🏠️ Your Summer Property Playbook Starts Here

Happy Summer Solstice, friends 🌞

Today marks the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, and if there’s ever a good excuse to pour another drink, stay outside a little longer, and make a few big decisions… this is it.

This week, we’re diving into one of the biggest decisions many expats will face: selling property in Portugal. It can be a minefield of paperwork, taxes, contracts, and costly mistakes if you don’t know the rules, so Fresh Properties has put together a practical guide to help you navigate it with confidence.

And because life is also about creating opportunity, not just managing it, we’re kicking off a special book giveaway with Mark Moberg. If his interview in last week’s newsletter got you thinking differently about money, freedom, and designing life on your terms, this one’s for you.

Let’s get into it, shall we?

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Last week's interview with Mark Moberg clearly struck a chord with many readers.

So, together with Mark, we're excited to launch a special referral challenge for The Expat Hustle community.

The first 10 readers who successfully refer 3 new subscribers to The Expat Hustle using their unique referral link will receive:

📖 A copy of The Life Arbitrage in your choice of Kindle or paperback format, courtesy of Mark Moberg.

Here's how it works:

✅ Share your unique referral link with friends, family, colleagues, or fellow expats.

✅ The people you refer must subscribe to The Expat Hustle using your link. Simply forwarding the newsletter does not count.

✅ Refer 3 new subscribers within the next two weeks.

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Thinking of selling your property in Portugal?

It sounds simple enough... list it, find a buyer, sign the papers. But in Portugal, the reality is often far more complex, especially for expats navigating unfamiliar rules, paperwork, taxes, and legal traps.

This week’s guide, brought to you by the team at Fresh Properties (the experts in all things expat and property) breaks down exactly what you need to know before putting your home on the market. From choosing the right agent and understanding the CPCV, to avoiding costly mistakes and knowing what you’ll actually walk away with after tax, this is practical, no-fluff advice every seller should read before taking the first step.

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Selling a property in Portugal involves more than finding a buyer and signing a contract. For expat sellers in particular, the process rewards preparation and penalises assumptions.

The three most important things to know from the outset:

Portugal is a country where paperwork determines timelines. Small discrepancies between the property's physical reality and its official records can delay a sale, reduce your negotiating position or give a buyer grounds to renegotiate at the last moment.

Before going to market, ask a lawyer to verify:

If unlicensed works exist, decide in advance whether to regularise them or disclose them transparently and reflect them in the price. Discovering this at the CPCV stage, under time pressure, is the worst moment to deal with it.

Therefore, before moving forward to the CPCV stage, it is essential to carry out a proper legal and tax due diligence in order to identify any potential risks, liabilities, or structural issues in advance.

Documents you will need:

First impressions drive buyer decisions, particularly with international buyers who are often making emotional and financial choices simultaneously. A well-presented property attracts more interest, photographs better and typically sells faster and at a stronger price.

Practical steps that make a real difference:

Bringing a property to market in its best condition from day one is consistently more effective than listing quickly and improving later. Price reductions attract attention for the wrong reasons.

There is no freely accessible public database of real transaction prices in Portugal. However, a professional platform does exist that gives licensed agents, banks and other qualified professionals access to actual sale prices registered at the notary, broken down by price per square metre, area and property type.

This tool exists. Not every agency uses it. It comes at a cost, requires training and, frankly, some agents prefer to rely on instinct and market feel rather than verified data. But for a seller, the difference matters enormously.

What to watch out for:

The right question to ask any agent:

"Can you show me the actual transaction prices for comparable properties sold in this area in the last twelve months? Not asking prices. Real sale prices."

If they cannot, or will not, that tells you something important.

Working with the right agent matters. Working with the wrong one, under a poorly drafted contract, can cost you time, money and leverage.

When selecting an agent:

On commission: investment, not cost

There is a natural instinct to negotiate the commission down before anything else. But it is worth pausing on that reflex.

An agent who delivers a great job, with accurate pricing, strong marketing, qualified buyers and skilled negotiation, is an investment. That percentage can be the difference between selling at the right price and selling below market because of poor listing, weak photography, the wrong buyer pool or a badly handled offer.

On the other hand, some agents will offer a lower commission upfront precisely to win the listing. It is worth asking yourself: if an agent cannot defend the value of their own service, how will they defend the value of your property when a buyer or a buyer's agent pushes back on price?

The commission conversation is actually a test.

An agent who folds immediately on their own fee, without explaining why their service justifies it, is showing you exactly how they will negotiate on your behalf when it counts most.

What matters is not finding the cheapest agent. It is finding the agent whose work justifies what they charge and who can demonstrate that clearly.

The mediation contract:

Before signing with any agency, read the mediation contract carefully. It should clearly state:

Ideally, it should also confirm that the agency will share the listing with serious buyers’ agents. An agent who refuses to share is limiting the pool of potential buyers and may reduce your chances of achieving the best price.

Once an offer is accepted, both parties sign a Contrato de Promessa de Compra e Venda (CPCV). This is the document that legally binds the transaction.

The most important rule about the CPCV:

The problem is rarely what is in the contract. It is what is not.

Any condition that matters to you must be explicitly written into the CPCV. This includes:

On the deposit:

The buyer typically pays a deposit of around 10 percent at the CPCV stage. If the buyer withdraws without justification, they lose the deposit. If the seller withdraws without justification, they must return double the amount. The deposit should be paid directly to the seller or into an escrow account agreed with your lawyer. It should never be held by the agency.

If the CPCV includes a financing condition, it should set a specific deadline and require the buyer to provide documentary proof of a mortgage refusal before being released from the deposit obligation.

This contract should always be reviewed by your independent lawyer before signing.

The sale is completed at the Escritura, where ownership is formally transferred and the balance is paid. If there is a mortgage on the property, it must be discharged at or before this stage.

Before the deed:

Typical selling costs:

Capital gains tax:

As a general rule, only 50 percent of the capital gain is subject to taxation, for both residents and non-residents. The taxable portion is added to your total income and taxed at progressive rates. The gain is calculated from the sale price minus the indexed acquisition cost, eligible purchase expenses and documented improvement works.

The detail, however, is where it gets individual. Your tax position depends on your residency status, your worldwide income, how long you have held the property and whether any reinvestment relief applies. Getting this wrong, or discovering it only after accepting an offer, can significantly affect your net result.

Before accepting any offer, speak to a tax adviser with specific experience working with expats in Portugal. The right adviser will not only calculate your liability accurately but may also identify legitimate ways to optimise your outcome that a generalist would miss. Also, Portuguese tax law changes very frequently, in practice, there are usually relevant tax amendments introduced every year, which makes it even more important to have the right tax advisor guiding you through the process and helping you adapt your structure to the constant tax changes.

Never decide based on the sale price alone. Decide based on what you will actually keep.

Before going to market:

When selecting an agent:

At CPCV stage:

Before the deed:

After the deed:

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This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or tax advice. We strongly recommend working with qualified legal and tax professionals for your specific situation.

With thanks to our collaborators at FRESH Properties, for their valuable insights and contributions to this article.

For more information on all things property, you can reach out to Stephanie via email below. Alternatively, WhatsApp the surprisingly helpful AI Estate Agent, Pedro, for real-time answers to your questions.

📧 Email: [email protected]

🏡 Upcoming Webinar: Portugal's New Housing Rules for 2026

Portugal's housing landscape is changing, and whether you're a homeowner, landlord, investor, buyer, or planning your move to Portugal, these new rules could affect your future decisions.

Join the team at Fresh Legal for a practical webinar breaking down the biggest housing changes coming in 2026, what they mean in real-world terms, and where new opportunities may emerge. The session will cover property ownership, rental regulations, investment strategies, and how to position yourself for success in Portugal's evolving housing market.

📅 Thursday, 25 June

🕓 4:00 PM (Portugal Time)

If Portugal property is on your radar, this is one webinar worth attending.

Want to ask for tips or suggestions while in Portugal?

In this short video, you’ll learn how to ask for recommendations in European Portuguese - perfect for travelers, foodies, and curious learners!

🎯 Whether you're looking for a great restaurant, a hidden gem, or advice from locals - this phrase will help you connect naturally.

🗣 Want to learn more phrases like this? Check out Mia’s free Portuguese course “Kickstart Your Portuguese - The Basics”.

💡 Mia from Mia Esmeriz Academy is a Portuguese teacher from Porto with more than 15 years of experience teaching foreigners. She helps expats become fluent in Portuguese in a clear and practical way. Alongside her courses, she also shares free content on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.

Thanks for reading! 💌

Hustle on!

Angelique

PS — got an expat friend who's one bureaucratic form away from booking a flight home? Forward this newsletter their way. We're all just trying to figure it out together.