Amount of home loans obtained by foreign citizens rose from 10.8% in 2021 to 14% in 2022.
Almost a sixth of housing loans in Portugal were granted to foreigners in 2022, reveal new data released by the Bank of Portugal (BoP) this Thursday. It is an increase compared to 2021, when 10.8% of the amount contracted had gone to citizens of other countries. Among the nationalities stand out the Brazilians.
In total, 169 thousand people took out a mortgage last year, 2 thousand more than in 2021. About 16 thousand of these were foreign citizens, and the amount of credit they took out corresponds to 14% of the total value, according to the BdP’s new statistical indicator.
In 2021, 10.8% of the amount contracted for housing credit was for foreigners. In terms of number of people, 7.25% of those who obtained credit were not from Portugal, a number that rose to 9.5% in 2022.
Looking at the amounts granted to foreigners, 20% went to citizens of Brazil, followed by the UK and the US.
It should be noted that this indicator considers not only mortgages, but also credits for work on houses and for the purchase of land for residential construction.
Median value of housing loans rose to 112 thousand euros
Looking at total home loans taken out, the median contract value rose to 112,000 euros last year, which compares to 100,000 euros in 2021.
Almost two thirds of the mortgage loans granted in 2022 (61%) were contracted with people aged up to 40 and almost a fifth were even for people aged up to 30. Note that the new rules imposed by the BdP to limit mortgage terms according to age came into force at the end of March, but the data are annual.
As for the region of residence, two out of three people who took out a mortgage lived in the North region and in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, indicates the central bank.
