In recent years, more and more foreigners have been looking into buying a home in Portugal. Housing prices dropped significantly after an economic downturn, but as the economy recovers, property prices are beginning to rise again, especially in certain areas. Still, interest rates remain low and many are drawn to the climate, quality of life, relatively low cost of living, rich culture, and peaceful atmosphere of Portugal. We’ve put together this guide to help you navigate the home-buying process in Portugal.
Where Do You Want to Live?
There are many factors to consider as you explore different regions where you could buy a home in Portugal. For example:
- Do you want to be in the city center? Consider checking out the larger cities of Lisboa or Porto . These would be the best options if you plan to rely on public transportation.
- Would you rather be near the beach? The Algarve and Costa Alentejana , also known as Costa Vicentina , are the obvious choices. But remember that cities like Sintra or Cascais also have that privilege.
- What kind of weather do you prefer? Do you like to be warm all year round? Consider the Algarve or Madeira regions. Would you prefer somewhere cooler and fresh? What about Gerês in the north of Portugal? Or Sintra, close to Lisbon? Both of these have a lusher green environment.
Once you decide where exactly you want to live, there is still a lot to understand before signing a contract on that dream house and committing to a mortgage with a Portuguese bank.
Get a NIF
One of the first things you should do is apply for a Número de Identificação FiscalPortuguese tax number , also called Número de Contribuintetaxpayer number . You will need this for things like buying a home, setting up utilities, opening a bank account, and applying for credit. You can do this at Finançaslocal tax office , or at a Loja de Cidadãocitizen shop .
If you want to apply for your NIF before arriving in Portugal, you can use a lawyer, accountant, or someone with permanent residency in Portugal as your fiscal representative who can obtain the NIF on your behalf. Check out our article on Applying for a NIF for more information.
Hire a Lawyer or Solicitor
This is not strictly required, but would be wise for foreigners who are not familiar with buying property in Portugal, especially if you are not yet comfortable with the language. An or solicitadorsolicitor can evaluate and prepare the necessary legal documents and advise you during the home-buying process.
This could help you avoid some of the common pitfalls. In Portugal, it is common for properties to be passed down through generations of a family. It’s important to ensure there are no partial owners who could legally block the sale. Furthermore, if you are buying a home in Portugal from afar, you can grant Power of Attorney to the lawyer. This way, they can carry out parts of the transaction on your behalf.
Determine Your Budget and Look Into Getting a Mortgage
Mortgage rates have been dropping steadily for the past few years, with the average at 1.33% at the end of 2018. When applying for a hipotecathe mortgage , also called crédito habitaçãohome loan *, lenders will look at the documentation of your income and financial circumstances to formulate a quote. Generally, they will loan 60-80% of the property value to non-residents, and up to 90% to residents. They also typically want to ensure that your mortgage payments (along with any outstanding debts) will not exceed 35% of your monthly income.
You may have to provide a fiadorguarantor , which is basically a co-signer who would become financially responsible if you were to default on your payments. This is not always a strict requirement, but because it provides an extra level of security for the bank, you may end up paying a larger down-payment without one. The fiador must be a Portuguese resident or citizen.
*Note: When dealing with the bank, you are more likely to hear the words hipoteca or crédito habitação. These refer specifically to a mortgage (a loan in which the house is the collateral). In regular conversation, however, it is much more common to use the more general word o empréstimoloan to refer to a mortgage.
Start Visiting Properties
Typically this is done through a real estate agent. Ensure that the agent you work with is registered with the Associação dos Mediadores do Imobiliário de PortugalAssociation of real estate agents of Portugal or ASMIP. There are many websites where you can view property listings or locate an agent who can help you find what you’re looking for. Here is a list of a few of the commonly used organizations in Portugal to search for average houses:
- Casa Sapo
- Idealista
- Imovirtual
- Century 21
- ERA
- ReMax
- Portugal Property
If you are lucky enough to have a larger budget, you may want to check out the following:
- Sotheby’s
- Engel & Völkers
Deciphering Portuguese Real Estate Ads
When visiting these websites and filling out the search fields, you will notice that many of them already have an English version. When you actually open the ad, however, the text will likely be in Portuguese and you may encounter some unfamiliar words and concepts. We’ll review some of the basic terminology below and you can also explore these units for more useful vocabulary and phrasing:
Types of Housing
- One thing that could cause some confusion is the fact that although casahome, house means house, we use it to refer to almost all types of housing, whether it’s an apartment or an actual house. When people want to be more specific, they may use some of the following terms:
o apartamentoflat, apartment
a moradiadetached house
a moradia geminadasemi-detached house
T0, T1, T2, etc.
- In Portugal, we refer to the number of rooms in a home using “T” along with a number. The number just refers to how many bedrooms there are. We don’t count the kitchen or living room, since we assume those are always present. Following this logic, a T0 is a studio in which there isn’t a separate room.
Materials Used
- In cities like Lisbon, it is common to mention the type of material that separates adjacent flats on the ceiling/floor. The two major types are:
- Concrete, which we call apartamento de placa . This type is more recent and has more market value.
- A wooden structure called tabique . This type is normally associated with older, more charming places.
- It’s also common to read a description of the type of chãofloor or soalhoflooring .
- Older houses, in Lisbon at least, will usually have o chão de madeirawood floors in all the rooms except for the kitchen and bathroom. This wooden flooring can be one of the following:
- Tábua corrida – Long parallel wooden boards, typically from older buildings.
- Tacos de madeira – These look like wooden puzzle pieces and were used from the 50s until the 80s.
- More recent constructions started using what we call chão flutuante which varies from a high-end wooden type to a cheaper plastic type.
- Sometimes you will see houses with wooden floors only in the bedrooms and some kind of stone in the rest of the rooms. Other times, the stone (sometimes marble) is only in the kitchen and bathroom.
- Older houses, in Lisbon at least, will usually have o chão de madeirawood floors in all the rooms except for the kitchen and bathroom. This wooden flooring can be one of the following:
- In certain ads, you may also see a mention of the type of caixilharia , which refers to the structure of the window frame. This can be alumínioaluminum or PVC.
Review Documentation and Make an Offer
Once you find a home you’re really interested in, your lawyer can help with verifying information, setting up a survey to ensure there are no problems with the property, and preparing necessary contracts. There are a number of documents to review before buying a home in Portugal. These give you details about the construction, property boundaries, tax information, any outstanding debts, and help you ensure that the property details match your expectations. Knowing these details will help you decide on a reasonable offer.
Here are some of the important documents you will probably come across:
Certidão de Teor ou Certidão Permanente de Registo Predialproperty registration certificate
Ficha Técnica de Habitaçãohousing technical datasheet
Licença de Utilizaçãousage license
Caderneta Predialproperty tax document
Certificado Energéticoenergy performance certificate
Find a Notary
O notárioNotary is a government position in Portugal. Their role in the home-buying process is to oversee and approve the signing of official contracts, make sure all taxes and fees are paid, and register your name as the new owner with the Conservatória do Registo Predialland registry office . This is separate from the role of the lawyer or solicitor, who you would hire to protect your own interests, whereas the notary is there as a neutral party to ensure compliance with government regulations.
Sign the “Contrato de Promessa de Compra e Venda” (CPVC)
O Contrato de Promessa de Compra e Venda is the deposit agreement or “promissory contract of purchase and sale”. If they accept the offer, signing this document means you agree to purchase the property and agree to the terms of the sale. Typically you pay at least a 10% down payment (sometimes up to 30%) when you sign the contract. If the seller backs out, the deposit will be returned. If you as the buyer back out, you will lose the deposit.
Sign the “Escritura de Compra e Venda”
Escritura de Compra e Venda is the final deed of sale. Before everything is finalized, you’ll need to ensure that you’ve paid the remaining down payment (based on the terms of the sale), as well as a number of associated fees and taxes, including:
- Imposto Municipal sobre Transacções Onerosas de Imóveis - IMTproperty transfer tax which can be anywhere between 0-8%, scaled depending on the value of the property and whether you will live there or rent it out.
- Imposto de Selostamp duty which is 0.8% of the home price
- Imposto sobre o Valor Acrescentado - IVAvalue-added tax - VAT which is usually included in the purchase price.
- Lawyer fees: Sometimes a flat fee, other times a percentage of the value of the property
- Notary fees
- Land Registry fees
- Mortgage fees
- Agent fees: Usually the responsibility of the seller.
The typical recommendation is to budget around 10% of the home value in fees, but this can vary quite a bit.
Home Sweet Home!
Finally, it’s time to move in! Now you’ll want to think about contacting water, gas, electricity, TV, and internet providers to set up services or change the name on the existing account. The process for buying a home in Portugal can be complex, but we hope this guide gives you a good start.