Real Estate International - Help needed

[silver1]

Just to keep everyone in the loop. After investigating Coconut Grove myself i was really impressed with several things about this project.
Firstly i asked some very serious questions to my sales girl who was not sure about a few of them such as septic tanks and electricty supply, (my Brazilain neighbour warned me about these things that can be tricky)
She put me in touch with the project director Mr David Mahoney, a nice chap who answered my email late at night for him as he was in Brazil at the time last Friday.
He answered all my questions and more and i was really surprised to learn a few interesting facts about this project. Namely it has an offical letter of reccomdation from the Minister Of Tourism for the state, this is the only project in Cerera that has this he stated.
Also it is has now been classified as a socially changing project as the developer is working with the local community as far as training the local teenagers as skilled workers, then employing local labour both skilled and unskilled during construction, also it is a Eco Friendly resort, using 90% Solar power for all the houses, and the 5 star hotel.
He sent me some photos and i checked them against google earth and the photos were really very nice, although it looks very quiet it looked beautiful. Personally i want to reserve but but i just need that little extra push so if anyone has been on the actual land and stood there i would like to hear back from you.
I requested some legal info and was given a password to a law firm in Fortaleza where they had 85mb of documents for any clients who needs them. I downloaded a few including the letter from the Tourism minister and a Certified letter of legality form this law firm stating it was all totally clean, i guess a certification is better then normal due dilligence but i am not sure???

Anyway it looks good to me, and the company seem to be really trying hard at customer service, no one was pushy, but i intend to go out and have a look before i buy, but looking at the plans and photos, with this price, i am nearly ready to just do it!
Bryan

[michaelbush]

Hi Bryan (Silver1)
Yes - you MUST visit before buying. The reality is different to the virtual reality you see on the internet! When you visit you can make your own mind up, without the hype. Brasil has many investor opportunities, but is no different to Spain! If you buy but can only sell on to another "mug punter" from Europe, you miss 99% or more, of the potential market. Just remember this small piece of advice- it is very easy to buy.................but to sell?.........How do you get your return. No different to anywhere else in the world for an investor.

[wolfgang]

A few golden rules here.
Never purchase site unseen and do not accept certification from the developers solicitor as a substitute for due dilligence from an independant law firm which YOU need to commission.To be frank,there are more than a few red flags here.
Any organisation advertising a development in Flexeiras as "Fortaleza" is being less than honest in their marketing.It takes the best part of a few hours to travel between the two.
It is akin to owning a house in S****horpe/Grimsby and advertising it as Manchester!
This begs the question that if they are being economical with the truth in this aspect,what other areas are being exaggerated?
I would recommend a full background check on the company.There is an abundance of combined wisdom on this forum and no-one has even heard of them.Any funds paid to this company need to be held in Escrow until such time as their claims regarding licences (especially the Semace one) have been authenticated.
Under such circumstances,there really is no such thing as being too cautious.

[ady1231]

Originally Posted by silver1

Just to keep everyone in the loop. After investigating Coconut Grove myself i was really impressed with several things about this project.
Firstly i asked some very serious questions to my sales girl who was not sure about a few of them such as septic tanks and electricty supply, (my Brazilain neighbour warned me about these things that can be tricky)
She put me in touch with the project director Mr David Mahoney, a nice chap who answered my email late at night for him as he was in Brazil at the time last Friday.
He answered all my questions and more and i was really surprised to learn a few interesting facts about this project. Namely it has an offical letter of reccomdation from the Minister Of Tourism for the state, this is the only project in Cerera that has this he stated.
Also it is has now been classified as a socially changing project as the developer is working with the local community as far as training the local teenagers as skilled workers, then employing local labour both skilled and unskilled during construction, also it is a Eco Friendly resort, using 90% Solar power for all the houses, and the 5 star hotel.
He sent me some photos and i checked them against google earth and the photos were really very nice, although it looks very quiet it looked beautiful. Personally i want to reserve but but i just need that little extra push so if anyone has been on the actual land and stood there i would like to hear back from you.
I requested some legal info and was given a password to a law firm in Fortaleza where they had 85mb of documents for any clients who needs them. I downloaded a few including the letter from the Tourism minister and a Certified letter of legality form this law firm stating it was all totally clean, i guess a certification is better then normal due dilligence but i am not sure???

Anyway it looks good to me, and the company seem to be really trying hard at customer service, no one was pushy, but i intend to go out and have a look before i buy, but looking at the plans and photos, with this price, i am nearly ready to just do it!
Bryan

Hi Silver;

Yes, i have just reserved one, but a bit nervous, as i have t choose which law firm to go with, did you get contacted by real est int?

Regarding the project, i think it's a nice one, and the prices are reasonable, it's not too close to Fortaleza (124km) but the location looks nice, i tried google earth, and yes i have seen the letter of recommendation from the ministry of Tourism in CE.

I might be going to sign the title deeds, tell me when do u plan to go?

Cheer

[RalphJ]

He answered all my questions and more and i was really surprised to learn a few interesting facts about this project. Namely it has an offical letter of reccomdation from the Minister Of Tourism for the state, this is the only project in Cerera that has this he stated.

Funny, the infamous Keifer Robins used to use a "letter" of recommendation from the secretary of tourism as well in his scams. A letter from any politician "recommending" any project is really a mute point. It has nothing to do with the approval process whatsoever and in many cases is simply used in an attempt to gain confidence.

[JMBroad]

Originally Posted by wolfgang

I would recommend a full background check on the company.There is an abundance of combined wisdom on this forum and no-one has even heard of them.

I've heard of them, I've had a meeting with David Mahoney here in my office and looked over all the plans and details and as I said it looks good on paper. I've got copies of the letter from the minister and everything else mentioned above.

Some developments take a lot longer than others to check, but as company policy we don't promote a development until we get a complete Due Diligence report which we still haven't got. That's why my advice on this development continues the same: As long as you have received a Due Diligence which you are comfortable with, the development looks good.

[wolfgang]

Agree 100% Ralph.Totally meaningless.
I can name one developer in Ceara whose first cousin writes on his behalf on official headed notepaper.Its as old as the hills.

[JMBroad]

Well, you could always google the name of the minister who wrote the paper. His phone number shows up - call him and ask him if he wrote it and still stands by it.

[ady1231]

Originally Posted by RalphJ

Funny, the infamous Keifer Robins used to use a "letter" of recommendation from the secretary of tourism as well in his scams. A letter from any politician "recommending" any project is really a mute point. It has nothing to do with the approval process whatsoever and in many cases is simply used in an attempt to gain confidence.

Ralph;

I am not sure how do you know this guy, or you are just criticizing all other developments, than the ones you are selling, don't be negative, be realistic!

[RalphJ]

Originally Posted by ady1231

Ralph;

I am not sure how do you know this guy, or you are just criticizing all other developments, than the ones you are selling, don't be negative, be realistic!

I don't understand your question. I think my post was very self-explanatory.