bossitoPortugal’s bid to attract foreign money backfires as rental market goes ‘crazy’
DarkhoofPortuguese here. The rental market in Portugal is completely separated from the reality of portuguese wages. As an example, minimum wage is 750€/month per 14 months. Meaning 875€/month if you count 12 months.
Rents in Lisbon for a bedroom usually start around 500€. And the situation in the other cities with somewhat decent jobs is getting as bad as in Lisbon.
foggyThat is not too far off what it is like in most cities in the U.S, believe it or not.
Where I am, minimum wage is $12. At 40 hrs a week this is $24,000 before tax. Roughly $16,000 after tax.
That’s ~$1333.33 per month in earnings.
2023 fair market rent in my state for a 1br is $947, but in reality, the units that are available are closer to double that price. I’d say most 1br units are $1300 - $1700 in my area.
Our prices for a one bedroom apartment, depending on location, can algo go that high, but I think you might be conflating what “a bedroom” means here. It’s 500€ for a bedroom in an apartment, not the whole one bedroom apartment.
When I moved back to Portugal about 4 years ago, I actually pondered on going to Germany instead, and actually went and lived in Berlin for a while and investigated and compared costs of living.
Back then rents were already higher in Lisbon than Berlin (whilst salaries in the former are less than 1/3 the latter) and the only thing that made living in Lisbon cheaper was the Portugal has a National Health Service (free to use) whilst residence in Germany means mandatory Health Insurance which for me - who have my own company - meant an extra €300+ a month in costs.
In the last 4 years housing costs in Lisbon went up by almost 50% and in Berlin it was 10% or so (if I remember correctly), so now it’s actually significantly cheaper to live in Berlin, which is a way better place than present day Lisbon to live in pretty much every way but Weather.
I’m actually living in a small city about 200km from Lisbon were I pay less than €400 a month for a one bedroom in rent, so it’s not bad for me, but that’s because I’m not having to live on the average portuguese income and don’t have to raise a family.