Visiting the Silver Coast Area

Obviously you'll need to visit the Silver Coast area to decide on the property you wish to invest in.

Here are some recommendations for your visit:

1. Pick a good local Estate Agency that is government licensed and ensure you are shown properties by someone that is completely bilingual. Lots of the estate agencies in the area are experiencing overseas investors but have poor communication skills, which seriously hamper your viewing trip, and can cause large problems later on once the purchase phase starts. Communication is essential. We work closely with a fully licensed estate agency and will ensure you are shown properties with a full English speaker - not someone who can say the odd phrase or two!
Rather than trying to organise visits via multiple agents, ask the agent you are confident in if they can source properties if you have seen them listed elsewhere. The property market in the Silver Coast region is still in its infancy and, for instance, if you have seen a property listed elsewhere, we can probably arrange a viewing of it for you.

We can show you properties with a full native english speaker, fluent in both English AND portuguese. We also have a contact number in the UK so you can keep in touch both home and abroad.

2. Think about taking a TomTom One European GPS system. The TomTom is around £250 from Dixons in the high street and about £210 from www.pcworld.co.uk. You will find it an invaluable tool. When viewing properties it is nice to be able to go back to the ones you are interested in more than once. 

The answer is the GPS. Simply set the location of the property as a favourite when you are standing outside on the first viewing, and you will be able to come and go as often as you like, without the fear of getting lost in the winding Portuguese hillsides. Knowing you can always find your way back to your hotel will also ensure you have stress free trips around the countryside looking at towns and villages. It will ALSO enable you to find the EXACT coordinates of the location of each property on Google Earth... which is discussed below in point 3.

3. If you have a laptop take it with you. Load Google Earth on to it. If you've never heard of Google Earth, you are in for a treat. It is a FANTASTIC program, completely FREE which acts like a virtual 3d globe, covering the entire earths surface. The Silver Coast area of Portugal is extremely well covered and the satellite photography that you can zoom in on allows you to see individual houses quite clearly.
Why would you want this?
Looking at the property, or area from above can often alert you to things that you would otherwise be unaware of. Our estate agents will always tell you if they know the property is close to a major road, railway track or other potential inconvenience, but with Google Earth you can see for yourself exactly what is round the corner or how close the beach is!
You really have to download and use Google Earth to see just how amazing it is - download it free from:

4. If you intend to purchase a property during your first visit, OR would like to go home, think about your options and then purchase from the UK then you will need to visit a good, English speaking Solicitor whilst you are in Portugal. If you arrange to see a Solicitor whilst you are on your trip you can arrange to sign a Power of Attorney document which will enable the entire house purchase to be arranged with you still in the UK. You will need to take your Passport, bank statements and a utility bill with you and your solicitor will arrange to sign the power of attorney document in front of a public notary.
Signing a powerful document, such as a power of attorney can be a worrying thing, but we can recommend a solicitor who we have used hundreds of times. We are not on commission for recommending him, but he makes the process of purchasing property a very painless and simple operation and all our clients have spoken highly of him. We can give you details of other British people who will be happy to recommend him, as he has helped them with the purchase of their property in this area.

5. Shop around for flights to Lisbon, both Monarch and EasyJet fly to Lisbon, but at the time of writing this guide the lowest priced flights from the UKs London Airports were from Monarch airlines. See www.flymonarch.com . As with many airlines today you will get lower prices the further in advance you book.

CONTACT US NOW - Tell us what type of property you are looking for, and we'll keep you posted!