ERA Imobiliária - Portugal Reviews 23

This agency used to be better now they have redone their website. Way too many questions are asked before they show you anything. The agents are very arrogant and annoying. Plus they have increased their commission to 6% plus TVA of 23%. That's crazy. They overprice your property so you can list it with them. Don't trust them too much. I am disappointed. Most of the agents are young and not knowledgeable about the market.

I received an offer from a Buyer with a foreign bank loan pre-approved specifically for my apartment. My Agent also said “.. She is only choosing whether to accept the 25 or the 30 year loan.” And he emphasized the benefit of this foreign bank - because they would never come to my apartment and make an appraisal. The closing process would therefore be quick and without obstacles. How thoughtful to support my need for speed! But this ALL turned out to be a lie. Designed to get me to sign a Reservation Contract.

While I was made to believe that I was only waiting for the final formalities from the German Bank. Behind my back - Luís Jerónimo - a bank loan broker at Bankinter - was engaged to find Portuguese a bank loan for the Buyer. ERA earns commission for every new bank mortgage client they bring to this broker. That is why you see so many Reservations on ERA website. The Buyer has little to lose and a chance to get an optimal mortgage. The Seller on the other hand - may not only lose the Buyer - which I did - but also all other potential buyers - because while under a Reservation - no other offers can be accepted. And after my Reservation expired - so had the peak selling season - and my advertisement was a suspiciously old unsold object on the market.

I was furious and refused to continue working with my Agent at ERA Peniche. But Owner Mr.Anjos and Mrs.Franco in charge of financial and legal procedures (!) apologized on behalf of the Agent and took it upon themselves to rescue me. I assumed they would fire the Agent - But No! They supported him. And continued the same nauseating game - stringing me along with lies, half truths and some truths. When truths and lies are mixed - it makes the lies believable for a long time. But eventually the contradicting “facts” in their emails and messages piled up - as clear evidence - that I was being fooled by all of them.
Only those we trust completely - can fool us completely.

ERA even had the audacity to blame the Buyer for the consequences of their narcissistic “customer service.” The Buyer had been clear about her conditions from the very start - but to earn another bank commission - ERA kept pressuring the Buyer to try one new bank after another in hope of finding a bank who would approve of her condition. But they did not.

There are NO benefits for a Seller to start with a Reservation and delay a Promissory Contract - which details all circumstances around the sale INCLUDING where the payment will come from. A Promissory Contract requiring a 10% upfront down payment also ensures a serious buyer who is ready and able to commit. Even if their downpayment has to be returned in the rare case of a declined bank loan - It is just ONE bank process - which usually takes between 4 to 8 weeks.

ERA Peniche’s enthusiasm for selling my home - now rings like a painful note from an instrument completely out of tune. After 17 weeks of being dragged through the manipulative mud - and tossed weekly between hope and despair - my body was so broken from stress - I ended my contract with ERA.

EN: Never consider ERA for any business at all! The level of personal reasoning is none, you will be taken to take wrong decisions and they aren’t informative regarding Portuguese legislations! Even when you demonstrate your positions against facts that will leave you in a compromised situation, they will not care. They will threaten you to court as you signed a contract with them and therefore they will hold this against you! Please be very aware/careful of what you sign with ERA!

PT: Nunca considere a ERA para nenhum negócio! O nível de empatia pessoal é inexistente, você será levado a tomar decisões erradas e não o informarão corretamente sobre os contornos da legislação portuguesa! Mesmo quando você demonstrar suas posições contra fatos que o deixem numa situação comprometida, eles não se importarão. Eles irão ameaçá-lo de ir para tribunal porque você assinou um contrato com eles e, portanto, usarão isso contra você! Por favor, esteja muito atento/cuidadoso com o que você assina com a ERA!

Just wanted to share and recognise the very positive experience of selling an apartment through the ERA Garajau office in Madeira - basically an excellent service from start to finish. Ricardo Gil Franco and Joana Souto were highly proactive and absolutely professional in the sale of the property. Ricardo led us through the entire process, was responsive to questions, organized the energy certificate and did us a great favour on the date of the sale that went beyond the ’call of duty’ as regards one might expect from an estate agent. The entire process was seamless and I would highly recommend this team to anyone who is considering the purchase or sale of property in Madeira.

It pains me to write this review, but I feel it is my duty to warn any prospective or current customers about the ethics and business practices of this company.

This situation dates back to the summer of 2024. My wife and I had found a house in Cascais and were eager to negotiate a deal. After explaining our conditions to the estate agent, particularly that we were finalizing the sale of our house in the UK, we were assured—in a calm and confident manner—that to demonstrate our interest in the house, we would need to make a deposit of €2,500. However, we were explicitly told not to worry because the deposit was fully refundable if our sale fell through.

Over the following three weeks, we kept the agent fully informed of the situation, making it clear that our UK buyers were having second thoughts. We emphasized that until our own sale was secured, we could not proceed with a formal contract that required an additional payment of nearly €50,000. Throughout this period, the estate agent remained reassuring, repeatedly stating that as long as we kept him updated, the agency (ERA) would refund the deposit in full should our sale fall through.

Unfortunately, our sale did collapse, and I immediately informed the agent. At first, my messages were ignored. After persistent follow-ups, he finally responded, claiming that a refund would only be issued if we provided a document from the bank confirming that we could not obtain a loan due to insufficient funds caused by the failed sale in the UK.

Despite providing the official documentation requested, the estate agent completely stopped responding to my messages. Two weeks later, I received a call from the agency manager, who informed me that they would not refund the deposit, alleging that the money would instead go to the seller.

At this point, it was clear we had been deceived. After much insistence, we were only able to recover half of the deposit.

This is not how a professional business should operate. It is deeply disappointing that an agency claiming to provide trusted services would rely on deceptive and manipulative tactics to sustain itself. My wife and I strongly urge extreme caution when dealing with this agency and handing over your money. This experience has left us disheartened and has completely shattered our confidence in buying property in Portugal.

Era.pt in Castelo Branco, Portual, a real estate company, would not return my damage deposit that I wired them before starting my contract. After my rental contract ended, they agreed there was no damage and requested my bank account number. They have not paid. They claimed they cannot reach the landlord on whose behalf they were renting. Their level of support was also dismal. Water heater was broken when I moved in and they refused to fix it. I had no water for about a month (and it was not in the summer either when I might not have needed it).
UPDATE: I enlisted the help of lawyers at Deco Proteste to retrieve my security deposit. They are a consumer advocacy group in Portugal. They are not free but very affordable. After several months of efforts, Era returned my deposit. It was not easy at all, and should have been.

For non Portuguese speakers They use the reservation system as a promissory contracr.
I was told many lies.