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Read the storyIndependent buyer representation · Portugal
Portugal, personally understood.
Independent buyer's agent in Portugal
Based in Cascais. Working across Portugal through trusted local expertise.
Cascais · Portugal
Brazilian roots. Australian perspective. A life lived internationally. Now, Portugal.
M
Meet Marcela
I’m Marcela. Brazilian-born, Australian by nationality, and after living in Brazil, Hong Kong, Australia, California and now Portugal, moving countries has become something I know rather well.
Today I live in Cascais and help international buyers navigate property and life in Portugal with a personal, practical and independent perspective.
I speak English and Portuguese, ask a lot of questions, notice the details, and believe finding a home should start with how you actually want to live.
How I help
From the first conversation to the keys.
Every search starts the same way: with your life, not a listings feed.
01
Understand the life
Before a single viewing, we talk about how you actually want to live. Mornings, schools, work, weekends. The brief we build together becomes the filter for everything that follows.
02
Search honestly
I look across the whole market, on and off market, and tell you what I’d tell a friend: what’s overpriced, what’s quietly right, and what to walk away from.
03
View with clear eyes
I preview, I attend, I notice what photos hide: the light at 4pm, the road noise, the street in February. You get the unvarnished version, every time.
04
Negotiate and complete
Offers, due diligence and completion, coordinated with independent lawyers and notaries. And after the keys: the practical help that turns a house into a home.
Why buyer representation
Someone entirely on your side.
In Portugal, most agents represent the seller. I don’t. I work only for the buyer, from the first conversation to the keys, which means my advice has no listings to protect and no seller to please. If a property isn’t right for you, I’ll be the first to say so.
Not another listing portal.
I am here to guide you to your next chapter in Portugal.
Where will you have coffee? How long is the school run? Can you walk to dinner? What does the street feel like in February, not just August?
First we understand the life. Then we find the property.
Start here
Build your buyer brief.
Ten questions, two minutes. It gives me the shape of your move before we ever speak.
Build your buyer briefContact
Say hello.
Tell me where you are in the journey: just thinking, actively looking, or somewhere in between. I read everything myself.
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How is a buyer's agent different from a normal estate agent?
In Portugal, estate agents legally work for the seller, their job is to sell you the listing. I work only for the buyer. That changes everything I can say: a property can be overpriced, badly built or simply wrong for your life, and I'm free to tell you so.
How does working with you begin?
With a conversation, not a listings feed. You build your buyer brief, we talk through how you actually want to live, and only then do I start searching. If your brief points somewhere I don't cover well, I'll tell you that too.
Can I buy in Portugal without being there?
Yes, most of my buyers start from abroad. You'll need a fiscal number (NIF), a Portuguese bank account and usually a power of attorney for the deed. I coordinate the independent lawyer and notary, preview homes for you on video, and flag what the photographs hide.
How long does the search and purchase take?
Honestly, it varies. A focused search often takes a few weeks to a few months; from an accepted offer to the deed, allow several more weeks for due diligence and financing. The paperwork, NIF, bank account, is worth starting early.
Which parts of Portugal do you cover?
Lisbon, Cascais and the coast west of the capital, Comporta, Porto, the Algarve, the Silver Coast and Madeira, through trusted local expertise in each area. If you're torn between two places, that's exactly the conversation to start with.
What happens after the deed is signed?
The practical part nobody puts in the brochure: utilities, fiscal representation, and the annual property tax. I've written up the 2026 tax basics here, and the quirks of owning from abroad here. I stay around for the landing, not just the purchase.