Project Zen Eco - Natal

[Sunnyshores]

RalphJ - I agree with your comments about seeing licenses and permissions completley. Although not trusting anyone ?? However this thread was for like minded people who HAVE invested in Zen and are now eagerly awaiting BBQs and summers in the sun. We all have questions, but not about the trustworthyness of the developers.

So we're still missing Crew10, I couldnt find him listed as a member, I thought I could PM him to join us here.

Wolfgang - have you brought here?

Graham - we're also in this long term, 10 years at least. We would hope to mortgage within that time (if/when they become available), and would like some rentals, but capital growth is the name here. If the new airport and direct flights happen then we will use it as our summer home too (we also have property in Turkey that we're trying to sell!) I would also like to think as its an Eco resort people will be more committed longer term rather than pure short-term profit.

[sunnysteve]

We ( myself Karen and Derek) are also hoping to retire her or spend 6 months here and 6 in uk one of the draws for me for Brazil is the ability to do that. We wanted a house and a home not an apartment in some multi complex. I loved Brazil when we visited and I want the lifestyle.[/QUOTE]

hi Karen,sue (my wife) and i hope to have long breaks at our zen home in time to come,hope our family will enjoy it too.some rental income would be nice,but not relying on it,see it more as a long term pension fund,an escape from work,the area i live(the shootings stabbings muggings) and the political parasites both goverment and council,that are trying to leach every last penny out of us.hey i need a holiday,hurry up zen.
see you all there,steve and sue.

[michaelbush]

Sunnyshores- and Graymax. I am not really concerned what your professional qualifications are. I have not "brought" here but have bought investments here. My comments regarding visiting Brazil yourself, so you are not relying on pictures is meant to help people not be duped into buying a product that may never be built. If you read my comments more carefully, you will note that I have concurred that in the case of Zen you have been "lucky", to find a good project that I also made clear I consider to be good. I have made no comment designed to frighten anyone off this product and I think my comments are supportive of this product and only critical of internet buyers who will not visit a country before buying. It is like buying blind in an auction in an area you do not know. I am pleased you have in this case been lucky. Just for the record this thread is not the exclusive property of buyers in Zen!!

[sunnysteve]

I have made no comment designed to frighten anyone off this product and I think my comments are supportive of this product and only critical of internet buyers who will not visit a country before buying. It is like buying blind in an auction in an area you do not know. I am pleased you have in this case been lucky. [/QUOTE]

hi micheal,thanks for clarifying ,we have not been to brasil,but have been about.not to struck on commercial places.spent 3years of research to find a trustworthy agent ,deal and site/owner we could be happy to do a deal with. glad to take your 'lucky' as an encourging bonus.

all the best steve and sue.

[JMBroad]

There are plenty of agencies out there who sell over the phone and have a perfect reputation - many of them do more due diligence and know more about the market than many of the people on the ground.

However for many of the people on the ground the fact that they are on the ground is their only real added value, so scaremongering is a vital tool.

Visiting the building site can be of great help if you are looking for something which is for your personal use and you want to know that there is a nice beach nearby, or a good view, or it is already built and you want to sit on the sofa in the living room and soak up the feel for the place.

However for off-plan as was proven by GW's report on Jacuma - an agent can take you to see a site which is not the one they say it is, give you completely wrong information and mislead you into buying whatever he/she wants, so just because you visit doesn't mean you'll be shown the best product.

People buying over the phone tend to do a lot more research themselves, not only about the company they are buying through but also about the product they are buying. They tend to get a lot more information about the product in writing rather than hearsay.

Good luck on Zen

Ultimately there are three ways of doing things - on your own with a lot of research and if you have the time to spend to do that research - most people don't. Sunnysteve spent three years researching the market which means steve started at pretty much the best time for buying in Brazil. However if they had bought three years ago they might have saved a lot of money as prices might have been significantly lower then.

Second option is to visit the country. Go with a local agent or one that speaks your language and lives in the country. As long as it is a reputable agent, who is knowledgeable about the market - that's fine. All depends if you have the time and are so disposed to visit the country.

Third option is to find an agent who has a track record of helping investors, has a good reputation and obviously knows the country and the market and has been out there on a regular basis. There are at least two who are advertised on this forum who I'd feel comfortable working with.

Ultimately if you have the knowledge, the time and the resources - do the research yourself and go out there and find it and buy it alone. Like everything - if you want it done the way you want it, do it yourself. But if you are going get professional help, make sure you get the right person - no matter where they are.

[Sunnyshores]

JMBroad

Thanks for your well reasoned advice, I completly agree - we all have to find a method of investment that works for us with regard to our funds, our time and our end goal. Obviously I'd like to spend my year travelling the world looking for opportunties, but unfortunatly I need to work and fortunatly have children who need to go to school!

I've come across you on a couple of other country's threads too. Are you investing in Brazil?

[JMBroad]

I will be. I work for an agency doing market research and product sourcing, which is why I know how long you have to spend to really research the area/country/product. I don't advertise who I work for on the forums simply because my reasons for being here are to get feedback and give feedback not to promote the company I work for.

Having said that I don't hide it either, John Broad is my real name and thankfully I work for one of the companies where I don't have to hide it because we have an impeccable track record and reputation. I've met several people from these forums and if someone really wants to know which company I work for, they can ask me in a pm and I'll tell them. (as some have already)

[Sunnyshores]

Companies pay people to do research on countries, not just to sell products? That'll never work!!!

So from your research you have decided to personally invest in Brazil - if you dont mind me asking, what areas are you interested in? DOnt worry, I dont have anything to sell you, I'm just little old me sat at home!

[JMBroad]

For me Brazil offers three different investment opportunities at the moment, each for different budgets and each with their own challenges and rewards. I'm focused on the Northeast at the moment however I am already banking research information to look at the rest of the country as we deem necessary.

The first option would be city centre, in either of the four main cities of the northeast. Without bias, and in no particular order, Bahia, Recife, Natal, Fortaleza. Buy well priced, gear your investment towards selling to the domestic market in a medium timeframe. To be able to do this you need either a local agency on the ground or very good contacts with local builders/developers to be able to handle the resale.

The second is in a gated community resort, of which there are numerous candidates - there are some geared towards the domestic market and some geared towards the international market. Overall as long as the price point is right and the location is right the value is sure to increase. However don't count on rental returns if the development is far from the city centre because, as is normal with an emerging market, the infrastructure is still very limited outside of the centres.

The third is to buy in a luxury resort / gated community. One that you can use and enjoy while the capital appreciation increases. For this option, prices are normally higher but location or facilities warrant the added investment. The owner of my company has reviewed all my reports and decided to invest in Jacuma Beach Resort - he feels very strongly that the development will show significant growth once the infrastructure around Jacuma takes off. The fact that several of our connections in Brasil live in and around Jacuma also adds credibility to the area.

For my budget, I'm looking at buying a small villa on the beach and holding it for the medium time frame - using it when I get the opportunity as a holiday home. I wouldn't necessarily recommend that to everyone though, the reason it is the best option for me is because I speak Portuguese fluently, have friends who I've known for over 10 years living reasonably close to the villa who could check in on it when I'm not there. I also have very good relationships with builders and developers who could help do any renovations needed and the local contacts to take care of the place and look after it during my absence.

It also suits me because it's pretty much in the middle of nowhere, and what I love about Brazil at the moment is that you can live in a very rudimentary fashion in the middle of nowhere and have nothing to do but live on the beach and sit in a hammock when you aren't scuba diving or windsurfing.

[sunnysteve]

Good luck on Zen

[/QUOTE]

Thanks for that JMB,even with the best planning luck,destiny all play there part.You never whats round the corner.searching and saving for the right deal,has took time,we certainly hope it will pay of for us.The google earth images helped make our minds up,on top of our research.I probably know the north east coastline better than the locals.
Steve & Sue.