Common Mistakes and Misunderstandings

1. This is a true story. A vendor had a large new-build house for sale at a very fair price After a year he still had not sold it. His frustration was all the sharper for seeing smaller houses in less desirable positions sell quickly at a higher price. Finally he figured out why. He planted a mature wisteria and a few palm and citrus trees at a total cost of a few hundred euros. He upped the price by 30,000 euros and sold it within the month. If you go wobbly-kneed over those flower-bedecked hacienda-type villas in the magazines you are fair game for a rip-off. Strip away the pretty wrapping and look hard at what you are actually getting. Remember, a garden can be established very quickly and cheaply here, and to your own taste.

2. Many Brits arrive with dreams of big spreads of land on which they will cultivate fruit and vegetables. A year later they are bitterly regretting taking it on. Not only have they discovered that it is very hard and time-consuming work, but they have also become acutely aware of how much watering is needed! All water is metered, and on a sliding scale – the more you use, the more it costs per cubic metre. They find themselves with water bills which far outweigh the value of any produce which has survived insect and bird attack.

3. Most guidebooks will tell you that 10-15% of the sale price should be added for extras. This is utter drivel. I have been involved in many, many sales, and I have never known extras to amount to more than 3%, and usually much less than that. (I believe this irresponsible nonsense dates from the 1970s, when you could still buy a house for £500. Legal and other fees might have been £50, so there you have it – extras are at least 10%! This misinformation, copied from one publication to the next down the years, and which editors seem strangely reluctant to correct, might well suit a shark who offers to take care of the extras for you, and pockets the very substantial difference.).

4. Another common mistake is to pay double for a house which is merely dilapidated, rather than totally ruined. The buyer then pays out more to have the rotting windows, floors and roof ripped out, and there, staring back at him, is the ruin he rejected at half the price because it was too far gone.

5. Having arranged a solicitor and a licenced estate agent, many a foreign buyer then sits back and switches off his brain, smiling serenely even as he’s being thoroughly fleeced. The estate agent’s licence (called an AMI) confers legality; it does not necessarily confer integrity or competence. Some sharks have this licence, while some honest dealers do not. Make comparisons and use your own judgment.

6. The solicitor’s fee should not be much more than c. 750 euros, unless there are complications, at least in this part of Portugal. They are usually painfully slow. The Portuguese rarely use them. The deed is carried out by a public notary, who must check that all is legally in order.

7. Be wary of the expert on the barstool – he likes to feel worldly and important by scaring newcomers. Contrary to what he will tell you, EU citizens do NOT need a residence permit, and will certainly not be thrown out of the country for failure to possess one.