Home Insurance for Non-Resident Owners in Girona

A house that sits empty for months behaves differently, insurance-wise, from one where tenants or holiday guests come and go. Spanish insurers ask owners to declare how a property will actually be used, and many policies reduce cover — or exclude certain claims altogether — once a home has been unoccupied beyond a set number of consecutive days. For a non-resident owner based in the United Kingdom, who may only visit a few times a year, this detail can matter as much as the price of the policy.

Renting out the same property, even occasionally, brings different obligations: public liability for anyone staying there, cover for loss of rental income if a claim forces a pause, and in many regions a tourist licence before you can legally advertise short lets. None of this is exotic, but it needs to be set out clearly with the insurer from day one, in writing, so that a future claim is not refused on a technicality.

Girona province covers the Costa Brava coastline as well as inland countryside toward the Pyrenees, offering both beach towns and rural stone villages. Its proximity to France draws French, Belgian and Dutch buyers, alongside others wanting a quieter alternative to busier Spanish coasts.

Girona-Costa Brava airport serves the coast directly, with Barcelona airport also within reach for wider connections. Coastal areas see strong summer activity, while inland towns remain calmer, and property types range from apartments and townhouses near the sea to farmhouses further inland.

What follows are measured, dated figures for Girona (province) — who lives there, what homes are advertised for, how to get there and the climate — each one sourced. They help you form a realistic picture of Girona (province) before deciding whether to buy there, to live, for holidays or to let out.

The province of Girona as a whole, not merely its capital city, had 830,429 registered residents on 1 January 2025, according to the INE annual census. This figure covers every municipality within the province, from its largest towns to its smallest villages. Foreign nationals make up 181,899 residents of the province of Girona, roughly 22 per 100 inhabitants. The figure is meaningful without being overwhelming, and it shifts noticeably depending on which town in the province you look at.

On 1 January 2025, the province of Girona had just 3,372 British nationals on its register, a modest figure. Because registration only counts year-round residents, it leaves out second-home owners who spend part of the year in the province. The table below lists the largest foreign nationalities registered in Girona (province) on 1 January 2025, among those INE publishes for every municipality.

This second table covers nationalities the census does not itemise separately, such as Germans, Italians, Dutch, Belgians or Scandinavians, across Girona province. The data come from 1 January 2022, the latest INE edition with full nationality detail, a year different from the table above.

Across the province of Girona, 5,315 homes currently listed carry a median price of €2,840/m² and a median ticket of €290,000. These figures sit mid-range, near the €3,135/m² median recorded across the 130 towns we track nationwide. Listings span a wide spread, but the middle half of the market sits between €1,930 and €3,820 per square metre, leaving room for both lower and higher asking prices.

Girona (province)'s median asking price of €290,000 carries a transfer tax bill of about €29,000 at the regional 10 % rate, plus an estimated €3,500 for notary, registry and gestoría work. The resulting total of around €32,500 sits outside the mortgage and needs to be covered from the buyer's own funds. Bear in mind these are asking prices from adverts live on 2026-11-01, not the prices actually agreed. Negotiation sets the final figure, which depends on the home's condition, exact location and orientation.

The table below brings together the towns we track across Girona (province), listing inhabitants, foreign residents per 100 people and median asking price per square metre, to show how much these markets differ.

Girona (province) showed 20,821 estimated holiday-let dwellings in 05/2026, per INE's experimental platform-based statistic, totalling 116,320 bed places and about 25 per 1,000 residents. This points to a moderate holiday-let presence, with a regional licence still required for tourist letting. The Ministry of Housing's reference system puts the median long-term rent for a flat in Girona (province) in 2024 at €550 a month, drawn from 43,826 declared tenancy contracts. It reflects what was actually paid in the past rather than holiday-let income, and rents can move in either direction. Monthly rents for flats, drawn from the same official figures, cluster between €450 and €680 for the middle half of tenancies.

Girona has a single commercial airport, Aeropuerto de Girona-Costa Brava (GRO); depending on where exactly in the province your property is located, an airport in a neighbouring province may actually sit closer to your door. The climate figures below were recorded in or near Girona, the provincial capital, and conditions elsewhere in the province, inland, at altitude or on other islands, can differ noticeably. The mean temperature in January is 7.1 °C (average daily minimum 1.1 °C) and in August 23.4 °C (average daily maximum 29.8 °C), a cold winter for this country. Buyers should budget for proper heating and insulation. Annual rainfall reaches about 728 mm on roughly 66 days, well above many Spanish coastal or inland averages. Checking for damp is a sensible part of any viewing here. Source: the 1981-2010 climate normals published by AEMET, the state weather agency, for its Girona Aeropuerto station, some 9 km from here; local conditions can differ, especially inland or at altitude.

In the twelve months to 07/2026, 15,239 homes changed hands in the province of Girona, INE figures show. Such activity tends to bring more reference prices and a larger selection for anyone searching. The figures above cover the whole province of Girona, but they vary widely from town to town and from property to property. Share what you are searching for and we can review the details with you.

The transfer tax on a resale home is set by each Spanish region. In Girona the general rate is 10 %, and on top of it come notary, land registry and gestoría (roughly one more percent). On a new build you pay 10 % VAT plus stamp duty instead of the transfer tax. This money is not lent by the bank.

If you plan to use the property only for your own holidays in Girona, a standard multi-risk home policy is usually the base, but ask specifically about the “unoccupancy” clause. Many standard policies assume someone is in and out regularly; if the house is empty for long stretches between your visits, some insurers reduce cover for water damage, theft or storms unless you have paid for an extended unoccupancy endorsement.

It is also worth checking who can legally access the property to check on it while you are back in the United Kingdom — a neighbour, a keyholding service or our after-sale support — since insurers sometimes ask for evidence that the home is checked periodically, especially after storms or in winter.

Once you let the home to guests or long-term tenants, the insurance conversation changes. You will usually need a policy that explicitly allows third-party occupation, with public liability cover for anyone staying there, and ideally cover for loss of rent if a water leak or similar incident makes the property unusable for a period. Ordinary owner-occupier policies often exclude claims linked to paying guests altogether.

Short-term tourist lets add another layer: most regions, and many individual buildings, require a specific licence before a property can be advertised for short stays, and insurers will usually ask to see it. If you plan to let the home in Girona, it is worth confirming the licensing position before you sign any rental contract, not after the first booking.

Before comparing quotes for a property in Girona, it helps to have a short checklist ready: your NIE, proof of ownership or the arras/reservation contract, an estimate of the rebuild cost (not the purchase price), and a clear answer to how many weeks a year the home will stand empty. Insurers price risk on these answers, not on guesswork.

A local tax adviser can also confirm how any rental income or future gains should be reported to HMRC under the double taxation agreement between Spain and the United Kingdom, which sits alongside — but separate from — your insurance obligations.

Spain is a relatively short flight away from most UK airports, making regular visits to a Spanish property straightforward for owners based in Britain. Many British buyers are drawn to Spain for its climate, coastal lifestyle and established expatriate communities. One practical point to bear in mind is that Spanish inheritance law differs from UK rules, so it is worth taking specific advice on how it may affect the property and one's estate. Currency movements between sterling and the euro can also affect the overall cost of purchase and ongoing expenses.

Spain and the United Kingdom have a double taxation agreement in place, and a local tax adviser should confirm how rental income or gains from Spanish property must be declared and reported to HMRC.

As the United Kingdom is no longer an EU member state, British citizens may stay in Spain for up to 90 days in any 180-day period without a visa, and must apply for a visa or residence permit for longer stays.

Since the United Kingdom uses the pound sterling (GBP) rather than the euro, buyers should factor in exchange-rate movements and currency conversion costs when paying for a property or transferring funds to Spain.