Even though the number of property transactions in Portugal are currently half of what they were ten years ago, Miguel Poisson, head of Era Portugal, claims real estate agents have benefitted from the growth of the market caused by the crisis and have registered considerable growth in profit.
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“Things are going very well for us: last year was Era’s best ever since it was launched in Portugal, we had a rise of 30 percent in the number of transactions and of 24 percent in revenue, with a total of €1.5 billion worth of houses sold”, Mr. Poisson revealed.
“Taking into account that “2009 was already the best year ever, 2010 was exceptional in all senses”, he said.
With an average of 12,000 properties sold per year, more than 1,000 a month, Era believes it is “benefitting from new market realities”, and admits that “the crisis panorama was a great opportunity.”
On the other hand, he explained, that with more than 350,000 properties on the market at present, “owners try to sell directly, without a mediator, but they struggle to do so and end up looking for professional help.”
As a result two in every three properties sold in Portugal during 2010 were sold by a professional real estate agent, in comparison to one in three properties sold by agencies in the previous decade.
Difficulties in obtaining loans have also “worked as an opportunity for Era”, Mr Poisson added, as the company has established protocols with banks that allow people to obtain mortgages “who individually would not be able to.”
Era currently has 200 branches and 2,200 full-time employees in Portugal, 602 of whom were recruited last year. It predicts it will be hiring a further 400 people this year, following the opening of another 22 branches.
The company estimates that at present it has “145,000 properties” on its books, “more than all of the other networks in Portugal put together.”
It expects a “two-digit” growth for the rest of the year despite 2011 being an “extremely tough” year for credit.
Overall, the number of properties sold in Portugal last year rose to approximately 150,000, in comparison to the 146,000 sold in 2009.
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