PORTUGAL
Portugal is one destination we all know well. It is very popular among Irish and English and indeed Dutch and keeps pulling in the crowds year after year. The climate is mild and it is fully geared for tourism with water parks, shopping centres, golf, water sports etc. the cost of living is very low in Portugal and the average local wage is only circa 500 / 600 per month. This is something that a lot of foreigners are unaware of as Portugal has been in the EU for years. On the plus side this means that holidays and even spending part of the year there can be done very cheaply indeed. There are two main areas for consideration; the Algarve and the Silver Coast. Property on the Silver Coast is cheaper as it is only emerging as a holiday spot. The Algarve is renowned for its golf and its sandy beaches. To be honest if you are just looking for sandy beaches I would focus on Fuerteventura where the weather is warmer all year round. For golf you will not beat the Algarve.
There are three main types of property available in Portugal:
Golf
Spa
Other
For the following reasons we focus mainly on golf property as we believe it is the best investment.
1 The Algarve is regularly voted European Golf Destination of the Year
2 Golf memberships are sold with golf property and often appreciate more than the property itself. For example, six years ago a golf membership at Vilo Sol (neighbours to Oceanico's Vilamoura Golf & Gardens) was less than 20,000. Now they are worth 75,000 for just 27 holes. Quinta do Lago was 20,000 also then and they are now worth 120,000 for 2 courses. The Oceanico golf title we recommend is 40,000 for 7 courses at the moment, which is amazing value.
3 Non golf property does not enjoy the same levels of occupancy so rents are lower.
4 Golfers like to play on well established courses, not all new courses and also courses designed for golfers by golfers. On this note when we got the opportunity to promote Oceanico resorts to clients where they have 7 courses, one for each day of the week, meeting all the above criteria, we felt the investment potential was excellent.
5 Supply and demand. Short supply leads to rising prices, we all know that. With Oceanico golf property it is very likely there will be no surplus golf at all for people not owning or renting within the golf resorts. This will push prices up on both rental and sales. Great for the investor.
The Pros
Prices are still quite reasonable. Even golf apartments which are expensive are cheaper than similar properties in Ireland and we do not get the weather to enjoy them.
The cost of living is cheap although of course there are plenty places to spend money too.
Flights are reasonable and access is good. Ryanair and Aer Lingus fly from Ireland. You can leave Dublin in morning and eat lunch by the beach in Portugal. It would be fairly easy to commute even from Portugal for meetings etc if you could work from home a bit.
The Algarve was voted the best European Golf Destination of the year for the last two years.
The Cons
For someone looking for holiday / investment with no interest in golf I think year round sun would be a better holiday home. For pure investment go for golf.
If you have any enquiries regarding Portugal or would like further information on developments in Portugal or any other country, please contact us on 01-6275798 or catherine@makemerich.ie
THE FACT'S
LOCATION: IBERIAN PENINSULA - SOUTH WESTERN EUROPE
AREA: 92,090 SQ KM'S
COASTLINE: 804 KM'S
CAPITAL: LISBON
CURRENCY: EURO ()
TIME ZONE: GMT
POPULATION: 10,629,000
GOVERNMENT: REPUBLIC
RELIGION: MAINLY ROMAN CATHOLIC
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE: PORTUGUESE (ENGLISH SPOKEN)
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