According to a report by Idealista, “resilience” was the watchword in the real estate sector in Portugal in 2021, and this is set to continue into 2022.

In 2022, the pace of growth in home sales prices is predicted to continue, which should not be an impediment to continuing to sell many homes. On the contrary, the number of homes sold is expected to increase by 10%, approaching levels last seen at the beginning of the century. This is one of the conclusions to be drawn from the “2022 Portugal Market Outlook”, an event held by the CBRE Portugal.

According to CBRE, the residential market reached a record in 2021, with an estimated 200,000 homes sold, 16% more than in the previous year and 10% more than in 2019. This is set to continue to increase in 2022, as not only was there an increase in licensing in 2021 (with an increase of more than 10% compared to 2020) but there is still a high unsatisfied demand across the country”, says CBRE in a statement.

Prices rising

But why will house prices continue to rise? According to the company, “the shortage of manpower, the increase in the costs of construction materials and the disruptions in the supply chain, together with the persistent delay in the urban licensing processes, will further delay the works and sustain the continued rise in housing sales prices in Portugal”.

CBRE forecasts point to an increase in the average price in most national municipalities, with Lisbon being an exception, where average prices tend to stabilise.

Golden visas

“The change in the golden visa programme will harm urban rehabilitation projects in Lisbon and Porto and stimulate growth in specific areas of low population density”, states CBRE, noting that the situation “is particularly more serious in Lisbon, with the maintenance of containment zones in the historic centre and loss of traction in the Local Accommodation (AL) market”.

On the other hand, the consultant adds, the new golden visa regime will stimulate the growth of opportunities for the development of projects in specific areas of low population density, such as Comporta, Douro and Alqueva.