घर खरीदने की लागत तीन गुना हो जाती है

According to information released by the Bank of Portugal and reported by ECO, “in 2022, the average interest rate on new home loans more than tripled compared to 2021”.

According to data collected by the central bank, the interest rate on new home loan contracts (carried out less than three months ago) rose from 0.83% in December 2021 to 3.24% in December 2022.

“This rise follows the trajectory of the Euribor rates, which, in December, averaged 3.03% in the 12-month term, 2.57% in the 6-month term, and 2.07% in the 3-month term (-0.50%, -0.54% and -0.58% in December 2021, respectively)”, explains Banco de Portugal.

Since February, the interest rate on new housing loans in Portugal has been lower than the rate practiced by banks in the Euro Zone. But since October this dynamic has changed and in December it registered the biggest differential since March 2015.

Data from the Bank of Portugal also reveal that since October, the financial cost of buying a house in Portugal has exceeded the average cost of euro countries: in December, the average interest rate on new housing loans in Portugal was 36 basis points higher at the rate charged by banks in the Eurozone.

The figures revealed by the central bank also point to the contracting of 16,156 million euros of mortgage loans in 2022, about 5.8% above the 2021 figures and 42% above the loans granted by the bank for the purchase of a house in 2020.