The ongoing problems in the
Eurozone and Portugalââ¬â¢s economic woes have contributed to a further fall in
property prices in the country.
Investors looking to buy homes in Portugal can now benefit from lower
prices after new figures show that property values in the Iberian nation fell
by 8.9 per cent in the last year.
If youââ¬â¢re looking to buy property
in Portugal, now could be the perfect time, as we see here.
Property in Portugal becoming cheaper for overseas buyers
New data from Statistics Portugal
(INE) has found that the average property price in the country fell by 8.9 per
cent in the year to May 2012. The average
property is now priced at ââ¬1,047 per square metre ââ¬â an 11.3 per cent fall in the
last year when adjusted for inflation.
During the year to May 2012,
property prices in the Lisbon metropolitan area fell by 4.8 per cent, while
they fell by 6.2 per cent in Porto.
On a quarterly basis, property
prices in the country dropped 0.8 per cent in May 2012.
The statistics show that prices
of flats fell faster than house prices. The average price of flats dropped by
10 per cent year on year while the average house price fell by 7.2 per cent
over the same period.
One of Portugalââ¬â¢s major problems
is that there is currently hardly any activity in Portugalââ¬â¢s residential
construction sector. Global Property Guide reports that the
construction sector owes banks around ââ¬25 billion and the total number of
property and construction firms going bust has risen by almost 50 per cent in
2012 from the previous year.
Property prices in the country
are projected to continue falling for the remainder of the year and domestic
demand for Portuguese properties is expected to remain weak. But, with falling prices, it could be
the perfect time for overseas buyers to snap up property in the country.
