Portuguese real estate represents a sound long-term investment, an expert has stated, news which may interest those keen on buying Algarve property.

Head of overseas at Rightmove.co.uk Rob Wilson said of the country: "It remains popular for its access to both Atlantic and Mediterranean beaches, old world Mediterranean charm and easy travel from the UK, so should be a relatively safe bet for long-term investment," adding that both the similarities with and differences to Spain attract purchasers.

Such considerations may attract those who are interested in Algarve property and wish to build up a nest egg with longer term potential.

Mr Wilson noted that there are over 50,000 searches on Portugal on the company’s website every month.

The most popular region in February was the Central Algarve, where there were 6,641 searches in the month.

Second and third were the Western and Eastern Algarve regions, with 5,020 and 4,567 hits respectively.

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