The basic rule of Real Estate is probably  the most important facet of your move and potentially a costly decision in your journey to Portugal. Whether you are planning on renting or buying it is important to choose a location that best suits your lifestyle. City life versus country life, proximity tot he airports, your needs for public transportation etc… Keep in mind that purchasing or renting a place to live in Portugal is perhaps one of the most challenging and stressful experiences of your journey. So getting it right the first time is of the utmost importance.

Our experience shows that our customers, some more than others have all searched on the internet about the various aspects of living in Portugal. However, the same experience has taught us that most websites present an simplified version  of the information regarding living in Portugal, but not ones given by those living and experiencing it first hand. So if you have not been to Portugal before we highly recommend you plan a visit to explore the country and familiarise yourself with the areas that would be most compatible to your lifestyle, and to offer you in general what you are actually looking for most importantly for you and your family.

Regardless of whether you are moving from within the EU or coming from a 3rd party (Non EU) country, we highly recommend that you consider making a list by order of importance all of your requirements and match them against the Pros and Cons offered by all the locations that you initially choose as future living options. Once you narrow down your choice of 2 or 3 locations try to rent a place in each of them  for a month or two. That should give you enough time, to figure out if you are making the right choice, If your ultimate intention is to purchase a home, then we advise you to rent out a property for a minimum of at least one year if possible.

Another important consideration is understanding the differences between Portugal and your current homeland, in terms of comfortable living and utility prices, It is common  knowledge that utilities such as Gas, Electricity and Water, are some of the most expensive in Europe. This is due to politics, and setting these aside, the fact remains that if you want to have a comfortable home, in terms of heating in winter, and please do understand that winters in Portugal can be very cold and damp, and costs of utilities should be an important consideration when renting or buying a home, or it can turn out to be a very expensive experience. For example an older and/or poorly renovated property, may prove to be quite expensive to get by during the winter, as it may have been for the shielding of extreme heat and not for the cold. At the same time, if you rent a property with a very large garden or pool, you need to be conscientious of the costs of water, especially if the property does not have it´s own well or borehole.