Government Announces Sale of Public Properties to Finance Housing in Lisbon and Porto
The Portuguese government has unveiled a new strategy to finance public housing, which involves the sale of 16 state-owned properties in Lisbon and Porto. The measure, included in the State Budget for 2026, aims to channel the resources obtained into affordable housing programs in the country's two largest cities.
Among the properties to be sold are buildings currently occupied by the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Health. Ten of these properties are located in Lisbon and the remaining six in Porto. The vacating of these buildings will occur as ministries and public entities move to the new Campus XXI, facilitating the transfer of resources to housing policies.
The law, published in the Diário da República on October 23, establishes that the State can reserve, free of charge and until the end of 2027, the properties that need to be vacated by public administration services. It is estimated that the sale of these properties could generate revenue of 1.215 billion euros, with the value of each property to be defined by the ministers of Finance and Housing.
This initiative is part of the Government Program, which provides for making vacant or underused public properties available on the market. The objective is for these to be used directly for housing or for the funds resulting from their sale to finance state housing programs. The government resolution underscores the intention to optimize the use of public assets for the benefit of housing policies.
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The decision reflects the executive's growing concern about the housing crisis, especially in the metropolitan areas of Lisbon and Porto. By increasing the supply of public housing, the government seeks to mitigate the pressure on rental and purchase prices, making the market more accessible to the population. This state intervention in the real estate market is seen as a direct response to the need for dignified and affordable housing.
The implementation of this strategy will have a significant impact on the urban landscape of the two cities, with the reconfiguration of public spaces and the creation of new housing opportunities. The sale of government buildings in prime locations may also attract the interest of private developers, although the main focus is on investment in public housing.
The measure is an important step in achieving the government's housing objectives, seeking to balance supply and demand and ensure that more families have access to a home. Monitoring the execution of this strategy will be crucial to assess its effectiveness in the medium and long term.
For more information on housing policies and the Portuguese real estate market, consult the Regulation and Legal Frameworks section on our blog. To understand the impact of these measures on investment, visit our Market Analyses page. If you are looking for investment opportunities in Lisbon or Porto, our specialized Real Estate Agents can help.