Property and Tenancy
Advice on tenancy agreements, promissory contracts, purchase and sale of property, document review, real estate due diligence, land registry certificates, notices, rent recovery and disputes between landlords and tenants.
What is included
- Drafting and reviewing tenancy agreements
- Promissory purchase and sale agreements
- Purchase and sale of property
- Real estate due diligence
- Land registry and tax property records
- Review of charges, encumbrances and mortgages
- Habitation licence and energy certificate
- Rent updates
- Recovery of overdue rent
- Notice to vacate and termination of the agreement
- Landlord and tenant disputes
- Special eviction procedure
Every situation is assessed individually. These services are provided within the remit of a Trainee Lawyer, under the supervision of Dr. João Nogueira Marques, Lawyer.
What helps prepare for your consultation
- The tenancy agreement, preliminary sale agreement or purchase proposal you want reviewed, if available.
- Property documents you already hold, such as registry records, tax records or certificates.
- An account of the transaction or dispute, with available correspondence, receipts and relevant dates.
- Records of payments already made, including any deposit, rent or instalments, with their dates.
- A dated photographic record of the property condition and of works requested or carried out, where that is the issue.
- Communications received from the landlord, tenant or agent, with the date and the means by which they arrived.
What we review with you
For a purchase or sale, we compare the property documents with the proposed terms and identify questions to resolve before a commitment. For tenancy matters, we review the clauses, payments and communications involved. The assessment guides contract revisions, negotiation or the steps appropriate to the dispute. Registry and tax records are read together with the agreement, because that comparison is what shows who may dispose of the property, under which description and with which charges recorded. Where a commitment has already been made or a sum paid, we start by establishing what is already binding and what room remains.
Official information
Common questions before a consultation
What should be reviewed before signing?
The document should be read together with the property information, financial terms and intended sequence of the transaction. We identify clauses, records and checks that need clarification before you commit.
How is a tenancy issue organised?
We gather the agreement, receipts, communications and a timeline of events. The assessment separates payment, property condition, use, duration and termination issues to define what should be communicated, negotiated or handled through another route.
Does a consultation replace registry checks?
No. A consultation helps interpret documents and plan enquiries, but the specific position must be confirmed in the registries and with competent bodies. Any decision depends on current records for the property and transaction.
Which property information is usually needed?
An up-to-date registry description and tax register entry, together with any technical and use documentation that exists. These are what confirm who may dispose of the property, under which description and with which charges recorded.
I already paid a deposit. Is a review still worthwhile?
Yes, and it should not be delayed. Reviewing what was signed and what was paid shows which commitments already exist, which conditions were provided for, and what room remains before the next stage of the transaction.
My landlord wants to raise the rent or end the agreement.
The communication received should be read in full, with the date and the means by which it arrived, and compared against the agreement and payment history. That comparison determines which response is appropriate and within what period it should be given.
There are problems with the property. How do I document them?
With a dated record: photographs, communications sent and received, and a note of the works requested and carried out. Documenting early and in writing is usually more useful than reconstructing the history later.
Does the consultation follow the transaction through?
It can cover the stages you agree, from reviewing documents to preparing communications and supporting the transaction as it proceeds. The scope is set at the outset, so you know what is included and what depends on third parties.
I am renting in Portugal for the first time. What should I check?
Read the agreement together with the property documentation and confirm the identity and authority of whoever is letting it. Duration, renewal, rent updates, deposit, charges and the condition on handover are the points that most often cause difficulty later.
Editorial responsibility: Carvalhos Advocacia. General information; confirm the current position for your case before acting.