purchases involve a mortgage.

The average new mortgage is 278,496 €, an annual record. The loan-to-value ratio is 67%. Average interest on new mortgages sits at 2.84%, slightly down from the 2.96% recorded in Q4 2025. Fixed-rate mortgages account for 68.1% of new lending.

Affordability has deteriorated marginally. The average monthly repayment is 1,362 €, representing 56.8% of average gross salary costs. That ratio is down 2.25 percentage points year on year, mainly because wages grew faster than mortgage costs, but it remains high in absolute terms.

Mortgage defaults are at historical lows. Only 153 foreclosure certificates were issued in the trailing 12 months, down 19.9% year on year. For context on the broader economic environment, the full API report is published quarterly by the Colegio de Registradores.

The rental market

Rental supply and prices follow a similar trajectory to the sales market. The average listed rental price across the Balearics in Q1 2026 was 19.7 €/m²/month, up 3.1% quarter on quarter and 6.4% year on year. In Palma, the figure was 18.6 €/m²/month, up 7.5% annually.

Palma has 1,061 properties listed for rental, far ahead of Manacor (117), Calvià (93) and Andratx (79). Within Palma, the West district (Ponent) saw a 45% rise in rental stock quarter on quarter, reaching 460 listings. The Old Town (Centro) grew 25.4% to 278.

The Ministerio de Hacienda data from 2023 (the most recent available) puts the number of rented homes in the Balearics at 86,027, representing 27.6% of the total housing stock. In Ibiza town, 42.9% of all dwellings are rented.

Tourist rental numbers are falling across the board. November 2025 INE data shows Pollença leading with 2,385 tourist rentals but down 9.2% year on year. Alcúdia has 1,464 (down 11.1%). The general direction is a reduction in tourist rental supply, partly due to licensing restrictions.

The macroeconomic context

The Balearic Islands GDP grew 2.7% in Q1 2026 year on year, following 3.2% growth for full-year 2025. The local economy is still expanding, but the rate is moderating. Population reached 1,259,545 at the start of 2026, up 15,151 from the prior year, with foreign residents now comprising 21.8% of the total.

Inflation was running at 3.6% in Q1 2026 (up from 2.9% at year-end 2025). The ECB held rates at 2% at the close of Q1. The 12-month Euribor stood at 2.57%, up from 2.27% at end-Q4 2025. That rise is worth monitoring, as it feeds directly into variable mortgage costs and buyer sentiment.

The return on Balearic property (measured as the annual price appreciation) was 10.34% over the 12 months to Q1 2026. That sits above 10-year Spanish government bond yields (3.3%) but below the IBEX-35 total return (29.8%). Property here continues to serve as a store of value rather than a high-yield vehicle, which is broadly consistent with what international buyers in this market are looking for.

Full macroeconomic data for the region is published by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística.

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Frequently asked questions

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