Searching for property in Barcelona.
Safe, walkable, and diverse, Barcelona is a great place to live or to invest. It’s rated as one of the world’s most liveable cities and has a low crime, a mild climate, and public bikes with bike lanes. It offers spectacular museums, architecture, walk-friendly neighborhoods, and diversity with over 23% of its population foreign-born.
Plus it’s a train ride to an array of picturesque coastal towns to the north and south and it’s close to the mountains. The economy is strong and creating jobs. The population is 1.6 million with about 4.2 million in the total metropolitan area.
Barcelona Neighborhoods.
To help you search, below are four of Barcelona’s more popular neighborhoods.
Let us know when you’re ready to get started.
Gothic Quarter including Raval and Borne
Founded by the Romans in 200 BC, el Gótico is one of Europe’s best-preserved medieval towns. Its marvelous cathedrals sit on quaint plazas surrounded by cobblestone streets and a myriad of bars, shops, and quality restaurants. The Born District and upper Gothic area are the best places to buy due to their broader streets and renovated buildings. La Raval has improved and ‘Upper Raval’ is now quite nice.
Positive. It’s reasonably priced as demand is lower, centrally located, and well-connected by bikes and trains to the rest of the city. It’s an easily walkable area to a wide variety of shops, stores, and a large university. A lot of night life and a very cool medieval environment.
Negative. The buildings are 100 to 400 years old so repairs can be expensive and frequent. Some of the streets are narrow creating traffic congestion; about 50% of the buildings lack an elevator, and most are close together blocking natural light. Illegal squatters are another concern.
Opinion. Due to squatters, you shouldn’t buy here unless you live in the property or rent it out year-round. Once squatters get inside it’s hard to evict them. You’ll need an alarm system. The streets that run horizontally are wider with more natural light and offer some fine, affordable, flats, especially in the upper areas. The vertical streets are more narrow and darker with a higher likelihood of vagrancy and criminal activity. Buying here requires thorough due diligence. That said, we have clients who found great deals there and love it.
Eixample Izquierda (Left) and Derecha (Right)
This large gridded area stretching across Barcelona was built in the late 1800s and modeled after New York City. They cut a 45º angle at the corners to create space. Passeig de Gracia, the main street, runs vertically dividing the area into Eixample Left and Right. Prices drop as you move away from there.
Positive. Accessibility as everything from schools to stores is a walk away. It features a wide range of beautiful, well-maintained buildings, most in excellent condition, with an elevator and elegant apartments. The grid pattern allows for easy bike and foot travel and there are some newly-created pedestrian zones. At night, with its colorful cafes and bars, it has a jubilant upbeat vibe. One of Europe’s primier urban areas.
Cons. Some of the streets can get noisy with traffic, especially at rush hour. Property prices fluctuate, but it’s one of the more expensive areas. Some of the apartments have impractical layouts as they’re long and narrow with odd-sized rooms. You might have to renovate.
Opinion. It’s probably the best area to buy if you can afford it. It’s central, convenient, flat, bike-friendly and anything you need is next door. A solid investment. As usual, the streets running horizontally offer more light and better views. There’s traffic, and of course tourists, but you can find quiet areas.
Gràcia
A separate town before the 1860 city expansion, it retains its village-like feel with large plazas, outdoor cafes, and pedestrian streets. It’s very popular with international buyers.
Positive. It has a wide range of theaters, shops, trendy restaurants, schools, children’s parks, and festivals. Lower Gràcia (Vila de Gracia) is walking distance to the city center and well connected by trains and bikes. A diverse, kid-friendly, neighborhood with residents from all over the world.
Negative. High demand and low supply mean higher prices. Some of the flats are quite small while the larger flats, or ones with a terrace, are rare and fetch high prices. It can get noisy as the streets are quite narrow and some uphill. Some of the buildings are old and need work.
Opinion. I have clients who study the internet for months waiting to pounce on the first decent flat that pops up here. They won’t buy anywhere else. It’s the location, the festivals, the plazas, the atmosphere, the schools. It’s a friendly little place that offers all the amenities of urban life.
Poble Nou
The sea-front neighborhood stretching from Villa Olympica to Diagonal Mar and bordered by Av. Diagonal. Twenty years ago it was a sleepy warehouse district, now it’s in high demand.
It’s under constant renovation with new apartment buildings springing up everywhere. Amazon recently opened a large distribution center here. Prices, especially near the beach, have shot up, but they drop as you move inland. Diagonal Mar is at the far end with quality high-rise apartments.
Positive. Proximity to the beach and its broad promenade, and the large parks, allow for year-round recreational activity. Great for families. It’s well-connected and more spread out than other areas allowing for more natural light and less traffic congestion. A true village environment.
Negative. Because it’s spread out you have to walk more and some of the buildings are quite old with strange layouts. Like Gracia, it’s hard to find a terrace or patio, and those with one are expensive. The new constructions are very modern and well-built, but they’re not cheap. Diagonal Mar is composed of highrises that offer a pool, security, parking, and incredible views but it’s expensive.
Opinion. Clients who live here won’t buy anywhere else. It’s the outdoor activities, the sea, the schools, the international community, the open space, and an assortment of restaurants and shops. It’s under constant renovation with new buildings, stores, and businesses popping up everywhere. You can find a broad range of flats at decent prices.
Join our Meetup!
Spain Advisors sponsors a free ‘Buy Property’ seminar where we discuss all aspects of finding and buying property in Barcelona. Join Us
