With its convenient digital nomad visa, low cost of living and plenty of warm sunny days, Spain is a popular destination for people looking to live and work remotely for extended periods of time.
Recently, however, the number of travelers, expats and digital nomads heading to Spain during the summer months has led to astronomical rent increases for the popular short-term rentals across the country.
In response to the rising cost of living, local residents have railed against short-term renters, accusing them of being the reason behind rent increases and lack of availability.
However, it is the digital nomads who want to work remotely in the country who are struggling to keep up with the rapid price increases.
House prices escalate
Spain used to be known as an affordable part of the European lifestyle. Low-priced food, cheap transportation, fast internet and plenty of beaches for remote work.
That’s quickly disappearing, however, as more Americans recognize the country as an expat haven and drive up the cost of living even in some of the country’s most remote places.
In fact, according to an article in the Spanish newspaper El País, in “Andalusia, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and Cantabria, the average rental price is more than 30% of the net income of households.”
Even beyond Spain’s popular Mediterranean coast, the cost of living is rising in small towns in northern Spain.
In many cities in the region, €500 would have been a reasonable amount of rent to pay for a nice apartment or small house in northern Spain, and digital nomads had plenty to choose from.
Today there may be one available for that price and El País adds that it is most likely dilapidated, with poor windows and no heating for the winter. That’s in a small town and not even a big, popular tourist spot.
Gentrification through tourism
Sergio Nasarre, former director of the UNESCO Chair in Housing at the Rovira i Virgili University of Tarragona, in a news report on the issue: “For three or four years we have been witnessing a second gentrification of people who had already been expelled from society . city centers to the periphery and are now being expelled from there to a second circle or even beyond.”
He added that the record for the highest number of home purchases by foreigners in Spain in a single year was broken in 2023 and has multiplied by four in the past fifteen years.
Where is affordable nomad housing?
Digital nomads looking for the most affordable housing in Spain will definitely want to cross Madrid off the list, where the average rental-to-income ratio is almost 45 percent. It is the highest percentage in the entire country.
Unfortunately for remote workers, the Bank of Spain’s research shows only two regions of the country where the price of housing is still reasonable, at 30 percent of the average income or less: Aragón and La Rioja.
The Aragon region is located northeast of Madrid and is located in the mountains, mainly behind Barcelona and Valencia. The most important city in the region is the capital Zaragoza with approximately 700,000 inhabitants.
The region is bordered by Aragon in the northwest La Rioja. It is a predominantly rural region known for its wine production. The largest city in the region is the capital Logroño with just over 150,000 inhabitants.
Tips for nomads
If your vision of a digital nomad lifestyle in Spain is finding a cheap beach flat on the Costa Brava, you’ll have to reconsider your plans.
Spain’s popularity for short-term residents, such as remote workers, has put the cost of living in Spain virtually out of reach for locals, and many digital nomads as well.
Unless you plan to spend a significant portion of your income on rent remotely, you may want to select the Spanish mountain regions of Aragón or La Rioja or consider another country instead for your digital nomad lifestyle.
