Portuguese citizens believe the standard of living will worsen: How to prepare?

Insurance and credits are with us. Talk to a specialist from Poupança no Minuto now and find out how you can save on your monthly installments! Or first read the Eurobarometer data and how to protect yourself from a worsening of your financial situation, then.

More than eight out of 10 Portuguese people believe their standard of living will worsen in 2024.

Eurobarometer concludes that more than eight in 10 Portuguese people believe that their financial standard of living will worsen in 2024.

So, 83% of Portuguese believe that next year the consequences of the current situation will be felt even more in their wallets. & nbsp;

The Special Eurobarometer of the European Parliament shows in a report that 14% of the Portuguese respondents "do not foresee any changes or impact on their standard of living", with only 1% considering that their standard of living has improved.

But the large percentage - 83% - represents the respondents who answered believing that the "standard of living will decrease", which is still above the European Union average - 73%.

The response from Portuguese citizens comes, more specifically, from the following question: "Many elements, such as the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and the increase in inflation and prices affect the global economy, including the EU Member States. Thinking about your standard of living (e.g. the goods and services you can afford), which of these statements most closely resembles your personal situation?".

Furthermore, 23% of Portuguese people also responded that, most of the time, they have difficulty paying their bills, 41% occasionally, and 36% rarely or never feel this way.  

Note that this sample is represented by 1,030 Portuguese citizens, over 15 years old, and was conducted between September 28 and October 15, 2023 in Portugal.  

How to prevent the consequences of the current context on the standard of living?

If you have insurance and loans, you can protect yourself by reviewing contracts and trying to renegotiate conditions with the entities.

For example, if you have health insurance, you can go to the insurer where you hired it and adjust conditions, so that you start paying a lower annual or monthly premium.  

And if you have a housing loan, you can do the same! If you have a variable rate linked to the Euribor, you can also consider transferring the credit to another bank.

This second option allows you to save significantly on your monthly installment, since the Euribor rates (variable interest rate regime) are at 4%, and there are banks promoting mixed rates and fixed rates campaigns starting at 2%.

In practice, changing credit conditions to a mixed rate means that, in the first period, you have access to a fixed rate, then moving to a variable rate. Switching to a fixed rate maintains the same interest rate throughout the entire credit contract.

These options can allow you to start saving, even with a big impact, every month. By decreasing insurance and credit installments, it ensures a greater flexibility in the monthly budget.

If you want to move on to real simulations and see if, in your case, saving is possible: Contact Poupança no Minuto! As credit intermediaries, we guarantee a free service that provides you with proposals from various banks and advises you to choose the most suitable proposal for you.