Buying Property in Portugal: The Arithmetic
How Many Years Before You Are Even
Costs in, costs out, costs every year. At 10% it is two years — and there is a rate below which it is never.
11 min125 XP available4 challenges
Run the model
Find the year the position turns positive.
A €300,000 permanent home in Portugal. You pay IMT, 0.8% stamp duty and about €1,000 for the deed on the way in; roughly €4,100 a year in IMI, maintenance and insurance while you hold; and 6.15% to an agency on the way out. The mortgage is not here — its comparator is rent, not appreciation.
Years until you are even
2
Zero means it never happens inside forty years
- IMT on the purchase
- €10,542.04
- Total cost of buying
- €13,942.04
- Where you stand after the years you chose
- €118,997.05
2026 table, permanent home, Continente
IMT + 0.8% stamp duty + the deed
Sale proceeds after costs, less everything you put in
Portuguese prices did about 10.7% a year from 2015. That is a decade, not a law.
The median Portuguese owner holds far longer than the break-even needs.
See what 10% a year gives, then drop to 1% and watch the break-even disappear
- Try 10% — done
- Try 1% — not yet
- See what 10% a year gives, then drop to 1% and watch the break-even disappear — not yet
Answer to continue.