According to the Survey of Bank Valuations of Residential Properties, published today by the National Statistics Institute (INE), the Algarve was the only region to record a fall, albeit slight (0,5%), in the average price of houses for sale.

But even so, according to the statistics, the Algarve is still the region with the highest values compared with the national average, reaching almost 1500 euros per square metre in all types of apartment except T2 (two-bedroom), which are about 1370 euros per square metre.

In the case of houses, the average value per square metre is also the highest in the country (with the exception of the Autonomous Region of Madeira), in excess of 1500 euros per square metre in both T3 and T4 categories (3- and 4-bedroom respectively).

The figures show that the regions of Greater Lisbon, the Algarve and the Autonomous Region of Madeira had the highest average valuations, 29.9%, 24% and 23% above the national average respectively.

Nationwide, the average value per square metre was 1,189 euros in January, representing a quarterly change of 1.3% and an increase of 4.9% as compared with the same month last year.

At the opposite end of the scale, the average valuation figure in the Serra da Estrela region was 37.8% below the national average.