Cheap property in Bilbao: the neighbourhoods where you can still buy

Bilbao is the largest city in the Basque Country and the tenth in Spain by economic activity, although the city itself has only 350,000 inhabitants. Greater Bilbao—which includes Barakaldo, Getxo, Erandio, Basauri, Leioa and other towns—has more than 900,000 inhabitants and forms one of the most cohesive metropolitan areas in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. The city has completed one of the most spectacular urban transformations in Europe: from an industrial steel port in deep economic decline (the 1980s and 1990s) to a metropolis of services, culture and technology after the Guggenheim (opened in 1997). That urban transformation continues in 2026 with the Zorrotzaurre project (the artificial island being converted into a new residential and technology district).

The price per square metre in Bilbao in 2026

Bilbao has a wide price range: from €1,700-2,200/m² in the working-class neighbourhoods on the outskirts to €4,000-5,500/m² in the established upmarket centre (Indautxu, Abando, the Casco Viejo, the old town). The neighbourhoods with the best ratios for yield-focused investors are in the lower-middle range (€1,800-2,600/m²).

The neighbourhoods with the best ratios for investors

• Rekalde: A working-class neighbourhood in the south, with high residential density and active rental demand from industrial and service-sector workers. Prices between €1,700 and €2,300/m². Yields of 7% to 9.5%. The neighbourhood with the best ratio in the city of Bilbao.
• Uribarri: A working-class neighbourhood in the north. Prices between €1,800 and €2,400/m². Demand from workers in the industrial and logistics sector on the Margen Izquierda (the Left Bank of the estuary). Yields of 6.5% to 8.5%.
• Bilbao La Vieja (Bilbo Zaharra): The most affordable neighbourhood in Bilbao's urban core, historically an area of immigration and now going through gradual gentrification. Prices between €1,600 and €2,200/m². Yields of 7% to 9%. Its image is improving, which may add capital appreciation in the medium term.
• Basurto and Zurbaran: Lower-middle-class neighbourhoods in the centre-south. Prices between €2,000 and €2,700/m². Mixed demand. Yields of 6% to 8%.
• Santutxu: A working-class neighbourhood in the north. Prices between €1,900 and €2,500/m². Yields of 6.5% to 8.5%.

Bilbao's economy: from steel to knowledge

Today Bilbao has an economy dominated by financial services (BBVA has its historical roots here; Kutxabank, Laboral Kutxa and BBK are leading Basque financial institutions), port logistics (the Port of Bilbao is the busiest on the Cantabrian coast), advanced engineering and design, and a growing tourism and food sector. The engineering, consultancy, technology and specialised services firms concentrated in metropolitan Bilbao pay salaries well above the national average, which keeps tenants solvent even in the working-class neighbourhoods.

The Zorrotzaurre project: the new residential frontier

Zorrotzaurre is a former industrial island in the Nervión, being converted into a new residential and technology district under the master plan designed by Zaha Hadid. In 2026 the project is under active construction: thousands of new homes and office spaces will appear over the next 10 years. For investors who want to buy in the New Bilbao before prices in that area reflect its potential, flats around Zorrotzaurre (Deusto, La Ribera del Nervión) are the most strategically interesting.

Bizkaia's foral ITP: 4% on homes

The Diputación Foral de Bizkaia (the provincial government, which sets its own taxes under the Basque foral system) applies an ITP (impuesto de transmisiones patrimoniales, the property transfer tax) of 4% to home purchases (6% if the buyer already owns more than five homes; 7% applies to commercial premises and other property), which is competitive with the northern regions under the common tax regime. For a €200,000 purchase in Rekalde, the ITP comes to €8,000. With yields of 7-9.5%, that entry cost is recovered with between 5 and 7 months' rent.

Related resources: For the inventory of assets available in Bilbao and Bizkaia, see opportunities in Bizkaia. For court auctions in the Basque Country (where Bilbao is the most active market), the article on auctions in the Basque Country has the full analysis. For the comparison with Vitoria-Gasteiz (the most affordable Basque capital, with the best ratio for yield-focused investors), the article on Vitoria-Gasteiz has the parallel analysis.