Lawyer Silver Coast

[John999]

At the end of the day an estate agent it is the same as a car dealer. They need to sell to get their commission. Some are more honest than others, but it all come down to commission and the need to cash in. If an agent wasn´t honest with you, you can always report him, the same can be done to any dodgy lawyer. The problem is, in general people don´t do it, because if they did, some of them would already been shut. Saying this, there is no need to alarm, if you do your homework right, ask loads of questions, get as many references you can, find your own lawyer/solicitor and make sure whatever document you sign you have a sign translation from them, you will be alright. Don´t just take other expats word for it, in the area where you want to move in, ask the locals, (appliance store, butchers, chemist, local trade), they will be glad to help you and at the end of the day if you move in “town” and you are satisfied, you will be another customer, they will do their best to help.
john999

[omostra06]

Originally Posted by Mr.Blueskies

"Yes Derek, there are checks that need to be done ! The problem is, that
some lawyers and agents after doing these checks (supposedly on your behalf)
do not feel the need to inform you of their findings.

thats why forums like these are great, people share information so that hopefully people are aware of what to ask thier agent and lawyers,

some unproffessional agents, lawyers and owners choose to keep info to themselves that they feel may harm a sale, if the buyer is not aware of what to ask then they could experiance problems, so its good to research all about buying a property on the net, so that you are aware of what to ask, if they are not forthcoming with the info, you can ask them.

[Mr.Blueskies]

To Derek:

Ordinary people who come here and taking into account the language issue and the different system that applies, cannot honestly be expected to be portuguese property gurus and know all of the right questions to ask. Agents and lawyers who conspire to deliberately conceal vital information from their client who not only has engaged them, but also has placed full trust in them because they selfishly think that this information may harm the sale (this information should most certainly harm the sale) if these A/Holes were doing their jobs and not just leading people up the garden path and into a pile of ****e just solely so that they can get their full fee and commission, these are very sad despicable creatures and you Derek know who I am refering to very well.

I also see that this same used house is now back on the market again and this time with "a different agency" and with an asking price of €15,000 more than last time.

To John 999.
Who can I report this agent to John ? Despite claiming to be a registered agent and quoting his registered no. with all of his posts on another pt forum, it turned out that he was not registered at all. Neither was his name going to appear on the deed (this was to ensure that he could not be linked to the sale when everything went pear shaped) plus he had no insurance cover.

[silvers]

Hi Setanta,
Firstly this is not a dig at you, don't hunt me down! I am not a wabbit!!!
Some people come here and leave their brains back in the UK. They do stupid things, that they would never dream of doing back home, so why do it here? They buy houses paying cash, without surveys, signing bits of paper in languages they do not understand. In general, they trust a stranger wayyyyyyy toooooooo much. That's why my Portuguese wife and I have offered to help so many people off forums like this one. We have never charged anybody anything for this.
I feel that the potential buyer needs someone to pull in the reins a little, that's what we do.
If you wish to report the bogus agent, go to a respectable agency, and ask there. They will be only too happy to get an unregistered agent off the radar.

[omostra06]

Originally Posted by Mr.Blueskies

To Derek:

Ordinary people who come here and taking into account the language issue and the different system that applies, cannot honestly be expected to be portuguese property gurus and know all of the right questions to ask. Agents and lawyers who conspire to deliberately conceal vital information from their client who not only has engaged them, but also has placed full trust in them because they selfishly think that this information may harm the sale (this information should most certainly harm the sale) if these A/Holes were doing their jobs and not just leading people up the garden path and into a pile of ****e just solely so that they can get their full fee and commission, these are very sad despicable creatures and you Derek know who I am refering to very well.

I also see that this same used house is now back on the market again and this time with "a different agency" and with an asking price of €15,000 more than last time.

I do indeed know who you are talking about because you have told me who you bought through and which Lawyer you used during our many pm messages where you were asking for advice on the matter.
Some people do experiance problems when buying, I know in your case you told me that you had lots of problems with the person you employed, that led to the sale not going through, You did do things a bit different from a normal purchase, you found an individual and asked him to help you buy a house that you had found yourself. (not that this should have caused any problems!) the normal more common way of buying a house is to find an agency and then let them help you find a suitable property.

Inci registered agents have strict rules to follow and should offer a good service leading to a purchase going smoothly. individual sales people/agents not working for a inci registered company have no one to answer to, not inci or thier employers.
if they have someone controling thier sale, like a manager or agency owner, which is normally what happens, it is very unlikely that things will be allowed to go wrong, or things will be not explained.
if some individaual was to try to not do a good job, or not give important info to the buyer, his/her manager would spot it and resolve any issue. thats how it works with larger agencies that employ lots of individual sales people, they are controled and closely watched to insure that all the inci rules are followed.

As an example,
We have in the past had several new employees that i have had to "let go" due to them still trying to work to the lower standards they picked up at previous agencies they worked for. we do monitor all our people to ensure they do a good honest job and maintain the standard we set, if they dont meet them they are out.

The person you employed to help buy your house was either at the time working for an agency that didnt control the standard of his work, or at the time he was operating on his own and not working for an agency.

it comes right back to us always saying to people use an agency with a good reputation, one that is inci registered, ask around the locals, the forums etc and see who gets good reports.

My point about the forums being a good way of people learning what to ask, is a valid one. when people first think about moving to Portugal or any other place. they probably know very little about the laws relating to property/purchase and the purchasing process, forums like these are a great way of learning info, tips, things to do, things to avoid. anyone reading through the info on here and available elsewhere on the web, will pick up a lot of info,

even if they dont become property gurus, they will be more informed and more confident to tackle the buying a propery process armed with the info they have learned, than if they just went blindly in. so the forums are very helpful to buyers.

[Mr.Blueskies]

Hi Silvers,

"You might be very surprised if I was to tell you who this unregistered agent is now working for !

[silvers]

Who is that? I would like to know for my own dabblings.

[PETERFC]

Hi All

Name and shame is one thing but if that person is now with a well respected agent would it not create a problem the good agent does not deserve to have to deal with.

Peter

[Jamesie]

Originally Posted by Foz

We are coming to the Silver Coast in September to look for a property to buy. I would be very grateful if anyone can recommend a good english speaking Solicitor/Lawyer in the area.

Hi,
We know a few lawyers in the area who we use and can recommend.
They are located in :
Figueira da Foz
Lousa
Miranda do Corvo.

Regards,

[Mr.Blueskies]

Hi Peter,

Surely this must depend on how one looks at things ? Well respected agents can be duped by chancers and rogues just like the rest of us and no one
should or really could hold that against them. But it would surely be a different matter would it not, if a well respected agent was to still employ such an individual AFTER having been made fully aware of the facts and about this individuals modus operandi ?

Surely this would be enough to cause alarm bells to ring and red lights
(Peter) to flash ?