Hey there. As we experience our usual erratic weather here in the UK, summer is hotting up in Portugal. Are you going out there any time soon to look for your dream home? I am planning a trip later on in the year and I was mulling over a few thoughts about my trip. Being a ‘list lady’, I jotted down a few trip planning priorities – you may like to have a look:
1. Timing: Decide on when to travel to Portugal. Choosing to go at off-peak season can cut your costs (airlines/hotels) by as much as a third, and you may just find it far more pleasant without the crowds. I have been as early as April and as late as October and found both to be good times to be there.
It also means that if you are using an estate agent they will be less busy. Do check that they are available while you are there: many take their holidays in the off-peak seasons.
In addition you will have the opportunity to assess how easy it is to get to and from your planned area of purchase out of season, plus give you a look at the area when tourists aren’t there. Do all the shops and restaurants shut – and, if so, will the peace and quiet suit you or will it drive you crazy?
2. Flights: Tourism in Portugal has plummeted, what with the economic squeeze and the volcanic ash debacle. All this however means that getting you-know-what on seats hasn’t been as easy as it usually is for the airlines. They are having to reduce prices and there are a few good bargains around so have a good look before you book
3. Car Hire: Unless you know a really good and inexpensive local car hire company, compare prices between booking a car from home with one of the big international car hire companies before settling for a small local company. The results may just surprise you
4. Travel Insurance: Now more than ever it is essential to take out travel insurance and to make sure what it covers you for – witness the volcanic ash problem and those pesky BA strikes
5. Hotels: If you are booking direct with a hotel, don’t be afraid to ask if that is their ‘best price’. I have had my hotel accommodation price lowered when asking this…it’s worth a shot. Or go online and see what prices the hotel is showing there…it does sometimes vary
6. Travel from airport: Take a bus from the airport rather than a taxi I find out from your hotel in advance if there is a bus stop nearby. If you do decide to take a taxi, what I have done more than once is to get chatting to a fellow passenger and, if we were heading in the same direction, share the cost of a taxi. Once my neighbour on the plane, a charming Portuguese lady, dropped me off at the railway station when she heard where I was heading…!
7. Travelling internally in the country: This is a holiday remember – try not to be like me and find yourself rushing along…”Why am I hurrying?” I ask myself? The reason I am saying this is that you may want to try taking a bus or a train if it is cheaper than flying…that’s if you are not hiring a car of course.
If you are like me, I have often made some good friends on buses, trains or ferries. Indeed talking to people as I travel has more than once proved a wonderful experience. In Obidos I got chatting to an American girl and we ended up travelling together in her car down to Sintra, where we shared a small rental apartment for a few days as we took in the lovely surroundings – she became a friend for life!
And then, on a purely tourist note:
8. Free entrance to museums: We in the UK have become used to free museums but in Portugal the costs can mount up. See if there are free admission days: find them out in advance and get there early!
9. Combo Tickets: It’s worth looking to see if there are museums that offer combination tickets. I know this happens in Greece and in Washington (at the Smithsonian) for instance. These deals will seldom be offered upfront!
Given you some food for thought? I hope so…next week I want to continue with the buying aspect – but first we need to get you out there!
Have a great week and take care!
Carol.
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com
Friday, 11 June 2010
Friday, 4 June 2010
A Few Thoughts of Retiring Abroad
This may or may not apply to you, but if it does, it’s worth thinking about it carefully. Retiring is a whole new ball game as our friends across the pond would say, but to up sticks and retire abroad – well, that takes courage.
There is a whole rather comforting discipline to working – love it or hate it, it does fill the day and give an order and a structure to one’s life. Moving abroad is a huge psychological ask at any time but add to that the utterly new dimension of retirement after perhaps a lifetime of work and it means enormous changes to both your lifestyle and your mindset. There is no reason at all that you should not be utterly happy abroad – provided you have done your homework and planned well in advance.
One tends to become a little more cautious as one gets older and, although making a big life change can be exciting and refreshing, making prior arrangements for pretty much everything will stand you in really good stead and give you a feeling of control. So what are the most important considerations for a successful retirement abroad? Here are a few thoughts:
Finance
- Before you go, make sure all your arrangements for your pension, investments and any income are properly in place. I strongly advise seeking guidance from an Independent Financial Advisor (IFA). Expert help in formulating the plan that takes into account your own personal set of circumstances is essential and you may well save yourself on tax/transfer costs etc.
- Set up an account with a currency company if you need to transfer funds abroad – it will save you a great deal of money over your high street bank. Go to:
http://www.smartcurrencyexchange.com/
for more on this
- Sometimes bureaucracy abroad can be a little intimidating so make use of a translator with things like setting up direct debits/ understanding bills etc.
Family
If you are close to family you need to know that frequent visits are possible. Think carefully about the location of your new home; you are likely to have far more contact if the journey is relatively easy and not too time-consuming. Being close to an airport for instance will make more frequent visits possible.
Another tip is to make sure you are set up for email and/or a webcam so you can not only talk to your loved ones but see them at the same time.
Structuring your new life abroad
Think ahead a little and aim to have some sort of project or plan perhaps medium to long term. Most of us need to have some sort of structure to our days and retirement is no different.
Active retirees generally have a far happier and more fulfilling life; working in the garden, perhaps tackling a crossword each day, learning the language or taking the dog for a walk will all stand you in good stead for a peaceful and healthy retirement. And dogs make new friends for you too!
You might want to give yourself a geography or history lesson: perhaps to visit a new town each month and find out all about it. Hopefully you will feel enriched by what you see, may well meet new people and will also be keeping fit!
Your new community
As soon as you arrive, make an effort to chat to your neighbours and keep an eye open for any clubs/associations/groups. Most villages abroad have thriving communities and you are more than likely to find a few fellow Brits too! So take some time out at the beginning to meet and greet, get out and about and take advantage of any advice your new neighbours may be willing to give you. Even if it is not something you find useful, you will have made a new friend!
The future
Your house needs to be easily maintained and the smaller the garden the less lawn that needs mowing! You might want to consider somewhere with few stairs for example or somewhere with the possibility of converting one of the downstairs rooms into a bedroom at some stage. And again, think about the location of your new home: that rural retreat may be beautiful but a little bit of village life with reasonably close transport may well be a Godsend. Also consider medical requirements: is there a doctor/hospital nearby, just in case?
Hope this has given you food for thought! The weather has been great all week so let’s hope that the weekend stays good for a change!
Bye for now and best wishes until next time,
Carol
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com
There is a whole rather comforting discipline to working – love it or hate it, it does fill the day and give an order and a structure to one’s life. Moving abroad is a huge psychological ask at any time but add to that the utterly new dimension of retirement after perhaps a lifetime of work and it means enormous changes to both your lifestyle and your mindset. There is no reason at all that you should not be utterly happy abroad – provided you have done your homework and planned well in advance.
One tends to become a little more cautious as one gets older and, although making a big life change can be exciting and refreshing, making prior arrangements for pretty much everything will stand you in really good stead and give you a feeling of control. So what are the most important considerations for a successful retirement abroad? Here are a few thoughts:
Finance
- Before you go, make sure all your arrangements for your pension, investments and any income are properly in place. I strongly advise seeking guidance from an Independent Financial Advisor (IFA). Expert help in formulating the plan that takes into account your own personal set of circumstances is essential and you may well save yourself on tax/transfer costs etc.
- Set up an account with a currency company if you need to transfer funds abroad – it will save you a great deal of money over your high street bank. Go to:
http://www.smartcurrencyexchange.com/
for more on this
- Sometimes bureaucracy abroad can be a little intimidating so make use of a translator with things like setting up direct debits/ understanding bills etc.
Family
If you are close to family you need to know that frequent visits are possible. Think carefully about the location of your new home; you are likely to have far more contact if the journey is relatively easy and not too time-consuming. Being close to an airport for instance will make more frequent visits possible.
Another tip is to make sure you are set up for email and/or a webcam so you can not only talk to your loved ones but see them at the same time.
Structuring your new life abroad
Think ahead a little and aim to have some sort of project or plan perhaps medium to long term. Most of us need to have some sort of structure to our days and retirement is no different.
Active retirees generally have a far happier and more fulfilling life; working in the garden, perhaps tackling a crossword each day, learning the language or taking the dog for a walk will all stand you in good stead for a peaceful and healthy retirement. And dogs make new friends for you too!
You might want to give yourself a geography or history lesson: perhaps to visit a new town each month and find out all about it. Hopefully you will feel enriched by what you see, may well meet new people and will also be keeping fit!
Your new community
As soon as you arrive, make an effort to chat to your neighbours and keep an eye open for any clubs/associations/groups. Most villages abroad have thriving communities and you are more than likely to find a few fellow Brits too! So take some time out at the beginning to meet and greet, get out and about and take advantage of any advice your new neighbours may be willing to give you. Even if it is not something you find useful, you will have made a new friend!
The future
Your house needs to be easily maintained and the smaller the garden the less lawn that needs mowing! You might want to consider somewhere with few stairs for example or somewhere with the possibility of converting one of the downstairs rooms into a bedroom at some stage. And again, think about the location of your new home: that rural retreat may be beautiful but a little bit of village life with reasonably close transport may well be a Godsend. Also consider medical requirements: is there a doctor/hospital nearby, just in case?
Hope this has given you food for thought! The weather has been great all week so let’s hope that the weekend stays good for a change!
Bye for now and best wishes until next time,
Carol
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com
Friday, 28 May 2010
Find a good and trustworthy developer!
Hello there. How are things going with you? Still planning on buying abroad?
Chatting to people about buying property abroad, I find that one of the main concerns is how to chose a good and trustworthy developer if you are buying off-plan.
This problem has been made worse by the current economic climate – many developers are going under, and sometimes taking unwary buyers and their dreams with them. It is therefore absolutely crucial that you have a really god look at the credentials of your developer before signing on the dotted line..
An email that I received recently bears this out. It tells of the endless problems encountered by one of the OGC readers who had failed to do his homework – and he really paid a heavy price, both in financial terms and in the stress that such things bring with them.
The property he bought was about one third completed at the time he paid his deposit to the developer. All went well until the house was ready for the final finish and, at this point, the developer sacked the builders and employed his own low paid and unskilled labour. The result was that the finish was very poor and, although the complex was completed, only 7 or 8 properties have been sold to date.
Financial penalties for late completion were not paid although there was a six month delay. The unhappy owner only discovered when it came time to address this problem that his solicitor also represents the developer!
All this could so easily have been avoided. I am going to outline a few essential and non-negotiable points for you to think about:
- If possible, move into rented accommodation nearby BEFORE you plan to buy and chat to locals about the developer/s you are thinking of buying through
- Search the Internet for expat forums on your town or city of choice. Some highlight poor practices and name and shame shoddy developers
- Google in the name of the developer you are thinking of using and see what comes up
- Get a developer that is a member of a regulatory body if at all possible
- Consider using a reputable estate agent instead of going to the developer direct – to protect themselves they will have done the checks
- Insist on visiting a couple of the developers’ previous projects and on talking to previous buyers
- Retain a solicitor independent of the developer so that there can be no conflict of interest
- Make sure your solicitor draws up a contract that protects YOU
- Make absolutely sure that the developer’s financial staged payments (stipulated in the contract of sale) require you to pay according to completion of build stages and not simply by date
- Buy a bond or take out insurance to protect yourself if the developer goes bust or there are any major issues with the build
- Take your time and refused to be rushed
If you follow the above to the letter the chances of anything going wrong will be dramatically reduced.
Chatting to someone in the property business abroad, she told me that she was stunned by how many people simply abandoned all the normal checks and balances that they would apply if they were buying property in the UK – don’t be one of them!
Speak to you soon – and I’d love to hear from you.
Take care until next Friday – warm wishes,
Carol and Kim
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com
Chatting to people about buying property abroad, I find that one of the main concerns is how to chose a good and trustworthy developer if you are buying off-plan.
This problem has been made worse by the current economic climate – many developers are going under, and sometimes taking unwary buyers and their dreams with them. It is therefore absolutely crucial that you have a really god look at the credentials of your developer before signing on the dotted line..
An email that I received recently bears this out. It tells of the endless problems encountered by one of the OGC readers who had failed to do his homework – and he really paid a heavy price, both in financial terms and in the stress that such things bring with them.
The property he bought was about one third completed at the time he paid his deposit to the developer. All went well until the house was ready for the final finish and, at this point, the developer sacked the builders and employed his own low paid and unskilled labour. The result was that the finish was very poor and, although the complex was completed, only 7 or 8 properties have been sold to date.
Financial penalties for late completion were not paid although there was a six month delay. The unhappy owner only discovered when it came time to address this problem that his solicitor also represents the developer!
All this could so easily have been avoided. I am going to outline a few essential and non-negotiable points for you to think about:
- If possible, move into rented accommodation nearby BEFORE you plan to buy and chat to locals about the developer/s you are thinking of buying through
- Search the Internet for expat forums on your town or city of choice. Some highlight poor practices and name and shame shoddy developers
- Google in the name of the developer you are thinking of using and see what comes up
- Get a developer that is a member of a regulatory body if at all possible
- Consider using a reputable estate agent instead of going to the developer direct – to protect themselves they will have done the checks
- Insist on visiting a couple of the developers’ previous projects and on talking to previous buyers
- Retain a solicitor independent of the developer so that there can be no conflict of interest
- Make sure your solicitor draws up a contract that protects YOU
- Make absolutely sure that the developer’s financial staged payments (stipulated in the contract of sale) require you to pay according to completion of build stages and not simply by date
- Buy a bond or take out insurance to protect yourself if the developer goes bust or there are any major issues with the build
- Take your time and refused to be rushed
If you follow the above to the letter the chances of anything going wrong will be dramatically reduced.
Chatting to someone in the property business abroad, she told me that she was stunned by how many people simply abandoned all the normal checks and balances that they would apply if they were buying property in the UK – don’t be one of them!
Speak to you soon – and I’d love to hear from you.
Take care until next Friday – warm wishes,
Carol and Kim
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com
Friday, 21 May 2010
Owner of all you survey…!
Hello there – how are you? Peering out of my window it is gloomy and overcast: I cannot get over how quickly the weather changes here. One moment it’s blue, clear skies and the next – rain! Oh well… I guess that’s why people buy homes abroad!
I have been working for the Overseas Guides Company for a number of years now – I must have spoken to hundreds of people buying property abroad; most of them have gone on to find the home of their dreams and have absolutely no regrets. However, I do sometimes hear of disasters and, on analysing the problem, it all comes down to one thing: they have not checked the property and its surroundings adequately before signing on the dotted line.
Two cases spring to mind here. I received an email a while back from a couple who had purchased a farm from an estate agent and were told that it was just over 2 hectares in size.
All the official paperwork confirmed this. To their enormous surprise, when measuring the land some while later, they found it was only 1 hectare. The estate agents deny liability, saying that the official papers confirm that the land is 2 hectares and that they go by the official figures. Needless to say, their query to me was how they should set about recovering half their money.
Hindsight is 20/20, but there is only one way to make sure that this does not happen to you and that is to get an independent surveyor, or an architect licensed to survey, to perform a survey and make their findings a condition of sale. You also need to make sure upfront exactly what will be included in the survey and demand a full report on all findings. A full structural survey should include the condition of all buildings, particularly the foundations, roofs, walls and woodwork; plumbing, electricity and heating systems; and anything else you want inspected such as a swimming pool plus its equipment…and the size of the land of course.
Sadly, the only route for this unfortunate buyer to go is probably to litigate, but this can take a very long time, may cost a lot of money and who knows if the owner is still around? And still has the money to reimburse? Or will even be found guilty - once all the contracts are signed you pretty much accept the property as is – ‘Voetstoets’ is the term used in South Africa. The seller may even have sold in good faith and not be aware of the discrepancy… a really thorny issue, isn’t it?
The second disaster I was made aware of was an apartment with spectacular sea views, bought by an older couple as a holiday bolthole for their grandchildren. Trouble was, when they arrived at their holiday apartment after an absence of a few months, an enormous block of flats had been erected, totally blocking their magnificent view of the sea.
Strangely enough, some months before I had planned a trip to Crete, in Greece, and one of the OGC readers had asked me to have a peep at a sea facing apartment he was thinking of buying. I asked the agent I happened to be travelling around the island with, and his immediate reply was that his company were building a huge block in front of it…Needless to say – one lucky escape!
Make sure you are not caught out in this way - a professional survey may cost a bit but it really is money well spent.
Let me know how your plans are coming along. Have you heard any stories where a survey saved the day – or perhaps the reverse, where disaster struck because no survey was completed?
Take care and see you next week. Best regards, Carol (and Kim)
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com
I have been working for the Overseas Guides Company for a number of years now – I must have spoken to hundreds of people buying property abroad; most of them have gone on to find the home of their dreams and have absolutely no regrets. However, I do sometimes hear of disasters and, on analysing the problem, it all comes down to one thing: they have not checked the property and its surroundings adequately before signing on the dotted line.
Two cases spring to mind here. I received an email a while back from a couple who had purchased a farm from an estate agent and were told that it was just over 2 hectares in size.
All the official paperwork confirmed this. To their enormous surprise, when measuring the land some while later, they found it was only 1 hectare. The estate agents deny liability, saying that the official papers confirm that the land is 2 hectares and that they go by the official figures. Needless to say, their query to me was how they should set about recovering half their money.
Hindsight is 20/20, but there is only one way to make sure that this does not happen to you and that is to get an independent surveyor, or an architect licensed to survey, to perform a survey and make their findings a condition of sale. You also need to make sure upfront exactly what will be included in the survey and demand a full report on all findings. A full structural survey should include the condition of all buildings, particularly the foundations, roofs, walls and woodwork; plumbing, electricity and heating systems; and anything else you want inspected such as a swimming pool plus its equipment…and the size of the land of course.
Sadly, the only route for this unfortunate buyer to go is probably to litigate, but this can take a very long time, may cost a lot of money and who knows if the owner is still around? And still has the money to reimburse? Or will even be found guilty - once all the contracts are signed you pretty much accept the property as is – ‘Voetstoets’ is the term used in South Africa. The seller may even have sold in good faith and not be aware of the discrepancy… a really thorny issue, isn’t it?
The second disaster I was made aware of was an apartment with spectacular sea views, bought by an older couple as a holiday bolthole for their grandchildren. Trouble was, when they arrived at their holiday apartment after an absence of a few months, an enormous block of flats had been erected, totally blocking their magnificent view of the sea.
Strangely enough, some months before I had planned a trip to Crete, in Greece, and one of the OGC readers had asked me to have a peep at a sea facing apartment he was thinking of buying. I asked the agent I happened to be travelling around the island with, and his immediate reply was that his company were building a huge block in front of it…Needless to say – one lucky escape!
Make sure you are not caught out in this way - a professional survey may cost a bit but it really is money well spent.
Let me know how your plans are coming along. Have you heard any stories where a survey saved the day – or perhaps the reverse, where disaster struck because no survey was completed?
Take care and see you next week. Best regards, Carol (and Kim)
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com
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