Latest news and stories about cost of living in property in Lisboa, Portugal for expats and residents.
An analytical look at the property market reveals that Lisbon has become the least affordable capital city in Europe, driven by rising costs of living and housing.
A report highlights the significant price gap in the housing market, noting that foreign buyers are willing and able to pay 43% more for properties compared to local Portuguese residents.
A section of a newspaper or publication where readers' letters are published.
The Casa para Viver platform is petitioning the President of Portugal to declare the housing crisis a national emergency, advocating for rent controls and eviction protections ahead of nationwide protests.
Reported house prices rose 16% year‑on‑year, but the data provided appears inconsistent: the body states prices reached €2,111 per square metre in Q3 last year, while the headline claims €5,000 per square metre in Lisbon. This likely reflects different measures or geographies (national average vs Lisbon city centre, asking vs transaction prices). Verify source breakdowns and timing; implications include tighter affordability, stronger expat/investor demand in Lisbon, and amplified regional divergence in the housing market.
The comparison might seem stupid, but sometimes, here inside my tent, trying to survive, I feel like part of a human experience that I am not truly a part of. Chronicle by Cláudia Lucas Chéu
A new study has singled out Lisbon as Europe’s least affordable rental market, with average rent consuming over 99% of net salary. The finding comes from financial consultancy Tradingpedia, which examined The post Lisbon named least affordable European city for renting appeared first on Portugal Resident.
In a study comparing 37 European capitals based on daily expenses and average net salaries, Lisbon emerges as the least affordable capital. For those living alone, expenses exceed 127% of the average salary in 2026.
Lisbon leads the list of the most expensive rents in 127 European cities.
The fiscal package is a good measure, but it does not resolve the crisis.
The Green Family Support Fund in Cascais has been increased by 1.5 million euros. The initial budget had been exhausted, and there were approximately 750 applications under review.
An analysis of CEO compensation at companies on the main Lisbon Stock Exchange index reveals that they earned, on average, 53 times more than their employees. The Bank of Portugal will reduce the debt-to-income ratio that families must meet for home loan repayments, with the aim of curbing...
During the 2024 election campaign, the AD coalition promised an emergency health plan to be executed by the end of 2025. However, a report from the Health Regulatory Authority (ERS) shows that all National Health Service indicators have worsened. By the end of 2025, over one million patients were waiting for their first specialist consultation, a 17% increase from 2024, with 43.7% exceeding the guaranteed maximum response time. The OncoStop program also failed, with oncology surgeries decreasing by 3% and waiting lists growing by 9%. Additionally, the number of patients without a family doctor exceeded 1.6 million in early 2026. In education, the government has failed to provide accurate data on teacher shortages, while secondary school completion and higher education enrollment have dropped by 10%. In housing, prices rose by nearly 19% in 2025, reaching a record high in April 2026. In Lisbon, residents spent an average of 116% of their salary on housing, making home ownership increasingly unattainable. These failures in health, education, and housing demonstrate a significant decline in the quality of life for citizens.
Portugal faces a severe rental crisis, with Lisbon, Porto, and Braga ranking among Europe's least affordable cities, as the capital's rental costs consume nearly all of the average household income.
Access to housing in Portugal is constrained by the growing gap between salaries and prices, according to a study by real estate consultancy CBRE. In Lisbon, the median bank valuation reached 2,523 euros per square metre, meaning it takes approximately 90 months of average salary to buy a 50-square-metre property, a significant increase from the 61 months required in 2011. The study highlights a low level of new construction, with only 27,000 new homes built in 2024 compared to 170,000 sales. CBRE suggests that a deep reform of the rental sector, the reduction of bureaucratic friction in licensing, and fiscal stability are essential to address the housing crisis.
The average rent for an apartment in Lisbon represents more than 167% of the national minimum wage. This is the second-highest ratio among European Union capitals, surpassed only by Prague.
The median value of houses sold in Portugal reached 2,076 euros per square metre throughout 2025, the highest price ever recorded by the INE. There were increases in all regions of the country.
Median housing prices rose 16.8% in 2025 compared to the previous year, to 2,076 euros/m2, with Greater Lisbon exceeding the national average by 1,363 euros/m2, according to data released this Friday by the National Statistics Institute (INE). Taking as a reference the 164,677 house sales carried out during the year of...
João Cília, CEO of Porta da Frente Christie’s, warns that Portugal builds only 25,000 new homes annually against a need for 70,000, causing supply shortages across all segments, including luxury. High-end supply has dropped by nearly 25% since 2021, driving prices up by 8.5% last year. Growth in the luxury sector is hindered by a lack of available property in prime locations like Lisbon and Cascais, though expansion is occurring in areas near the Algarve's 'Golden Triangle' and the coast towards Sines. Despite geopolitical tensions, Cília remains optimistic for 2026, citing strong domestic demand supported by falling interest rates and continued interest from international investors, particularly from Brazil and the US.
In Wednesday's plenary session, the IL president also stated that rents for new contracts 'are rising by 10% per year' and that buying a house in Lisbon 'now requires 102% of the median salary'. And she is right.
In this news bulletin, a live interview with the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Also, reactions to the ceasefire between the USA and Iran. Highlights also include the housing crisis in Lisbon.
Lisbon City Council, led by Carlos Moedas, has rejected a Socialist Party (PS) proposal to create a municipal programme aimed at mitigating the impact of rising fuel costs on families and institutions. The governing coalition (PSD/CDS-PP/IL) argued the proposal was redundant, citing existing national government support measures and current municipal social emergency funds. Additionally, the council rejected a separate PS proposal to evaluate the potential acquisition of specific buildings for public housing, with the administration stating it is already prioritising large-scale housing investments and the development of its existing property portfolio.
“There is a growing gap between housing markets and people's reality.” These are the conclusions of the two European Parliament working groups that visited Portugal to assess the situation regarding affordable housing and the recovery and resilience mechanism.
The Público newspaper leads with the news that young IRS beneficiaries will now be covered by the automatic tax return system, starting with the 2025 income campaign. The Jornal de Notícias reports that rising house prices have generated a record revenue of six million euros per day for municipalities through the municipal property transfer tax (IMT). Meanwhile, the Correio da Manhã highlights a persistent rat and cockroach infestation at the Prime Minister's official residence, noting that over five million euros have been spent on pest control services across state buildings since the start of 2025. Finally, the Diário de Notícias reports that diesel prices have risen by 30% and petrol by 14% since the start of the war in the Middle East.
Unaffordable rents and curricular barriers are also highlighted as issues.
The housing price index increased by 140% between 2016 and 2025, according to the Bank of Portugal.
