Buying a holiday home is part of the plans, but you still need to decide where? Funchal, in Madeira, Portugal, was considered one of the best locations on the planet to buy a second home. Why? The average price of housing is attractive. And the average cost of living and the climate are inviting to visit and live, even for part of the year.
Looking at all the world's destinations, Funchal was even ranked the fifth best city in the world to buy a holiday home in Compare The Market's most recent study. In total it managed to accumulate 6.41 points out of a maximum of ten. But what's so special about this city on the island of Madeira?
According to the evaluation carried out, a family of four has an average cost of living in Funchal of 1,966 euros per month. And the average price of housing per square metre is 1,729 euros per square metre. Added to these factors are others such as the number of existing activities on Tripadvisor - a total of 45 - and the 637 restaurants present in the city for every 10,000 people. The mild climate and safety are other important points considered in this analysis.
The best destinations in the world to buy a holiday home
| Rank | Destination | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Venice, Italy | 6,92 |
| 2 | Paphos, Cyprus | 6,91 |
| 3 | Abu Dabi, United Arab Emirates | 6,70 |
| 4 | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | 6,57 |
| 5 | Funchal, Madeira, Portugal | 6,41 |
| 6 | Corfu, Greece | 6,28 |
| 7 | Las Palmas, Spain | 6,27 |
| 8 | Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain | 6,20 |
| 9 | Larnaca, Cyprus | 6,19 |
| 10 | Marbella, Spain | 6,16 |
In this ranking of Compare the Martket, which evaluated 50 worldwide destinations to buy a holiday home, the first place goes to Venice, in Italy, which registers the greatest diversity of activities to do (358 per every 10,000 people) and the highest number of restaurants (2,628 per every 10,000 people). In this Italian city, which received the highest score of all (6.92 out of 10), the average price of a house is 4,151 euros/m2 and the average cost of living for a family is 3,108 euros. On the other hand, the crime index is much higher than that of Funchal.
In second place is Paphos, in Cyprus, with 6.91 points. But in this city the cost of living is much lower - 2,156 euros/month -, as well as the average price of housing, which is 1,547 euros/m2. And in third is Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, with 6.70 points. Compare The Market highlights the safety of this city, as it even had the lowest crime rate of all. Here it is possible to buy a house with the average price of 2,388euro/m2 and live with the monthly cost of 2,412 euros.
Other Portuguese cities among the best to buy a holiday home
Funchal, on the island of Madeira, is not the only Portuguese city present in this ranking of 50 world destinations. Faro, Lisbon and Porto are also among the best destinations in the globe to buy a second home.
Of the three continental cities, Faro comes first, in 11th position. This city in the Algarve earned a total of 6.15 points and, according to the study, here a family of four needs 2,023 euros per month to live and, if you want to buy a house, you will have to pay the average price of 1,871 euros/m2. In terms of tourist attractions, the analysis counted 51 activities and 770 restaurants for every 10,000 people.
Moving down a few places in the ranking, we find Lisbon in 19th position, with 5.81 points. In the Portuguese capital, both the cost of living (2.073 euros /m2) and the house (3.571 euros/m2) are the highest in the national territory. On the other hand, it gains points in terms of activities to do (53) and the number of restaurants (918) per 10,000 people.
The fourth Portuguese city to appear in this study is Porto, in 24th place. With 53 attractions and 851 restaurants per 10,000 people, the 'Invicta' city managed to collect a total of 5.48 points out of 10. The cost of living (1,938 euros/month) and the average house price (2,277 euros/m2) are also among the highest in Portugal.
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