Geodemographic transformations in the Costa Blanca (Alicante): Relation between the residential differentiation of the foreign population and housing prices

Abstract

This paper describes the recent transformations in the composition of the foreign nationals residing in the Costa Blanca and explores its residential differentiation. A longitudinal analysis of fifteen years is carried out based on multiple sources in order to characterize at different geographic scale patterns of location and segregation of foreigners according to the main nationalities and to average housing price per square meter. The municipalities of Torrevieja and Benidorm are considered as reference models in terms of the existence of different urban typologies and of the real estate pressure they have registered in recent years. The results show that there is at the provincial level a slight positive relationship between high house prices and the presence of foreign population. But at the inframunicipal level, the residential differentiation of foreigners is associated more with the availability of a more numerous housing offer than with the price of sale.