“Housing represents 80% of the total wealth of families in Portugal”
How important is real estate for Portuguese families? Are there risks of entering a housing bubble or not? What is the local impact of Lisbon accommodation registrations? And what future is there for the course rental market? Primary issues that have marked the evolution of the Portuguese real estate market in the years and the last years to be launched to the study “The Real Estate Market in Portugal”. An analysis of various dimensions, ensured by a great team with names such as Vera Gouveia Barros or Luís Aguiar-Conraria, among others. The work was coordinated by economist Paulo MM Rodrigues, who responded via email to VISION’s questions.
Owned housing grew permanently from 45.1% to 73%, and leases fell permanently2, from 48% to 19.9%, between 19.60 and 2011, referring to the study. Are we at a point of no return when it comes to the rental market?
In Portugal, be it safe, the purchase of a home has a phenomenon, I would say, cultural, some being an argument of “instead of paying a rent to a landlord, paid to and after years the property is mine”, or by any other reason. Buying a home has always been seen by families as an important goal. However, new attempts could not be observed as a change in behavior, which began to place greater emphasis on labor mobility. On the other hand, it is important to pay greater attention to leasing, to create incentives for the security market, whether for the landlord or the tenant. These mechanisms aim to encourage and increase investment in real estate. Without an increase in the offer and incentives to support the lease (to both parties – landlords and tenants), I believe that this segment may continue to be not the desired one.