01Individual ownership is the default for a reason
Direct personal ownership is usually the simplest path for a single residential asset. It keeps financing straightforward and avoids envelope taxes such as the UK's ATED on corporately held dwellings.
Corporate or trust ownership can make sense for succession planning, multiple assets, or commercial property — but it introduces filing obligations, higher setup cost, and sometimes worse tax outcomes. Greece is a concrete example: corporate sellers do not benefit from the individual CGT suspension.
02Financing follows the structure
Lenders underwrite the borrower as well as the asset. Non-resident mortgages in the UAE typically require 25–30% cash including non-financiable transaction costs since the 2025 Central Bank rule. Portugal's lower mortgage rates can materially improve leveraged returns — one axis where it legitimately beats Dubai for some buyers.