# Looking for house



## Stovies (Sep 3, 2019)

Ola, I'm reading that when looking at somewhere to buy in Portugal its a good idea to spend as much time there as possible and in all seasons, now I feel that that could be very expensive if we have to take a lot of quick breaks or holidays over the next few years to find out. 
I know that you can get all weathers at an time, (believe me I live in the north of Scotland so I know) but is there a general type of weather for instance in the North and the middle and of course the Algarve. 
going to start looking in depth for places to live soon so I want to narrow my search 

Obrigado.


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## John and Cecil (Dec 22, 2019)

I am sure some people who have experience living in Portugal can help with your question. I too have been analyzing the country from a distance. For weather research I usually start off with the website "weatherspark". What I do is I go there and type in a the name of an area in Portugal and then I compare it to several areas where I have already lived. The weatherspark page will compare sunshine, solar energy, rainfall amounts and rainy days, cloud cover, temperature bands, humidity, growing season, wind speed, etc. I am unsure of the accuracy for the Portugal areas but it appears fairly accurate for places where I have previously lived in the USA so I am hopeful of the results. 

Be aware that some areas have microclimates and the climate results for a particular area could be quite different from a location only a few miles away. A good example would be Madeira, where Funchal might be warm and sunny most of the time but 15 miles away it could be cold and raining much of the time. The northern border with Spain appears to have some microclimates as well, but the locals would know this better than me. 

Generally speaking I believe it gets warmer down south and cooler up north, and it rains a lot more on the northern border, especially on the western side near the Atlantic.

Good luck with your research!


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## Strontium (Sep 16, 2015)

Stovies said:


> Ola, I'm reading that when looking at somewhere to buy in Portugal its a good idea to spend as much time there as possible and in all seasons, now I feel that that could be very expensive if we have to take a lot of quick breaks or holidays over the next few years to find out.
> I know that you can get all weathers at an time, (believe me I live in the north of Scotland so I know) but is there a general type of weather for instance in the North and the middle and of course the Algarve.
> going to start looking in depth for places to live soon so I want to narrow my search
> 
> Obrigado.


You are an adult (my assumption) - you are responsible for your choice so If you can't be bothered to put time and effort into it the you accept the consequences. No one else can tell if you'd like it here or not - they can only tell you if they like it or not. Unfortunately the internet and internet "research" is not real life and you cannot experience a place in all it facets unless you actually go there and spent time there. Good luck with your "search". Older houses here are built to a standard, thick walls and tiny windows - cool damp winters days can mean condensation which then turns into black mold etc but you'd never know if you came here only in summer and bought such a place.


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## Stovies (Sep 3, 2019)

Ok that's a bit harsh. I am an adult and full aware of any consequences. I thought that asking on here would give me some research in to it but looks like no, I was wrong to ask for such assistance in this subject.


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## John and Cecil (Dec 22, 2019)

Don't get too discouraged. Even if you decide to spend a lot of time In Portugal you still need to research in advance so you can eliminate areas that won't work for you. I am doing the same thing. Researching from afar takes a lot of time and a different way of thinking but it can be very informative. 

I too have had issues with research but I have not had any issues on this forum. I joined a British expat facebook page and I had to quit within a half hour as they were really mean to me. But it was a good thing, because in less than 30 minutes I was able to eliminate 25% of Portugal from my home search. When I first started looking I was mostly concerned with the weather but my brief facebook experience reminded me of why I left the USA, which was to get away from Americans. It was easy to forget while living in Italy in an area where almost no one speaks English. 

Everyone is different and we each have different reasons for wanting to move to another country. If you can figure out exactly what you are looking for in advance then it will be easier to find where to go. Like with online dating, posting an ad seeking "a mate" will not be nearly as productive as posting one listing all your likes and dislikes.


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## HelenN (Jan 7, 2020)

A lot depends on what you are looking for. In general it is warmer down south but it would probably be easier if you thought of what you want e.g. to be by the sea, or the plains or the mountains? To be with other foreigners or the locals? What kind of budget you have makes a difference too (houses are much cheaper in certain areas).

Have you been to Portugal before? If so, what did you like and what did you dislike? If not, what is drawing you to Portugal now?


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## John and Cecil (Dec 22, 2019)

Here is an image of the average yearly rainfall amounts for Portugal and Spain, perhaps it will be helpful with your research. The purple and dark blue areas have substantially more rain than the rest of the areas. These patterns may change in the future from climate change though.


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## Stovies (Sep 3, 2019)

Thanks you have most helpful.


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## Mac62 (May 13, 2015)

Don't get disheartened Stovies, you run into these types who would rather use their energy to post a critical reply than (insert deity here) forbid, post something helpful, or just keep their trap shut. 

We all come here to try and learn from those have gone before and from my personal experience on the site I have found the members are by far more helpful than not. I wish you well in your search and don't stop asking


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## Stovies (Sep 3, 2019)

HelenN said:


> A lot depends on what you are looking for. In general it is warmer down south but it would probably be easier if you thought of what you want e.g. to be by the sea, or the plains or the mountains? To be with other foreigners or the locals? What kind of budget you have makes a difference too (houses are much cheaper in certain areas).
> 
> Have you been to Portugal before? If so, what did you like and what did you dislike? If not, what is drawing you to Portugal now?


Hi Helen,
Yes I have been to Portugal before but just last year, My wife has been going for many years and has said she would like to move over and live. I thought OK lets go see what its like so we went. I hired a car a drove around and thought Yes this would work, I have looked at every foreign place when I went on holiday to see if it was a place I would like to move to but nowhere came close.
We want to be Ideally near a beach but I don't think we can afford that, so maybe a river beach instead or a pool!!!. We want to be within walking distance of a few shops but not in the middle of a large town. I want some ground to grow my own fruit and veg. (i'll need something to do over there ) and I don't mind doing some renovation work on the house but not a ruin that will be too much work.
So now we know south of Lisbon as its wetter up there and warmer south, so we can narrow our search.


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## HelenN (Jan 7, 2020)

If you're looking south of Lisbon then the Alentejan coast can be reasonable, further south the prices go up but the Western Algarve isn't too bad (again depends on budget).

The central areas (around Coimbra way) often have many river beaches and prices around there and the east are very good but that's technically north of Lisbon.

So, if you're looking between the Alentejo and the Algarve then I guess preference will come to budget and how many foreigners you want to be around. Both are pretty hot in the summer.


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