Estepona built luxury apartments but neglected the infrastructure.

ESTEPONA is one of Costa del Sol’s most active property markets. Thousands of homes have been built or sold in the last few years to both local and international buyers.

In the rush, the municipality has been praised for its high-end construction and rapid development.

But – as with so many things on the Malaga coast – beneath the glossy exterior and impressive-sounding numbers lies an uglier reality.

This is best illustrated by the plight dozens of families that are currently homeless after paying a high price for apartments in the city.

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The Alma development, located at the top Avenida Juan Carlos, has 72 homes that are still without electricity seven months after construction. 

Residents, town hall, and the electricity company are all fighting for responsibility. The situation has led to protests, legal actions, and a fight of responsibilities.

The problem dates back to 2021 when the city hall started procedures to reserve electricity for the sector. 

According to Endesa the documentation required at that time was never completed, and so the formal reservation of power was not processed. 

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In August 2024, the company suspended all applications for more than 1 Megawatt of power due to grid saturation at the Costa del Sol. 

A completed apartment block with an active licence is rendered powerless.

Estepona’s municipal government has asked Endesa to activate supply to the apartment block and has written to the national minister for ecological transition warning that the regional grid is showing ‘signs of incapacity’ to provide electricity for new developments. 

But residents claim they are stuck in limbo. They can’t register their homes, or mortgage them, even though they bought them years ago.

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Alma’s case is dramatic but it is also a sign of a larger pattern.

Estepona’s population has grown markedly in recent years — from about 67,000 in 2011 to nearly 80,000 in 2025 — placing ever greater strain on municipal systems.

In spite of this population boom and an apparent constant pipeline of construction, infrastructure planning has lagged.

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In 2024 alone, 3,162 high-end homes were sold in Estepona — part of the 8,708 luxury transactions recorded across Marbella, Estepona and Benahavis, according to figures reported by Cadena SER.

Electricity supply across the Costa del Sol is under pressure, with Endesa confirming that the provincial grid is operating at or near capacity and applications for large power supplies frozen pending the activation of a long-delayed substation in nearby Benahavís. 

The landowner’s disputes have caused the substation to be delayed for over five years.

In some areas of the municipality, the water infrastructure is improving, but it has not been at a pace that can keep up with the increased demand. 

The town hall announced the construction of a 15,000 cubic metre water tank at Las Mesas — a €3.7 million investment — explicitly framed as a way to guarantee supply and support areas of demographic growth

This and other recent network upgrades are more evidence of catching up than proactive capacity planning.

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Roads around Estepona illustrate similar strain. At peak times, the A-7 coastal highway, which is the main route linking Estepona with Marbella, and to the east, is often congested. 

Experts in traffic modelling and transport planning have long called on investment to improve access roads and junctions, but major upgrades lag behind the rapid growth of housing estates and residential groups that depend upon the same road network.

Concerns about drainage and environmental sustainability are also important. 

A study from the University of Malaga found that wildfire damage to the Sierra Bermeja had increased flood risks along the western Costa del Sol. In addition, the interaction between the expansion of urban sprawl and the stormwater capacity created a greater vulnerability to heavy rainfall. 

These risks require infrastructure investment for drainage and flood protection that has simply not kept pace with the rate of development.

Social infrastructure — including healthcare provision, schools and community services — is also being required to absorb a larger and more diverse population. 

Analysts of municipal planning documents have found that, while new facilities are being added, service expansion is often a response to population growth and not a proactive measure.

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Estepona’s development model is attractive, and it’s easy to understand why. 

The real estate market in town is thriving, attracting wealthy buyers and investors for long periods of time. New builds are selling quickly. 

The Alma case shows the high cost of building houses without first making sure that all the necessary wires, pipes, and roads are in place.

Residents at Alma talk not of politics but of practicalities — wanting only the basic functionality of a home: light, water, access and security.

“If there is a licence, electricity should be available,” one of the affected buyers told local media, expressing a frustration that was echoed by protests outside town halls and letters to Endesa, as well as national ministries.

Estepona will still sell its lifestyle, but it won’t be lit up until the infrastructure catches up to the ambitions behind the skyline.

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