João de Moraes Vaz analyses the housing crisis in Portugal

João de Moraes Vaz, a partner in Antas da Cunha Ecija's Real Estate Law Practice Area, is one of the experts ECO heard from in the article "Housing crisis calls for structural reforms and less bureaucracy", published following the Advocatus Summit 2026.

João de Moraes Vaz identified urban planning licences as one of the main blockages to housing supply, arguing that any investor should be able to have predictability regarding deadlines, something that currently doesn't exist. As an example, he mentioned the case of a developer who has been waiting five years for a licence in Ajuda, Lisbon, stressing that similar situations represent hundreds of houses that could already be on the market.

The lawyer also warned of the cumulative effect of property development costs - taxes, fees, licensing and mediation - which make the square metre unaffordable for the average Portuguese income. Finally, he predicted that the population will move further and further out to the outskirts if structural reforms are not implemented.

Read the full article here.