Technical due diligence · Portugal
Technical due diligence on property in Portugal
Condition is only half the question. The other half is whether the building in front of you is the building described in the paperwork.
Why it matters
What is built, and what is registered
Most buyers arrange an inspection to find out what condition a property is in. Fewer think to ask whether the property they are standing in matches the one described in its documents — and in Portugal the two are not always the same.
Rooms get added. Terraces get enclosed. A garage becomes a bedroom, a basement becomes an apartment, a floor appears that was never on any drawing. Sometimes this was done properly and registered. Sometimes it was not.
Differences between the building and its documents can raise questions that should be resolved with your lawyer before purchase.
The documents
The paperwork a Portuguese property should have
A property in Portugal carries several documents, and each answers a different question. Between them they describe what the building is, who owns it and how it is recorded.
The caderneta predial is the tax register’s description — size, use, number of rooms. The certidão permanente is the land registry record of ownership and any charges against it. The licença de habitação is the licence confirming the building may be lived in. There may also be a ficha técnica for more recent construction, describing how it was built and with what.
Ask the seller or your lawyer for the documents relevant to the property. We compare the physical building with the records and plans supplied, noting apparent differences for the appropriate professionals to investigate.
What we do
Comparing the building with its paperwork
Supply the documents with the property details and we will look at both together. What is useful to compare depends on the property and what has been supplied, so the scope is agreed when we quote.
Footprint and floors
Whether the number of floors, the rooms and the built area on site appear consistent with what the documents describe.
Alterations and extensions
Work that has clearly been added to the original building, and whether it appears in the paperwork at all.
Use and habitability
Whether the way the property is used matches the use its documents describe — a matter that arises often with converted space.
Apparent discrepancies
Anything that does not reconcile, recorded plainly with relevant photographs and locations, so your lawyer can take it from there.
Be clear about this
Where our work ends
We are building inspectors. We assess the physical property and compare it with the documents you supply. That is a technical opinion, not a legal one.
We do not verify title, search the registry, confirm that a licence is valid or current, or advise on what any of it means for your purchase. Approval, registration, title and their consequences are matters for your lawyer and the appropriate authorities.
What our report does is give them something specific to work with. “The documents describe two floors and there are three” is a question a lawyer can pursue. Without someone measuring the building against the paperwork, the question tends not to get raised at all.
Who asks for it
When this is worth doing
Rural property and anything that has visibly been extended are the usual reasons. So are conversions — outbuildings turned into accommodation, terraces enclosed, roof space brought into use.
It also comes up on purchases where the price seems out of step with the market, and on properties where the seller is unusually vague about when work was carried out or by whom.
Solicitors and legal representatives arrange this directly, where they need a technical view of a building before advising their client.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Can you tell me whether an extension is legal?
No. We can tell you that an extension exists and that it does not appear in the documents you supplied. Whether it was ever licensed, and what that means for you, is a legal question for your lawyer.
Do I need this as well as a pre-purchase inspection?
Often they are done together, and that is usually the sensible arrangement. The inspection tells you about condition; this tells you whether the building matches its paperwork. Tell us what you need and we will confirm the scope.
What documents should I send you?
Whatever the seller or your lawyer has provided — typically the caderneta predial, the certidão permanente and the licença de habitação, plus any plans or a ficha técnica. If some are missing, that is worth knowing in itself.
Can you do this after I have bought?
Yes. It is less useful than before completion, but if a problem has surfaced and you need the building compared with its documents, the work is the same.
Find out whether the building matches its paperwork
Send the property details and whatever documents you have. We will confirm what can usefully be compared and provide a quotation.