Buying property in Portugal
Buying a property in any country is a complicated process. Purchasing a property in a country where you do not understand the logistics is even more complicated! Or can appear to be, due to language barriers and a lack of knowledge of the area.
We are more familiar with buying property in our own country as rules and regulations tend to appear more straight forward. However, is buying a property in your home country really less complex than buying abroad?
A foreigner buying a property in the UK would find the process just as complicated and confusing as you find the process of buying a property in, Portugal or Spain, for example.
Below are some key points to buying Portugal property
Not all of us suit foreign real estate purchases but for many it is a huge lifestyle benefit, such as a lower cost of living, better social circles and so on, tax benefits and so on.
According to MINTEL there are just under 1 million British households that own overseas property!
Generally speaking, the way you purchase portuguese property is different to how you would purchase UK property.
Ensure all the appropriate checks are carried out and then you have no further need to worry, no more so than you would at home.
Do take legal advice and don't be so casual about the whole property purchasing while abroad, a lawyer may cost a few quid extra but all the checks that your lawyer would carry out for you could save you a lot of headaches later, they can check the legalities of the property purchase, does it exist, does it have planning permission etc.
The Notary
(Notario) will play a mjor part in your real estate purchase, these are officials who place your purchase on the public record, they record the sale/purchase and you are required to sign this while with the notary, all parties involved will also be present.
The notary can act on behalf of the buyer and the seller and also carries out a number of checks regarding the property in question.
When purchasing your property in Portugal remember to allocate the correct ownership, if you get this wrong, it could be the most expensive mistake you make! You do not want unnecessary tax bills during your lifetime or in the event of your death where inheritance tax comes into play, getting this part right is the most crucial, seek advice if necessary.
You have many options of who could be made the legal owner of the property, or you could allocate shareholders with a company. The best choice regarding this does not always stare you straight in the face.
You could purchase your Portugal property in various ways:
1) Your own name
2) Your name and a co-purchaser(s)
3) Children's names or the name of the person you wish to inherit the property
4) Ltd company, English, Portuguese, off-shore
5) SIPP (self invested personal pension fund)
6) Investment fund
7) Investment club
8) Trust fund
All of the above have advantages and disadvantages, we can advise which would be the most appropriate for you
If you have any further questions regarding this subject, let me know, either on the board or privately
Currently we assist clients with buying overseas property using their SIPP, it is very popular at the moment
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