According to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), this rise represents an increase of 1.3% compared to 2021, which corresponds to more than 2,218 accommodations transacted.

Data released by INE confirm that the value of housing transactions last year soared by 13.1% year-on-year, to a total of €31.8 billion (+13.1% year-on-year). The growth registered in terms of prices was higher in the case of new housing (18.2%) than in existing ones (11.6%), although the latter accounts for three-quarters of the total amount of transactions.

Although the number of transactions has increased, official data shows a decrease of 2.7% in bank assessments carried out by experts at the service of banking institutions in the context of granting housing loans. Close to 120,000 were carried out last year, which represents a reduction of three percentage points in the relative weight compared to the purchase and sale of family accommodation, settling at 71.4%.

With regard to the licensing of buildings in Portugal, which totalled 24,696 last year, INE points out a decrease of 4.4% compared to the previous year, in which they had grown by almost 10%. 37,458 dwellings were licensed, -0.5% year-on-year. The number of buildings and dwellings deemed completed also dropped by 3.5% and 0.1%, respectively.

What is also falling is the number of buildings licensed for rehabilitation works, which stood at 4,491 processes last year. This indicator sank 9.3% compared to the previous year and 17.4% compared to 2019, the year before the Covid-19 pandemic, thus lowering the rehabilitation threshold of 20% in total works licensed in Portugal.