Rental Yield on the Costa del Sol: What the Numbers Really Mean

Gross yield is the annual rent divided by the purchase price. A home bought for €400,000 that rents for €2,000 a month earns €24,000 a year, a gross yield of 6.0%. It is useful for comparing areas quickly. It ignores empty months, tax, running costs and the cost of buying the property, so it always overstates what you keep.

Net yield subtracts those items and divides by what you actually invested, which is the price plus the purchase costs. Our buying guide puts purchase costs in Andalusia at roughly 10% to 13% on top of the price, a little more with a mortgage.

The table compares the median asking rent per m² per month for long-term apartment rentals with the median asking sale price per m² for apartments, in the same area. The last column is the ratio of the two: a rough gross indicator, not a forecast.

How to read it: the figures come from our catalogue in October 2026 and cover only areas with at least 20 long-term apartment rentals on offer. These are asking prices and asking rents, not agreed ones, and the ratio of two medians is not the yield of any single home. Long-term rentals only: holiday letting follows a different logic, with higher nightly rates, empty weeks and higher costs. Areas with fewer rentals on offer are left out because a handful of listings can distort a median.

Two patterns stand out. The most expensive areas by price per m² do not offer the highest ratio, and a lower entry price per m² does not by itself mean a better result. The ratio is a starting point for the question "what do I get for what I pay", not an answer.

The figures below are an illustration with assumed inputs. Replace them with your own.

• Purchase price: €400,000.
• Purchase costs at 11% (inside the 10% to 13% range above): €44,000. Total invested: €444,000.
• Rent: €2,000 a month, with one month empty in the year: €22,000 received.
• Running costs you pay as owner (local property tax, community fees, insurance), assumed at €4,000 a year.

Tax depends on where you live. According to the Spanish tax authority, a non-resident owner pays 19% if resident in another EU or EEA country (Iceland and Norway included) and 24% if resident elsewhere. Owners from the EU and EEA may deduct expenses that relate directly to the Spanish income; other non-residents generally declare the full amount received, with no deductions. The rules on this point are still developing: in July 2025 the Audiencia Nacional allowed a non-EU resident to deduct such expenses, and in 2026 the Supreme Court agreed to review the question and has not yet ruled. Confirm the current position with your adviser.

The gross figure was 6.0%. After one empty month, costs and tax, the result is roughly half. This is why we suggest you always ask for a net calculation built on your own numbers.

Rental income of a non-resident is declared on Form 210. The filing period depends on the year and on how the income is grouped, because the tax authority has been moving rental income from quarterly to annual filing. Confirm the current calendar with your gestor, plan for it from the first month of letting rather than at year end, and consider having your gestor file for you.

If you plan to let by the night or week, the home must be registered as a tourist-use dwelling. In Andalusia the owner files a responsible declaration with the regional tourism authority before starting, after which the home is entered in the Andalusian tourism register. Decreto 31/2024, in force since 22 February 2024, amended the regional rules.

Several conditions can stop a plan before it starts:

• If the building's title deeds or community statutes expressly prohibit tourist accommodation, the home cannot be used that way.
• Town halls may set limits on the number of tourist dwellings per building, area or zone.
• Each home needs a minimum built area per guest place, and homes classed as outside the planning order are excluded unless the town hall approves the change.
• Letting without registration is treated as a serious infringement, with fines of €2,001 to €18,000.

So a holiday licence is something to check before you buy, not afterwards, and never an assumption built into a yield figure. The same applies to any listing that says "tourist licence": ask for the registration and check it with your lawyer.