Both coasts in October 2026, and what to do with that

October is a good month to read the coast. The summer crowds have gone home, the sea is still swimmable, and the terraces of Marbella, Mijas, Calpe and Altea have settled back into their own rhythm. It is also when many people who have spent August looking at a view start asking the sensible questions.

This is a short note on where the Costa del Sol and the Costa Blanca stand this autumn. We have kept it honest: where we cannot put a checked figure in front of you, we describe the direction in words and point you to the body that publishes the number. A made up statistic does no one any favours.

We are not estate agents, and nothing here is a nudge to act. Think of it as a friend walking you round the terrace before you sit down.

The direction of prices

Over the last several years, asking prices on both coasts have moved upwards, and the trend has been widely reported by the national statistics office (INE), the registrars and the notaries alike. The pace and the detail vary a great deal. A seafront flat in Marbella, a townhouse inland from Estepona and a village house behind Dénia do not behave as one market.

The Costa del Sol has long been the more established and, in its best known pockets, the more expensive coast. The Costa Blanca, particularly the northern stretch around Jávea, Moraira, Calpe and Altea, has its own premium corners, while the south of the province around Torrevieja and the Vega Baja has historically offered an easier entry point. Those differences in character matter more than any headline average.

A useful habit: when you see a figure quoted for "the coast", ask which municipality, which type of home and which measure it is. Asking prices, notarial prices and registered prices are three different things, and they rarely say the same thing in the same month.

Who is buying

Spain's registrars publish regular breakdowns of foreign purchases by nationality and by province, and those reports have for years placed British, German and other northern European buyers among the larger groups on both coasts. Belgians, Dutch, Swedes and Poles also appear in the lists, and Spanish buyers, from Madrid and from within Andalucía and the Valencian Community, remain a large part of the picture.

What it means for you is mostly practical. Where a town draws a particular community, you will usually find the infrastructure that goes with it: international schools, English or German speaking professionals, clubs, and shops stocked for those tastes. Fuengirola and Benalmádena have a long tradition of this, as do Torrevieja, Albir and Jávea.

It also means that some towns are busier in summer and quieter in January than the brochures suggest. Spend a weekend in February in any town you are considering. It is the single best test of whether it suits you.

Supply, and why patience is not a tactic

The consistent note from the official sources and the wider press is that well located homes are not abundant, especially close to the sea and in the established towns, and that new building has not always kept pace with interest. That is why good flats in walkable towns tend to be taken seriously by sellers.

We would not draw a dramatic conclusion from that. A tight supply in one street does not tell you what will happen in the next town, and anyone who promises you the direction of prices a year from now is guessing. What it does suggest is that you should know your own priorities well enough to recognise a good fit when you see one, and to walk away from a poor one without regret.

New build and resale also follow different rules. Resale purchases generally carry the regional transfer tax, which each autonomous community sets for itself, while new homes are subject to VAT and stamp duty. Ask a lawyer to run the actual figures for the home in front of you, because the regional differences are real and the Junta de Andalucía and the Generalitat Valenciana each publish their own.

What has changed, and what has not

The past couple of years have brought a steady run of regulatory talking points: the rules for tourist lets, residency and visa routes, and debates about taxing non-resident purchases. Some are in force, some are proposals, and some have changed shape on the way through parliament. Before you rely on any of them, read the current text in the BOE or ask your adviser to confirm where it stands.

What has not changed is the way a purchase works. You will need an NIE, a Spanish bank account, a lawyer who works for you, a check of the property at the Registro de la Propiedad, and a notary on completion day. None of that has become faster or slower because of a headline.

On the ground, transport shapes demand more than most people expect. Málaga airport and its rail and road links pull the Costa del Sol together, while Alicante-Elche airport and the tram along the northern Costa Blanca do the same job on the other side. A home forty minutes from an airport and a good supermarket is a different life from one that is two hours away.

What this means for your search

If you are starting now, here is how we would go about it:

• Choose one coast and two or three towns, not the whole of Spain. Depth beats breadth.
• Visit once in summer and once in winter, and walk the town on a Tuesday as well as a Saturday.
• Read the official releases yourself: INE, the registrars, the notaries and your regional government. They are free and they are patient.
• Compare asking prices with what recent sales actually registered, and ask your adviser to explain any gap.
• Budget for the full cost of buying, including taxes, notary and registry fees, legal help and community charges, not only the price on the listing.

The market will do what it does. Your job is to get to know one place well enough that a good home, when it appears, is recognisable to you.

If you would like to talk through a coast, a town or the order of the steps, get in touch. We will introduce you to vetted local experts when you are ready, and not a day sooner.