The arrival of tourists by air is partly to blame for rising rents and house prices across Europe, but particularly in Spain. That is the argument put forward in a study by the New Economics Foundation (NEF), commissioned by the European Federation for Transport and Environment (T&E), and already backed by campaign groups against property speculation, which denounce the problems caused by short-term rentals and the purchase of homes by foreign buyers.
According to the analysis (source in Spanish), between 2019 and 2025 a correlation can be seen between the increase in tourists travelling by plane in seven European countries, especially in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece, and the rise in rents and house purchase prices. The reverse is also true, T&E argues: in those countries where this type of tourism has fallen (Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland), house prices have also dropped, albeit moderately.
In Spain specifically, the 12.8% increase in tourists arriving by air over the past seven years is estimated to have pushed up the average purchase price of homes by €3,800 and added up to €236 more (1.7%) to rental prices. Rents could rise by a further €217 between now and 2031 as a result of this factor.
