Costa Blanca Non-Resident Buyers: What the Data Shows

Non-Resident Buyers Are the Backbone of the Costa Blanca Market

The headline figure about foreign demand on the Costa Blanca is well known: Alicante province leads all of Spain, with roughly 44% of home purchases going to foreign nationals. What is less often unpacked is the distinction that matters most to anyone buying here as a holiday home or investment property — the difference between foreign residents and foreign non-residents.

Spain's property statisticians now separate these two groups. Foreign residents are people who have moved to Spain, registered with the town hall, and live here full-time — economic migrants, long-term retirees who've made Spain their primary home. Foreign non-residents are people who remain based in another country and buy on the Costa Blanca as a second home, holiday retreat or investment. The non-resident is the classic Costa Blanca buyer.

These two groups behave very differently. And on this stretch of coastline, non-residents are a defining force.

What the Numbers Show

The Observatori de Conjuntura Econòmica of the Universitat de València (UV Observatory) breaks down buyer activity by residency status across the Valencian Community. Its 2026 report finds that in Alicante province, non-residents account for approximately 42% of all foreign purchases — meaning that, of every transaction involving a foreign buyer, almost two in five are with someone buying as a second or holiday home rather than a primary residence.

Alicante sits in a different league from the rest of the region. In Valencia province just 13% of foreign purchases are by non-residents; in Castellón it is 22%. The sun, coast and established international communities of the Costa Blanca create non-resident demand in a way that the rest of the Valencian Community simply does not replicate.

The national picture underlines the point even more sharply. The Valencian Community as a whole accounts for approximately 40% of all property purchases by foreign non-residents across Spain. No other region channels anything close to this share of Spain's international, non-resident demand.

In the most internationally concentrated coastal municipalities — where foreign buyers already account for 70–80% of transactions — non-resident purchasers alone can represent roughly one in three of all home sales. It is in this sense that the headline figure of "one in three" describes the real character of the Costa Blanca market.

A Significant Price Premium

Non-resident buyers bring considerably more purchasing power to the table. Research from BBVA and the Ivie (Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas) shows non-resident foreign buyers in Alicante spend around 60% more per property than Spanish purchasers. Separate analysis from the Valencian parliament cited a figure as high as 76% above the Spanish average. On the Costa Blanca coast, average prices paid by international buyers already exceed €4,000 per square metre in areas such as Jávea and Moraira.

This reflects who these buyers are. Non-residents are typically equity-rich purchasers — often buying in cash, drawn by quality of life rather than need. Their willingness to pay reflects genuine demand for a proven lifestyle destination, not a speculative wave.

Who Is Buying

The nationality breakdown is consistent across Registradores and Notariado data for 2024–2026. In Alicante province:

British buyers remain the single largest group, but Dutch and Belgian buyers have grown strongly, and Polish demand has risen markedly alongside expanded direct flights between Polish cities and Alicante Airport.

What This Means If You Are Buying

The scale of non-resident demand carries real implications for anyone considering a purchase on the Costa Blanca.

Resale depth. The same pool of British, Dutch, German, Belgian and Polish buyers who drove this market will also be your future purchasers. You are entering one of the most liquid international property markets in Spain, not a niche local one.

Price stability. Non-resident buyers are equity-driven, not mortgage-dependent. They are largely insulated from Euribor movements. This shields Costa Blanca values from the interest-rate cycles that affect domestically financed markets elsewhere.

Established community. You will be joining a mature international community with decades of infrastructure behind it — schools, services, clubs, social networks — not building one from scratch.

Non-resident demand on the Costa Blanca is not a new trend. It is a structural feature of this coast, built across generations and validated by every annual dataset since. That durability is worth bearing in mind when you are deciding where to place your purchase.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a foreign resident and a non-resident buyer in Spain? A foreign resident has moved to Spain, lives here full-time and is registered on the padrón. A non-resident buys a holiday home or investment property while remaining based abroad. The distinction affects tax obligations: non-residents file the Modelo 210 (IRNR) annually and face different conditions for mortgages and capital gains.

What share of Costa Blanca transactions involve non-resident foreign buyers? Across Alicante province, non-residents account for roughly 42% of foreign purchases — equating to around one in five of all home sales province-wide. In the most internationally popular coastal municipalities, where foreigners already make up 70–80% of buyers, non-residents can represent approximately one in three of all transactions.

Do non-resident buyers pay more per square metre? Yes. BBVA/Ivie research shows non-resident foreign buyers pay roughly 60% more per property than Spanish buyers on average. In prime coastal areas such as Jávea, Moraira and Altea, international buyer prices routinely exceed €4,000/m².

Why does the Valencian Community attract so many non-resident buyers? It accounts for roughly 40% of all non-resident foreign property purchases in Spain — the highest regional share in the country. Climate, Mediterranean coast, direct air routes from Northern Europe, and a long-established international community all contribute.

Which nationalities are most active on the Costa Blanca? British, Dutch, Belgian, Polish and German buyers lead the market, in that broad order. British buyers top the league table overall, with Dutch and Polish buyers showing the strongest recent growth.

Does this level of non-resident demand affect property prices? It does, upward. Non-resident buyers typically have larger budgets and buy in cash, which raises price floors in popular markets and supports values over the long term — most visibly in Jávea, Moraira, Benissa and Benitatxell.