# Poles Buying Property in Spain 2026: Where They Cluster

> Polish buyers signed roughly 2,800 Spanish property purchases last year, about 3% of all foreign transactions. Where they cluster on the Costa Blanca South and the Mar Menor, typical budgets of EUR 150,000 to EUR 230,000, zloty transfers and the 183-day tax rule.

Published: 2026-07-31
Updated: 2026-07-31
Author: Oleg Fesechko
Canonical: https://wesnagroup.com/blog/poles-buying-property-spain-2026-trends-clusters
License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Cite as: Wesna Group, "Poles Buying Property in Spain 2026: Where They Cluster", wesnagroup.com

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Polish buyers signed in the region of 2,800 Spanish property purchases last year, roughly 3% of all foreign transactions recorded by Registradores de España, which keeps Poland just inside the top ten foreign nationalities. Most of that money lands in two places: the southern Costa Blanca around Torrevieja, and the Mar Menor shore in Murcia.

## Why Poland climbed the buyer table

For a decade after Poland joined the EU in 2004, Polish savings stayed in Polish flats. Income changed that. Nominal wages have grown at close to double digits for several years running, the zloty has firmed to around 4.25 to the euro from the 4.6 to 4.7 range of 2022, and IMF estimates put Polish output per head at purchasing power parity roughly level with Spain's.

Two profiles account for most of what crosses our desk.

**The holiday-home family.** Late thirties to early fifties, one or two children, both parents earning in Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław or the Tri-City. Budget of EUR 150,000 to EUR 230,000, almost always an apartment in a gated block with a communal pool, used six to ten weeks a year and let out for the rest.

**The early retiree.** Mid fifties to mid sixties, sells or lets a Polish flat, buys outright, and spends October to April on the coast. This group cares far more about a lift, a pharmacy within walking distance and a hospital within 20 minutes than about a sea view.

Most Polish purchases complete without a Spanish mortgage, so a cash buyer goes from signed arras to notary in four to six weeks and beats a mortgaged rival on timing. Across our live sale catalogue the median apartment sits at EUR 319,900, but Costa Blanca North pulls that figure upward. In the towns Poles actually buy in, the working range runs from the low EUR 80,000s for a small dated apartment to EUR 250,000 for a modern three-bedroom with a plunge pool.

## Where they cluster, and what is wrong with each place

| Town | Region | Resale purchase tax | Typical Polish budget | Wesna sale listings today |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Torrevieja | Alicante (Valencian Community) | 10% ITP | EUR 120,000 to 190,000 | 126 |
| Pilar de la Horadada | Alicante | 10% ITP | EUR 160,000 to 240,000 | 70 |
| Orihuela Costa | Alicante | 10% ITP | EUR 150,000 to 230,000 | 40 |
| Guardamar del Segura | Alicante | 10% ITP | EUR 140,000 to 210,000 | 26 |
| Los Alcázares | Murcia | 8% ITP | EUR 130,000 to 200,000 | 65 |
| San Pedro del Pinatar | Murcia | 8% ITP | EUR 130,000 to 195,000 | 52 |

**Torrevieja** is the anchor. Its euro-per-square-metre sits among the lowest on the Costa Blanca, and the town carries Polish groceries, Polish-language mass and Polish-run trades who will retile your bathroom without an interpreter. The honest downside is stock quality. Much of the town is 1970s to 1990s blocks, many without a lift, some run by a comunidad that never built a reserve fund and will hit owners with a derrama when the roof goes. Read three years of community minutes before you sign. Our [live Torrevieja sale listings](/catalog?city=torrevieja&deal=sale) show the spread between EUR 85,000 and EUR 300,000 inside a two-kilometre radius.

**Orihuela Costa** is the golf-and-beach option: Villamartín, La Zenia, Playa Flamenca. Newer stock, better run communities, a commercial centre that stays open in January. You pay 15% to 25% more per square metre than central Torrevieja for that.

**Guardamar del Segura** trades nightlife for pine forest and protected dunes. It stays Spanish year round, which suits buyers who want a working town and disappoints anyone expecting an English bar on every corner.

**Los Alcázares and San Pedro del Pinatar** sit on the Mar Menor, where Murcia charges 8% transfer tax rather than 10%. On a EUR 180,000 purchase that keeps EUR 3,600 in your pocket, and the lagoon is warm and shallow, which is why Polish families with small children keep choosing it. The Mar Menor has also suffered repeated ecological crises, including algal blooms and fish die-offs in 2016, 2019 and 2021, and the clean-up remains a political project rather than a solved problem. Los Alcázares flooded badly during the DANA storm of September 2019, so ask for the flood zone classification of any address before you commit. Our [Los Alcázares stock](/catalog?city=los-alcazares&deal=sale) runs to 65 units, mostly ground-floor bungalows and first-floor apartments.

A minority look north instead, to l'Alfàs del Pi, Polop and La Nucía, where the mountain backdrop sets a different tone. Prices start higher but not always by much: [WG-13, a 76 m2 apartment in l'Alfàs del Pi at EUR 149,000](/property/wg-13) sits in the same band as a decent Torrevieja two-bed.

Plenty of Polish money also goes to Málaga province, and Wesna does not list there. Our coverage runs from Dénia down through the Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida to Vera, Pulpí and San Juan de los Terreros. If Marbella is your target, use an agency based there.

## What a Polish passport changes at the notary

A Polish passport changes less than most buyers expect, and what it does change runs in your favour. Freedom of movement means no visa and no application. The Non-Lucrative Visa and the Digital Nomad Visa exist for non-EU nationals. Spain abolished the Golden Visa in April 2025 under the law passed in 2024, and Polish citizens never needed it.

You do need an NIE, the foreigner identification number, before you can sign a purchase or open a Spanish bank account. Apply through the Spanish consulate in Warsaw or in person at a Policía Nacional foreigners office. Stay more than 90 days at a stretch and you also register on the Registro Central de Extranjeros for the green EU certificate, which carries your NIE. Our [NIE guide for property buyers](/blog/nie-number-spain-property-buyers) sets out the forms and the fee.

Purchase costs match any other buyer's. Budget 11% to 13% on top of the price for a resale in the Valencian Community and 10% to 12% in Murcia, covering transfer tax, notary, Land Registry, gestoría and your own lawyer. New build works differently: 10% VAT plus stamp duty of 1.5% in the Valencian Community or 2% in Murcia.

The EU advantage shows up in annual tax. As an EU resident you pay non-resident income tax at 19% rather than the 24% Spain applies to non-EU owners, and you may deduct mortgage interest, IBI, community fees, insurance and agency commission from rental income. If the property sits empty you still file imputed income: on a cadastral value of EUR 80,000 the sum runs 1.1% of EUR 80,000 taxed at 19%, or about EUR 167 a year. Our [Modelo 210 guide](/blog/modelo-210-non-resident-tax-spanish-property-2026) holds the mechanics.

Spanish banks lend to non-resident EU nationals at 60% to 70% of the lower of price and valuation, with fixed offers in the low-to-mid 3% range through 2026. Expect to supply PIT returns for two years, an employer certificate, twelve months of bank statements and a BIK report, all sworn-translated. The [non-resident mortgage guide](/blog/mortgage-for-non-residents-spain) covers the document list.

## Zloty, euro and the 183-day question

Poland has no target date for euro adoption, so every Polish purchase involves a conversion, usually the largest avoidable cost in the deal. A retail Polish bank typically applies a spread of 2% to 3% on a large PLN to EUR transfer, while a regulated broker or a Polish online kantor works at 0.3% to 0.7%. On a EUR 200,000 purchase that gap is around EUR 4,000, roughly 17,000 zloty, for the same money arriving in the same notary account. Ask for the all-in rate in writing.

A forward contract is the second tool. Six to ten weeks usually pass between the arras and the notary, and a 3% move in PLN against EUR over that window is unremarkable. A forward locks today's rate for a future settlement date against a margin deposit of roughly 5% to 10%. Our [guide to transferring money to Spain from Europe](/blog/transfer-money-to-spain-from-europe) covers the paperwork Spanish banks ask for on incoming funds.

Open a Spanish current account before completion. SEPA rules prohibit IBAN discrimination, but some ayuntamientos and utilities still stumble over a non-Spanish IBAN for direct debits of IBI and water.

On tax residency, the trigger is 183 days in Spain in a calendar year, or your main economic interests sitting here. Buying property does not make you a Spanish tax resident, and eight weeks a year in Los Alcázares does not either. Poland runs its own test in parallel: 183 days in Poland, or the centre of vital interests, which can keep you Polish tax resident even while you live abroad. The Spain-Poland double taxation convention, in force since 1979, decides which country taxes what. If you are near the line, pay a Polish adviser for an hour before you complete.

## Flights, schools and the practical layer

Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández makes this work. Ryanair and Wizz Air fly there from Warsaw Modlin and Chopin, Kraków, Katowice, Wrocław, Gdańsk and Poznań in roughly three and a half to four hours. Frequencies thin out between November and March, so check the winter schedule rather than the July one. Murcia Corvera sits closer to the Mar Menor but carries far less Polish traffic.

Schooling is the weak point for relocating families. No Polish-curriculum day school operates on the Costa Blanca. The realistic options are a British or international school in Torrevieja, Orihuela Costa or San Javier, or the Spanish state system with the Polish curriculum kept up online. Check current arrangements with the Polish embassy in Madrid.

Wesna does not employ a Polish-speaking agent, and we would rather say so now than on a viewing day. We work with Polish clients in English and Spanish, and we bring in a sworn Polish translator for the notary.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do Polish citizens need a visa or residency permit to buy property in Spain?

No. Poland is an EU member state, so you have freedom of movement and no purchase restriction. You need an NIE to sign the escritura and open a bank account. Stay longer than 90 days continuously and you register as an EU citizen for the green certificate.

### Can I get a Spanish mortgage on a Polish salary?

Yes. Spanish banks lend to non-resident EU nationals at 60% to 70% loan-to-value, typically over 20 to 25 years, with the loan ending by age 70 to 75. Banks accept zloty income, usually with a small haircut for currency risk.

### What is the cheapest way to move zloty into euros for a purchase?

A regulated currency broker or an online kantor, not a retail bank counter. Bank spreads of 2% to 3% against broker spreads of 0.3% to 0.7% mean roughly EUR 4,000 on a EUR 200,000 purchase. Lock the rate with a forward contract.

### Will owning a Spanish property make me a Spanish tax resident?

No. Residency depends on spending more than 183 days in Spain in a calendar year, or having your main economic interests here. Ownership alone changes nothing. You still file Modelo 210 annually at the 19% EU rate, on imputed income or on rental income after expenses.

### Where do Poles get the most for EUR 200,000 on this coast?

Los Alcázares and San Pedro del Pinatar, mainly because Murcia charges 8% transfer tax instead of 10% and prices per square metre run below the Alicante coast. That budget buys a modern two or three-bedroom ground-floor bungalow with a communal pool.

## Next steps

Send us your budget, your travel pattern and your preferred coast, Mar Menor or Alicante. We will come back with a shortlist plus the community fee and IBI figure for each unit. Start at [our contact page](/contacts).