Do 85-day Porto listings reflect vacancy or just stale asking prices?

[tennisAndPorch]

Vacancy looks like a plausible explanation for the split between quick sales and lingering Porto listings, although I am hesitant to use it as the main filter. My sample covers mostly coastal homes asking between €176,600 and €265,000, with a typical visible period of 85 days.

Before extending the tracking, I could either separate vacant from occupied homes or rebuild the sample around condition and precise neighbourhood. Which approach would be more informative? I also need a rule for withdrawn and relisted stock, since visible days may not equal genuine marketing time. Recent completed sales, price reductions, financing issues and seller motivation may explain more than occupancy alone.

 

[kit_surveys]

I wouldn’t treat 85 days of visibility as 85 days genuinely on the market. A listing can disappear, return through another agent or remain online after its status changes. Track reductions, withdrawals and relistings separately. Vacancy may matter, but an empty home with an unrealistic asking price can sit just as easily as an occupied one.

 

[radar.easy]

What does “Porto” cover in your sample? If some homes are inside the city boundary and others are simply marketed under the wider Porto label, the typical figure could hide very different micro-markets. I’d also split renovated homes from those needing work before drawing a conclusion about vacancy.

 

[mapTheHorizon]

I’m less persuaded by the vacancy explanation. Buyer financing and seller motivation could produce the same pattern: one seller accepts a workable offer while another waits, regardless of whether either property is occupied. Do you have any confirmed completed-sale prices, or only listing disappearances? A disappearance should not automatically be counted as a sale.

 

[SmallChart]

A simple weekly sheet would help: original asking price, current price, first-seen date, condition, precise neighbourhood, occupied/vacant if stated, and whether it remains active, is withdrawn or reappears. Add new-listing volume each week. After a few cycles, you can see whether price cuts tend to precede disappearance and whether stale stock is concentrated in one condition or area.

 

[SageAtlas]

Also record what you don’t know rather than guessing. Seller motivation is rarely clear from the advert, and financing issues may only become visible late in a transaction. I’d keep the €176,600–€265,000 bracket fixed for now, then compare active listings with any genuinely verified completed sales. That should show whether the 85-day figure is a market signal or mainly a listing-data artifact.