Buying in Spain to rent out can still work very well, but only if you match your strategy to the real rules on the ground. In Andalusia you now have two very different paths: regulated short-term holiday lets with strict licence and registration requirements, and quieter long-term rentals that offer more stability and less red tape. This guide walks through how both models work in Málaga city and the wider province, what has changed with tourist licences, and what to consider when you choose between a coastal apartment and a villa or townhouse up to an hour inland.
Andalusian Rental Market in 2025: Prices, Demand and Yields
Rents in Andalusia have kept climbing. Idealista’s figures show regional asking rents up around 10–11 percent year-on-year, with averages close to 11–12 €/m² per month, a record for the region.
Málaga province sits clearly above that:
- Málaga city averages around 15–16.5 €/m² per month, one of the highest rents in Spain.
- At provincial level, Málaga shows average rents around 16–17 €/m² and a gross yield near 5.8 percent, which keeps it attractive for investors even after price rises.
Sale prices in Andalusia are now roughly 2,400 €/m² on average, with coastal hotspots above that and inland areas well below. In practical terms, that means:
- Coastal apartments and townhouses in Málaga, Rincón de la Victoria, Torrox and Nerja cost more, but you tap into very strong demand.
- Inland villages such as Cómpeta and the Axarquía white villages tend to offer more square metres and outside space for the same budget, with solid rental demand from people priced off the coast.
Across the province, a well-bought property that is legally sound and realistically priced can still produce mid single-digit gross yields, sometimes more if you buy inland at a good price and manage it well.
Short-Term Holiday Rentals in Andalusia: Licences, NRUA and the Málaga City Moratorium
If you want to buy a villa, townhouse or apartment in Andalusia for short-term holiday rentals, you are stepping into a market that is profitable but now very tightly regulated.
At regional level, holiday lets are governed by:
- Decreto 28/2016 on viviendas con fines turísticos (VFT)
- Decreto 31/2024, which updates the rules and technical standards
- Decreto-ley 1/2025, which gives town halls stronger tools to limit tourist housing where it harms residential use
Key regional requirements now include:
- Every short-term rental must be registered in the Registro de Turismo de Andalucía as a vivienda con fines turísticos, if stays are under two months.
- Minimum size and comfort standards: the latest rules set at least 14 m² of built area per guest and a minimum 25 m² of main built area per dwelling, plus more bathrooms for higher occupancies and mandatory heating and cooling.
- Properties with AFO / DAFO status are no longer automatically admissible. The amended text states that houses in “asimilado a fuera de ordenación” cannot be tourist homes unless the Town Hall expressly authorises the change of use, with full urban compliance.
On top of the Andalusian rules, from 1 July 2025 there is a national registration requirement:
- Real Decreto 1312/2024 creates a Registro Único de Arrendamientos and a Número de Registro de Alquiler (NRA / NRUA).
- Any short-term or seasonal rental advertised on platforms that process bookings and payments must show this unique code. Without it, platforms such as Airbnb and Booking are obliged to remove the listing.
The Junta has also started to enforce the rules in a way we did not see a few years ago. Between 2024 and August 2025, it cancelled more than 10,000 tourist dwellings across Andalusia, including about 3,800 in Málaga province and 1,280 in Málaga city alone, often due to planning breaches or missing requirements.
So short-term rentals are still possible in much of Málaga province, but they are no longer a casual side business. You need a legally clean property, the right urban classification, full registration and the NRUA code if you advertise online.
Málaga City: Three-Year Moratorium on New Tourist Licences
Málaga capital is now in a different category from the rest of the province.
After several partial restrictions in early 2025, the city council approved a full moratorium on new viviendas de uso turístico:
- Since late August 2025, no new tourist dwellings can be registered anywhere in Málaga city.
- The suspension is for up to three years, or until the revised PGOU (local urban plan) that reorders tourist and residential uses is approved.
In practice, that means:
- If a flat in Málaga city did not already have a valid VUT registration before the moratorium, you cannot convert it into a legal tourist apartment now.
- You can still buy apartments, townhouses or villas in the city for long-term rental or your own use, but not as new short-term lets while the moratorium is in force.
Given that Málaga city already has close to 13,000 tourist dwellings and very high rents for residents, the political direction is clear. Any investor planning a holiday-let strategy inside the city limits needs to accept that door is effectively closed for now.
In nearby municipalities such as Rincón de la Victoria, Torrox, Nerja or Vélez-Málaga, short-term rentals remain possible, but the regional rules and NRUA requirement still apply, and councils are watching numbers more closely than before.
Long-Term Rentals in Andalusia: Predictable Income and Legal Security
Long-term rentals continue to be the backbone of the market in Andalusia. The Ley de Arrendamientos Urbanos (LAU) sets the basic rules:
- For most standard residential contracts, a private landlord who rents a home as the tenant’s habitual residence must allow renewals up to 5 years, or 7 years if the landlord is a company, as long as the tenant pays and respects the contract.
This gives tenants real security and landlords stable, predictable income. In a context where rents in Andalusia average around 11–12 €/m², with Málaga above 15 €/m², that stability is not a bad thing.
For an investor, long-term letting tends to mean:
- Less work than short-term rentals
- Lower legal exposure to changing tourist rules
- A tenant base that includes local families, working couples and remote workers who want a proper home, not a week in the sun
That applies both on the coast and in inland towns such as Cómpeta, Canillas de Albaida or Árchez, where there is strong demand from residents who commute to the coast, as well as foreign residents who live in Spain full time.
Coastal vs Inland: Where Does It Make Most Sense To Buy To Let?
Coastal and inland parts of Málaga province play very different games.
On the coast and in Málaga city:
- High purchase prices (often 3,000–4,000 €/m² or more in prime locations) combined with high rents of around 15–17 €/m² create respectable yields but also higher entry costs and more competition.
- Short-term rentals for new investors are now limited by city rules in Málaga and, in time, may face more controls in other saturated municipalities.
In the Axarquía villages and inland areas up to about an hour from the coast, the picture changes:
- You can still find townhouses and country villas for significantly below the coastal price per square metre, sometimes closer to 1,000–1,500 €/m² in certain white villages and rural zones, compared with national averages above 2,500 €/m².
- Rents are lower in absolute terms but often strong enough relative to the purchase price to give yields that rival, or beat, coastal stock.
- Demand is driven by people who want more space, views and a village lifestyle, and by long-term foreign residents who do not need to be right on the beach.
The trade-off inland is that you must pay closer attention to planning status, especially for rural villas and fincas on rustic land, and not assume that a short-term rental model will be allowed or sensible there.
Management, Costs and Strategy: Short-Term vs Long-Term In Real Life
Before you buy anything, decide which of these you really want:
- Holiday-let focus
- Works best in coastal hotspots and tourist villages with established demand.
- Now requires full Andalusian registration, NRUA code, minimum size and comfort standards, and in some places an easier planning context than Málaga city.
- Higher income potential per year, but more work, higher running costs and more regulatory risk.
- Long-term rental focus
- Suitable for apartments and townhouses in Málaga province and country villas near well-connected villages.
- Income is less explosive but more predictable, contracts are backed by the LAU and you sidestep the tourist-licence minefield completely.
Whichever route you choose, two things always matter more than any spreadsheet:
- Legal clarity: full checks on planning status, licences, tourist use, AFO/DAFO and current regulation in that specific municipality.
- Realistic numbers: purchase price, realistic rent, vacancy, taxes and management fees, not just peak August nightly rates or top-of-market listings.
If you get those right, buying a villa, townhouse or apartment in Andalusia to rent out can still make sense in this cycle. You just cannot treat it like 2015 and expect the same rules.
