With foreign demand helping the recovery of property prices in Portugal, recent research from RICS/Ci suggests that the rental sector across the country is stabilising for the first time in almost four years.
Their Portuguese Housing Market Survey for March 2015 reports a slight recovery in prices and sustained rises in enquiries and sales volumes. Demand from new buyers has continued to rise this year and in fact has now increased for 20 months in a row. House prices have increased modestly for the last three months, after five years of falls. Prices are projected to rise across all regions over the coming quarter, led by Lisbon and the Algarve.
Ricardo Guimarães, director of Ci, says: “Lisbon is attracting substantial amounts of investors, which is boosting both activity and price levels. This is mainly connected to foreign capital and refurbishment opportunities. According to respondents, however, other markets are already starting to improve, either due to international or seasonal demand (such as Algarve) or to better credit conditions.”
Tenant demand for lettings was steady, but new instructions fell further in March. Rents held stable for the first time in four years and are expected to remain so over the next three months.
