Property prices in Portugal cheaper as airline announces new Faro routes

Property prices in Portugal continued to fall in early 2011 offering potential investors a great opportunity to snap up cut price real estate in the country.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)/CI Portuguese Housing Market Survey for January 2011 showed that prices fell over the month, mainly due to weakening demand.

Property prices continuing to become cheaper in Portugal

RICS senior economist Josh Miller said that high unemployment levels in Portugal are contributing to weak demand for homes.  He said: “In addition to weak demand, the Algarve is also experiencing increased home selling, which is putting additional downward pressure on prices.”

With prices falling, property in Portugal offers some excellent opportunities for foreign buyers and investors, particularly with a new airline announcing cut price flights to the Algarve.

Airline announces new Algarve routes

Experts are hopeful that the property market in the Algarve will begin to stabilise thanks to increased demand from tourists visiting the region.  And, the announcement that a major UK budget airline is adding routes to Faro this summer should help increase visitor numbers.

Jet2, the low cost airline, has announced it will be adding two new UK routes to and from the Algarve’s Faro Airport starting in April 2011, increasing its total capacity to more than 300,000 seats.

Access to the Algarve will be improved by the new routes encouraging more visitors and investors to buy in the region – either as a holiday home or as an investment to rent to friends or tourists.

Stephen Anderson of Infinito Real believes the new routes demonstrate growing confidence in the country and that there are great opportunities for investors to snap up cut price property in Portugal.

“Budget airlines have been the making of many resort areas throughout Europe over recent years. The fact that Ryanair opened a base in Faro airport only last year, and now news that Jet2 are offering a greater number of cheap flights across a total of seven routes to and from the UK, is fantastic news,” he said.