The latest data from the Fotocasa Real Estate Index suggests that in 2026, the rise in rental prices will continue to be one of the main concerns for many Madrid residents: on average, this figure has once again broken records, climbing to €21.59/m², more than €7 above the national average. However, this increase has not been experienced throughout the city: the district of Madrid where rents fell the most in 2025 was Barajas.
The year-on-year decline in this area is not insignificant: while Sanchinarro has seen rents skyrocket over the last 12 months, increasing by 20%, Barajas has seen a 15% decline. This area is undergoing one of its biggest transformations this year: the pedestrianization of its historic center.
Nine other districts join this one as protagonists in the decline in prices over the last year: Centro (-0.2%), Chamberí (-0.6%), Ciudad Lineal (-1.0%), Tetuán (-1.6%), Moncloa-Aravaca (-2.8%), Arganzuela (-3.4%), Fuencarral – El Pardo (-3.5%), Puente de Vallecas (-3.5%), Usera (-4.4%), Latina (-6.3%) and Villaverde (-10.6%). However, in absolute terms, the cheapest is Carabanchel: in the Abrantes neighborhood, the average price of housing is €15.78/m² per month.
What kind of apartments can be found in Barajas and at what price?
Editorial credit: Håkan Svensson Xauxa | Wikimedia
To get a better idea of what this decline means beyond the statistics, we searched the Idealista portal for rental properties in the Barajas district.
If we sort the results starting with the cheapest apartments, the first offer is for a 45 m² one-bedroom apartment on the ground floor without an elevator for €800 per month. However, it is not intended for someone looking to move out on their own, for example: the ad states—in capital letters—that the maximum stay is six months.
The second cheapest ad is for a 54 m² (49 m² of usable space according to the land registry) with one bedroom, on the second floor without an elevator, for €950/month, and the third is a 35 m² studio on the ground floor without an elevator for €1,030/month, in which potential tenants are encouraged to pre-reserve it for €500 to “gain priority.”