Advice Required - Selling Property in Portugal

[fbillson]

I have been contacted by an interested buyer for my father's property in Portugal which is advertised on a website.

He is a businessman and wishes to buy this property half cash half cheque/bankers draft as an investment and to dispose of cash before the year end.

He has asked that my father and I meet him in Belgium to have a meeting to discuss the property and go over the property documents. After that meeting he would like to come to view the property in Portugal.

To me this sounds like a scam. This guy has been in regular contact with my father and sounds genuine but I am very suspicious. It is my dads life savings after all. Do you think it is worth taking a chance to visit this guy? How is it possible for him to rip us off?

Appreciate your thoughts?

FAYE )

[aquila]

Originally Posted by fbillson

I have been contacted by an interested buyer for my father's property in Portugal which is advertised on a website.

He is a businessman and wishes to buy this property half cash half cheque/bankers draft as an investment and to dispose of cash before the year end.

He has asked that my father and I meet him in Belgium to have a meeting to discuss the property and go over the property documents. After that meeting he would like to come to view the property in Portugal.

To me this sounds like a scam. This guy has been in regular contact with my father and sounds genuine but I am very suspicious. It is my dads life savings after all. Do you think it is worth taking a chance to visit this guy? How is it possible for him to rip us off?

Appreciate your thoughts?

FAYE )

Hi Faye

This may be real but like you it just sounds strange. All I would say is that I was selling a luxury sports car a year or so back - guy came up with a Cashiers Cheque drawn on a US bank - all looked good and at that stage I thought a Cashiers Cheque was as good as cash - luckily that also had a strange feel to it and I knew my bank well so banked it and waited. Guess what - cashiers cheque bounced - so - be very careful. Take nothing on face value.

Best of luck

Brian
Aquilaresorts

[ferreira]

Hi
I would like to inform that I receive these types’ o mails wanting me to go to the UK or Belgium to discuses the investments they want to make. the last one I received was from someone in Nigeria that wanted to buy a bunch of properties here in Portugal, once I told them that I was contacted by the PJ they stopped sending e-mails and one of my colleagues started receiving e-mail from some guy saying he's an accountant of some other guy in Russia and they have to invest some 13million dollars. You can be sure that it's a scam all they want is your personal info to later use in other scams if you visit the PJ web site you will see other cases.
Omferreira@remax.pt

[buybusinessinportugal]

Hi Faye

PLEASE DON'T GO TO BELGIUM MEET THE GUY.

[Fusco]

Dear Sir,


I had read your message in the forum and I think that is better to take some advice.

I’m a lawyer in Portugal, Lisbon, managing partner of a law firm that provides legal assistance in the diverse areas of commercial, real estate, urban, banking and financial, tax planning and employment law, always acting in accordance with the profession’s deontological norms.

I supposed that we can work and I'm certain that we could find a good and a secure solution for you.


Best Regards,


Fusco

[petranam]

Beware of any such offers, they are all scams. We have a property listed on the internet and had the same kind of experience twice. For a moment I thought that an enquiry that I had sent to someone regarding our property had landed in the internet and then realised it was you with the same experience just another country. My father was supposed to fly to Milan, then Rome. The second scam wanted him to go to Spain (which is, I am told, a favourite for the Nigerian scam rings).

On the property website we are already warned:
beware of anyone wanting to buy your property unseen;
beware of anyone wanting you to fly anywhere to do business or to take any papers pertaining to the property etc. with you;
beware of any supposedly cash transactions;
and beware of anyone wanting do do transactions via a third party.

As others who have replied to this thread have said: work through a reputable and registered agent rather than be caught through others taking advantage.
regards
Petra

[villasluz]

Hi Faye,

we receive each day at least 3-4 E-Mails and at least 1 phone call from this type of scammers.
Just forget about it, you will waste your time in Belgium.
If you need more informations about fraud and scamms please click here.

Regards
Antonio

[Talkbusiness]

hey villas, you should be working.. nobody picks up at your office :P

[villasluz]

Hi Talkbusiness,

you might have phoned during lunch time.
You can reach us between 9.30am until 1.00pm and between 2.30pm until 6.15pm

If you need to speak with me directly, here is my mobile phone (00351) 915 599 242

[Talkbusiness]

wasnt your bad, i found out from your mobile number that you dont work at that office..