There’s an undeniable buzz about Portugal right now, with a booming property market and awe-inspiring new developments. And that’s attracting more and more international residents too, including Hollywood A-listers. But it could it attract another retiree at a loose end?
In autumn’s Portugal property news we’re looking at who is buying and where. Portugal has been the star performer in terms of European property values in recent months, so we look at whch locations are red hot and which still offer bargains.
Portugalโs not-so-secret celeb hang-out
Name one place in the world where you could feasibly stand at the beach bar and rub shoulders with various minor British royalty, Paris Hilton, George Clooney and Nicole Kidman? These days, itโs as likely as anywhere to be an exclusive beach community on a wild stretch of Portuguese coastline about an hour south of Lisbon.
All of the above except Kidman own multi-million pads amongst the wooded dunes in the CostaTerra Golf and Ocean resort, dubbed the โHamptons of Portugalโ and situated on the Comporta Coast.
According to recent reports, the Oscar-winning actress has been sighted there too, possibly eying up property. We already know she would like to live or spend more time in Portugal, having applied for residency in July this year. Sheโs also owned an apartment in Lisbonโs Parque das Nacoes district.
Kidman would be just one of the increasing number of foreigners moving to Portugal for a better quality of life. Recent figures from the countryโs immigration department, AIMA, show a 60% year-on-year hike in new residence permits in 2025. By 22 October this year, AIMA had granted 386,463 residence permits compared to 236,030 for the same period last year.
A royal escape?
Portugal has proven something of a popular choice among royalty in recent years. First to move there was Captain Mark Phillips in 2008, who bought an off-plan villa in Quintas de Obidos, an hour’s drive from Lisbon.
Princess Eugenie and her marketing executive husband Jack Brooksbank bought a property in Portugal in 2022, and they were joined by Prince Harry and Meghan last year.
Could Eugenie’s father Andrew Windsor join them? As he prepares to leave his 30-room Windsor home it must certainly be one of his options.
For a visa there would be several options, including family reunification via Eugenie, or Andrew could apply for the D7 ‘retirement’ visa. He is likely to have the income requirement. The ‘good character’ should also not be a problem, as it only really bars those with a criminal record including prison time.
Similarly, the golden visa would be an option for Andrew or Sarah Ferguson, with investments from as little as โฌ500,000.
Download the golden visa guide
Strongest price rises in Europe
Portugal has been one of the best countries in Europe to invest in property.
In the 15 years between 2010 and 2025 the average Portuguese house price rose 141%. This is the highest increase of all Mediterranean and southern European countries. It is sixth highest in the European Union, where the average rate was 60%. Only the three Baltic States, two central European countries outperformed Portugal, according to the report by the EUโs stats office Eurostat.
This year alone, average property prices in Portugal are rising at one of the highest rates in Europe. Eurostat data show average values in the country grew 4.7% between the first two quarters of 2025 and 17.2% compared to the second quarter of 2024. These are the highest increases in the EU, where the average was 1.6% and 5.4% respectively.
Portugalโs National Institute for Statistics (INE) figures are equally bullish, showing a 5.8% median price rise between Q1 and Q2 2025 and 19% year-on-year hike.
The latest RICS/ Confidencial Imobiliario (Ci) Housing Market Survey (August) reports similar findings and highlights a shortage of properties coming to market as a contributing cause for price inflation. โThe number of housing transactions have been steady since the beginning of 2025,โ said Ricardo Guimaraes, director of Ci. โNevertheless, prices are reaching new highs, with Ciโs House Price Index posting a 21.6% y-o-y increase in August.โ
Bling or bargain โ Portugal has it covered
For bargain-hunters with low budgets, it might be advisable to head inland a bit and avoid much of Lisbon, the coastal Algarve, Funchal, Porto and the Setubal Peninsula. These areas are home to the most expensive property in Portugal, where prices are typically higher than the national median in most if not all municipalities.
In its latest quarterly report, Portugalโs INE records the national median price as โฌ1,923/sq m (for the year ending June 2025). Considering this, the countryโs priciest municipalities (of a certain size) are:
| Municipality | Region / Area | Price (โฌ per sq m) |
|---|---|---|
| Lisbon | Lisbon | โฌ4,525 |
| Cascais | Greater Lisbon | โฌ4,267 |
| Oeiras | Greater Lisbon | โฌ3,802 |
| Loulรฉ | Algarve | โฌ3,639 |
| Lagos | Algarve | โฌ3,638 |
| Funchal | Madeira | โฌ3,205 |
| Aljezur | Algarve | โฌ3,158 |
| Albufeira | Algarve | โฌ3,136 |
| Porto | Porto | โฌ3,060 |
| Vila do Bispo | Algarve | โฌ3,006 |
| Alcoutim (cheapest in Algarve) | Algarve | ~โฌ1,000 |
On the flip side, the INE report reveals where Portugalโs most affordable areas โ typically in its interior, where INE figures show properties still sell for less than โฌ35,000.
Districts with municipalities where median prices are comfortably below โฌ400/ sq m and properties are amongst the cheapest in the country include: Guarda in the northern Beiras e Serra da Estrela region, Castelo Branco, Coimbra and Viseu in the Centro region, Braganca and Vila Real in the Norte region and Santarem in the Oeste e Vale do Tejo.
More patience required for a passport
The time it takes for a foreigner to become a Portuguese citizen is set to increase from the current five years. In October the government approved a bill extending the number of years a non-Portuguese national must be resident in the country before applying for a passport. The law is not yet in effect and wonโt be until approved at presidential level, expected to happen within a month or two.
The implications are different according to your nationality. Under the new rules, non-EU citizens, such as Britons, Asians and Americans, must have held legal residency in Portugal for at least 10 years to be able to apply for citizenship. Itโs a bit quicker for citizens from another EU state or a Community of Portuguese Language Country, who will need 7 years of residency.
Another change under the new legislation will add further delay to the citizenship process. The qualifying residency period for an application must now begin from the date a residence permit is physically issued. The existing rules are more favourable as they count an applicantโs residency period from the submission date of their first residency application.
All citizenship applications submitted correctly before the law comes into force should still qualify under the existing 5-year regime. Any filed after the law comes into effect will follow the new 10-year rule. Anyone ready and waiting to apply for citizenship are advised to file their application as soon as possible.
Foreigners about to move to Portugal should not be spooked by the changes. After five years of temporary residency, you should be entitled to permanent residency, which is renewable every 5 years. For most expats this is sufficient for an enjoyable and fulfilling life in Portugal without the need to take the final step to gaining citizenship.
