Investment · 22 April 2026 · 6 min read
Buying in euros with dollars: the currency conversation most buyers have too late
On a €1m purchase, a percentage point of exchange rate is €10,000. Here is how US buyers structure the currency side of a Portuguese purchase — deposit, deed, and the years of euro costs afterwards.
In short
- You are effectively taking a currency position from the day you sign the promissory contract.
- Retail bank wires typically cost far more in spread than in stated fees.
- Forward contracts can fix a rate between contract and deed — commonly two to six months apart.
- Ongoing euro costs (IMI, condomínio, management, works) continue long after closing.
- Rental income and eventual sale proceeds create US reporting; document every transfer.
A client last year negotiated €40,000 off an asking price over three careful weeks, then lost more than that on the exchange rate between signing and completion because nobody had raised it. The negotiation was excellent. The currency was an afterthought. On cross-border purchases those two things carry similar weight.
Where the exposure starts
Not at the deed — at the promissory contract, when you commit to a euro price with dollars you have not yet converted. If completion is eight weeks out, the euro moves in that window and you are exposed either way. Buyers who think in dollars often only notice when it moves against them.
The spread, not the fee
A US retail bank will happily wire euros for a modest stated fee and then apply an exchange rate two to three percent away from the interbank rate. On €900,000 that is €18,000–€27,000 of invisible cost. Specialist FX providers and multi-currency platforms typically quote far tighter and, critically, quote transparently, so you can see what you are paying.
Tools worth knowing about
- Spot: convert now at today's rate. Simple, and right when you already hold euros or the timeline is short.
- Forward contract: fix a rate today for a settlement date up to a year out, usually against a small margin deposit. This is what removes the contract-to-deed risk.
- Limit order: set a target rate and execute automatically if the market reaches it.
- Regular transfers: a standing arrangement for the euro bills that follow ownership.
The part everyone forgets: after closing
Ownership is a euro subscription. IMI, condomínio, insurance, management fees, gardeners, the roof in year four. If your income is in dollars, you are converting for decades. Clients who set up a Portuguese account with a sensible funding rhythm complain about currency roughly never; clients who wire ad hoc from a US bank each quarter complain constantly.
Document everything
Keep records of the transfers, the rate applied and the source of funds. Your Portuguese bank will want the source-of-funds trail for AML purposes, and your US accountant will want the cost basis and transfer history when the property eventually produces rental income or is sold. Reconstructing four years of wires after the fact is a bad weekend.
Edge Shore Spaces provides real estate mediation, property management and relocation coordination. Nothing here is legal, tax or investment advice. Rules and rates change, and your own situation is what matters — we introduce you to independent Portuguese lawyers and accountants for anything binding.
