Spanish Mortgage Signings Edge Down in May, Ending 22-Month Growth Streak

The number of mortgages signed on homes in Spain fell 0.1% year-on-year in May to 42,213, breaking a 22-month streak of consecutive increases, according to data published Monday by the National Statistics Institute (INE) Source: La Vanguardia.

The Data

The average interest rate on new mortgages rose to 2.98%, up from 2.9% in April and the highest since November 2025 Source: El Confidencial. The average loan amount rose 9.7% to €174,866 Source: Infobae. Fixed-rate mortgages accounted for 60.9% of new loans, while variable-rate mortgages made up 39.1% Source: ABC.

Market Reaction

Experts describe the market as entering a new phase. María Matos of Fotocasa said "the market enters a new phase of the mortgage cycle" with tighter financial conditions Source: La Vanguardia. Francisco Iñareta of idealista noted that loan volumes "seem to have stabilised" and that a slowdown will become more evident in the coming months Source: ABC. Ferran Font of pisos.com added that future trends will depend less on financing costs and more on structural imbalances Source: Infobae.

Regional Divergence

The decline was not uniform. Increases were recorded in Navarra (+33.5%), Canarias (+16.5%), and Cataluña (+9.3%). In contrast, , Cantabria (-17.9%), and Murcia (-13.2%) posted the steepest drops .