The Costa Property Podcast

#56 Costa Del Sol Q1 2025 Market Recap: Who’s Buying, What’s Selling & What It Means for You

• Warner and Sandra Laurie - WL Costa Properties Real Estate Spain • Episode 56

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In this week’s episode of The Costa Property Podcast, Sandra & Warner share the real story from the ground on Q1. No fluff. No guesswork. Just what they’ve seen in the inbox, in the listings, and from buyers and sellers in Benalmádena and beyond.

Together, they break down the real trends they’re seeing in Q1 - from what buyers are asking for, to which homes are selling fast, and how upcoming rental rules could affect investment buyers.

Whether you’re actively house hunting or planning to buy later this year, this episode will help you understand what’s shifting -  and how to be ready.

Plus: Why Benalmádena continues to be one of the smartest (and most livable) areas on the coast.

Tune in to discover:

✅ Are buyer enquiries up or down?

✅The three buyer types dominating the market right now (and what they’re looking for)

✅What kinds of properties are still selling in under 30 days

✅What the new tourist rental regulations could mean for you

✅Why families are increasingly skipping Marbella and looking toward Benalmádena

✅Sandra’s take on “testing the waters” before you buy - and what smart clients are doing


Planning to buy a property in Spain? 


Get in touch with WL Costa Properties

WL Costa Properties Website: https://wlcostaproperties.net/

Contact WL Costa Properties via Whatapp: https://api.whatsapp.com/send/?phone=0034602428928&text&type=phone_number&app_absent=0


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Quarter one is over the year is 

flying. So listen, what's actually in the costal 

property [00:01:00] market right now? There's been a lot of noise this quarter, Sandra, and so I wanted to dig down and give you the overview of quarter one for our business. It's actually been a, a really good quarter. One.

We've listed a lot of properties, which is amazing as properties now. Our king, and we have actually sold a lot of properties as well. We still do have a problem with stock. There's not enough properties coming on the market for sale for the demand. So the inquiries are down, but what it means is the people that are making the inquiries are ready to buy.

You know, they've got everything in place because they know that they need to be quick to find that dream property. I think if we look at the market last year compared to this year, the inbox inquiries are definitely lower, there's less. Traffic coming through, but I [00:02:00] think the buyer is more serious. So the buyer that is coming through, as you correctly say, ready to go.

But I think the lack of stock is definitely a problem in the market overall, not for us, because you've listed a lot of properties this quarter. When you have properties listed, you have buyers, right? That's just the way it is. Properties are king, as you say. But the challenge is for other agencies out there that don't operate a listing business like us, they are kind of clutching at straws trying to find a property for their customer.

And I don't know about you, but I just feel that I. A lot of the inquiries are from other agencies are lacking some due diligence. It's almost like putting a square peg into a round hole. So that's just something that I'm seeing in the market. It's a little bit doggy dog at the moment. Yeah, we call it the wild west.

, properties are king, and we're so lucky that we have a great reputation in [00:03:00] the Benno Madden area. And a lot of people know and trust us to give us the properties. So we're, we're so lucky in that stage. But yeah, there is more and more agents calling me every day to see, , the properties that I have, but we also have direct buyers coming, so, most of the properties that we're selling just now.

We're selling through our database of clients who are waiting for that right property, or somebody that's on our database, or somebody that comes through our property portals, or Facebook or social media. We really concentrate on that because then we have the direct buyer and the seller. It makes it a lot more simple to get the operation closed.

Absolutely. So when you work with us, we spend the time at the beginning upfront to really kind of get into your psyche to understand what is it that you want. So often we're kind of, almost call it like property blind date. We're making that [00:04:00] match. From your dream listing to your direct buyer, I would say probably 80% of your transactions, and that's just magic.

But I want to just look at, , we talked a little bit about inventory levels. So stock property is king. There is not enough stock in the market for the demand. What does that do to prices naturally? It causes prices to go up, so prices are still climbing.

Property prices have increased over the past year, so if you've sat on the fence looking in, waiting for property prices to stabilize or go down, that did not happen, nor does the market show any indication that that's going to happen right now in terms of dropping prices dramatically due to the shortage of inventory and due to the shortage of stock.

, let's talk about prices for a minute. You are an agent who lists a lot of properties. Talk about what you're finding. So what I'm finding right now, , when somebody contacts me through a referral or through a reputation, , , they're coming at me and saying, now I want you to list my property.

But such [00:05:00] and such, John, , down the pub told me that it's, that it's worth this amount. And, you know, I've been looking on Ilist or some property portals and it, you know, they're all coming up. , crazy amounts. And I say I totally get it. I say when there's lack of properties in the area, there's desperation because there's a lot of real estates there and the need to feed mouse.

Okay. But I can't listen to that noise. You know, I've been in bit mad a long time. I know where the market value is. I sell a lot of properties in this area. And I say like, this agent could list it at that, but at the end of the day, you're going to sell it at that. And you have to be realistic because , people are not daft to people that are studying the market, looking at the market ready to buy, have been looking over the last say one year.

They know. So they're not going to come in and pay an [00:06:00] overinflated price for a property that they don't think is worth the money. It's just not going to happen. If you get a one off property where your frontline beach or it's totally renovated and walk in condition, then you can get a higher premium.

But if you're looking for a property, one agent has it at one price and another agent has it another price and the same block, you really need to understand that there is a price on that. If you go with myself, I will tell you that I will market it to the best of my ability and try and get you the buyer for the best price.

Yeah, and I think you're really honest with that. when we talk about this at home, I often compare it to when somebody is selling a property, it's often like your child or your pet. They do no wrong. It's perfect. And often we have blinkers on when it comes to our property. And sellers [00:07:00] often have blinkers on and don't realize they do, and it causes them to lack objectivity.

Often when it comes to evaluating. What their property is actually worth. Sometimes it takes that tough conversation that you need to have with them to say, I know this is what. Such and such down the pub might have told you, I understand that this is what the other real estate agent might have told you, but in my experience selling all of the properties that I sell in Ben Magna, this is the actual value of your property.

And sometimes it might mean that somebody says, Warner isn't the real estate agent for me. But look, that's life. But what it does mean further down the line is it avoids you having a difficult conversation when the property has been sitting on the market because it can't be shifted. And that's what we want to avoid, right?

It's the situation that we always want to avoid because, the cost sits with us when we carry the inventory, but also, it's a disappointing experience for the seller. So that honest conversation upfront and that expectation management, I think is crucial. But let's talk a little bit about the type of buyer that we're still seeing on the [00:08:00] ground over here.

What are you thinking? Yeah, I'm loving the type of buyer that we're seeing now because due to the tourist license regulations, there's a bit of instability with investors, which means that the holiday home people, the second home, the dream of, you know, buying a property and having it in the family for 20 years is starting to come back, which is absolutely fantastic because.

, I think that's the circle of life. I'm seeing a lot of sellers just now that have had the properties for over 20 years. They're in retirement age. Their family have all grown up. Now. It's changed. They're selling their property now and the holiday on people that are just coming into that phase are starting to come in the market, which is great because it's also the way that they're structuring this tourist license is there's going to be zones for commercial.

So if a vest's coming [00:09:00] in looking for a return. Then the area will be zoned as a commercial where you can buy the tourist license, they can swap, they can get transferred. Well, you got smaller developments. Then they're going to be for the second home buyers, the people that want the family and friends to use it.

So I think it's going to be a massive change to the market because we are going to see a lot more properties come on the market at good prices for second home buyers. Due to the legislation of the tourist license and all those investors that had properties in the buildings where not allowed the tourist license, they're going to have to sell eventually, and then that will come back into the second home market.

I think we just need to pause there and give a bit of context for the listener. Let's start with the circle of life in terms of we are definitely seeing a cycle. In terms of, there is a lot of people selling at the moment that initially bought [00:10:00] as an early kind of retirement plan to enjoy. Life in Spain, grandchildren coming over, kids visiting.

Life has changed. The family is now going and having holidays in different places, and they don't have an interest in coming to Spain. The apartment isn't getting used. It's time to sell. The person buying that is somebody entering into that cycle of their life, which is lovely, isn't it? They're starting to think about their own retirement plans and enjoying that same vision with their family, and that's nice to see and that's able to happen now because as Warner alludes.

There has been changes to legislation introduced in Spain last year, and there's new legislation being introduced in April of this year, so it's just coming through as this podcast is being released whereby it will be more difficult to acquire tourist license in certain developments. So every.

Urbanization or community in Spain has a community of owners, and this new legislation will basically ensure that community of owners have the power to decide what happens in their urbanization and their [00:11:00] community. Look, this is a good thing in a lot of cases because if you are a family and you're in a.

Private residential area and there has been properties rented out for holiday lights in your area, and maybe you haven't had any control over who's coming and going in your urbanization. This will definitely create more security. It also means that there is certain urbanization, I guess that would be earmarked as holiday rental urbanization, and there'll be ones that'll be more residential.

So I think. If you're an investor looking to dip your toe more in the short term rental space, more going forward, you'll have to do a lot of due diligence with your real estate agent upfront to really earmark and research what urbanization, what communities, what developments are going to be right for you to allow your investment plan to happen.

Okay. But as Warner correctly states, it creates more opportunity for people to come into the market that really want to enjoy that dream of having that second home or retiring or that permanent home in Spain. So it's an interesting space to watch, right? [00:12:00] Yeah, absolutely. So who's buying? We're actually seeing a lot of families looking to relocate to the Costa Del Soul. They've had enough of the rat race and whatever country that they're from, and they just want their lifestyle. So we're actually seeing a lot of families come in and Benno Madden is great for that because in the vicinity you've got about four international schools.

So we're really seeing a lot of good properties getting sold, high-end vs. Around, you know, 800,000 to over a million mark. So that's great to see as well because it is this building the, the community. Yeah, it's good. So I'd say the families are definitely there. They're looking at the AL as a destination for them to raise their family and immerse themselves into that Mediterranean lifestyle, potentially leave the rat race of London, New York, bigger cities, and move [00:13:00] themselves and their families to a top quality home.

In a place that's safe, that's secure 

and where their kids can be kids, you know, immerse themselves as a family into this way of life. And I, I think 

that's really beautiful and it's lovely to see that type of buyer. And it's lovely to 

see them in Bena mad now because they're starting to 

understand I can get value for my money here.

Compared to Marbella, and as you correctly alluded to, 

you've got an abundance of top class international schools. If they're 

moving at an age where Spanish education system, mainstream education system is not an option for them, I think it's also good to talk about, we're still seeing the second home owner coming through, so.

Maybe 10 years away from 

retirement want to enjoy part of their life in Spain with eventually the plan to migrate over more permanently. When they do retire, it's brilliant to see them back and immerse themselves into the 

market. And we still see 

the people that are just retiring and they're ready to now come over potentially with a.

Non lucrative [00:14:00] visa or you know, if they're European, a citizen, a different route for them, and just really start enjoying the next chapter of their life. So it's lovely In terms of nationalities, you know, you cannot underestimate the resilience of the British buyer. It doesn't matter what rules you put in place for them.

B Brixit, you know, outside eu, they are resilient and I admire that. I take my hat off. So British buyers is still there in abundance, which is great. We're seeing a lot of the Irish buyers still there, kind of in the background. Americans, Canadians, and obviously a lot of Dutch. And we can see it in terms of when we look at the analytics of our website, you know, even in the business we, we can see the time zones and the locations that people are coming and starting to browse from.

So it's great to see that the American and Canadian buyer is still there. It's great that we are getting so much people coming to the cost that they saw to relocate. So it's fantastic for Benno Madina where we live, so there's more money and the [00:15:00] pot usually, as you said the other day, they're always cleaning, they're always making sure that the place is looking perfect.

Yeah. Like we were at walking, if you're following us on Instagram, you're probably sick of seeing the same palm tree, but that's our morning stroll. And I just say to Warner. God almighty, like they spend a fortune on keeping this place pristine. , they're up cleaning the palm trees and giving them a little haircut and they're out power hoing down the streets.

It really is spotless and it's beautiful to see. And that's creates a pride in where people are living because it's gorgeous and. People want to come back. So lovely pride of place and great investment being put into Ben Madman, which is wonderful to see. Okay. We've talked about who's buying.

We've talked about trends of prices, inventory levels, sales activity, which still good. Okay. In terms of the type of property that's popular right now, what's your opinion on that? the type of property here I'm seeing in Ben Madden is your one bedroom apartments and the block where they [00:16:00] can be close to the train station, be close to the town walking distance.

I kinda call it the first step on the ladder because it's affordable to people and they can basically get on the ladder and just test it out for a few years to see. If that is something that they want to retire here or they want to upgrade to a bigger property, but then they'll have all that experience that they've had from living in that or using that as a second home to make that decision.

, in terms of the type of properties, I think everything is still popular right now. We're seeing the villas in demand and the buyer that wants access to that premium property first, because for them it's very much about finding the right home for their family. And, and let's be frank, there is beautiful houses in Bella Magna for sale, but not all of them suit the layout or the logistics of a family.

Properties that are good layout, [00:17:00] large rooms, not necessarily a lot of stairs. If you've got younger kids, you know those properties. People want access to them. First apartments close to the beach gardens, pools, two bedroom, two bathroom. I think you could, if you, if you had 20 of them, you'd sell them.

And there is still a demand for new bills. We still see that. Absolutely. That's, that's still there. That's prevalent. But I, I think the shift this year that I'm definitely observing is. That family buyer that has tested the market in the cost and all potentially rented over a summer, tried the concept, has now decided this is going to be home, and they want to find that perfect family home.

That's the difference I see this year. Do you agree with that? Yeah, I agree with, and also a lot more retirement people thinking about, okay, well I'm going to retire next year or a couple of years. , I want to put things in place right now so that it's easy enough for me to do that. But you're right, like any [00:18:00] property.

If it's marketed properly, if it's priced correctly, probably sold in under 30 days. Yeah. If it's priced correctly, that it's positioned, marketed correctly, that's very important. Are there still bargains out there? The famous question I. I think it depends on what you call bargains. Okay. So if you look at it, if you're buying a property for a second home to use it for you and your family for the next 20 years, and you can afford the property to buy now, then yeah, it's an absolute bargain because look at how much it costs for a family of four to go on holiday every year is getting more expensive.

So if you kinda. Way up. Yes, there is bargains, but you need to be ready. And I know with my exclusive properties, I have a list, so when I list the property, I have a list of people. Waiting for the right property so [00:19:00] there's not bargains and can send a a price. But if you're in the right place at the right time, then go on.

Yeah. And I don't mean this disrespectfully, okay, because we like to educate people on this podcast, but , the days of coming to the cost of Del with a hundred or 150,000 for a two bedroom apartment with a sea view, it isn't happening. Okay. So you have to be realistic. You need to go up to the Casablanca, you need to go up towards Alante direction.

If that's your budget and your price range, you're not looking towards the cost at all. Okay, so what else happened in quarter one? I think we need to talk frankly about, the news did arrive that the golden visa would be abolished from the beginning of April this year. So that was publicized.

, quite a lot in, in the media. So the background here is that the Golden Visa was a, a visa that essentially allowed international buyers, non-EU buyers [00:20:00] to gain a visa into Spain once they spent 500,000 plus on a property. So that visa scheme has, or initiative is, is now abolished from April of this, this year.

So it did see a rush, I guess at the beginning of the, the first quarter for people that intended to use the Golden Visa as their gateway to Spain. There, there was a bit of panic, a bit of rush to. I guess utilize that as their, their entry to Spain. But I think it's fair to say if you're listening to this podcast now, which will be out in April of this year, that you know, if your intention was to use the goals and Visa, your time has passed, that opportunity is now gone.

You're too late and the Golden Visa is no longer an option for you. And you need to review the other Visa options if that's your intention. So let's also talk about. Quarter one then did also see [00:21:00] a lot of negative press around Spain doesn't want international buyers, and I think that was heavily driven by the announcement from Pedro Sanchez, right.

That arrived. In the first quarter of this year around new taxes, a hundred percent taxes for non EU buyers, a hundred percent of what you know, it was, in my opinion, it was quite an irresponsible announcement. And what happened was the press took a tiny segment of a very large conference update. That really negatively showed a statement that really expressed that new taxes would be introduced for non-EU buyers.

And I think it just spread like wildfire. And it was another another reason for people to really get nervous around investing and purchasing in Spain. But look. That is now firmly yesterday's news. We've not seen [00:22:00] anything since in terms of new taxes for non-use assistance. So I think as well, we discussed at the time, and we covered it in our bonus episode with Regina on this topic, wonderer? It was a bit irresponsible, wasn't it? Yeah, it caused an absolute mayhem. Every real estate on the coast wanted to, get first in, in the news and we all kinda got together and said, it just doesn't make sense. But it was picked up by the UK address but thankfully we've calmed the fire and its business as usual.

Yeah, . Good news. So nothing to worry about on that front. And no new taxes have been introduced. For non-EU buyers intending to to buy in Spain. So don't panic, calm the jets as we would, we would say. Okay, so look, we've talked a lot about quarter one , let's talk about I, I guess your expert predictions then, Warner. So what, what do you say? Are [00:23:00] prices going to continue to rise? Yeah, I do think prices are going to. Continue to rise, but not by the last like four years where they went up, , 10% or 15%. I think they, they'll rise gradually.

And that's due to the supply demand element of it. I am seeing, not properties that high priced starting to come down. And that's probably because the reason is, they're too expensive. So that, that's a good thing. That means that buyers out there, they're saying, okay, yeah, I want to buy my dream, but I ain't going to pay over the, the price that, that what it's worth.

 Depending on if it's a one-off property, it's on the beach and it's Philly renovated. They will go up in price. They won't pay way, way over over value. It just doesn't make make sense for them. So I, I think, , gradually the prices [00:24:00] will steadily increase, but a lot of them will start to stabilize as well, depending on what you're looking for.

 demand will stay and especially this year as well, and I'm hoping changing the tourist regulations and everything else, that more properties start to the market and it starts to kinda regulate itself so that, .

Sellers can't command a higher fee. And it starts to, it starts to regulate itself so that to buy the dream home in the sun. Okay. Okay. And then I guess final things is, you know, what are we seeing on the ground in terms of are there whispers of new regulations that could affect buyers? I guess just to say on this, , we know that April 3rd brings new regulations.

Connected to tourist licenses where the community of owners will be granted power to decide whether they want to approve or decline new licenses or transfer licenses [00:25:00] for current departments in their urbanization. So I. If you are intending to buy for investment, you need to watch this space very carefully over the next number of weeks, and you need to work with a good lawyer, a good legal team to really do your due diligence on your property to ensure that there's an assessment done of the previous community minutes and that there's time spent to gain an understanding if a tourist license will be improved in the community that you've identified moving forward, because you do not want to be in a situation where you purchase a property with the intention to rent out on short term rentals, then find that it's blocked by your community. So you need to assess this space.

I think this is going to be the next big one. The next one to watch in terms of buying for short-term investment. You need to do your due diligence on this space really, really well. Yeah, absolutely. Watch this space. We'll see what happens when these regulations come in. I think it's a good thing because then you know all the commercial areas where investors [00:26:00] can buy.

And then we know well the holiday homeowners can buy as well. So hopefully if the way it works out, it'll be a good thing for, for the market. Yeah. I heard you mention to somebody earlier, because obviously many of our listeners might not know, but you lived in Dubai and sold real estate in Dubai and you described it.

Like that. You see that it's kind of going like that setup in Dubai where you have zones, where there's certain areas where, , locals can buy and there's certain areas where people can buy for investment. , is that how you kind of, if you were to be a betting man, I guess, is that the way you see this kind of Yeah.

Organizing itself, so to speak? And also, if investors have got a few properties in the area, in the the area where the communities are going to close them down, then there's going to be pressure on. That person if there's any problems with renting his apartment out to sell which means that he would have to sell to a person from a second [00:27:00] home or a person that wants to live there, there permanently.

But then when he gets the, the price for that, then he can buy an investment area where they can rent his property out short term, because don't forget short term. Fantastic value. , you can use it, your family can use it. You can say when you want to be there, when you don't want to be there, it's a great investment, but the good thing is that it'll be zoned, so there won't be any problems in the future if you do it properly.

Thank you for your wise words, Warner. So final thoughts from us. If you're planning to buy, the key is being informed and acting strategically. Do your due diligence. Look, that's why we do these market updates. We really want to help you have your finger on the pulse in terms of what's happening on the ground here in the Sunny cost at El Al, we really want to help you make the best possible informed decision.

Thank you for listening.