Mortgage affordability in Torrevieja: repayments would take up to 55% of local earnings, says Tinsa

The financial effort required to buy a home in Torrevieja reaches up to 55% of local earnings, according to figures from property valuation company Tinsa reported by Información newspaper on 31 October.

The analysis puts the average appraised value of housing in the municipality at €2,016 per square metre and considers that figure alongside the financial resources of its residents.

The comparison measures how heavily financing a purchase would weigh on income: it does not mean that every household in Torrevieja is currently spending that proportion on its mortgage repayments.

Property prices and incomes considered together

The report identifies Torrevieja as one of the municipalities with the lowest declared incomes, a factor that increases the financial effort required to become a homeowner.

For mortgage lending, the analysis uses repayments equivalent to 35% of an applicant’s income as a benchmark, above which obtaining bank finance becomes more difficult.

That benchmark is below the percentage calculated for Torrevieja and for three other municipalities among the seven large population centres in the province included in the comparison.

Torrevieja behind Benidorm for mortgage burden

Benidorm has the highest mortgage burden among the places cited, at 62% of household income, with an average appraised property value of €2,800 per square metre.

In Orihuela, the proportion of income needed for mortgage repayments stands at 48.4%, while in Alicante it reaches 41.4% of income.

Elche is close to the 35% benchmark: its calculated burden is 34.7%, with an appraised value of €1,616 per square metre of housing.

The contrast with Elda and Alcoy

The gap with municipalities requiring a smaller financial effort is considerable: in Elda, an appraised price of €863 per square metre translates into repayments equivalent to 21.1% of income.

Alcoy records a slightly higher property value of €927 per square metre, but its higher income levels reduce the proportion needed for mortgage repayments to 18.1%.

The provincial comparison therefore shows that access to home ownership is not determined by property prices alone: local income levels also shape how heavily repayments weigh on household finances.