Lack of Supply of Property in Portugal
Falling supply at a time when demand is rising is helping the residential property market in Portugal recover with the latest index report showing prices are rising. Like its neighbour in Spain, the property market in Portugal was hit hard by the global economic downturn with overseas buyers falling but now estate agents are seeing a strong pick up and developers are also reporting rising interest. House prices growth in September was driven by a widening mismatch between rising new buyer enquiries and falling sales listings, according to the latest report from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and Confidencial Imobiliário. Similarly, landlord instructions remain in short supply and this continues to be a factor squeezing rents higher, the report, which covers Lisbon, Porto and the Algarve, also points out. In the sales market, new buyer enquiries rose at a solid pace. Estate agents reported the fastest monthly growth in buyer enquires in two years. Meanwhile, the flow of new sales instructions coming to market fell noticeably during September as each region covered posted a decline in fresh listings. Alongside this, sales rose firmly, with a net balance of 25% of respondents seeing an increase in transactions. Looking ahead, sales are expected to continue to rise over the coming months. The report explains that a widening mismatch between supply and demand is driving an acceleration in house price inflation. Indeed, house price growth has now gathered pace in each of the last seven reports, with the latest increase the sharpest on record since the survey started in 2010.
Tags : INTERNATIONAL