Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Se arrendarmos o apartamento no piso certo, vai ser fácil estacionar. - If we rent the apartment on the right floor, it will be easy to park.

Arrendarmos is the 1st person plural of the future subjunctive of arrendar. Portuguese uses the future subjunctive after conjunctions like se (if) when referring to a future possibility or condition. So Se arrendarmos... means If we rent (in the future)....

Common triggers for the future subjunctive: se, quando, assim que, logo que, enquanto, depois de (when they refer to the future).

Could I say Se arrendemos or Se arrendamos instead?

Se arrendemos is not idiomatic; se does not take the present subjunctive for future conditions.
Se arrendamos (present indicative) is also not used for a future condition in Portuguese.
Correct options:
- Future condition: Se arrendarmos, vai ser/será...
- Hypothetical/unlikely: Se arrendássemos, seria... (imperfect subjunctive + conditional)

What’s the difference between vai ser and será?

Both mean will be. Vai ser (ir + infinitive) is the most common spoken future; será (synthetic future) is a bit more formal or written. In some contexts, será can suggest a conjecture (it must be), but here both are fine:

...vai ser fácil estacionar.
...será fácil estacionar.

Why not say vai ser fácil de estacionar?

Use fácil/difícil + de + verb when modifying a noun:

Um carro fácil de estacionar.
With an impersonal clause, drop de:
Vai ser fácil estacionar.
So here, vai ser fácil estacionar is the idiomatic choice.

Should I use estacionarmos (personal infinitive) to show it’s easy for us to park?

You can.

Vai ser fácil estacionar = it’ll be easy to park (general).
Vai ser fácil estacionarmos = it’ll be easy for us to park (explicit subject).
Both are correct here; the first clause already makes the subject clear, so the impersonal estacionar is perfectly fine.

Does arrendar mean to rent or to rent out? How does it compare with alugar?

In Portugal:

Arrendar is the standard/legal verb for leasing property and is used by both sides:
- Landlord: arrendar um apartamento a alguém (rent out to).
- Tenant: arrendar um apartamento de alguém (rent from).
Alugar is widely used in everyday speech too (for property and also cars, equipment, etc.). In legal contexts, arrendar is preferred for property.

Why is it o apartamento and not um apartamento?

O apartamento (the apartment) suggests a specific apartment known in context.
Um apartamento (an apartment) would mean any apartment.
So the definite article o narrows it to a particular apartment.

What does no mean in no piso certo?

No = em + o (in/on the).

no piso = on the floor/level (masculine).
If it were feminine, you’d see na (em + a).

Is piso the same as andar?

Both can mean floor/storey. In everyday European Portuguese:

Andar is very common for residential floors (primeiro andar = first floor above ground).
Piso is also common and especially frequent in car parks and signage (Piso -1, Piso 0).
In your sentence, piso and andar are both acceptable: no piso certo / no andar certo.

How are floors numbered in Portugal?

Rés-do-chão (R/C) or Piso 0 = ground floor.
Primeiro andar = the floor above the ground floor (UK-style numbering).
So what some Americans call the second floor is segundo andar in Portugal.

In o apartamento no piso certo, does certo describe the apartment or the floor?

It describes the floor. The phrase means the apartment on the right/correct floor.
If you wanted the right apartment (on some floor), you’d say: o apartamento certo no [piso/andar] X.

Can I replace se with quando or caso?

Quando arrendarmos... = when we rent... (you assume it will happen). Uses future subjunctive arrendarmos.
Caso arrendemos... = in case we rent... (more formal/conditional). With caso, use the present subjunctive arrendemos, not arrendarmos.

How do I express a more hypothetical situation, like If we rented it, it would be easy...?

Use the second conditional:

Se arrendássemos o apartamento no piso certo, seria fácil estacionar.
(imperfect subjunctive + conditional)

How would the se-clause look with other persons?

Future subjunctive of arrendar in the se-clause:

Se eu arrendar...
Se tu arrendares...
Se ele/ela/você arrendar...
Se nós arrendarmos...
Se vocês/eles/elas arrendarem...

Who or what is the subject of vai ser in this sentence?

The subject is the whole clause ser fácil estacionar (an impersonal construction). That’s why vai is third-person singular: vai ser.

Any pronunciation tips for European Portuguese here?

Se ≈ “sɨ” (very reduced vowel).
arrendarmos: initial rr is a guttural sound; final -mos sounds like “moosh.”
apartamento: the r is a tap; nasal vowel in -men-.
piso: the s between vowels sounds like “z” (PEE-zu).
fácil: stress on FA-, final -il like “eel.”
estacionar: initial es- sounds like “esh-” (esh-tah-see-oh-NAR).

Are there other natural ways to mention parking?

Yes:

Vai ser fácil estacionar o carro.
Vai ser fácil arranjar estacionamento.
Há muito estacionamento. EP notes:
Estacionamento = parking (as a facility/space).
Parque de estacionamento = car park/parking lot.
Vaga (de estacionamento) is also used for a parking spot.
Parquear is not standard in European Portuguese; use estacionar.