Exclusive house prices rise 17% in a year

The prices of the most exclusive houses in Portugal rose by 17% in May compared to May in 2024.

Exclusive means the 10% of the Portuguese housing market where properties, because of a range of characteristics from location to luxury, can command prices of €995,000 and upwards according to a study by idealista.

The district/islands where prices for the top 10% of properties most increased over the past year was Madeira with an increase of 41%. This was followed by the Island of São Miguel (33%), Faro (25%), Portalegre (22%), Beja (20%), Santarém (20%), Setúbal (19%), Aveiro (17%), Lisbon (16%), Leiria (16%), Viseu (15%), Viana do Castelo (15%), Coimbra (14%), Porto (13%), Braga (13%), Castelo Branco (12%) and Guarda (11%). Lesser price increases for exclusive properties were observed in Évora (8%) and Braganza (6%).

Looking at district/autonomous regional capitals, Portalegre led the increases with 52% compared to May 2024, followed by Beja (50%), Funchal (47%), Faro (36%), Ponta Delgada (28%), Setúbal (23%), Leiria (22%), Braga (20%), Santarém (20%), Viana do Castelo (18%), Castelo Branco (15%), Lisboa (14%), Coimbra (14%), Guarda (8%), Porto (7%), Bragança (5%), Viseu (2%) e Aveiro (2%). Évora (-1%) was the only city where prices fell.

The study used the 90th percentile value which represents the point from which 10% of the properties for sale are priced higher. Homes that exceed this threshold belong to the most exclusive segment of the market in which they are located.

The capital with the highest 90th percentile threshold was Funchal, where only houses priced above €1,620,000 belong to this group. This was followed by Lisbon with €1,547,500, and Faro, with €1,500,000. The city of Porto is also above €1 million (€1,008,000) bracket.