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The Journal · October 2026
Is the Marbella & Benahavís property boom over? What the 2026 price data really says
Resale prices are still rising in Marbella and Benahavís, but the pace is falling fast. What the latest Land Registry data means for the price of your home.
THE MARKET IN THREE FIGURES
IN THIS ARTICLE
THE JOURNAL AS A PDF
October 2026 edition, in full
The original charts, the issue's second article and the properties of the month, in three pages.
Open the PDFIn June I told you the market had slowed by about 30%. Many of you asked me what that does to the price of your house. Here is my answer, with good and bad news.
Good news and bad news
The good news is that prices are still rising. In the second quarter of 2026, resale prices in Marbella were 9.4% higher than a year earlier, and in Benahavís 6.7% higher. The bad news is that the pace is dropping fast. A year ago those figures were 13.9% and almost 17%. Let me explain what is going on.
The market is getting back to normal
Until last year, prices were growing by more than 10% a year, and that was never healthy. No market keeps that up for long. Even today’s 9.4% is a lot. At the pace of the last two quarters, I expect annual growth to fall below 4% within a year. That is not a crash; it is the market finding its proper speed.
Benahavís is slowing faster because it has more stock
Ask how long it would take to sell everything on the market at today’s pace. Twenty months is a balanced market. Marbella is exactly there. Benahavís would need almost three years, double what it needed in 2022 and the highest level since the pandemic. More stock means more competition for every buyer, and in the end that shows up in prices.
Prices are the last thing to move
In Benahavís the stock began building in mid 2024. Sales fell next, by a third in the first quarter and a fifth in the second. Only now are prices feeling it. Meanwhile asking prices keep climbing, so the gap between what sellers ask and what buyers pay is close to 40%. That gap has to close, and it will not be the buyers who close it.
Until last year, every month you held on, your home was worth more. That is over.
The Real Estate Journal, October 2026.
In summary, waiting no longer pays
In summary, waiting no longer pays. Until last year, every month you held on, your home was worth more. That is over. A well-priced home still sells and still gains value. But many homes on the market today are simply overpriced, and sooner or later they will have to come down to what buyers are actually paying. In Benahavís, with three years of stock, that moment is already here.
Methodology. Price growth: change in the resale closing price versus the same quarter a year earlier. Months of supply: homes for sale divided by monthly sales at the current pace; about 20 months is taken as a balanced market. Benahavís has few sales each quarter, so its figures are indicative.
Frequently asked questions
Are property prices still rising in Marbella and Benahavís?
Yes. In the second quarter of 2026, resale prices were 9.4% higher than a year earlier in Marbella and 6.7% higher in Benahavís. What has changed is the pace: at the end of 2025 growth was 13.9% and almost 17%.
Is the Marbella property market crashing?
No. Growth is coming down from rates above 10% a year, which were never sustainable, towards a more normal pace. At the rate of the last two quarters, I expect annual growth to fall below 4% within a year.
How much stock is there in Benahavís?
At the current pace of sales it would take almost three years, 33.9 months, to sell everything on the market, against 19.9 months in Marbella. About 20 months is considered a balanced market.
About the author
Alfonso Lacruz
Naval engineer and market analyst. Over 25 years advising owners in Marbella and Benahavís. Publishes a monthly market analysis with Land Registry data.
The figures are indicative and every property is different: for a specific number, ask for a valuation of your home.
Sources: Land Registry (Registradores de España) for closing prices and sales; inventory of homes for sale in Marbella and Benahavís; own calculation for months of supply. Last updated: 29 October 2026.
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