Lisbon, March 19, 2025 (Lusa) - The implicit interest rate on mortgage loans fell in February for the 13th consecutive month, to 3.830%, the lowest since June 2023 and a drop of 15.4 basis points compared to January, INE announced on Wednesday.

‘The implicit interest rate on mortgage loans fell to 3.830%, 15.4 basis points lower than in the previous month, accumulating a reduction of 82.7 basis points since the maximum reached in January 2024 (4.657%),’ said Statistics Portugal (INE).

The implicit interest rate on mortgage loans reflects the ratio between the total interest due in the reference month and the capital outstanding at the start of that month (before amortisation).

For contracts signed in the last three months, the interest rate rose from 3.169% in January to 3.200% in February, interrupting a cycle of 15 consecutive monthly decreases and registering an accumulated decrease of 118.0 basis points since the maximum reached in October 2023.

For house purchase, the most relevant financing destination for mortgage loans as a whole, the implicit interest rate for all contracts fell 14.4 basis points compared to January, to 3.806%.

For contracts signed in the last three months, the rate rose 2.9 basis points compared to the previous month, to 3.191%.

In February, for all contracts, the average monthly instalment stood at €400, an increase of one euro compared to the previous month and a decrease of three euros (-0.7%) compared to February 2024.

Of these €400, €221 (55%) corresponded to interest payments and €179 (45%) to amortised capital.

In contracts signed in the last three months, the average instalment rose by €21 to € 622 in February compared to the previous month € and fell by 1.0% compared to the same month last year.

In February, the average outstanding capital for all contracts rose €560 compared to January, to €69,512.

The average amount owed for contracts signed in the last three months was €141,017, €289 more than in January.

PD/ADB // ADB.

Lusa