Porto is situated in the north of Portugal and is ranked third in the Portuguese most comfortable cities of living conditions, published annually by Expresso. It is the second most visited city by tourists after Lisbon, the capital. In 2001 there were more tourists than ever in Porto as Porto was nominated to be the capital of culture in Europe. Many tourists come to Porto to visit the historic sites, such as: Ponte D'Arr?bida, one of the most visited bridges in Porto. Cl?rigos tower is one of the highest monuments in Portugal and is located near downtown Porto. The tower has a church connected to it, called the Cl?rigos church and the buildings are a baroque and rococo piece of work.



There are many places for retail therapy, for example, if you want to go to an open area with shops there is the Rua de Santa Catarina in downtown Porto. On the same road, there is the Via Catarina shopping centre. It has restaurants (Chinese, Italian, Mc Donald's etc), and there are many shops to buy clothes, jewellery, decoration, toys, etc. There is Norteshopping and Maia Shopping, which are in Matosinhos or Maia (Northern side), Arr?bida Shopping, and Gaia Shopping (in the Gaia side). All the shopping centres have a cinema.

The summer months, from June to September, are filled with sunshine and temperatures above 30 degrees centigrade. In the winter months, the temperatures range between 5 and 16 degrees centigrade. In the wintertime, on most weekends, people go to the shopping centres and watch a movie at the cinemas, have lunch / dinner and go shopping with their family and friends. As the weather becomes warmer people start going to other parts of Porto, instead of being cramped in a shopping centre, and go for a walk in the Avenida do Brasil, in the Parque da Cidade (City Park) and in other open areas.

The city of Porto is the most important city in the North of Portugal, mainly because it has a key port called Porto de Leix'es. All of the textiles and footwear are made in the North, and those supplies are exported from Porto de Leix'es and many imported items are received through the port.

When it comes to buying a property in Portugal, Porto is lovely location to consider as there are different property styles and prices to suit your pocket. Once you have found your property, the vendor, or their legal representative, will obtain a certificate (Escritura) from the local Land Registry that confirms the property is available for sale. A purchase contract is drawn up, which covers the details of the contract, purchase price and date of completion. As the contract is signed, the buyer will pay a deposit, about 10% of the agreed sale price. After this point, if the buyer withdraws from the contract, then they lose the deposit, whereas if the sellers withdraw from the contract, they have to pay the buyer double the value of the deposit. The additional fees for buying a property for sale in Portugal is about 15% of the purchase price which includes the cost of a Solicitor, Stamp Duty, and Transfer Tax (SISA).

Portugal is a rich and varied land and has a lot to offer for people looking to move to Portugal. When it comes to buying a property for sale in Portugal, it is always advisable to take your time and seek professional advice.