New housing projects for Murcia to relieve lack of supply and soaring prices

Developments are in the pipeline for Murcia and Cartagena as supply is down 11% and prices up 24% in the Region over the last year

Property developers and local authorities are working together to address the current housing crisis in Murcia, which is making it harder than ever for first-time buyers to get on the property ladder.

The supply of housing for sale in the Region of Murcia has fallen by 11% in the first quarter of 2025, compared to the same period of last year, according to a study by real estate website idealista.

This drop is less than the national average of 16%, which is the largest year-on-year fall ever recorded by the website.

In the municipality of Murcia, the supply of housing has fallen by 13%, and while all the provincial capitals in Spain have less housing on sale than a year ago, the biggest drop was Oviedo at a staggering 42%, and the lowest was Málaga at just 2%. Other important cities fell somewhere in between, such as Sevilla at 32%, Madrid 29%, Barcelona 22% and Alicante 20%.

Compared to other provinces, the highest fall in available housing was double that recorded in Murcia, 32% in Zaragoza, while the lowest was Badajóz at just 2%. Amongst those in between were Madrid at 29%, Barcelona 17%, Alicante 10% and Málaga 7%.

Idealista spokesman Francisco Iñareta said the “undeniably strong demand is facing a supply which not only cannot satisfy it, but is still being drained month on month”.

“The tension that this situation generates is responsible for the such hefty price rises we are seeing, even exceeding 20% year-on-year in the case of Madrid,” he explained.

“Unfortunately, it is highly probable that these tensions will continue over the coming months since there is nothing expected to drastically increase this supply in the short term, although it is positive that there are efforts to speed up construction of important stocks of new housing in the mid-term.”

Prices rising faster than ever

In terms of prices, resale housing in the Region of Murcia rose by 24.1% in May compared to the same month of 2024, hitting €1,695 per square metre, the second largest increase in relative terms by region, only below Valencia (28.3%) and higher than the national average (14.8%), according to the data from another real estate website, Fotocasa.

The average price of resale housing in Spain has risen by 4% since April to €2,635/m2.

The website has never recorded such high monthly and year-on-year increases in the 20 years it has been analysing these figures.

“In just a year, the average price per square metre has risen by €341, which means that today an 80m2 house costs over €27,000 more than in 2024,” said Fotocasa’s director of studies and spokeswoman, María Matos.

“It’s a very hefty leap in a very short space of time,” she assured, noting that this is affecting 94% of the provinces and 86% of the municipalities analysed, with eight regions rising by double digits.

The next steepest regional rises were the Balearic Islands (20,9%), Andalucía (18,5%) and Madrid (17,9%), while the only region where prices fell was Navarra (-1.4%).

The most expensive regions were the Balearic Islands (€5,028/m2) and Madrid (€4,817), with Valencia in seventh at €2,407 and Murcia in 14th.

The only province with a higher rise than Murcia was Alicante at 27.1%, with Valencia third at 21.2%. Prices only fell in three provinces: Navarra (-1,4%), Ávila (-0,9%) and Jaén (-0,8%).

As a result, the most expensive provinces were the Balearic Islands (€5,028), Madrid (€4,817) and Málaga (€4,419), while the cheapest was Jáen (€996).

New homes for Murcia

One new development in the pipeline is in Murcia’s rural district of Monteagudo, northeast of the city centre and known for its Moorish castle and the imposing statue of Christ that is visible for miles around.

Despite having been occupied by civilisations back to the Argar in the Bronze Age, no new housing has been built there for the last couple of decades. But the last local government committee (JGL) approved publication of preliminary plan ZM-Md4, which proposes building 360 homes near the Carretera de Alicante and Camino Viejo de Monteagudo.

Construction will not begin for a couple of years, according to the councillor for urban planning, Antonio Navarro Corchón, who told regional Spanish newspaper La Verdad that the project will continue the “natural expansion of the district”.

He described the development as being like a continuation of the last projects in the area, which included the duplexes built by Calle Miguel Ángel Blanco.

The plan affects an area of 62,500 square metres, of which housing will be built on about 36,000m2.

This will consist of apartment buildings up to four storeys high with a recessed attic, laid out in large blocks.

There will be a public green space to the north, which will be carried out by city hall as an extension to the district’s Cultural Park, and the promoter will also have to create green areas around the buildings.

A cycle lane will connect the district with the Carretera de Alicante and parking spaces will be created too.

The irrigation channels running through the area will be left uncovered and integrated into the neighbourhood with strips of green spaces that will make them easier to maintain and help to preserve flora and fauna.

Although the area is classified as being at risk of flooding once every 100 years, like much of Murcia city and its surrounding farmland, construction measures will be taken to address this in line with requirements to be able to build in these areas, according to the councillor.

Currently, the sector includes some farmland, most of it abandoned decades ago, and there are very few buildings.

Navarro assured that this means the development will “revitalise the area, providing a response to the current need for housing, and sustainable and balanced growth all over the municipality”.

The project has been welcomed by the president of Monteagudo’s municipal committee, David Campoy, who said there has been a long battle for growth in the district.

He said it would bring more facilities, green areas and roads, and improve pedestrian connections too: “It will give the area a facelift that will also get rid of the space that was used for storing cranes.”

Coastal development for Cartagena

At the same time, a project to build between 280 and 300 new homes is slated to go ahead in the area where Cartagena city is expanding to the east, near the port, next to Santa Lucia hospital and the site of the future Ciudad de Justicia courthouse.

Mayor Noelia Arroyo met with representatives of the promoters, Urbincasa and Grupo Roca on May 24, who explained they were about to start procedures to obtain the required licence.

She said the council and the companies are on the same wavelength, emphasising the importance of projects which foster organised growth, facilitate access to housing and are constructed with quality and sustainability in mind.

City Hall is working to foster economic and social growth by restoring historic and strategic spaces, such as the military batteries of Santa Florentina, San Leandro and San Isidoro, which are close to the Urbincasa project.

The Port Authority has expressed interest in revitalising the Santa Lucia neighbourhood as a place by the sea with privileged views of the port and potential to become a new urban meeting point.

Urbincasa managing director Francisco José Cervantes Tous said there is a demand for modern housing in Cartagena, and the site was chosen precisely because it will coincide with other key projects to remodel the coast, renovating the batteries, the entrance to Cartagena from the east and the large area of amenities comprising the hospital, the security park and the future courthouse.

Images 1 & 2: Turismo Región de Murcia

Image 3: Ayuntamiento de Cartagena