Foreign buyers are helping to boost levels of real estate investment in Portugal, with experts predicting a record breaking year for 2018.

According to a report by Reuters news agency, investment in the real estate sector is set to hit a record of 3 billion euros this year, up from 1.9 billion euros in 2017 in Portugal.

The rise in investment has been attributed in no small part to foreign buyers who have taken advantage of low prices following the global financial crisis, while increased confidence in Portugal as a safe place for long term investment opportunities has also helped to raise investment levels.

Fernando Ferreira, the head of capital markets at the JLL consultancy, told Reuters: “In 2018 we expect to reach 2.5 billion euros in investments, but that is a cautious outlook since with the current dynamic (in the market) we may reach a level close to 3 billion euros”.

He added that the current boom in investment in the Portuguese real estate sector “is not a wave, not a bubble, what is going on in Portugal is really structural.  This is a global trend.  The difference now is that Portugal has been put on the map”.

Some of the factors helping to contribute to the popularity of Portugal include the favourable investment conditions for foreign buyers, including the Golden Visa programme and the non-habitual residency programme.  Portugal also did not experience a housing boom similar to Spain before the economic crisis and this has allowed stock levels to remain at sustainable levels and prices have reflected this.

The Portuguese economy grew by 2.6 percent during 2017, this is the highest pace of growth in the past decade and has been attributed to growth primarily in the real estate and tourism sectors.

To find out more about the benefits of investing in real estate in Portugal and the Algarve, please contact a member of the team today.