Portugal's Parliament opened debate on Tuesday over the center-right government's spending plans for next year, just ahead of another demonstration by people calling for stronger action on a long-running and worsening housing crisis.
A protest was announced for later in the day outside the parliament building in central Lisbon. Recent demonstrations, some held in downtown squares in the capital, have been broken up by police using batons and dogs. They followed similar protests that started last month in neighboring Spain over unaffordable housing.
Social unrest has spread widely across Europe this autumn. Portuguese President António José Seguro, whose role is largely ceremonial but who carries political influence, has called a meeting of the Council of State, an advisory body, for next week to discuss the protests.
The numbers help explain the anger. A European Union report released at the end of last year found that housing costs across Europe rose by an average of 60.5% between 2015 and 2025. Portugal's increase of 147% was the third highest, behind only Hungary and Lithuania. Last week, the National Statistics Institute, a government agency, reported that housing prices climbed by almost 20% between the first quarter of last year and the first quarter of 2026. According to the government, rents have risen 68% since 2020.
Foreign buyers and investment funds have helped drive prices up by purchasing Portuguese properties, including run-down buildings. The country's mild climate and long coastline have made it attractive to digital nomads, other remote workers and retirees. Tourism has also boomed, and many apartments in city centers have been converted into short-term rentals.
Residents say they are being priced out. Young people say they cannot get onto the property ladder, while parents say their children must move far away to find a home. Some Portuguese, meanwhile, have made large profits by selling their homes.
The government has responded by cutting taxes on new construction, restricting short-term rentals and pledging to build 145,000 new homes, though it concedes the results will not come quickly. Funding for infrastructure development is also expected to be tighter in 2027, because financing from the European Union's post-COVID-19 recovery program ends this year.
Portugal has not seen the level of violence, arson and looting that has occurred in some other European countries. Even so, protesters have criticized what they describe as heavy-handed policing when tents set up in city squares were removed. Authorities are assessing whether the use of batons and police dogs was excessive.
