# Portugal House Prices Hit New Record; Foreign Buyers Pull Back

> INE and idealista data show Portuguese house prices at record highs even as foreign buyers' market share shrinks, squeezing newcomers in top districts.

- Source: https://www.growinportugal.com/news/portugal-s-house-prices-just-hit-another-all-time-high-what-2026-09-16
- Publisher: GrowIN Portugal (https://www.growinportugal.com)
- Published: 2026-09-16
- Last reviewed: 2026-09-16
- Language: en

> **Key figures — as of 2026-09-16:** INE's official transaction data put the national median at **€2,337/m² in Q1 2026, up 19.8% year-on-year** — the fastest pace since the series began — while idealista's asking-price index hit a fresh record of **€3,207/m² in August 2026** — Foreign nationals' share of family home purchases fell to **27.6% in 2025**, down from a **31% peak in 2023** — Non-resident investment (buyers living abroad) shrank to just **8% of total transactions**, down from roughly **13% at the end of 2023** — Faro (Algarve) posted the steepest annual price rise of any district capital in August 2026, at **18.3%**.

## Two data sets, one uncomfortable story

Portugal's housing market just delivered a contradiction that matters enormously for anyone still shopping for a home here. Statistics Portugal (INE) revealed that, after rising 19.8% over the past year, the median price of houses sold reached €2,337 per square metre at the start of 2026 — the highest figure on record. That's the fastest annual growth rate INE has ever logged for this series, and it happened while fewer homes actually changed hands — 35,953 in the first three months of 2026, down 10.5% on the same period last year.

Idealista's separate, more current asking-price index tells a slightly gentler but equally record-breaking story. Prices in Portugal rose 7.5% in August compared with the same month of 2025, reaching €3,207 per square metre — the median value. That's a cooling from the double-digit rates seen earlier in the year, but prices rose in all 20 district capitals and autonomous regions analysed — meaning there is nowhere left to hide from the increases, only degrees of exposure.

Faro is the sharpest example. Faro registered the biggest annual increase, of 18.3%, ahead of Guarda (17.6%), Bragança (17.5%), Beja (17.4%) and Portalegre (17.3%). Faro is the Algarve's district capital — precisely the region that has long been the entry point for foreign buyers, which makes the acceleration there sting more for newcomers house-hunting in the sun.

## Foreign buyers are actually retreating

Here's the part that surprises people: while prices climb, foreigners are buying a smaller slice of the pie. The relative weight of foreign nationals in total home acquisitions by households fell to 27.6% in 2025 — the lowest share since 2021 — down from a peak of 31% in 2023.

The retreat is sharper still among non-residents — people living abroad rather than immigrants already settled in Portugal. Investment in Portuguese housing by non-residents cooled from around 13% of the national total at the end of 2023 to just 8% by the second quarter of 2025. Buyers living outside the EU — Brazilians and Americans among them — pulled back the most, and non-residents overall have never accounted for more than 8% of transactions in the past seven years, a share that has been shrinking since the golden visa's real-estate route ended and the NHR regime changed.

Yet those who do buy still pay a hefty premium. The average 2025 transaction value for buyers with EU tax domicile was €335,640, and for other countries €470,277, against €234,120 for buyers domiciled in Portugal. And geographically, the Algarve remains the top destination for non-resident buyers, accounting for 29.7% of their transactions and 42.4% of the value they spent, followed by the North and Greater Lisbon.

## GrowIN's read on the numbers

Run INE's own growth rate backwards and the household-level impact becomes concrete. If the national median stood at €2,337/m² in Q1 2026 after a 19.8% annual rise, the equivalent Q1 2025 figure was roughly €1,952/m². Applied to a modest 90m² apartment — a realistic size for a couple or small family — that's a jump from about €175,700 to roughly €210,300 in a single year: **around €34,600 in extra purchase cost, or close to €2,900 for every additional square metre**, on the exact same size flat, using INE's official transaction benchmark rather than asking prices.

"Portugal's property market is now moving fast enough that waiting six months to buy can cost a household the equivalent of a year's rent," says GrowIN Portugal Editorial.

## What this means if you're still looking

The practical squeeze isn't really about foreigners flooding the market and driving up prices — the data shows the opposite, a shrinking foreign share. It's about supply. Fewer homes are being listed and sold nationally, so even a smaller pool of buyers, foreign or domestic, is competing hard enough to keep pushing records. For anyone relocating, that means budgeting a buffer above whatever asking price you see today, moving quickly once a NIF and Portuguese bank account are in place, and treating the Algarve's popularity as a double-edged sword: strong rental demand, but also the country's fastest-rising price tag this year.

Before signing anything, get the tax and residency basics sorted — see our [tax & NIF](/tax-and-nif/) hub for what's required before you can even make an offer — and budget for the transfer taxes, stamp duty and notary costs that sit on top of the purchase price. GrowIN's [services](/services/) team can also help coordinate the NIF, fiscal representation questions and paperwork that trip up first-time buyers here.

## What to watch next

Keep an eye on INE's next quarterly release and idealista's monthly index for September — if the official transaction data keeps accelerating while asking prices keep cooling, it will confirm a market where completed sales are running hotter than what's currently listed, a sign that available stock is being absorbed faster than sellers can reprice it.

Whatever happens with the government's pending housing fiscal package, the message for foreigners house-hunting right now is blunt: the record highs aren't a blip, and neither is the shrinking foreign share — they're two sides of the same undersupplied market.

## Sources

- [idealista/news](https://www.idealista.pt/news/imobiliario/habitacao/2026/09/01/77337-comprar-casa-em-portugal-ficou-7-5-mais-caro-em-agosto)
- [idealista/news (INE data)](https://www.idealista.pt/news/imobiliario/habitacao/2026/07/17/76623-casas-vendidas-em-portugal-atingem-preco-historico-apos-subir-19-8)
- [ECO (Economia Online)](https://eco.sapo.pt/2026/03/24/uma-em-cada-quatro-casas-vendidas-em-2025-foi-para-maos-estrangeiras/)
- [A Voz do Algarve](https://www.avozdoalgarve.pt/d/imt-vai-subir-para-nao-residentes-pesam-5-na-compra-de-casas/89151)

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© GrowIN Portugal. Cite as: GrowIN Portugal, "Portugal House Prices Hit New Record; Foreign Buyers Pull Back", https://www.growinportugal.com/news/portugal-s-house-prices-just-hit-another-all-time-high-what-2026-09-16