Americans choosing Portugal over Italy, Spain and France

According to newly released analysis of Google Trends data from mydolcecasa.com, a research site about moving and living abroad, the interest in Portugal from Americans is at an all time high. Europe has been on the radar of Americans for some time but usually the top searched for countries are Spain and France, however now Portugal is being hailed as a “rising new star”. “The new “darling” of American expats, sunny Portugal surpassed other European countries that have been at the top of the charts for decades, in “moving to” searches”. There has also been an increase in searches online from the United States for “real estate in Portugal” according to Google Trends data. More U.S. buyers than ever are looking for homes in Portugal driven by the dollar’s strong purchasing power and attractive housing prices often cheaper than in the U.S. or in other Mediterranean countries,” states the site which quotes data from INE and the US National Association of Realtors to demonstrate the attractive housing prices. “The median price of a home in Portugal was $138 per square foot in the first quarter of 2022, 17.2% higher than a year prior, but well below the median price of a home in the United States of $202 per square foot”.