The average monthly mortgage payment fell in March this year to 423 euros, three euros less than in February. This is the first reduction after more than two years of consecutive increases in the amount payable for the loan, according to data released yesterday by the Bank of Portugal (BdP).
“This was the first month since the beginning of the statistical series, in December 2021, in which there was a decrease in the average monthly payment”, indicates the BdP.
Despite there being a drop in the average monthly payment, the value in March (423 euros) means 62 euros more than in March 2023 (when it was 361 euros) and if the comparison is with March 2022 it is even higher, 138 euros (was 285 euros).
The average mortgage loan installment has risen in the last two years following the rapid increase in interest rates by the European Central Bank (ECB), in a banking market, the Portuguese one, in which the majority of contracts had a variable interest rate.
The recent and slight decrease in Euribor interest rates, as cuts in key rates are expected by the ECB, has an effect on the provision of credit and is expected to continue in a moderate manner. Analysts expect Euribor rates to reach the end of the year at around 3%.
BdP’s analysis of loans granted for the purchase of permanent housing also indicates that, in March, the majority of new contracts (74%) were at a mixed rate – fixed at the beginning of the contract and subsequently variable. In 2023, only 18% of new housing loans were at a mixed rate.
