[sqftmag]

Pratik, this case sadly highlights how easy it is to be swept along by the lure of a seemingly good investment deal. As the old adage goes "if it's seems too good to be true, it probably is!"

I've been duped a couple of times in life, on both occassions I let personal greed sway my judgement - and yes, I was bitten on the ankles twice. Once was a timeshare deal and another was a corporate hospitality deal for tickets at Royal Ascot York. Curiously, both deals we proffered by sellers from the fair city of Liverpool - but I view this as an unfortunate co-incidence (!)

Now, in my middle age, I am suspicious of every "golden opportunity". None more so than in off plan opportunties. As a property journalist, I am sent a lot of information from so-called "developers" or property clubs offering discounts on off plan units. Of course these discounts are discounts of nothing more than highly-inflated valuations.

The truth is that most developers will deal with investors directly. Many have specialist divisions to work with investors - developers like LPC Living, through whom I have bought stock, work well with individual investors. Some of the volume house-builders have investor sales teams too.

Come end of year, many developers are only too happy to sell off stock to investors and no, you don't need to buy an entire floor of an apartment block! There are a few individual investor consultants who are straight up - I can let interested parties have contacts. It never hurts to look companies up via the Companies House website or run their details through RiskDisk - after all, who really wants to throw away the deposit money?

I am sorry to hear of your unhappy experience - let's hope it doesn't dampen your spirits. Certainly naming and shaming is one way to ensure that we all stay safer in the property game.

Kind regards
Michele Andrew