You moved here for the lifestyle. Better weather, slower pace, maybe lower costs. Your kids came along for the adventure.

But here's the question that doesn't appear in any relocation guide: In ten years, when they're adults, will they be able to afford to stay?

Spain's youth emancipation rate hit 15.2% in late 2024. The lowest since records began in 2006. The average age for leaving home is now 30.4 years, nearly four years older than the EU average.

This isn't about culture. It's about maths.

Entry-level salaries in Spain: €1,200-€1,500 per month. Average rent in high-cost areas: 64% to 71% of those earnings. The recommended maximum is 30%.

Over the past decade, rents have risen by 40%. Wages rose 10%.

On the Costa del Sol, the numbers are worse. A one-bedroom in Estepona runs €1,100 to €1,400. In Marbella, €1,500 to €1,800. Your 22-year-old earning €1,300 at their first job cannot afford to live independently in the town where they grew up.

The result: 70% of young Spanish adults under 30 still live with their parents. Not by preference. By necessity.

If your children are under 12, they'll finish school here. Their friends will be here, their Spanish will be fluent, their network, their identity, and their life will be rooted in a place they may not be able to afford.

You have options; they don't. You brought capital, remote income, or retirement savings. They'll be starting from zero in an economy where zero doesn't reach the first rung. Unless you are funding that first rung.

This isn't about Spain being broken. It's about being honest with yourself about what you're building.

If they're young: Start the money conversation early. Not pocket money, real money. What things cost, what work pays, how the gap works here versus where you came from.

If they're teenagers: Career planning matters more here. Spain's job market rewards credentials and connections. A gap year is a luxury. Starting salaries determine housing options for years.

If you're building wealth here: Consider whether the house you're buying could become their housing solution. Multi-generational living isn't a failure in Spain. It's the norm.

If you're renting: You're not building an asset they can inherit or share. That's fine, but factor it into the 10-year view.

For the conversation with your Spanish friends:

"¿Tus hijos viven contigo todavía?" — Do your kids still live with you?

"¿Cómo encuentran piso los jóvenes aquí?" — How do young people find flats here?

The answer to that second question usually involves family help.

You moved here for a better life. Your children inherited the lifestyle, but not the economic means to fund it. Spain's youth housing crisis isn't a policy failure you can wait out. It's a structural reality that affects your 10-year family plan.

Have the conversation now. The numbers don't lie, and your kids deserve to know what they're growing up into.

If you've thought about this, or if you're watching your older kids navigate it, reply with "ten years" and tell us what you're seeing and what you are planning.

Know another family with kids on the coast? Forward this to them. When three friends subscribe through your link, you'll get our Expat Toolkit (the checklists and phone numbers we actually use). Your referral link is at the bottom of this email.

See you on the paseo — A. & The WaypointSur team doing the maths so you don't have to.