How to Sell Your House in Portugal Without An Estate Agent

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Written by: | Last updated on February 29, 2024 | Est. Reading Time: 14 minutes

In Portugal, estate agents typically charge 5% (or more) commission + VAT. For many expats living in Portugal — and an increasing number of Portuguese — that’s just too high to even consider. 

5% of a €250,000 property is €12,500. If your property is more expensive, say €750,000, you could be paying €37,500 just in commission. 

Some estate agents will drop their commissions ever so slightly, but it’s unlikely that you’ll get them below 3%. Even getting them to drop below 5% can be a struggle.

But, why pay any commission if you don’t have to? After all, you could just sell your house without an estate agent. 

Is an estate agent worth it?

Before we go any further, it’s worth asking yourself if using an estate agent is worth it. In the past, although you could sell your house yourself, it was very difficult to get your property in front of prospective buyers. 

Estate agents, on the other hand, had a store presence in the nearest town, adverts in the local media, and other means of reaching clients. They also had (and still have) the advantage of being able to advertise on many property websites that (unfortunately) don’t allow private sellers to advertise on. 

But, these days, given how easy it is to reach prospective buyers online, do you still need an estate agent to market it for you? Could you do it better? Yes and no. 

Selling yourself means: 

  • You can probably get better photos taken as some estate agents in Portugal don’t use a professional photographer. 
  • You can dedicate more time to marketing it as estate agents have to split their time between marketing multiple properties. 
  • You can personally answer all of the prospective buyers’ questions in-depth as you know the property inside out. 

But, the truth is that many people will still stop and look at the adverts outside estate agents’ offices, and that’s definitely a selling point for their services. 

Another major selling point to using an estate agent is that they are good at closing deals (i.e. getting people to buy) and most of us are not. Yes, you can market your property better, and you can answer the buyer’s questions better, but without this skill you’ll struggle to sell your property. 

It’s worth mentioning that many estate agents in Portugal work on an non-exclusive basis (although they always try to get exclusivity). This means that you could try and sell your house yourself and you could also work with an estate agent (or several). 

Where to List Your Property

The best places to list your property will depend a lot on who you’re selling to: local Portuguese buyers or international buyers. 

Put simply, international buyers usually have more money to spend. While a 1-bedroom apartment in Lisbon will attract both local and international buyers, a 6-bed villa in the Algarve is going to attract more international buyers than Portuguese buyers (generally speaking, of course). 

In most cases, expats selling their property will often be looking to sell to other expats (or future expats). Because of this, it’s important that you advertise on websites that focus on the international market. 

International Websites

Ideally you want to list your property on sites like RightMove and Zoopla for the UK, Zillow and Realtor for the US, and ImmobilienScout24 and Immowelt in Germany. 

Unfortunately, it isn’t possible for private sellers to list their properties on many of these websites. 

BeEverywhere and Arkadia are two websites that allow you to get around this: if you post on their sites, they’ll also distribute your listing to other sites like RightMove as well as a few other expat websites and international newspapers (although not all of the ones mentioned above). 

And, there are a few property websites that do allow private sellers to list their properties like: 

While you still won’t get the same reach as an estate agent can, between all of those options, and using some of the other resources mentioned below, you should be able to get your property in front of lots of different buyers. 

Classifieds Websites 

It’s also worth advertising on classifieds websites like Idealista and OLX as these are viewed by both Portuguese buyers and savvy international buyers. 

  • Idealista
  • OLX
  • Sapo
  • Imovirtual 
  • NetAnuncio
  • CustoJusto

Tip: Sites like Idealista usually have thousands if not hundreds of thousands of listings for properties in Portugal, and so it can be worth paying for a premium listing so more people will potentially see it. 

Expat Newspapers & Classifieds

Both The Portugal News and the Portugal Resident, two English-speaking expat papers in Portugal, have a classifieds section, which can be useful for reaching expats who already live in Portugal. 

Putting up a “for sale” sign

A for sale sign outside your house might seem a bit old-fashioned, but it’s still worth trying if you live on a street that gets a lot of people passing by. 

Business websites

If you’re selling a property that’s also a business, such as a guesthouse, it may also be worth listing yourself on websites that focus on selling businesses like businessesforsale.com. 

Why you might still have to pay commission

If you’re lucky, a buyer will come across your advert on a property website like Green Acres or RightMove and get in touch with you directly. They’ll like the property, buy it, and you’ll complete the sale with no estate agent involved. 

What could happen, however, is that an estate agent will get in touch with you as they’ll have clients who might be interested in your property. Normally what happens is these clients have seen another property of said estate agents, but have decided it’s not for them, and then the estate agent starts looking around for other suitable properties. 

They won’t introduce you to those clients unless they’re getting paid. Realistically, they shouldn’t be expecting 5%. Most of the time, they’ll be getting in touch with other estate agents and would normally be expecting 2.5% or less. 

Whatever the fee, they’re not going to do it for nothing, but 2%, 2.5%, or 3% (whatever you agree) is a lot better than 5%. 

There are also a very small number of realtors who work as buying agents or buyer’s agents. Rather than helping you sell your house, they work on the buyer’s side to help them find them find their dream property (and to make sure they don’t have any issues while buying). 

Most buying agents typically earn around 2.5% as they split the commission with the selling agent so, if you were willing to offer 2.5%, it would be worth getting in touch with a buying agent to see if they have any clients who might be interested in your property. 

The costs involved

The biggest cost, whether you sell with an estate agent or by yourself, is the time and emotional rollercoaster. Properties don’t sell straight away and, in Portugal, it’s not uncommon for the process to take several years. 

This means a lot of days spent hoovering and tidying, only for the clients to not be interested or worse: not turn up for the viewing. 

But, aside from the emotional costs, which apply to anyone selling a house, there are other more practical costs involved as well. 

Photographer

Most modern smartphones take excellent photos but professional photographers know how to stage a photo and that alone can really make your listing stand out. 

Many photographers now also include video in their packages and this is definitely worth considering. Having a video of your property will really make your listing stand out. 

Copywriter 

Even though lots of people won’t scrimp on a photographer, many will write their own listing themselves. But, just like your listing needs good photos to stand out, a good description that not only contains the essential details but is also enticing, is essential. 

Advertising Costs

Most sites charge for you to list your property with them, and you may end up paying for a premium listing on the sites that don’t charge. 

The sales process

The following is a rough outline of the sales process in Portugal. 

1. Get your paperwork in order

In order to sell a property in Portugal, you need the following documents:

  • An Energy Certificate (Certificado Energético) – With a rating from A (best) to F (worst), and valid for 10 years, this mandatory certificate helps future buyers understand how energy efficient your property is. 
  • Certidao Permanente –
  • Paperwork for things like swimming pool, septic tanks, and boreholes (this mainly applies to people in the countryside)
  • Architectural plans stamped by local council
  • Debt certificate

It’s also good to have:

  • Up-to-date utility bills
  • Previous IMI (annual property tax) bills
  • A floorplan
  • An inventory (if you’re including the contents in the house sale as well)
  • Habitation Licence (Licença De Utilização or Declaration) – Only necessary if this building is older than 1951. 
  • Ficha Técnica for all properties built after 2004. 

Valuation

Getting the price right is a key part of the sales process. Too high and the property won’t sell and too low and you’re leaving money on the table. 

Estate agents offer this for free as part of their service, and one way to get a valuation is to simply get them to value your house for you. It’s often a good idea to get several opinions so you can get an idea of what the average is. 

Alternatively, you can also enlist the services of a professional surveyor. 

Listing

The next stage is to list your property using the sites discussed above. To make your property stand out, it’s a good idea to hire a professional photographer that specialises in property photoshoots. It’s also a good idea to enlist the services of a professional copywriter and to get a floorplan drawn up as well.

A good listing doesn’t just mean a well-written one, but one that contains all the information a buyer would want to know. This includes:

  • Price
  • Year it was built
  • Number of rooms
  • Size of the property (in square metres)
  • Energy rating
  • Photos of ALL the rooms
  • Contact details

Additional information that can help paint a picture of your property would be information about the area, your favourite features of the property, nearby amenities, public transport within the area. 

Once your property is live, you’ll (hopefully) start to get a few enquiries. 

Viewings

Perhaps the hardest part of the sales process is dealing with all of the viewings. The viewings themselves usually take less than an hour each, sometimes much less, but they don’t usually all happen on the same day or even the same week or month. 

This means that, while your house is on the market, you’ll constantly be getting your house ready for viewings. Depending on the size of the house, you could be spending anything from hours or even days cleaning and preparing it. 

This is also a good opportunity to take a few trips to the charity shop as your house is probably filled with things that you’re planning on getting rid of anyway, and that are cluttering up your property. 

Your viewers will all have questions, and it’s a good idea to think about what they might be. 

Typical questions include:

  • Why are you selling?
  • What are the neighbours like?
  • Are there any problems I should know about?
  • How negotiable is the price?
  • Can I see previous utility bills and property tax bills?

Because you’re selling your house in a unique manner, it’s important that you instill as much confidence in the buyer as possible. Know the answers to these questions and, if you don’t know, promise to get the information sent over to them. 

It’s also a good idea to put together a small print out, even if it’s just one page, with all the details of the property. You may already have all of this information online, but it helps if you can put something into their hands. 

Bank valuation

If the buyer needs a mortgage, the bank will need to send their own surveyor to come and assess the property. There’s no cost to you, but you’ll need to set aside time to conduct the viewing and prepare the house for it. 

Offer

The buyer will put in an offer, which may or may not be what you’re looking for. Some people will simply suggest a number, while others will suggest a price along with reasons why they think that’s a fairer price. Those reasons might include work they anticipate having to do, problems with the area, the price of other properties in the area, etc. 

It’s important that you remain objective when reviewing offers. Setting a bottom price before getting to this stage helps as it allows you to remain objective in the moment. 

Once you’re presented with an offer, you have the opportunity to either accept it, reject it, or submit a counteroffer. 

Promissory Contract

The promissory contract (Contrato-Promessa Compra e Venda) is a key stage in the selling process because the buyer now has to pay a deposit of between 10 and 30%: if he or she pulls out, you get to keep the deposit (minus any legal or estate agent fees). It’s worth noting that you are also liable if you pull out as well.

A solicitor can put the CPCV together for you, but it’s important that you read through the contract and check for mistakes. Your solicitor may have misheard or misunderstood certain aspects of the property, 

Need to go through this line-by-line. 

First Refusal (rural Portugal)

In many rural parts of Portugal, once you sign the promissory contract, your neighbours have 30 days to match or beat the offer (Exercício de Direito de Preferência). And, should they want to buy it, they get priority – a Portuguese law to protect people who live in the countryside. 

In many cases your neighbours will already have been aware that your property was for sale and so, if they really wanted to buy it, might have put in an offer already. For most people, the main issue here is that this part of the process can delay things by a few weeks. 

Signing the Final Deeds

The final deeds are normally signed around 30 to 60 days after signing the promissory contract. 

When that day comes, you’ll need the following documents:

  • NIF
  • ID Cards/Citizen Card of the seller(s)
  • Photocopy of the deed

Is this the right option for you?

While selling your house yourself normally makes the most financial sense, it isn’t always the right option for everyone. If you’re out of the country, for example, or you’re really in need of a quick sale, it may make more sense to enlist the services of an estate agent. It may also make sense if you’re out of the country, or haven’t been able to sell your house yourself.

Remember: it’s not a binary choice. It is possible to both list with an estate agent and to try and sell the house yourself.

Written by

James Cave is the founder of Portugalist and the author of the bestselling book, Moving to Portugal Made Simple. He has visited just about every part of Portugal, including Madeira and all nine islands of the Azores, and lived in several parts of Portugal including Lisbon, the Algarve, and Northern Portugal.

You can contact James by emailing james@portugalist.com or via the site's contact form.

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There are 14 comments on this article. Join the conversation and add your own thoughts, reviews, and stories of life in Portugal. However, please remember to be civil.

Comments

  1. Hi my name is Paulo I am from Portugal, but I live in the UK and I’m going to build a four bedroom luxury property that is selling it. I wouldn’t like to use a state agent any suggestions how to sell without one advertising etc thanks

    Reply
    • Hi Paulo,

      If you’re planning on selling in Portugal, use the sites listed in the article e.g. Green Acres. Be Everywhere is a useful site that allows you to list on a lot of property portal websites. I think this would work for the UK as well.

      I don’t know too much about selling without an estate agent in the UK, but you might want to look at services like Purple Bricks.

      Reply
  2. James I forgot to mention, I’m 100% in favour of owners selling themselves.
    In Australia we have same problem with online marketing in that owners can’t get access to the sites. It’s a complete stitch up
    One company gets around this “For sale by owner”
    You pay them a small flat rate, they advertise on your behalf with Real Estate. Com
    They also send out a sales kits which include a sign and lists of what you have to do.
    After being in the industry for 40 years, owners don’t need agent’s.
    Agent’s are the scum of the earth over here

    Reply
  3. Thanks James for a straight forward review of Portugese practices.
    I’m an agent here in Australia, but are moving to Portugal next year (D7)
    Won’t be working, but com over here is 1.5-3% depending on $ value

    Reply
  4. This is a good article. I´ve tried to sell direct in the past, and am selling privately now. I´ve advertised on idealista – free, and i might highlight the ad for €50 after a couple of weeks. Who knows how it will go?
    Rightmove want €130, minimum three months. Tried them 3 years ago at €90 pm and got 1 reply in three months….didn’t view.
    Green acres weren´t that much better – now it´s €122 for three months.
    Agents – so far managed to get 3% without too much effort. Here in Tavira (May 2023) there is a serious shortage of properties and 70 agents. More warped it could not be, but foreign buyers do not know where to look. I will probably go with a 2% commission in a month´s time….if the property is good they will snatch the opportunity.

    Reply
  5. Good article.
    We need more people to start selling their own homes in Portugal to make the estate agents think again about the extortionate commission levels of 5% or 6%. In the UK 1.5% is normal so the Portuguese do seem to be extremely greedy. I even had someone making a comparison of estate agents and doctors as a profession! I shall have a go at selling my home myself in the hope of saving circa 25k quoted by local estate agents.

    Reply
  6. Really helpful article. I am about to list my property for sale. The current tenants wanted to buy it but unfortunately they can’t raise the mortgage. As we don’t live in Portugal now it would probably make sense to use an agent but the fees are really too high. Could you just clarify – if I engage an agent but actually find a buyer myself do I still have to pay the agent ? the article seems to be saying I don,t but what about the work they have already done?
    Thank you

    Reply
  7. The advantages of using an Estate Agency:

    They are experienced in the field. Most people sell a home once every seven years, agents do it day in day out and understand how to deal with the problems. A good agent will know the intricacies of the local market and will be able to provide evidence of the prices and type of properties they have sold locally.
    They will give you professional advice on how best to reach your goals.
    They give you access to their market knowledge and a network of contacts looking to buy.
    They take on the stress and hassle of dealing with potential buyers.
    They help take the emotion out of the transaction. This is especially important when you are selling your own home as it is so much more personal.
    They act as a safety net if something goes wrong and guide you through the problems.
    You will get your property onto portals like Rightmove to get the best exposure across the market and the country.
    They can reduce the risk of making a mistake during the transaction, as they have more knowledge and experience.

    Reply
  8. This has been a great read. We’re seriously considering selling our property in the Algarve; we love it very much and want to buy another in the area, but without any steps, as the older members of our family can’t get around like they used to. Given the estate agent fees, we wouldn’t be able to afford a like for like (flat) property!

    You’ve been most informative – thank you 🙂

    Reply
  9. Thanks for this informative and inspiring article, James! I do wonder what type of professionals do need to engage for the promissory contract and the final deed stages? A (real estate) lawyer and a notary, I presume? Do you have any advice here? Thanks in advance!

    Reply
  10. Thanks for this informative and inspiring article, James! I do wonder what type of professionals do need to engage for the promissory contract and the final deed stages? A (real estate) lawyer and a notary, I presume? Do you have any advice here? Thanks in advance!

    Reply
    • Hi Galito,

      Sorry for the delay in replying.

      Yes, a solicitor is recommended and most people will sign the final deeds in front of a notary. In terms of finding a good solicitor, you’ll need to ask around. If you don’t know people in the area, expat Facebook groups are a good place to begin.

      Reply

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