Marbella consolidates its position in the global luxury housing market: it ranks in the Top 20 for prices in a list led by Monaco, Hong Kong, and Geneva.

The luxury housing real estate market in the Golden Triangle of the Costa del Sol in Málaga, which includes Marbella, Estepona, and Benahavís, has entered a phase of "normalization and stability," characterized by "more selective demand and greater discipline in price setting," according to the Market Report 2026 by DM Properties and the international consultancy Knight Frank. The study highlights the "growing consolidation" of the Costa del Sol as one of the world's leading prime residential destinations. This trend has positioned Marbella among the luxury residential markets with the "best evolution in the world" and within the reference group of the Prime International Residential Index (PIRI 100) developed by Knight Frank along with Diana Morales Properties, its exclusive associate in Marbella. Thus, while global prime residential prices grew by an average of 3.2% in 2025, Marbella recorded an 8.1%, significantly surpassing this figure and reinforcing its appeal as a market with high demand and limited supply. Despite a moderation in sales volume, the scarcity of stock and buildable land continues to drive prices up, especially in the prime segment. "2025 has been one of the strongest years for the real estate market on the Costa del Sol. However, in the last twelve months, we have begun to see signs of normalization. We remain in a healthy market, with active demand, but buyers are more selective, and the market is beginning to show adjustments in the initial listing prices across different segments. We do not interpret this as a loss of attractiveness, but as a natural evolution towards a more balanced and sustainable market," states Pia Arrieta, the principal partner at DM Properties Knight Frank. This evolution places Marbella among the luxury residential markets with the "best performance in the world" and strengthens its position at the top level of the international ranking, reflecting the sustained demand for quality assets in established locations such as the Golden Mile, Sierra Blanca, Nueva Andalucía, Los Monteros, La Zagaleta, or El Madroñal. The study includes, in fact, an international ranking of 21 cities showing the number of square meters that can be purchased with one million dollars in high-end homes in A+++ locations. Marbella ranks number 18 with 82 square meters in a classification led by Monaco (16 square meters), Hong Kong (23), Geneva (28), Singapore (28), London (33), New York (34), Los Angeles (36), Tokyo (37), Paris (37), and Vienna (39). The eleventh place is for Sydney (42 square meters), followed by Shanghai (44), Milan (46), Miami (58), Berlin (59), Dubai (62), Madrid (75), Lisbon (80), Marbella (82), Melbourne (83), and Mumbai (96). "Marbella is no longer just a regional or European market. It has become a global destination for international high-net-worth individuals with high mobility. In Europe, the demand for prime residential housing is increasingly driven by buyers seeking stability, quality of life, and long-term asset security. In this context, lifestyle markets—including Marbella—continue to attract solid and sustained capital flows," the report comments. This scenario places the Costa del Sol in Málaga alongside other established second residence and lifestyle destinations, such as the Alps and the main Mediterranean enclaves, but with a "broader and more diversified" base of international buyers. In 2025, the Golden Triangle closed with 8,540 residential transactions, of which Marbella accounted for 51.3% (4,379 sales), Estepona 40.4% (3,449), and Benahavís 8.3% (712). After growing 6.75% in 2024, the market recorded a moderation of approximately 4.5% in the number of operations in 2025. This evolution is also reflected in the average sales prices per square meter, whose growth has moderated from around 14.5% recorded in 2023 to levels close to 9% in 2024 and 2025. Specifically, the average price in Marbella reached 4,424 euros per square meter (+7.67% year-on-year), in Benahavís 4,112 euros (+9.24%), and in Estepona 3,218 euros (+10.89%). "Overall, these data point to a more balanced, selective, and sustainable market in the medium and long term, in line with the maturity typical of the great international prime destinations," the report explains. One of the most relevant findings of the report is the evolution of buyer behavior, which Knight Frank describes as "much more analytical and disciplined than in previous years." "Outside the strictly ultra-prime segment—where demand continues to absorb record prices—a clear resistance to accepting disproportionately high initial listing prices is detected. This trend is confirmed in the average gap between the initial listing price and the final sale price recorded in 2025, which stood at 13.63% for villas and 11.10% for apartments. The result is a penalty for overvalued properties and the consolidation of correct price setting based on the real market value as one of the differentiating factors for agencies in the sector," the report details. The profile of the high-net-worth investor has evolved significantly, according to the Market Report 2026 by DM Properties Knight Frank. "Increasingly, the purchase of housing in Marbella is not only in response to the search for a seasonal second residence or a short-term speculative investment but to the desire to acquire a multigenerational safe-haven asset, intended for enjoyment, maintenance, and transmission," the report asserts. The study points out that global geopolitical instability, "tax pressure in other jurisdictions," and the search for "safe and stable environments" reinforce this behavior, "consolidating the Costa del Sol as a competitive residential destination with a quality of life that is hard to compare against traditional luxury capitals." In this situation, the international diversification of the buyer is already "structural": the strong presence of the United Kingdom, Sweden, the Netherlands, Poland, and Germany is complemented by a growing demand from North America, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. The first local data of 2026 confirms a more selective market across the Golden Triangle. Sales decreased by 35.6% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the fourth quarter of 2025, after a particularly active year-end. However, average prices remain "practically stable" during the same period, suggesting that the market "is moderating in terms of transaction volume, rather than undergoing a generalized price correction." "The demand remains robust for prime and unique homes in areas with a limited supply of quality, the segment where the greatest price resilience is expected; while in the rest of the market, more frequent adjustments in initial listing prices are anticipated, and average sales times are expected to extend slightly," the report notes. For DM Properties/Knight Frank, Spain continues to be one of the economic engines of the Eurozone, with growth expected to be 2-2.5% for 2026, inflation around 2%, and unemployment at its lowest. The expected reduction in ECB rates, along with the increasing diversification of the international buyer, points to a favorable environment for real estate investment on the Costa del Sol during the year.