Mortgage rates are rising again. What it means if you buy here
The ECB raised rates in September and the Euribor followed. The figures, where to check them, and the rules that protect you when you borrow in Spain.
What you will learn
- Where interest rates stand, from the official sources
- Fixed, variable or mixed: what changes for you
- The ten days and the notary visit Spanish law gives every borrower
Interest rates in the euro area are rising again. On 10 September 2026 the European Central Bank raised its three key rates by a quarter of a point, its second rise this year after June. Since 16 September the deposit facility stands at 2.50%, the main refinancing rate at 2.65% and the marginal lending rate at 2.90%. The figures are on the ECB’s key interest rates page, and its next decision is due on 29 October, on the ECB meeting calendar.
Most variable mortgages in Spain follow the twelve-month Euribor, and it has moved with the ECB. Banco de España published its September average at 3.247%, up from 2.954% in August and about one percentage point higher than a year earlier. The official monthly series is in the Banco de España table of mortgage reference rates, and it becomes official when it appears in the Boletín Oficial del Estado.
For a buyer the choice is between a fixed rate, a variable rate tied to the Euribor, or a mixed loan that is fixed for the first years. Banco de España explains the three plainly in its guide to fixed, variable and mixed mortgages. When rates are moving, the question is less which one is cheaper today than which risk you are comfortable carrying for twenty years. That is a conversation for your bank or an independent financial adviser. We are not one, and we do not advise on loans.
What we can tell you is how the process protects you. Under the Spanish mortgage credit law, Ley 5/2019, which applies to private buyers whether or not they live in Spain, the bank must give you the binding offer, called the FEIN, and a warning sheet at least ten calendar days before you sign. For a variable loan it must also show what you would pay if rates rise. Before the signing you go to a notary of your choice, who explains the loan to you in a free meeting and records it. Without that record, the deed cannot be signed. If your income is in another currency, the same law lets you convert a foreign-currency loan into the currency you earn in.
Prices have not waited for rates. The national statistics office reports that house prices in Spain rose 12.2% in the year to the second quarter of 2026, and 13.0% in the Comunitat Valenciana, in its housing price index. There is no official figure for a single town, so treat any number you read for Moraira, Calpe or Jávea with care.
Whether you buy with a mortgage or without one, the steps on our side do not change: a fair price negotiated, an independent lawyer, included in our fees, checking every contract, and the timing of the purchase planned around your financing. Read what it really costs to buy a house in Spain for the taxes and fees on top of the price.
Written by Nicolas Strebel.