A recent study revealed that the greater Porto Region has more than 30,000 vacant buildings.
According to the data published by the real estate website and marketplace, Idealista, the municipalities of Porto, Matosinhos, Gaia, and Gondomar, all of which are part of the Porto region, together have around 31,241 buildings that may be vacant, or are declared as such. Note that, in Gaia alone, there are 22,001 buildings in such conditions.
Almost all of the buildings are privately owned, and the owners have to pay a higher municipal property tax (IMI) to the authorities – the aggravated municipal property tax (aggravated IMI).
When it comes to the reasons why the buildings are in such conditions, Idealista identified several different factors. First and foremost, many of the buildings are stalled for judicial reasons connected to the sharing of family inheritances. Others are being held as they are, waiting for an increase in value that justifies their sale. Some have the project licensing delayed due to bureaucratic reasons, and others will never be built because the construction costs have become too high.
