Housing search near Lisbon endures despite high rents

The desire to live near the city of Lisbon is not only visible in the buying and selling market.

The same trend can be seen in the rental market, with the municipalities surrounding the capital dominating the list of the 10 most sought-after areas to rent a home in the summer of 2025. The latest data from idealista suggest that housing demand around Lisbon remains high, even though rents exceed one thousand euros per month in almost all of its neighboring municipalities.

There is a trend that seems here to stay in the housing market: the demand for rental homes in Lisbon’s peripheral municipalities continues to be strong in Portugal in the third quarter of 2025, as revealed by idealista/data. Vila Franca de Xira took first place in the ranking of the 50 most searched municipalities for renting a home, followed by Moita, Alenquer, Barreiro, Amadora, Sintra, Loures, and Odivelas.

Moreover, not even high rents seem to be discouraging this demand. This is because rental prices exceed one thousand euros per month in almost all 16 municipalities of Lisbon and Setúbal present in this top 50 list — the only exception being Alenquer (€936/month). Sintra and Oeiras even recorded the highest rental prices in the region, surpassing €1,700 per month.

This high cost in the residential rental market observed in the municipalities surrounding Lisbon happens due to a contagion effect. It should be noted that the median rent in the capital itself reached €1,810 per month in the same quarter, making the Lisbon municipality only the 54th most searched area for renting a home nationwide.

The same situation occurs in Porto. There are five municipalities from the Porto district among the 50 most sought-after for renting a home (Valongo, Paredes, Gondomar, Trofa, and Maia, in that order), with rents ranging between around €830 and €1,120 per month. Although high and still rising, these rents remain below Porto’s median (€1,250), a municipality that also fell outside the demand ranking (in 72nd position).

Faro municipality, with median rents at €1,663 per month, is also absent from this list (55th position). The Algarve municipalities with the strongest rental demand pressure on supply are Olhão, Lagos, Silves, Portimão, and Albufeira.

Renting a home in Portugal: the 50 most sought-after municipalities

Data from Q3 2025

Source: idealista/data

Highest and lowest rents among the 50 most sought-after municipalities

Rents vary greatly across the list of the 50 most sought-after municipalities to rent a home in the third quarter of 2025. But it stands out that in 50% of these areas, the cost of housing exceeds one thousand euros per month, mostly located in the districts of Faro, Lisbon, and Setúbal.

Lagos, in the district of Faro, is the most expensive municipality among the most sought-after to rent a home (€1,753/month). It is followed by Sintra (€1,744/month), Oeiras (€1,743/month), and Albufeira (€1,734/month). Above €1,500 per month are also the municipalities of Palmela and Olhão.

According to idealista/data, only five municipalities outside the Lisbon region and the Algarve have rents exceeding one thousand euros per month:

• Ponta Delgada (€1,394/month), on the island of São Miguel, Azores;

• Maia (€1,119/month), in the district of Porto;

• Gondomar (€1,079/month), district of Porto;

• Caldas da Rainha (€1,067/month), in the district of Leiria;

• Évora (€1,005/month).

All other 25 municipalities in this rental demand ranking have median costs below one thousand euros per month, spread across Portugal’s North, Center, and Alentejo regions. Chaves, in the district of Vila Real, has the lowest rents of all (€558/month) but was only the 47th most sought-after to rent a home in the summer of 2025.

House rents in the 50 most sought-after municipalities

Data from Q3 2025 — Median rents (€/month)