Latest news and stories about expat finances in property in Lisboa, Portugal for expats and residents.
The Tax Authority has issued a warning that renting out a primary residence before selling it can disqualify homeowners from capital gains tax exemptions, regardless of their registered tax address.
Lisbon has joined major European cities like Barcelona and Milan in rolling back tax incentives for digital nomads and restricting short-term rentals to address severe housing shortages and market saturation.
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.
Home loans increased by 42% year-on-year. In the first half of the year, the state-owned bank granted 2.5 billion euros to young people with state guarantees and paid 1.33 billion euros to the state in dividends and corporate income tax. During the results presentation in Lisbon, CEO Paulo Macedo highlighted the bank's best-ever semester, with profits rising 2.2% to 913 million euros. The bank also noted a significant increase in home loan approvals, which reached 740 million euros in June alone, a figure described as a historic milestone.
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.
The Portuguese central bank suggests lowering the maximum effort rate allowed for housing credit applications to 45%.
Álvaro Santos Pereira stated that the banking regulator and supervisor will propose reducing the debt-to-income ratio from 50% to 45%.
The central bank is considering changes to the debt-to-income ratio requirements for mortgage loans, which may affect thousands of prospective homebuyers.
The rise in house prices caused the median mortgage payment for buying a home to increase in Lisbon from approximately 900 euros to over 1,800 euros between 2019 and 2023. In Porto, the increase was even greater.
Savills’ newly released World Cities Prime Residential Index 2026 makes it clear that Lisbon will be on the radar of property investors across the globe this year. Having ranked seventh globally for The post Lisbon’s rise to glory appeared first on Portugal Resident.
The increasing cost of housing in major Portuguese cities has made home ownership a distant goal for many, as the effort required now surpasses half of their earnings.
CM: Statistics Portugal (INE) records a 16% rise in housing prices in the penultimate quarter of 2025. The Guardian: A Norwegian prince goes on trial on charges of sexual abuse.
Lisbon's residential property market is strengthening its appeal to buyers from North America, consolidating the city as a preferred European destination for property purchases and investment.
The Lisbon Tenants' Association also says that the increase from €600 to €900 in the cap on the deduction for rents paid is 'clearly unfavourable to tenants'.
The Lisbon Municipal Assembly has approved a measure to fully refund the IRS and set a minimum IMI rate for the year 2026.
Live coverage: Alexandra Leitão accuses Carlos Moedas of cutting housing funding and making agreements with Chega. Additionally, three candidacies for the Presidency of the Republic have been formalised.
The General Director of Century 21 in Portugal states that the support measures for young people's home purchases have created an “avalanche” of purchases but have not improved access to housing for those who “really need it.”
At the end of a visit to Cáritas, the presidential candidate described the current situation in the housing market as “a nightmare”, which “negatively influences people's lives very much.”
The Lisbon City Council's budget proposal for 2026 does not disclose the expected investment in housing, but the deputy mayor, Gonçalo Reis (PSD), states that a “huge commitment” is anticipated.
Following its approval by the Council of Ministers last week, the legislative authorization proposal that will allow the Government to implement a new package of measures for the housing sector is about to be submitted to Parliament. Among the proposals is that construction or rehabilitation works of houses must...
Property owners with an IMI (Municipal Property Tax) exceeding 100 euros have until this Sunday to pay the final instalment of this tax. The IMI 'bill' is automatically divided into two or three payments depending on whether its value is between 100 and 500 euros or exceeds 500 euros.
