The purchase of an average home in Spain is equivalent to paying 14 years' rent for the same property, according to a study published by Idealista. The indicator known as Period of Rental Equivalence (PER) is a useful tool to determine whether it is more convenient to rent or buy a property in a given market, although factors such as personal preferences, financial situation and expected length of occupancy should also be considered.

When the number of years of rent required to cover the cost of the house is high, it is more attractive for the tenant to rent rather than buy. Similarly, when fewer years of rent are required, it is more attractive to purchase the property rather than rent.

The PER is established on the basis of a ratio between sales and rental prices. Therefore, if it takes many years of renting to be able to buy a house, this is because sales prices are high compared to rental prices. Conversely, if few years are needed, sale prices are low in relation to rental prices.

An analysis of sale and rental prices shows that the highest PER is in the city of San Sebastián, with 27 years, followed by Pontevedra, Palma and A Coruña, with 22 years. In Pamplona, the PER is 21 years, while in Cadiz, Madrid and Vitoria it is reduced to 20 years. Compared with other Spanish capitals, these 9 cities present a greater desirability for renting compared to the rest. Barcelona registers a PER of 18 years, a figure considerably higher than the 12 years in Lleida or the 13 years in Murcia, Huelva or Jaén, which are the areas where it would be more interesting to buy based on the PER.

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