Foreigners are buying property in Tenerife, resulting in nearly one in three homes in the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife being owned by non-residents.
In the first quarter of 2025, 29% of the houses sold were bought by foreigners, primarily from Germany, the United Kingdom, and France. This makes the Canary Islands the third region in Spain where foreign buyers hold the largest market share. This trend is pushing housing prices further up and making it increasingly difficult for local residents to find affordable housing. The gap between tourist appeal and residential reality is becoming increasingly stark.
26.8% more homes sold
In the first quarter of the year, the Canary Islands were the third Spanish autonomous region where the purchase of homes by foreigners had the most weight, according to data from the Colegio de Registradores. This shows that 24.6% of the properties purchased were acquired by foreigners. Only the Balearic Islands (30%) and the Valencia region (28.3%) scored higher than the archipelago.
The data per province show a higher share in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, with 28.9% of all properties sold bought by foreigners. In the province of Las Palmas, this percentage was 20.6%. The quarterly trend shows a minimal increase in sales of 0.15%, while the year-on-year figure points to a significant increase: 26.8% more homes were sold in the archipelago.
Britisch and Germans in the lead
Of the properties sold in the Canary Islands, 19.6% were bought by citizens from the European Union (EU), mainly from Germany, the United Kingdom, and France. Additionally, 4.3% were purchased by people from the rest of Europe. Africa (0.36%), South America (0.34%), and North America (0.15%) followed at a great distance.
The figures from the Canary Islands are significantly higher than the Spanish average, where the share of foreign buyers in the first quarter was 14.1% (14.48% in Q4 2024), ten percentage points lower than in the islands.
A breakdown by nationality across the country shows that the largest groups of foreign buyers came from the United Kingdom (8.24%), Germany (6.35%), the Netherlands (6.05%), Morocco (5.95%), France (5.13%), Romania (4.82%), and Italy (4.79%). In absolute numbers, the highest quarterly totals were recorded by the British (2,086 purchases) and the Germans (1,606).
Price increases
Housing prices are 13% above the peak of the 2007 real estate bubble. Housing prices rose in April by 9.4% compared to the same month last year (7.1% excluding inflation), and in the Canary Islands — the only region to exceed previous highs — prices are now 13% above the level recorded during the 2007 housing bubble.
In April, the highest price increases were recorded on the islands, with a 14.2% rise, followed by the capitals and large cities, with 10%, according to a statement by valuation company Tinsa. How much property prices amount to per municipality in Tenerife can be read HERE.
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Foreigners buying property in Tenerife ©
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