7 Unavoidable Truths: Why Regulation Alone Cannot Solve the Talent Shortage in Condominium Management
In Portugal, condominium management is under the regulatory spotlight: licences, insurance and training promise to raise confidence in the sector. But new rules alone do not attract talent, increase salaries or automatically make the service better for condominium owners. The responsibility for making the activity attractive and productive lies with companies — and the structural way to do that, at the scale of the country’s housing stock, is technology. Start-ups and platforms such as Condoroo are changing the paradigm: less manual paperwork, more transparency and more time for what truly protects buildings and families.
Find the key ideas in this article
1. What is at stake: the assets of millions of families
Managing a condominium is no longer a “side job” for someone with free time and patience for meetings. Today, anyone taking on professional management deals with significant budgets, conservation works, insurance, suppliers, tax and data-protection obligations, and daily mediation between owners with different interests.
The scale of the responsibility is hard to ignore. Portugal is estimated to have around 300,000 condominiums, with more than five million people living under horizontal property ownership. At the same time, the housing stock is ageing faster than it is renewed: the building-ageing index calculated by Statistics Portugal (INE) from the 2021 Census shows a clear imbalance between recent construction and older buildings. Lifts, roofs, electrical networks and fire-safety systems require technical oversight — and maintenance pressure will only increase.
In this context, the quality of management is not an administrative detail: it directly protects the assets families have built over their lifetimes. That is why professionalisation matters. But it also matters to understand what the law can and cannot solve.
2. Regulation is moving forward — and that is positive. But it is not the complete solution
In 2026, the Government put forward legislation for a dedicated framework for the professional management and administration of condominiums. Portuguese media have reported requirements such as licensing, a written contract, professional civil liability insurance, appropriate training, good standing, and tax and social-security compliance, together with greater transparency in financial reporting.
- Jornal Económico — licensing and professional liability insurance
- PME Magazine — what may change in the sector
- idealista/news — new rules and the Digital Building Logbook
These steps build on the path opened by the Housing Framework Law (Law no. 83/2019), which provided for regulation of the professional activity, and coexist with the horizontal-property regime updated by Law no. 8/2022 of 10 January (assemblies, transparency, reserve funds and the administrator’s duties). For the consolidated framework, see also the Civil Code — horizontal property (PGDL).
Condoroo’s thesis, plainly stated: regulation can help raise the minimum standard and build trust. It cannot attract talent on its own. It does not automatically make companies more productive, does not by itself enable higher salaries, and does not solve the end customer’s experience the condominium owner who wants clear accounts, well-managed works and quick answers. At most, it creates the conditions. Operators are the ones who turn those conditions into value.
For a detailed overview of the draft legislation, also read the Condoroo guide already published: Condominium regulation in Portugal 2026.
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3. Why the law does not “hire” on its own: the talent problem is operational
Licensing an activity does not magically create professionals who are available, motivated and well trained. In labour-intensive services — and condominium management is exactly that — talent shortages result from factors that no regulation can solve alone:
- Disproportionate administrative workload — notices, reconciliations, filing, complaints and reports consume hours that could go to maintenance and mediation.
- Tight margins — without productivity gains, it is difficult to offer careers and pay that compete with management, law or real estate.
- Residual image of the profession — some still associate the role with bureaucracy and conflict rather than asset management and leadership.
- Fragmented sector — many small organisations have manual processes and little scale for continuous training.
- Growing technical demands — energy efficiency, accessibility, insurance, GDPR and works supervision require multidisciplinary profiles.
Regulation can require minimum training and good standing. It does not automate processes, redesign the business model or decide whether a company invests in technology or keeps doing everything by hand. That choice belongs to operators.
4. Companies must attract talent — and make the activity attractive
If the sector wants professionals with backgrounds in law, management, engineering, architecture or commercial service, it must offer more than a job advert. It needs:
- Modern tools for daily work not scattered spreadsheets and chaotic shared folders
- Clear processes, with less rework and lower risk of error
- Visible purpose — the impact on buildings and families is real; company culture must make it clear
- Progression — specialisation in rehabilitation, claims, sustainability or owner experience
- Sustainable salaries — which rise structurally only when productivity rises
None of these levers comes from the Diário da República. They come from management decisions: invest, digitalise, measure results and compete for the best talent.
The good news is that the nature of the role is already a powerful argument. Few careers combine so much financial, legal, technical and relational knowledge. People seeking work with tangible impact — a safe lift, a resolved leak, a building that appreciates rather than deteriorates can find rare purpose here. But that argument only convinces when the working experience stops being an endless race against email and the telephone.
5. The structural route: technology that changes the paradigm
Sector digitalisation is no longer an “extra”. Management platforms, electronic signatures, digital filing, administrative automation and increasingly artificial intelligence are already part of public debate and of the practice of more advanced companies. Recent reports point in the same direction: automate repetitive work so that human time is available for judgement, ethics and relationships.
This is where Condoroo’s thesis becomes concrete. The only structural route to solving the talent–productivity–customer service triangle at scale is technology — not as a gadget, but as a new operating paradigm. It automates reconciliations, notices, summaries and filing routines, while giving owners continuous access to balances, documents and request status.
Without this leap, regulation may filter operators, but service will remain slow, talent will continue moving to more digital sectors, and condominium owners will feel the same friction.
6. Condoroo: the start-up helping the sector raise its game
Condoroo was born from this diagnosis: the housing stock deserves management equal to its current complexity, supported by a root-and-branch technology model. AI and automation handle routine work, financial transparency is continuous, and human focus stays on mediation, decision-making and monitoring works.
The goal is not technology for marketing’s sake; it is to attract and retain people because the work stops being a pile of manual tasks, they are paid better because each professional produces more value, and they no longer have to spend the day tied to a telephone. Other operators can follow the same path.
Conclusion: rules raise the floor; technology raises the ceiling
The condominium-management sector is at a healthy crossroads. On one hand, regulation promises to give a dedicated framework at last to an activity that manages families’ assets and other people’s money. On the other, Portugal needs professionals capable of caring for ageing buildings and the families that depend on this quiet work.
Condoroo’s position is clear: without technology, there is no structural solution. The law can help; companies must attract talent and adopt better tools; start-ups and platforms change the paradigm. That combination — rather than passively waiting for another statute — is what will sustainably protect Portugal’s housing stock.
FAQ — Talent, regulation and technology in condominium management
1. Will the new 2026 regulation solve the shortage of professionals?
No. It may raise minimum requirements and trust, but it does not create available talent or make companies attractive on its own. Attracting people remains the operators’ responsibility.
2. How does Law no. 8/2022 already help condominium management?
It strengthened transparency and record-keeping duties, assembly rules (including electronic means) and the administrator’s obligations under horizontal property.
It does not replace a specific licensing framework for the professional activity.
3. Why is technology described as a structural route?
Because it increases productivity at scale: it automates routines, reduces errors, improves transparency for owners and frees human time for mediation and maintenance — conditions for better careers and quality service.
4. Does regulation allow higher salaries in condominium management?
Not by itself. Sustainable salaries depend on productivity and efficient business models. The law can require training; it does not automatically fund more competitive pay.
5. What should companies do to attract talent?
Invest in digital tools, redesign processes, offer progression and purpose, train teams and use efficiency gains to improve working conditions — instead of waiting for regulation to “fix” the labour market.
6. How does Condoroo fit into this debate?
Condoroo is a Portuguese start-up that puts technology and AI at the centre of condominium management, aiming to change the operating paradigm: more transparency, less manual workload and a better experience for managers and owners.
7. What should an owner ask at the general meeting besides prices?
Ask whether there is a written contract, relevant insurance and an organised archive, and especially whether management uses digital tools that provide access to documents, balances and requests — practical indicators of productivity and transparency.
8. Where can readers follow legislative developments and digital best practices?
At the Diário da Repblica, in specialist news outlets such as idealista/news, Jornal Económico and PME Magazine, and in the Condoroo guide to condominium regulation in Portugal 2026.
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