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Residential Real Estate Prices Should Continue Their Rise in 2018
8 January 2018
The vice president of APPII highlighted some expected significant trends for 2018 which includes the emergence of a new concept of spaces and service sharing, a trend which has been growing bit by bit throughout Europe and even in Portugal (young professionals, coworking and even co-living, and projects that combine student hotels with student housing).
After an impressive 2017, the outlook for 2018 is extremely positive for the major market players. Reis Campos expects to see some stabilisation, “marked by a general improvement in the business lines of companies in the sector, as the real estate market is leading the process of economic recovery in Portugal. And, above all, through the adoption of some of the measures we are discussing with the Portuguese government that are essential to correct some persistent imbalances.”
Such measures would include the extension of urban rehabilitation incentives to the whole of the country and the operationalisation of the Energy Efficient Homes Program, which will be led by the CPCI. The two initiatives are examples of concrete issues that are expected to be addressed in 2018. “On the other, the stability and competitiveness of taxes on real estate, as I have said, is essential to maintain investor confidence. Similarly, the competitiveness of the non-resident taxation regime must be ensured, as well as requiring regaining the momentum of the golden visa program by overcoming the recent blockages,” Mr Campos concluded.
Hugo Santos Ferreira believes that rather than focusing on the perspectives for 2018, “which is widely expected to continue delivering record results and no causes for concern. We should rather focus on what we will do in the short-term to positively affect the coming years of 2019, 2020 and beyond.”
The vice president of APPII highlighted some expected significant trends for 2018 including the emergence of a new concept of spaces and service sharing which has been growing bit by bit throughout Europe and even in Portugal (concepts such as young professionals, coworking and even co-living). Also, projects that combine student hotels with student housing, hotel projects that offer much more than mere accommodation services and “would also point to a return of projects outside urban centres, or at least outside prime zones and finally, the return of projects aimed at lower income segments.”
Francisco Bacelar expects a consolidation of economic growth, though at a more measured pace than before while hoping for stabilisation in the market and the implementation of measures that are needed in the real estate brokerage sector.
“We also hope that the new Secretariat of State for Housing will serve as an intermediary between market professionals and the government. This would permit an attempt to find solutions that will allow the housing market to be upgraded, both in the rental sector, which needs attenti0n after decades of stagnation, and in the sales market,” he explained.
Regarding prices, the president of ASMIP believes that the price increases will continue, especially in the most sought-after areas, although in a less pronounced way, because in some cases prices are already well beyond what would be reasonable, with the problems these situations may bring in the future.
Frederico Borges de Castro believes that 2018 will be the beginning of a second phase of the real estate recovery. “We will witness the emergence of new residential and office projects, several large ones, that will undoubtedly make a difference and will mark the next decades for Lisbon and Porto. As in 2017, we expect to witness an increase in residential home purchases by Portuguese buyers,” he emphasized.
The executive at CBRE also believes that developers will have to deal with shortages of skilled labour and the growth of construction costs, both of which may lead to lower margins and could cause serious cash flow problems in long-term projects.
Original Story: Jornal Econômico – Fernanda Pedro
Photo: Cristina Bernardo
Translation: Richard Turner