House purchase in Portugal: Prices stabilize in July..

In Portugal, the demand for purchasing housing is decreasing. Sales of residential real estate are declining, and families now prefer to buy cheaper homes and take out smaller loans from banks due to the rise in mortgage interest rates. All of this is affecting the dynamics of housing prices, which have hardly changed in July compared to the previous month, according to the price index from Idealista. However, this is not a visible trend across the entire territory of Portugal, as housing prices increased in eight district capitals from June to July, with Viana do Castelo leading the list of growth (5.3%). In Lisbon and Faro, housing prices remained stable during this period.

In Portugal, the cost of buying a house was 2,531 euros per square meter (euros/m2) at the end of July, based on the average value. This is almost the same price as in the previous month. Additionally, compared to last year, housing prices in Portugal have increased by 6.2%.

Housing prices increased in 8 regional capitals in July, with Viana do Castelo (5.3%), Bragança (3%), and Santarém (2.8%) leading the list. They are followed by Vila Real (2%), Portalegre (1.5%), Aveiro (1.4%), Funchal (1.2%), and Porto (0.8%). On the other hand, housing prices remained stable in Leiria (0.2%), Setúbal (0.1%), Braga (0%), Lisbon (0%), Faro (-0.2%), and Évora (-0.4%). It is also noted that the cost of purchasing housing decreased in six Portuguese cities: Ponta Delgada (-2.5%), Coimbra (-1.9%), Castelo Branco (-1.8%), Guarda (-1.5%), Beja (-0.9%), and Viseu (-0.9%).

Despite the stabilization of prices, Lisbon remains the city where buying property is the most expensive at €5,349/m². Porto (€3,441/m²) and Funchal (€2,979/m²) take the second and third places, respectively. They are followed by Faro (€2,916/m²), Aveiro (€2,535/m²), Setúbal (€2,309/m²), and Évora (€2,203/m²). The list continues with Viana do Castelo (€1,949/m²), Coimbra (€1,808/m²), Braga (€1,702/m²), Ponta Delgada (€1,675/m²), Vila Real (€1,362/m²), Viseu (€1,322/m²), and Leiria (€1,311/m²).

The most affordable cities for buying property in Portugal are Guarda (€720/m²), Portalegre (€728/m²), Castelo Branco (€811/m²), Bragança (€894/m²), Beja (€926/m²), Santarém (€1,129/m²), and Leiria (€1,311/m²). Property prices have stabilized or decreased in 14 out of the 25 analyzed Portuguese districts and islands.

Analyzing by regions and islands, the highest increase in housing prices occurred in Portalegre (5.9%) and on the island of Faial (3.8%). This is followed by Viana do Castelo (3.6%), the island of Porto Santo (2.3%), Guarda (2.1%), the island of Madeira (1.8%), Setúbal (1.4%), Santarém (1.1%), Aveiro (1%), the island of Terceira (0.8%), and Leiria (0.6%).

The leader among the most expensive areas for purchasing housing is Lisbon (€3,859/m²), followed by Faro (€3,177/m²), Madeira Island (€2,616/m²), Porto (€2,483/m²), Setúbal (€2,433/m²), Porto Santo Island (€1,971/m²), Aveiro (€1,690/m²), Leiria (€1,523/m²), Viana do Castelo (€1,517/m²), Braga (€1,509/m²), São Miguel Island (€1,499/m²), Évora (€1,437/m²), Coimbra (€1,405/m²), Faial Island (€1,309/m²), Pico Island (€1,293/m²), Terceira Island (€1,118/m²), Santarém (€1,080/m²), and São Jorge Island (€1,056/m²).

The most affordable housing prices are found in Guarda (€668/m²), Portalegre (€703/m²), Castelo Branco (€847/m²), Bragança (€848/m²), Vila Real (€979/m²), Viseu (€993/m²), and Beja (€1,048/m²). Housing prices have stabilized in the Greater Lisbon region, the Algarve, and the Center. In July, housing prices increased in two regions of the country. Leading the rise is Alentejo (4.3%), followed by the Autonomous Region of Madeira (1.8%). Meanwhile, in the Algarve (0.1%), the Center (-0.2%), and the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (-0.4%), housing prices remained stable. On the other hand, prices decreased in the Autonomous Region of the Azores (-0.9%) and in the Northern region (-0.6%). The Lisbon Metropolitan Area, at €3,492/m², remains the most expensive region for purchasing real estate, followed by the Algarve (€3,177/m²), the Autonomous Region of Madeira (€2,607/m²), and the North (€2,107/m²). At the opposite end of the table are the Autonomous Region of the Azores (€1,346/m²), the Center (€1,400/m²), and Alentejo (€1,588/m²), which are the most affordable regions for buying housing.

Idealista Real Estate Price Index

To compile the Idealista real estate price index, we analyze the listed prices (based on square meters) published by Idealista advertisers. A statistical removal is applied to atypical listings and those with prices that do not align with the market. We also include the "private homes" category and exclude all listings in our database that do not attract user interest. The final result is obtained by calculating the median of all valid listings in each market. The full report is available at the link:https://www.idealista.pt/media/relatorios-preco-habitacao/venda/.