Active mortgage - an undischarged hipoteca the seller hasn't cleared before listing

Seizure orders - a penhora from unpaid tax that can freeze the sale entirely

Contested ownership - an acção judicial where a third party is legally challenging the title

Area discrepancy - registered m² differs from the Caderneta Predial, which can signal unrecorded changes

VPT gap - when the fiscal value is far below the purchase price, the AT can reassess upward post-sale, permanently increasing IMI

IMT exposure - transfer tax is calculated on whichever is higher: purchase price or VPT. A gap means you owe more than you budgeted

Undeclared area - registered m² smaller than physical reality, often because extensions were added without updating the tax record

IMI arrears - unpaid annual property tax which becomes your liability at completion

Unlicensed extensions - lateral or vertical additions to the original footprint not recorded in the municipal archive

Enclosed terraces - open balconies glassed or walled in after the original licence was issued, extremely common in Lisbon

Loft and garage conversions - habitable rooms created in non-licensed spaces, often marketed as "bonus rooms"

Active demolition order - a municipal enforcement action requiring removal of an unlicensed structure at the owner's expense

Class F rating - the lowest class on the current Portuguese scale (A+ to F); no Portuguese rule bans renting or selling it today

EPBD transposition - Portugal transposed part of Directive 2024/1275 through DL 11/2025; the rest is pending

Future national rules - minimum performance standards will be set nationally; none applies to a single home's sale today

Brown discount - energy-inefficient homes can sell at a discount; how much varies by market