Guide
German buyers abroad: who they are and what they pay
Germany, Austria and Switzerland form Europe's largest single-language market, over 100 million people, and its most active group of foreign property buyers. This guide sets out what the data says about where they buy, what they pay, and what they expect from a listing before they enquire.
- 100M
- German speakers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland
- Source: Combined population, national statistics offices
- 9,360
- homes bought by Germans in Spain in 2024, 6.7% of all foreign purchases
- Source: Registradores 2024, via spanishpropertyinsight.com
- €3,114/m²
- average price German buyers paid in Spain in 2024
- Source: Registradores 2024, via spanishpropertyinsight.com
- 11,330
- German-owned holiday homes in Sweden in 2024
- Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB), 2024
Where they buy
Spain is the largest market by far. Germans bought 9,360 homes there in 2024, overtook the British as the leading second-home nationality in 2023, and made 39% of foreign home purchases on the Balearics in 2025. Sweden is the surprise: 11,330 German-owned holiday homes, second only to Norwegian owners. Croatia's Istria, Italy's lakes and South Tyrol, and the Algarve round out the drive-to and short-flight markets.
Where no official German breakdown exists, the market-wide numbers still point the same way: foreigners bought 15.6% of Italian holiday homes in the first half of 2024, one in five Algarve home sales went to buyers from abroad in 2025, and Greece drew a record €2.75bn of Golden Visa property investment in 2024.
What they pay
In Spain, German buyers paid €3,114 per square metre on average in 2024, above the foreign-buyer average. They tend to buy detached houses and sea-view apartments for their own use rather than investment flats, and they finance conservatively: a large equity share, often a German bank behind it, and a preference for a clear, documented purchase process.
That preference is why a German-format exposé matters. Buyers expect the Kaufpreis, the living and plot area, the year of construction and the condition up front. A listing that makes them ask for the basics is a listing they skip.
What they expect from a listing
German in every field, not only the headline. A named contact who answers in German within a day. Photos that show the whole property, including the parts that are not perfect. A price that is the price, not a starting point. And a channel they already use: ImmoScout24 first, then Immowelt and Kleinanzeigen, with YouTube and Instagram for the younger half of the market.
Crosslist builds exactly that from the exposé your agency already has, publishes it across those channels, answers the enquiries in German and hands your agents qualified buyers. A flat monthly fee per listing, no commission, no German required from your team. The buyer relationship, the negotiation and the commission stay where they belong: with the agency that holds the listing.
Questions agencies ask
- Are Austrians and Swiss included?
- Yes. The portals we list on serve the whole German-speaking market, and Austrian and Swiss buyers search on the same sites.
- Which price range do German buyers abroad look at?
- The published data gives averages per square metre, not budget bands, so we don't quote one. In Spain the 2024 average of €3,114/m² sits above the foreign-buyer average.
- Do German buyers need a German-speaking agent on site?
- Not once they are qualified. Serious buyers are comfortable continuing in English with your agent; the German conversation is needed to get them to that point.
