Renting an Apartment in Portugal

It is Not as Easy as it Looks on House Hunters International

Yesterday we talked about the place we rented, sight unseen, to qualify for our D7 visa. Since we didn't highlight the positives, permit me to take a moment to do that now. First, our hosts/landlords are generous and kind. Expats themselves, she is Israeli and he is South African, they go out of their way to assist other expats in getting oriented to life in Portugal. They took us into Cascais the evening we arrived for a glass of wine. They have allowed us to tag along to the supermarket to pick up groceries. They answer every silly question we have including, “Where is the post box?” [If you want to know the answer, you will have to read a future post.]

Second, though small…the place was spotless. Of course, this is much appreciated during a pandemic. But alas, for the reasons outlined yesterday, we are moving on.

How to get to our new place.

No MLS…Agent Compensation

There are two significant differences between Portugal and the States when it comes to real estate. The first, and perhaps most significant, is the fact that there isn’t an MLS. So to find all available apartments online you must access multiple sites: idealista, imovirtual, etc. In addition, some agencies only list their properties on their own sites forcing you to visit Century21, ReMax, etc.

Second, agencies typically only pay commissions to their own agents. As a lifelong salesperson, I am sensitive to compensation…particularly commission-based compensation. Denise will tell you, I always ask! So last September, I actually spoke with a Lisbon real estate agent I saw on an episode of House Hunters International. [If you want to know how I contacted someone I only saw on TV, leave me a comment and I will explain.] She explained if it was not her listing, and the other agency refused to split the commission we would be obligated to pay her an amount equal to one month’s rent.

Having Multiple Agents

So as it turns out, we ended up speaking with four agents. Marta, the House Hunters agent, contacted me through WhatsApp shortly after we arrived. However, since she was based in Lisbon and we would likely be searching in Cascais we didn’t end up working with her. We toured 4 properties with an agent from Century 21 who invited us into his Estoril office after watching us examine available properties listed in his front window. He was a great guy…but unfortunately was not able to find exactly what we wanted.

Oddly enough the agent, Elizabeth, who we spent the most time with, and ultimately assisted us in finding our apartment, we met through a Peruvian woman while checking out at the supermarket. She had assisted Denise earlier in the produce section and we were now behind her in the check-out line. While people in Portugal may seem standoffish they will warmly respond if you engage them. Denise thanked her again for her assistance and thus a conversation began. We mentioned the apartment situation. She asked if we had WhatsApp. We did and exchanged numbers. A few hours later her friend “who had a few apartments” called us. Her friend was a real estate agent. She confirmed what I had learned from Marta regarding compensation, but assured me she had many friends at other agencies that would share with her. It turns out that was exactly the situation in the place we ended up renting.

The view from our bedroom window.

A Room with a View

You may recall that I earlier mentioned the fourth agent. We had found a property on idealista.pt and sent it to Elizabeth … but unfortunately, the listing agent would not share. We contacted that agency and had scheduled an appointment to see the unit. It was just a few blocks from the apartment we rented, but what a difference a few blocks makes.

The listing we passed up.

For a variety of very good reasons, the agent’s ability to show the property was delayed. The one with the view was a T2 (two-bedroom). The one Elizabeth found and we ultimately rented:

• Was a freshly gut-renovated T3 done to a very high standard. (We will be its first tenants.)

• It has radiators, not just inefficient electric wall units. It has a fireplace. (After the past month we were very aware of how the unit was heated.)

• There are a lot of cupboards (i.e. closet space). Yes, we purged but we are still Americans.

• It has a garage. (We don’t intend to buy a car…but you never know.)

• It has a large storage unit in the garage. (We likely will buy electric bikes…and no one wants to try to get a heavy electric bike into a tiny European elevator.)

I was also feeling more than a little guilty about all the time Elizabeth had spent with us…I didn’t want her to go uncompensated. So we went for the apartment without the view.

We never saw the apartment with the view. I think of it often. Did we do the right thing? You can let me know below.

Costs

One final note, for those reading this with thoughts of moving to Portugal. You may read articles in International Living Magazine that suggest you can retire like a king in Portugal for $1800 a month. They may say you will need a bit more (perhaps $2200) if you intend to live in Lisbon or Cascais. As we will be paying 2300Euros/month for rent, I would encourage you to take what they say with a grain of salt. [In my opinion, International Living is geared to readers that are hoping to retire on Social Security alone. That’s an important audience. But we are not that audience.]

There are many, many ways in which Portugal is less expensive than the states. We have already experienced it and will be sharing this in future posts. And given that Cascais is on the Portuguese Riviera…you might compare what we are paying to what it would cost to rent an apartment in downtown San Diego or Santa Barbara. In my opinion, if you really want to understand the cost of living in another country and compare it to your homeland take time to explore Numbeo.