Between 2020 and 2025, slightly more than half of mortgage loans were signed in the name of two people (52.2%), while borrowers of foreign nationality accounted for 11.8% of the total, according to data compiled by the General Council of Notaries.
Since the entry into force of Law 5/2019, regulating real estate credit contracts, notaries have authorized 2,975,628 pre-contractual transparency deeds and 2,465,371 mortgage loans for the purchase of real estate.
"Notarial intervention not only verifies compliance with legal requirements, but also introduces a layer of protection that prevents unwanted effects, mitigates risks, and ensures that the borrower has a real opportunity to make informed decisions," stated the national spokesperson for the General Council of Notaries, María Teresa Barea.
The figures from the Notary Council indicate that mortgage lending increased by 34.4% in 2021 and 4.2% in 2022, before falling by 21.4% in 2023. Activity picked up again in the following two years, with increases of 20.6% in 2024 and 14.5% in 2025, the year in which 449,421 mortgage loans were formalized, the highest volume in the period studied.
The study of loans signed between 2020 and 2025 confirms that shared contracting is the most common formula: 52.2% of mortgages were signed by two debtors, 46.2% by a single borrower, and only 1.6% involved three or more debtors.
In most autonomous communities, operations with two holders predominate, with the highest percentages in Extremadura (54.7%), Galicia (54.1%), and the Community of Madrid (53.9%). However, in some territories, mortgages with a single borrower are the majority, as in the Canary Islands (53%), Basque Country (51.6%), La Rioja (50.3%), and Balearic Islands (50.1%).
Loans with three or more debtors remain residual throughout the country, with the highest figures in Extremadura (3.2%) and Galicia (2%).
Foreign Borrowers Multiply by 2.4
The General Council of Notaries emphasizes that the mortgage market continues to be dominated by Spanish citizens, although the presence of foreigners maintains a significant and sustained weight over time.
Between 2019 and 2025, the number of foreign individuals linked to mortgages multiplied by 2.4, an evolution practically parallel to that of national borrowers. The share of foreigners out of the total remained stable during the period, standing at 11.8% in 2025.
In all autonomous communities, nationals exceed 75% of those involved as borrowers, albeit with notable differences: the Balearic Islands register 78.2% nationals, making it the region with the highest relative weight of foreigners, compared to 97.1% nationals in Extremadura, where the foreign presence is the lowest.
According to the Notary, in 8 out of the 17 communities, foreigners represent at least 10% of borrowers, and in 6 of them, they even exceed 12%. Conversely, in another 5 autonomies, their participation does not reach 6%, which depicts two very different mortgage patterns: in some areas, almost one in five people signing a mortgage is foreign, while in others, the proportion is closer to one in forty.
Slight male majority in mortgage signings
Regarding the gender profile, notary statistics show that, between 2020 and 2025, men had a slightly higher presence among those involved in mortgage loans in all autonomous communities, with percentages mostly ranging between 50.9% and 52.8% men, depending on the region. For the country as a whole, the distribution was 51.8% men versus 48.2% women.
The communities with the highest male weight are Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura (both with 52.8%), followed by the Region of Murcia and Castilla y León (52.5% in both cases). Galicia is the only autonomy where female participation is closer to balance, with 49.1% of the total participants.