Property market in Portugal

Property market in Portugal by Pedro Rodriguez Portugal has enjoyed a steady increase in the number of foreign buyers over the past 10 years or so. Property prices have risen steadily. Portugal and the Algarve in particular saw a huge rise in property investment. Portuguese buyers are very cautious right now due to the economy of the country and are not buying as they used to. The forecast for the Portuguese market is not very optimistic for the foreseeable future. The foreigners however are still looking towards Portugal as a sound investment base for property purchase. New quality developments in all parts of the Algarve have raised the standard of construction and there is a healthy competition amongst property developers trying to satisfy the demand for good locations and quality design and finishing's. The top end of the market is to be found in Vale de Lobo and Quinta de Lago. Huge investments especially in this particular area have proofed extremely successful. But you do need a few Million Euros to find a home, which may be outside most people's budget. The new marina of Albufeira has also attracted a great deal of new developments but represents a totally different market to the above. The price of properties is measured there in the hundreds of thousand rather than Millions of Euros. It is quite unusual to have two so different property markets in the same country. For obvious reasons the great majority of Portuguese buyers are unable to purchase properties at the price level the foreign buyers can afford to do. This situation offers new opportunities for the foreign buyer to purchase a villa or an apartment in a "less popular area" (in the opinion of non Portuguese) for a more realistic price. The desirable property locations, as is very often the case, have been quite often artificially created. As a result the prices are in no way realistic, and often bear no resemblance to true market value. The price gap between the Portuguese and the foreign owned properties will continue to grow, at least in some areas. Investing in already high prices areas may also not be such a good idea, if one is looking to take advantage of future growth. There is a limit to what heights the prices can go. There are still plenty of locations worth looking at where one can still find the right property at a realistic price. Buying land and build ones own property is another good option. New opportunities arise in areas close to the planned Formula 1 race track. There are some more large and government sponsored developments taken place in the near future which are worth keeping an eye on. The medium and long term prospects for the property market in Portugal and especially the Algarve must be viewed with optimism. The stunning beaches and the climate are assets which will not change. As long as the sun keeps shining, many home owners will have a twinkle in their eyes when the time comes to sell. The advice to anyone looking to buy a property in Portugal right now must be to look carefully and explore the not so obvious locations. It pays to have a talk to someone who has lived in the country for some time. Take your time, don't be pressured to buy on your first visit, Drive around, don't just look at the area you have come to know from previous holiday. With other words do a little research. It will pay off. Apart from buying a property in Portugal the true aim for many is to find a better life style. There are some good business opportunities to be found as well. If you follow some common sense rules a move to Portugal can offer you a great retirement or new business career. Our site can offer you some further information and insight on buying or selling a property or business in Portugal. www.sellandbuydirect.com