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Ciaran Maguire Claims He Gave Deposits Back

2010-10-25T02:39:00.000-07:00

OK, latest installment on the weirdness that is the CMG and Flash Developments story courtesy of the Sunday Business Post.

Mr. Maguire claims he's given the deposits back to the agency selling the property but it was never passed back to the investors - Anthony Joyce (solicitor) says there is no evidence to suggest that he did any such thing. Joyce also says most of the money was paid directly to Flash Developments, which Maguire denies.

KPMG (Flash Liquidators) also claim that Maguire has no title in CV, which he denies vehemently - but still appears incapable of producing documentation to prove ownership. Very strange stuff.

Note, there are no claims of this being a €1.8 billion Resort anymore.

http://www.sbpost.ie/news/ireland/maguire-claiming-to-have-repaid-cape-verde-investors-52447.html

Dublin-based businessman Ciarán Maguire, who is being sued by a group of investors in a €100 million resort in Cape Verde, has claimed that he refunded their deposits to the sales agency but that the money has not been passed on to the investors.

Maguire told The Sunday Business Post that he had been in discussions with Dublin solicitor Anthony Joyce, who is representing the group who have lodged a class action in the High Court against Maguire and his company, the Ciaran Maguire Group.

They are seeking immediate repayment of their deposits. Maguire claims that the investors represented by Joyce bought through a sales agency and not through him or his companies.

‘‘I refunded the agency. Now, unfortunately, that was never recycled back," said Maguire.

‘‘I’ve a very, very clear paper trail to show I’ve actually paid the agency back."

However, Joyce said the case would be proceeding until all monies were repayed to his clients.

He said that ‘‘a number of clients had paid small deposits to an agency, but they paid the remaining monies to Flash Developments’’, another company controlled by Maguire.

‘‘We’ve seen no paperwork to suggest Maguire had refunded any money to the agency," said Joyce.

Flash Developments collapsed into liquidation last May, and the High Court ordered an investigation into the company, after evidence emerged that it had used deposits from buyers to finance the running of the firm.

Court documents also include claims that the company did not have title to land in Cape Verde, but Maguire continues to claim that he has title to the land.

‘‘I’ve subsequently been liaising with KPMG, and they are now happy that Ciaran Maguire Group does have the contracts in place with the Cape Verde government and does have the relevant title on the land in Boa Vista," he told The Sunday Business Post.

But liquidator Kieran Wallace of KMPG said that this was not the case. ‘‘We have no evidence whatsoever to date that Maguire has title on any land in Cape Verde," Wallace told this newspaper.

‘‘We understand that he put a lot of money down on two plots of land through Flash Developments and never got title.

There’s no paperwork to show title on any land.

We’ve seen no proof that he’s repaid any monies."

However, Maguire insists that the Ciaran Maguire Group is continuing to build the Palm View development of 400 apartments and villas on the island of Boa Vista. He said that construction on the 111-acre plot had begun, and that completions were expected by December 2011.

According to Maguire, 300 units have been sold off the plans in the first phase of the scheme, with prices ranging from €50,000 up to €865,000.

'Get Your Money Back' Seminar to be held in Dublin

2010-09-20T02:20:00.000-07:00

The Spanish Property Action Group and Bulgarian Property Action Group have formed an alliance to host the 'Get Your Money Back' seminars. The first of these seminars is to be held at the Rathcoole Suite, Citywest Hotel in Dublin on the 2nd of October 2010.

These seminars are aimed at the thousands of Irish and British property investors who invested in off-plan property in Spain and Bulgaria and are now desperately trying to reclaim their money due to the failure of developers to deliver the finished developments.

Many property developments in Spain and Bulgaria have not been completed, some without water and electricity, some are half built and others were never started. The developers and banks involved have continually refused any requests to fulfill contractual obligations and where deposits have successfully been recovered, this has taken some years. In some cases, this has led to extreme hardship. People have lost their life savings or retirement funds and are all victims of the illegal activities of unscrupulous developers and the lawyers representing them.

Those involved with the Action Groups know how to recover funds because they have already done it successfully and know the pitfalls to avoid. The Action Groups are now in a position to offer a realistic, low entry cost service as well as sound, proven advice to those in similar positions.

For more information, contact:

www.spanishpropertyactiongroup.com

www.bulgaria-property-action-group.com

Sell Your Bulgarian Property

2010-09-01T01:09:00.000-07:00

Bulgaria has got some very bad press since it first aspired to being the darling of the overseas property industry from 2004 to 2006. As with all such situations, some of the negative press is deserved and some of it is not. There is no doubt the country got caught at just the wrong time in a huge property bubble that swept much of Europe and has caused untold misery in property markets, most notably across several of the former Soviet states. If it were a few years earlier to the party a lot of the property in the process of being built around a variety of resorts in Bulgaria would have been finished, supplying the bedrock of completed developments on which a second-hand property industry could base itself. If it hadn’t started until a few years later the country may well have saved itself and a raft of overseas property investors a lot of pain.

It is important to note that not all property stories emanating from Bulgaria are negative. Outside of the beach and ski resorts there have been some surprisingly favourable reports. While there are certainly some developments that will never be completed because there simply aren’t the funds or the demand to do so, there are many completed developments and significant numbers nearing completion. The uncompleted developments will undoubtedly gain most of the press coverage which will have a negative impact on the property industry in Bulgaria for many years to come. In the resort areas in particular there will be the scarring of half-finished developments, much like what happened in Spain during the eighties and something that is being repeated there today. Indeed we have our own blight of incomplete developments here in Ireland, the big difference is that they are not all located in a few areas which makes them substantially less obvious.

As part of the positive story in Bulgaria, Tom Fingleton of Buyinbulgaria, one of the longest standing and most successful Irish property companies involved in the Bulgarian market, says he and his company have been quite successful reselling a number of its own clients’ apartments in Sofia over the past two years. The buyers are exclusively Bulgarian, and will pay current market prices rather than the inflated prices that may have been paid when these properties were first purchased.

Average apartment prices across Sofia in the past year have worked out in the €800-900 per sq m for finished or unfinished apartments. This is, unfortunately, a long way short of the €1,400 to €1,800 per sq m paid by a lot of Irish investors at the peak of the boom. It is a market, nevertheless, for those who have to get an exit at any price. Fingleton claims it could be argued the market was never above €1,000 per sq. meter but there is no doubt property was sold well above this level.

The company uses its own office in Sofia to sell units through a selection of smaller local agents in Sofia. Fingleton says the company now has a lack of product so it is looking for properties it can promote. Only a small number of units are managed at any one time to ensure personalised service. There are, he says, never more than 10 properties on their books at any one time.

For further information contact 01-254-4155 or visit www.buyinbulgaria.com.

CMG Fails To Answer Legal Questions

2010-07-20T07:19:00.000-07:00

I know, the post title is pretty familiar at this stage, but this is a very different set of questions being asked by some serious people - Justice Finlay Geoghegan in the High Court to be specific. These questions have been thrown up by the liquidation of Flash Developments, which had been holding the contracts and money of investors in the Palm View Resort in Boa Vista, Cape Verde.

In a piece in the Sunday Business Post on June 27th Ian Kehoe claimed that the "High Court has ordered an investigation into property company Flash Developments, after evidence emerged that the company may have used deposits from buyers to finance the running of the firm."

It went on to claim: "It has also emerged in court documents that the company, which is headed by businessman Ciaran Maguire, may not have title over land in Cape Verde, where it had proposed to build a €100 million property scheme."

It also claimed: "documents filed last week by the liquidator, KPMG accountant Kieran Wallace, said that Flash appeared 'to have financed the general running of the company' from the deposits it received, rather than place them on secure deposit. "

The Insolvency Journal had the following on June 23rd: "The High Court also heard on Monday that the liquidator of Flash Developments Ltd, Kieran Wallace, is pursuing an investigation into representations made on behalf of the company which appear to suggest that the company may have taken deposits for villas and apartments when it didn't have the authority to do so.

The firm, controlled by businessman Ciaran Maguire, was placed into liquidation in May following a court petition by international recruitment firm Hays.

Flash Developments had received deposits from 200 Irish and British investors for properties in a proposed €100 million resort on Cape Verde. But speaking to the Sunday Business Post last month, Magure insisted that all of the deposits were safe, despite the wind-up of the firm, because all contracts, development lands and credit lines had been transferred to another company – the Ciaran Maguire Group."

These are very, very serious claims of fraudulent activity and we didn't feel it was right to put such claims on the blog, even though the claims weren't ours, without asking Ciaran for a comment on them. In fairness, he's been fairly forthcoming in the recent past, answering most of the queries we've put to him. So we did just that - and didn't get an answer. Instead his office responded to say he was in Cape Verde and would like to be given a chance to respond on his return.

So we waited, and waited, and waited. Still nothing.

Eventually, on July 13th Ciaran came back to us with the following: "I have just returned from Cape Verde and can confirm that building works are on going and I will furnish you with the updated pictures tomorrow. I can also confirm that the claims from Kieran Wallace are absolutely false and I am very much looking forward to outlining all the actual facts. I would also like to highlight that Kieran Wallace has no involvements in Ciaran Maguire Group and therefore has never seen any documentation in the Ciaran Maguire Group including contracts thus making these claims unfounded."

So we waited for the follow-up - but it never came. In fact, Ciaran has stopped responding to our emails completely for some reason so we've had to put up the post without further input from him.

Today (July 20th) the following appeared on the Boa Vista Experience Forum from the user CMG:

Dear all,

I would like to convey that under the advice from my legal team, I will no longer be in a position to post comments on this forum. Despite several requests to sit down with interested parties in both my office in Dublin and including making myself available to fly to the U.K. to meet with any interested parties, I have not received one offer. I have made it categorically clear that I was happy to answer all questions put to me.

Sitting down and having a face to face meeting would have given me the opportunity to outline and display the facts allowing me to furnish these parties with all the relevant documentation. I believe this would have allowed you to give a true reflection on Palm View Resort.

In light of the above my legal team have been working on logging and detailing all the posts made on this forum. It is now my intention to aggressively seek compensation for defamation and reputational damages. I would like to highlight to the careless bloggers on this forum that my legal team have now traced all the IP addresses and real names behind the identified bloggers and will be issuing the legal letters to the aforementioned.

The people on this forum who have made comments deemed to be defamatory please note; I intend to use these posts on this forum as evidence against you in a court of law.

In relation to the existing 200 plus clients and investors in Palm View; I would like to advise that my office will be furnishing you with updated pictures of on going works on site and general monthly updates. We are on schedule for completion in December 2011 and we can all look forward to seeing Palm View coming to fruition.

Regards,

Ciaran Maguire."

This follows a similar threat on the same forum on June 14th last. Following that post we were contacted by a number of posters on the forum who said Ciaran hadn't even got their country right in some cases.

This IP Address Tracking claim is a particularly strange one as most ISP's (Internet Service Providers such as Eircom and BT) these days provide clients with what is termed a 'Dynamic IP Address'. It is a system whereby IP Addresses are assigned randomly to clients as they are needed, rather than individual IP Addresses being assigned permanently, which is a very poor use of ISP resources. Consequently, most people's IP addresses change at least once every day and several times in most cases, depending on usage. This system makes tracking the IP Address beyond the region in which it is based (e.g. Dublin, Waterford, Cork, etc.) virtually impossible.

It is possible that those hosting the forum could trace the odd post back to a fixed IP Address (common in larger companies who have very heavy internet usage), but not very many of them. In the main they are, and will remain, totally anonymous.

Consequently, Ciaran's claim that he has the names of people posting on this, or any other forum, is absolutely bizarre.

In any case, we've always been very forthcoming with our interest in this particular development, Ciaran knows exactly who we are and the questions we've got. We've also tried to be fair to the developer and have given him every opportunity to put his side of the debate to the general public where possible. He simply seems to have decided not to do so in the last few weeks which is a great shame.

If Ciaran decides to change his mind on this matter and does email us with further information we'll be sure to put it on the blog post-haste.

Legal Firm Seeks Spanish Property Buyers

2010-07-13T00:59:00.000-07:00

Many Irish buyers of property in Spain have run into trouble for one reason or another over the past few years. Unfortunately they've not had much reason to feel particularly cheerful as it is a very lonely place to be and there usually isn't anybody to whom you can go for support.

Well these buyers, depending on their circumstances, may well be interested to hear that there is one company in Spain that may be able to help out.

That company is the European Advisory Service.

The following is from the company's site:

"In recent years major problems have arisen in the property market through over-development, corrupt councils and the recession. The market has collapsed and along with it a huge amount of investors’ money. Some big names in the development world have gone bust and investors are trying desperately to claw back their money with few results so far.

The question at the moments is: what are the chances of getting money back from a developer who has gone bust? Surprisingly, the answer is: excellent – although it won’t happen over night.

How Can Purchasers Claim Their Money Back?

Spain is still very much a socialist country and the laws here are designed to help the man in the street over and above the interests of companies and individuals of power and means. Contracts in Spain usually favour the weaker party and this is the same in the world of property development.

Knowing that there are laws to protect you, however, is not enough. Being able to utilize them for your benefit is the key to success and for this you will need a good, experienced and independent lawyer. By independent we mean not associated in any way with the developer.

We are not associated with any developers and are happy to assess your case without obligation and completely free of charge. Although our lawyers are already representing many people who have lost a lot of money to developers every situation is different and we will help you as an individual and advise on your particular circumstances.

We are particularly keen to speak to people who have purchased through Aifos, McAnthony Realty, Polaris World and Promociones Eurohouse 2010 (Fortuna Hills etc)."

Feel free to visit the company's site and see if it can be of assistance to you.

Note: OverseasCafe.com has no connection with and stands to gain nothing from readers of this blog dealing with European Advisory Service. We also have no experience of the advice or support provided so cannot recommend it in any way.

Dubai Sports City CEO Resigns

2010-07-01T02:00:00.000-07:00

We've learned from the new (and not fully operational yet according to the creators) TemptedBuy.com website that U. Balasubramaniam (often simply called Bala) has resigned as CEO of the Dubai Sports City complex in the United Arab Emirates.

The article reads as follows:

"The monster sports themed proposed development claims notoriety in Ireland as that with which the Concerned Dubai Sports City Investors’ Group, now more often referred to simply as the Dubai Action Group, has taken issue over up to €20m in deposits which the investors fear have now been lost.

These investors bought off-plan apartments through Ennis, Co. Clare based overseas property agent, Larionovo, which went into Liquidation in November 2008. The investors are worried that cash invested, which many hoped would fund their retirements, is now tied up in Dubai, possibly never to be seen again. A meeting of the group in Dublin’s Citywest Hotel late in 2009 heard that investors have no idea if building work has started on some apartments, such is the difficulty in getting information from some Dubai Sports City developers. Some had received letters telling them the project had been put ‘on hold’ but there were no offers to return deposits.

In an email sent to his colleagues and contacts Balasubramaniam said: “The time has come for me to move on to a new phase in my professional career after seven eventful years as the Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Sports City. Leaving is never easy and although it has been a tough decision to take, I am looking forward to taking some time off and pursuing other interests. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Dubai Sports City and am very grateful for the support that I have received from the Stakeholders, the company President, the Management and all the staff, who have been of great help to me in carrying out my job and its responsibilities.

It has been a pleasure to make associations and come to know you over the years and would like to personally thank you for your friendship and support in working together to progress this truly unique and great project.”

In an interview in April 2007, Balasubramaniam was quite bullish about the prospects of the Sports City developments finishing on time, since that time, however, there have been significant delays, in common with many other developments around the Emirate. While the global economic downturn took some time to take hold in the UAE, since striking it has proven to be extremely severe and prolonged.

On the latest Dubai Sports City update document, which was released in September ’09 the company claimed that completion had been reached on the Cricket Stadium, the Ernie Els Golf Course, the Butch Harmon School of Golf and the American Curriculum School. It also stated that the Victory Heights golf community had started to welcome residents, the Sports Acadamies Campus was nearing completion and that all roads, infrastructure and utilities were in place. Apart from Victory Heights no mention was made of the status of any other residential developments, which are numerous. A picture was included, however, of the Canal Residence West apartments, which appeared to be around 25% completed."

You can read the article on the TemptedBuy.com website here.

Sawgrass Marriott Golf - Chapter 11 Filing

2010-06-28T04:25:00.000-07:00

This information is quite old, but these links may be useful for anyone looking for information on the Chapter 11 case of the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa in Florida - famous as the venue for Tiger Woods' public apology for his infidelities on Feb. 19th, 2010. It was owned by an Irish consortium, Redquartz Boundary Ltd., which purchased it at the height of the boom in 2006 and was forced into a Chapter 11 filing by its lenders, Goldman Sachs, on January 28th 2010.

The statement released by the Sawgrass Marriott at the time of the filing read as follows: “This action is in response to the current global economic environment and the fact that an agreement on a restructure with the lenders could not be reached. This process will protect the resort and allow us to continue to operate business as usual. We are firmly committed to maintaining our world-class operation and foresee no changes in the day-to-day operations at Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa.”

The story has been reported in a number of media outlets since the announcement last March, here are just a few:

Sunday Business Post:

Irish Investors in the Rough

Irish investors, including well-known names in the business world, could lose up to $90million they invested in the buyout of a hotel on the Sawgrass golf course in Florida. About 100 investors, mainly high-net worth individuals, were involved in the $220 million buyout of the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa at the height of the boom in July 2006. The investors include Philip Lynch, chief executive of investment firm On€51. More...

Irish Independent:

Florida Dream Resort's Value has Halved, say Irish Investors.

THE Irish owners of the Sawgrass Golf Resort and Spa believe the Florida property known for hosting Tiger Woods' February apology is worth less than half the $250m (€204m) they've ploughed into it.

The valuations emerged in a Jacksonville courtroom this week as Irish investors, including financier Niall McFadden, fended off an attempt to have the resort seized and sold. More...

Jacksonville Business Journal

Sawgrass Marriott Owners file for Chapter 11

The owners of the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa in Ponte Vedra Beach have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Public records show RQB Resort LP and RQB Development LP filed for bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida yesterday, listing Goldman Sachs Group Inc. among its creditors and assets and debt of as much as $500 million each. More...

Sawgrass Marriott Case Summary

http://www.scribd.com/doc/28589679/RQB-Sawgrass-Marriott-Case-Summary

A little car parking space by the sea... a snip at just £60,000

2010-06-24T03:17:00.000-07:00

The Daily Mail reports today that a single car parking space in a Cornish seaside town has been sold for nearly £60,000 - which was £20,000 over the asking price.

The small 20ft by 12ft plot of land was snapped up by a local resident who was determined to get the sought-after space in St Ives, Cornwall.

The cost of the space is three times the average annual salary in the town.

Estate agent Jonathan Payne who conducted the sealed bid auction said: 'I cannot remember one going for more money.

'Spaces are always in short supply in St Ives and even going back years, they made a premium price.'

He said there was a chronic lack of car parking space in the old part of the town.

The small plot of land is beside the entrance to the council-owned Island car park.

St Ives councillor and shop owner Colin Nicholls said it was a 'massive price', saying: 'I would rather do without a car than pay that kind of money.

'It is overpriced but that's how market forces operate.'

To view the full article click here.

Ryanair Introduces Optional Larger (20KG) Checked-In Bag Allowance

2010-06-22T05:36:00.000-07:00

Ryanair has announced that passengers can now choose a larger (20kg) checked-in bag allowance for €/£25 as an alternative to Ryanair’s standard (15kg) checked-in bag allowance which costs €/£15. Passengers who require a second checked-in bag can purchase an additional 15kg allowance for €/£35 (via Manage my Booking).

Ryanair continues to encourage passengers to travel light, by snapping up one of Ryanair’s approved Samsonite carry-on bags when booking their low fares Ryanair flights, which will allow them to continue to save by travelling with Ryanair’s free 10kgs carry-on bag.

Ryanair’s Stephen McNamara said:

“Ryanair continues to encourage passengers to travel light and save even more by leaving the checked-in bags at home and taking advantage of our 10kg free carry on allowance, and our great value Samsonite bag. However, passengers who do require checked-in luggage can now purchase a larger 20kg bag allowance for €/£25 or our standard 15kg bag from €/£15. Passengers can purchase our checked-in baggage allowances at the time of booking or subsequently through Manage My Booking on Ryanair.com.”

CHECKED-IN BAGGAGE	Online-Ryanair.com

	15kg bag	20kg bag

1st Bag	€15/£15	€25/£25

1st Bag - Peak -July & August	€20/£20	€30/£30

2nd Bag	€35/£35	n/a

2nd Bag - Peak -July & August	€40/£40	n/a

*Each passenger is permitted to purchase up to 2 checked in bags.

Spain - Minister for Housing, Beatriz Corredor, has replied to comments made last week by her predecessor

2010-06-21T05:15:00.000-07:00

The Spanish Minister for Housing, Beatriz Corredor, has replied to comments from her predecessor, María Antonia Trujillo and said that now is a good time to buy property in Spain. Trujillo had said that she would not buy property now and forecast prices would fall by a further 30% -50%.

Now Corredor has come out with a defence of the work of her Ministry, underlining the work it does in providing help into the official protection housing market.

The Minister said that there was still a tax deduction on housing in force this year, and that mortgage interest rates remained very low. She also claimed that some property in Spain has fallen in price by more than 60%. She said it was ‘important for purchasers to find out how much housing is worth in the area where they have chosen to live’.

She also noted that the SPA, Public Rent Society, was taking over more than 30,000 of the empty newly built homes into the rental sector.

From www.typicallyspanish.com

Blow to Dubai Property Owners

2010-06-20T02:05:00.000-07:00

Dubai property owners, who have been left totally at sea about the potential for having their properties completed at any stage, will not be happy with the news that one of the Emirate's main builders, Nakheel, is believed to have let go as many as 650 staff in the past week leaving the company now employing an estimated 240 people.

Nakheel, the property unit of Dubai World, was responsible for some of the more newsworthy and largest developments in Dubai such as the three Palm developments as well as Dubai World. It has announced the redundancies in a fresh round of job cuts according to Arabian Business magazine, but it was very reluctant to put a figure on the staff reduction.

Nakheel claims that the bulk of the redundancies affected administrative posts, but this is the latest in a string of cutbacks for the developer, which laid off 500 staff in November 2008 at the peak of the global financial crisis, and a further 400 in June 2009.

Dubai World, and therefore Nakheel, is a state backed group which has restructured $10.5bn in financial liabilities, asking trade creditors to wait five years to receive full payment having fallen behind on its repayments. Its owners, the Dubai government, said it would put $8bn in cash into the indebted property unit in March to help it pay contractors and suppliers and complete its projects.

The recent redundancies, in what is the biggest developer in the Emirate, will call into question whether much of the property that was sold in the boom will ever be built. This will, of course, come as quite a setback to the many Irish investors who have sent money to the Emirate. The quandary is whether they now write off their investment to date, contemplate legal action or live in hope that the Emirate can turn around its fortunes and build the properties that have been sold.

Get the full story in the Arabian Business magazine.

Spain's ex Housing Minister says she would not buy property in Spain now

2010-06-18T01:13:00.000-07:00

The Spanish ex Minister for Housing, María Antonia Trujillo, has told a reader of El País in an online interview that she would not buy a flat in Spain now.

The questioner asked whether she agreed with her successor’s view; Beatriz Corredor has declared that now is the best time to buy a home.

María Antonia Trujillo replied that everyone can do what they see fit, but that she has been looking to buy for three years and would not do so now as she expected house prices in Spain to fall by a further 30-50%. She added she hoped the adjustment would happen quickly.

Trujillo, who was Minister at the end of the real estate boom, admitted her part of the blame for the crash saying that everyone from the citizen to the politician has their share of the blame. She added however that the then Minister for Tax and the Economy, Pedro Solbes, had opposed her ideas to remove tax breaks for house buyers.

However she thinks such incentives should be in place now, despite the Government’s intention to remove them.

Asked if she missed being in Government, she replied ‘The best thing about being Minister is having been one’.

From www.typicallyspanish.com

House prices now rising in more than half of countries across the globe

2010-06-17T03:56:00.000-07:00

Knight Frank Global House Price Index – Quarter 1 2010 results

Key highlights:

• Prices increased in 53% of the locations monitored by the Knight Frank Global House Price Index in the year to the end of March 2010

• The Asia Pacific region saw the strongest growth with prices increasing, on average, by 17.8%

• Annual price inflation for all global housing markets moved into positive territory for the first time since Q4 2008, recording 1.6% growth in the year to March 2010

• The top performers remain the Asian economies of China, Hong Kong and Singapore, all recording annual growth in excess of 24%

• Ukraine and the three Baltic States continue to occupy the bottom rankings with annual price falls of more than 30%

Liam Bailey, head of residential research, Knight Frank, commented: “Arguably, the most noticeable trend in global house prices is the ease with which the performance of global housing markets can now be grouped by world region. The top four positions in our rankings are all occupied by Asia Pacific locations, whilst Europe dominates the bottom half of the table.
“A recovery in the global housing market is undoubtedly under way, in Q1 2009 33% of countries recorded positive annual growth, in Q1 2010 this figure is closer to 53% but still some way off the figure of 90% recorded in Q1 2006. “Analysis of the quarterly growth results suggests the markets in some of the worst performing markets such as the Baltic States and Ukraine are starting to experience some respite, with prices falling at a slower rate than previously. Estonia experienced a 40% fall in prices annually but only a 0.5% fall during the first three months of this year.

“Prices in Hong Kong increased by 30.6% in the year to March 2010, however, we expect results for the coming months will show more muted levels of growth as the Government’s efforts to rein in the overheated market take effect. These include measures to increase land supply, a maximum 60% loan-to-value restriction on mortgages for luxury homes and developers are now required to release at least 30% of units in their first phase to halt the slow release of homes which allows prices to inflate over the course of the development. “In Australia, prices rose 20% in the year to March 2010, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). However, in our opinion the results from ABS overstate the actual underlying price growth due to its unique methodology and seasonal shifts in market activity, partly as a result of the increase in first time buyer demand over the past year which has been driven by government incentives.

“Historically, the index has overshot on both the downside and in this case the upside – other private house price measures, which have a more wide reaching methodology, taking into account apartments and semi-detached housing (unlike the ABS), have recorded growth of around 12% in the year to March 2010. This still significant growth has been driven by a confluence of factors; 40-year low interest rates, first time buyer concessions, strong population growth and a lagging supply response.

With interest rates now rising, the government withdrawing stimulus and the supply response picking up (albeit modestly), we expect house price growth to slow over the next six to nine months. “Doubts over the Australian Index’s methodology are mirrored in Spain where, according to its Housing Ministry, prices fell by 4.7% in the year to March 2010. Most serious commentators however believe price falls of 10-20% over this period provide a more accurate reflection of Spain’s housing market performance given its backdrop; 20% unemployment, a shrinking economy and rising debt.

“In Europe a positive story has been provided by the Scandinavian countries of Norway, Sweden and Finland. Here, annual growth has hit double digits as housing markets, less beset by currency weakness and debt crisis than many of their European neighbours, has allowed supply shortages to fuel growth once more. “Generally, however, the Q1 2010 results suggest that whilst global housing markets remain polarised, each quarter provides new evidence that the global recovery is gaining ground as the proportion of countries moving into positive territory increases. It remains to be seen whether this is another period of sustained growth or the middle peak in a double dip recession. Certainly, a number of European economies face growing challenges in the form of tightening fiscal policy and austerity measures.”

For further information, please contact:
Liam Bailey, Residential Research, Knight Frank, +44 (0)20 7861 5133, liam.bailey@knightfrank.com

To read the full report Click Here.

Leptos Estates Backs Down in Libel Action

2010-06-14T08:37:00.000-07:00

Last week, the packed public gallery of a Paphos courtroom broke into applause when the lawyer acting on behalf of Mr O’Hare announced that the libel case against his client, brought by Armonia Estates Ltd and Pantelis Leptos, had been dismissed.

Armonia Estates Limited is part of the Leptos Group and operates under the brand name Leptos Estates; Pantelis Leptos is Vice-chairman of Leptos Group and Marketing Director of Leptos Estates. They were claiming hundreds of thousands of Euros from Mr O’Hare resulting from statements, which Mr O’Hare had published on the Cyprus Property Action Group (CPAG) website, that they considered libellous.

In his opening address to the court, a lawyer acting on behalf of the plaintiffs asked the court’s permission to withdraw their law suit and the injunction against Mr O’Hare.

Outside the courtroom I asked the plaintiffs’ lawyer if he would advise me why his clients had backed down in their libel action. His answer was an emphatic “NO!”

Mr O’Hare refused to comment on the court proceedings, but a spokesperson acting on his behalf said that he wished to thank everyone for their support and especially for the legal testimonies submitted by some of the buyers.

The future of the Cyprus Property Action Group and Denis O’Hare’s continuing involvement is still under discussion. We shall bring you further news as we receive it.

For News Article on Cyprus Property Magazine Click Here.

Humber Valley Emerges From the Ashes

2010-06-13T05:25:00.000-07:00

PRESS RELEASE HUMBER VALLEY RESORT

Noton Enterprises Limited, a numbered company, 61839 Newfoundland and Labrador Limited, and Oke Consultants Limited, all locally owned companies, have formed a joint venture partnership and have purchased the assets of Humber Valley Resort. The new owners intend to operate and manage the Resort under a new corporate entity: Humber Valley Resort Corporation (2010). I, Katie Watton, will be the Public Relations Director, Gary Oke the Managing Director of Operations and Graham Watton, Q.C., General Counsel looking after all corporate and legal matters.

We will be focusing on making that which is already on site work properly so that the Resort can become the success it already has the potential to be. First let me state that Humber Valley Resort is one of the best things that has happened to the West Coast of this beautiful Province. The vision was and still is spectacular, unfortunately the execution was less so, but that is the past. We have to put the past behind us and move forward. All that the Humber Valley and the West Coast has to offer is still here and that hasn’t changed - the scenic beauty and renowned hospitality which attracted people to come here in the first place remains. We intend to promote and develop Humber Valley Resort as a 4 season Resort Destination.

We do not intend to move away from the Resort concept. However, we are confident that by combining permanent residents and seasonal and holiday residents we will attain the best of both worlds and a perfect balance.

A major concern for many of the successful resorts in Western Canada - Fernie, Panorama, Golden, Radium Hot Springs, Kimberly and the like is that chalets are sold exclusively as second or vacation homes and the resorts become desolate ghost towns in the off season.

These resorts are now moving to a mixed residency, both permanent and seasonal residents, and we are convinced that by using this approach we will avoid these “down periods” and maintain the Resort’s vibrancy.

Some of the Humber Valley Resort’s permanent residents are former vacationers who fell in love with our community, the people, the scenery, our warmth, culture and our way of life.

People from all over the world call Humber Valley Resort their home. For some, it is a vacation retreat, and for others it is a permanent residence. As a resident of Humber Valley Resort your neighbours are from all over the world - England, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany, various other places throughout Europe, various parts of Canada and Newfoundland. An exciting and stimulating mix of ideas and cultures.

We will shortly be meeting with the chalet homeowners association to work out and arrange a smooth transition and takeover of the operation, management and provision of all of the essential services to the Resort. A lot of work has to be performed to improve and upgrade the existing services, the roads, the communications, etc. We will start immediately.

With our very capable team which we will shortly be putting into place and under the supervision of our capable Managing Director, Gary Oke, we will get the Resort’s Golf Course in shape as one of the best golf courses in Canada. The Resort and the golf course, which is an 18 hole, Par 72 championship golf course, has won some excellent awards in the past - Humber Valley River Golf Course voted “Canada’s Best New Course 2007" - voted Worldwide Resort of the Year 2006 and 2007 - Best New Canadian Course, 3rd place - Best New International Course. Under the capable management of Gary Oke we intend to win further awards for the Humber River Golf Course and the Humber Valley Resort.

The cost of the green fees will be reasonable - we intend to attract more members, visitors, golfers and tourists, who hopefully will come for several days - possibly weeks - and stay at the chalets at the Resort and vacation throughout Western Newfoundland and the Northern Peninsula, bringing economic benefit throughout the region.

Maintenance and rental of some of the chalets are presently being serviced and rented by a number of rental and management companies, including some owners themselves. We will shortly meet with these firms and individuals and the chalet homeowners association. We will consult with the chalet homeowners association and will have discussions with all of the interested parties with respect to the various property maintenance and rental management scenarios which are available and what would be in the best interests of the chalet owners, Humber Valley Resort and the people visiting and staying at the beautiful chalets in Humber Valley Resort.

We will also shortly be working towards getting the Eagles Perch Club House building up and running and available for special events, meetings, conventions, weddings, and the opening of the Dining room, the bar, and the golf shop. We have plans to provide themed events at the Eagles Perch at various times of the year and to providing seminars and weekends to include culinary instruction, wellness and personal development, and golfing seminars, etc. Within a short period of time we will be creating between 30-40 new jobs.

With the purchase of the Resort assets, the new owners have also purchased all of the intellectual property, copyright, trademarks of Humber Valley Resort. Humber Valley Resort has also in the past been honoured with 3 substantial website awards. The Resort also took top honours at the Silver Spider Web Awards. Humber Valley Resort walked away with awards for both site promotion and best overall site. We will be updating the website of Humber Valley Resort.

We will be giving serious consideration to a 4 star hotel in the Resort’s future plans, and incorporating and taking advantage of the Provincial Government’s Incentive Tax Credit Program. We are well aware of the recent announcement and the various comments concerning the proposed Resort developments in the Steady Brook area and we wish the developers every success.

However, we strongly believe there is room in the Humber Valley Resort for a 4 star hotel-condominium complex. We have the location, the infrastructure, the international world class golf course and the spectacular

Eagles Perch Club House, its Dining and conference facilities, meeting and banquet rooms and available lands adjacent to Eagles Perch which can accommodate the construction of a 4 star hotel-condominium complex.

We are not making any big promises, however, we do realize that to take advantage of the Provincial Government Incentive Tax Credit Program, we will have to make a decision on the 4 star hotel-condominium complex within the next 12-18 months.

We will consult with all stakeholders and keep them informed - the chalet homeowners association - the chalet owners - the Provincial Government - the Department of Tourism - Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador - the various municipal councils throughout the Humber Valley region, Western Newfoundland and Northern Peninsula.

We intend to provide the chalet owners association, the chalet owners, all of the stakeholders, and the public with thorough and honest communication in all aspects of the Resort’s operation to instill confidence and trust in the Resort and its new owners.

Our goal is to get the Resort and golf course back into operation and further develop and promote the Resort as a four season Destination and an upscale residential community.

We have had an opportunity to recently review the Provincial Government’s long-term vision and plan which was released last February, titled Uncommon Potential - A Vision for Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism”, which provides a framework to guide both the Provincial Government and their industry partners as we all work together to advance tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador through to 2020.

As the Premier said in his message and opening remarks in the Plan:

“As residents, we know our province is a special place, unlike any other. Similarly, we recognize that the opportunities and challenges we face are unique to Newfoundland and Labrador. This plan is designed to address the challenges and make the most of our competitive advantage in the global tourism marketplace - the fact that we offer unique travel experiences to visitors interested in taking an exciting adventure off the beaten track.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, surprises wait around every corner and the possibilities are endless - hiking the stunning coastlines, attending festivals celebrating everything from blueberries to squid, experiencing our rich and vibrant culture and heritage, witnessing natural wonders such as whales and icebergs, and meeting strangers who quickly become friends. Living here, it is sometimes easy to lose sight of the fact that these are, indeed, “uncommon” experiences.”

I would also like to refer to another couple of paragraphs noted in the Plan under the heading of Transportation Strategy to Grow Our Industry:

“For Newfoundland and Labrador, there’s no such thing as an accidental tourist. It takes deliberate planning and determined effort to visit here.

The transportation issues facing tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador are well understood and frequently articulated among industry stakeholders. In short, travel to, from, and around the province, whether by sea, air, or road is constrained by issues of affordability, capacity, infrastructure, and quality.

To compete effectively in an increasingly aggressive global market, we need the ability to bring travellers to the province in an easy, cost-effective, and pleasurable manner - by sea, by air, and by land. There is an immediate requirement for improved, affordable, and efficient access to and within the province. It’s the most critical element to stimulate inbound tourism. And it will have considerable influence on our industry over the next decade.

Access by Air. Air passenger travel accounts for approximately two-thirds of non-resident visits each year. Our response to strategic transport challenges identified in the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador’s ‘Air Access Strategy’ and through other forums is vital to the future success of our industry.”

We will work with the Provincial Government, Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador, and all of the stakeholders in promoting Humber Valley Resort and our beautiful province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The total annual budget being spend by the Provincial Government for tourism marketing is now 13 Million (from 6 Million in 2003). The tourism industry contributed almost 850 Million to the provincial economy in 2008, up from 790 million in 2007.

The Provincial Government is very committed and is doing an excellent job in marketing Newfoundland and Labrador nationally and internationally. The Provincial Government’s campaign continues to fulfill their main objective - promoting Newfoundland and Labrador as a Destination of Choice. As recently as February 1 of this year in New York City, Newfoundland and Labrador’s “Find Yourself Home” television campaign which was developed in collaboration with Target Marketing and Communications Inc., was awarded platinum honours at the Adrean Awards Gala. (I would further note that only 20 platinum winners were named from more than 1,100 entrants during the award ceremony.

Humber Valley Resort, the chalet owners, Humber Valley and Western Newfoundland will all benefit as a result of the tourism marketing on the part of the Provincial Government. We all have to play our role. We are all ambassadors on behalf of the Province. We want all of the public to know, people throughout Humber Valley, the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, throughout Canada, the United States, Europe, nationally and internationally, that we are open for business - the security gate is not a barrier - the staff are there to welcome you - come visit us - play on our international golf course - fish in our world class salmon river, the Humber River - enjoy our cuisine, interact with the local residents - stay in the beautiful chalets on the Resort - take in the spectacular views of the Valley - experience our culture, our ideas, our way of life - do what I did. I came here 35 years ago from London, England, for the experience, for a 3 month period, and here I am 35 years later. I stayed for the lifestyle.

And that is our vision - “Come For The Experience, Stay For The Lifestyle”.

Thank you.

Thanks to Crazy About Newfoundland for this information.

Dubai Action Group responds to Innovation Proposals

2010-06-10T17:38:00.000-07:00

STATEMENT BY THE DUBAI ACTION GROUP

Following the meetings this week between the Dubai Action Group and Mr Probir Chatterjee, of Innovation SEZ Developer Ltd, at the Carlton Hotel Dublin, the Dubai Action Group would like to make the following statement:

Mr Chatterjee presented his proposals to approximately 150 investors, over a series of meetings during his two day stay. In summary the proposal is as follows: Innovation SEZ Developer Ltd has taken over the shares in the three development companies responsible for building Eagle Heights, Bermuda Views and Profile Residence. They have declared that they will build out our buildings if they get sufficient numbers of investors to sign up to their proposal, which includes a new payment schedule.

Innovation SEZ Developer Ltd intends to shortly send out an addendum to our current contracts for approval and signing.

Whilst the Dubai Action Group is interested in examining this proposal we cannot recommend it to our members until we have had the opportunity to study the written document in detail.

We believe a cautious and measured approach to any proposal containing adjusted payment schedules is vital given our experience to date.

We welcome all comments and suggestions from our members and a more detailed email will go out to members next week.

Kind regards,

The Committee,
For and on behalf of the Dubai Action Group

Cypriot Property Market Showing Recovery Signs

2010-06-10T01:52:00.000-07:00

Those of you with property in Cyprus will be very glad to hear that the latest news from the Mediterranean island is quite positive. This good news comes courtesy of the wonderful Cyprus Property Magazine website run by Nigel Howarth. If you've any interest in the Cypriot property market then this site is a must visit.

"According to figures released by the Department of Lands and Surveys, 803 contracts of sale were deposited at Land Registries throughout Cyprus during May, the highest number since July 2009.

Throughout the first five months of 2010 the number of contracts of sale deposited at Land Registries throughout Cyprus amounted to 3,544 compared to 2,838 during the same period last year; an increase of 25%, with Nicosia and Limassol keeping domestic demand at a higher level than last year.

However, last years figures were exceptionally low and overall sales this year are still down by more than 60% on the numbers sold during the same period in 2008.

There are also encouraging signs that the number foreigners buying property is increasing, with the number of contracts deposited at Land Registries on behalf during the first five months of the year up by 7% on the same period in 2009.

Nicosia is doing particularly well with property sales to non-Cypriots up by 92% this year followed by Famagusta, where sales have risen by 10%.

But in the other coastal towns, which are largely dependent on external demand, sales are not doing so well. Sales in Limassol are down 6%, in Larnaca they are down by 4% and in Paphos they are down by 3% compared to last year.

Last years figures were exceptionally low and sales to non-Cypriots this year are still down by almost 80% on the numbers sold during the same period in 2008.

The article, along with property sales tables, can be found at the Cyprus Property News website.

Feature on Larionovo, Ciaran Maguire Group, Simple Overseas Properties and Kuvera

2010-06-09T04:13:00.000-07:00

News feature in Sunday Business Post on June 6th written by Ian Kehoe.

"In his native India, Probir Chatterjee is a little-known figure. Yet, over the coming days, more than 250 Irish people will file into the Carlton Hotel at Dublin Airport to hear the accountant speak.

The reason? Chatterjee’s firm, Smart Investments, is attempting to kick-start a number of stalled property developments in Dubai.

His audience will be made up of Irish investors who put down deposits for three schemes in Dubai’s Sports City complex - Bermuda Views, Eagle Heights and Profile Residence.

Chatterjee is likely to have an attentive audience as he outlines a plan to take over the delayed developments and complete them, giving certainty to the investors at last.

Through an Irish-based selling agent called Larionovo, hundreds of Irish people invested money in apartments and villas in the three developments.

Enticed by glossy brochures and talk of a guaranteed return, many put their life savings into the property projects. Others stepped up to buy multiple properties, paying out hundreds of thousands of euro upfront.

In late 2008, Larionovo collapsed into liquidation. The Dubai developments, which were being spearheaded by a local firm, stalled. Since then, the investors have struggled to get any information about the development or the whereabouts of their funds.

For all concerned, the Dubai investment dream has turned into a nightmare.

‘‘A few years ago, I asked Larionovo about the progress of the development," said Tony Hynes, a Dublin businessman who invested in one of the schemes.

‘‘I was shown a picture of a six-storey building that was almost complete. A few months ago, I went out there myself.

All I could find was a hole in the ground. I don’t know what building they showed me, but it certainly was not mine."

Hynes is the chairman of an action group set up last year to investigate the Dubai debacle and try to recover funds from the project. It has discovered a maze of companies, with intricate shareholdings and impenetrable operations.

‘‘Look, I accept there is a risk associated with any investment, but we were given lots of promises that turned out to be lies," said Hynes. ‘‘We were told it was backed by the Dubai government.

Not true. We were told our money was in a safe account and was not being touched. Not true. It was actually being used to fund the development."

Hynes has already given up hope of getting his money back from Dubai.

He said the best option was finding a partner like Chatterjee to finish the development.

‘‘I am not getting my money back, so I am trying to get the keys instead," he said. ‘‘Next week’s meetings are crucial. Hopefully, in two years, it will all be over and I will be in possession of the apartments. Hopefully."

If a deal with Smart Investments can be agreed, Hynes and his action group could yet salvage something. Others might not be so lucky.

During the years of economic boom, Irish people were among the biggest buyers of foreign property in the world.

The numbers vary, but industry estimates put the number of Irish-owned foreign properties at somewhere between 150,000 and 250,000.

They ranged from condominiums in Chicago to villas in Cape Verde, from Bulgarian flats to penthouses in Poland. Geography was no restriction - properties were purchased in places as diverse as Dubai, Morocco, Hungary, Turkey, India, France, Italy and Portugal.

But as the economic climate has changed, a series of overseas property ventures have come undone. Some developments, like those in Dubai, have failed to materialise. Others have plummeted in value, leaving thousands of investors nursing big losses.

A murky world - that’s how lawyer Tom McGrath described the overseas property business. During the boom years, he provided legal advice for people buying abroad.

Now the market has soured, he is spending much of his time helping clients pick up the pieces.

‘‘People bought into the market, they bought into the flash property shows, the fancy talks, the gushing newspaper articles," said McGrath, a partner with McGrath O’Donnell & Associates in Dublin. ‘‘But at the bottom of it all, there was simply no regulation.

‘‘People were doing things they would never dream of doing if they were investing in Ireland. I know one person who bought an apartment in Bulgaria from the back of a fruit van.

People ran away with themselves," he said.

In the case of Kuvera Ireland, around 250 Irish investors bought into the sales pitch. The company took over a hotel in Dublin 4 on September 15, 2007, to launch plans for two luxury developments in India called Mountain View and Orchard View.

Kieran Murphy, the man behind Kuvera Ireland, spent the day meeting potential customers and introducing them to Dr Ajit Jha, the boss of Kuvera India and his partner on the ground.

The show and the figures must have been impressive -Kuvera raised €8.9million for the apartment scheme in Rudrapur, a special economic zone in north India.

Kuvera Ireland brokered the deal and investors were told that contracts for the building work existed between the investors and a construction company called VG Buildtech.

Between them, Mountain View and Orchard View were to comprise 580 apartments. As of last week, the site consisted of a boundary wall with some small preparatory works. Nothing had been built.

‘‘Two weeks into the project, Kuvera knew there was a problem." said John Plaice, who invested in the scheme and now chairs an action group set up to recover money from Kuvera. ‘‘The problem was very simple. Foreigners could not buy properties there, but they tried to work around it with leaseholds and so on. There were literally problems from day one."

The fall-out from Kuvera ended up in the High Court in Dublin, where an order was obtained freezing Murphy’s assets.

A settlement was eventually reached between Murphy and the investors, under which he agreed to hand over assets.

Under the settlement, the investors were to take possession of properties at a golf resort in South Africa, five British properties and €143,00 0 from a South African bank account.

Murphy’s shares in Kuvera India and equity in VG Buildtech were also to be ceded.

Almost a year on, the transfers of the various assets are close to completion.

However, the Kuvera case shed startling light on how some property deals were structured.

Under the so-called ‘Kuvera reward programme’, investors were promised flights and holidays at five-star hotels if they convinced others to invest in the company’s Indian developments.

‘‘The deal was a good one if it had worked," said Plaice. ‘‘But it did not work, and we are still getting to the bottom of what happened, and why it happened.

Money that should have been in an escrow account was used on sales and marketing.

The whole scheme was based on getting more people involved. The market slowed and no new investors were found. The whole thing became exposed. There was a huge element of trust in the investment.

We were badly let down."

Anthony Joyce, a Dublin solicitor, represented the Kuvera action group and has since spent a lot of his time dealing with disgruntled investors in other property ventures.

‘‘If there is a fraud or a perceived wrongdoing, we can take a legal course of action," according to Joyce. ‘‘But in lots of cases, I simply can’t help people.

The scheme is legitimate, but individuals can’t afford to make the payments. ‘‘But there is a difference.

At least you get the keys if you keep on paying. But there are a lot of cases where you pay your money and you might end up with nothing."

Two weeks ago, Joyce was retained by Irish investors concerned about construction delays at the Kensington Royale development in Dubai Sports City.

The five-star, 18-storey development of 252 units is being developed by Middle East Development in the United Arab Emirates, and was originally due to be completed early last year.

Joyce is also acting for investors who put money into a proposed €100million resort in Cape Verde.

Flash Developments, which is headed by Dublin developer Ciaran Maguire, received deposits from more than 200 Irish and British investors for apartments and villas in the planned Palm View Resort.

Following a 16-month delay in the project getting full planning permission, a number of the investors put together an action group to try to recover their money.

Ten days ago, the investors were stunned when KPMG was appointed as liquidator over Flash.

Maguire said that the development was going ahead, stating that all the ‘‘contracts, development lands and credit lines’’ had been transferred to another company called the Ciaran Maguire Group.

Maguire said that Flash Developments was ‘‘simply a sales and marketing company’’, and its liquidation would not have any effect on the development.

KPMG has initiated a full investigation. ‘‘I have absolute sympathy with a lot of investors," said Joyce.

‘‘They got caught up in genuine investments that went wrong. Many schemes were plausible on paper. They checked out. But they were undone by the market."

Often, the court is the place of last resort.

In recent days, 39 investors launched proceedings against Simple Overseas Properties, an Irish property firm, in relation to deposits which were taken for properties in developments in Morocco and Spain. That case, and others like it, highlighted a major problem, according to experts - a stark lack of regulation.

‘‘Some of it is real Wild West stuff," said Paul McCann, head of specialist advisory services with accountancy firm Grant Thornton.

‘‘There is an assumption that Irish overseas property firms are regulated. Even travel agents are bonded. But it is not the case.

‘‘I think it is now incumbent on the government to introduce regulation, or force companies to be bonded.

Alternatively, the various representative bodies need to start enforcing strict guidelines.

Deposits should not be allowed to be used by developers as cash flow."

The government is understood to be looking at the system, in an effort to introduce some new checks and balances.

But for people like John Plaice, Tony Hynes and the thousands who have seen their investments evaporate, it could well be too late."

http://www.sbpost.ie/newsfeatures/a-murky-world-brthe-overseas-property-business-49693.html

Hope for Larionovo Investors

2010-06-08T05:17:00.000-07:00

The following piece appeared in the Irish Times of Saturday June 5th, written by Una McCaffrey.

"Hundreds of Irish investors who feared they had lost large sums on Dubai properties that were never built will be offered a new completion deal by an Indian company next week.

The investors are being invited to meetings in Dublin, where they will be briefed on proposals to finish construction on the developments, located in the Sports City area of Dubai.

Up to 1,000 Irish investors are thought to have become involved in the Sports City scheme through Irish agent, Larionovo, which went into liquidation at the start of last year.

The matter has largely been in limbo since then, although 150 investors have mobilised through the Dubai Action Group in an effort to recover some of their investment. Each investor has committed tens of thousands of euro to the project, rising to €400,000 in some cases.

Some investors remortgaged their homes to become involved in the project, located in a 50 million sq ft area designed to house a mixture of commercial, residential and sports facilities.

They learned this week that an Indian group had bought out three of the four developments concerned. The Indian company, Smart Investments, wants to finish construction of the properties and is likely to seek further funds from the Irish investors in this respect.

Some investors paid up front in full for the properties, while some paid a portion of the full price. All the purchases were made from plans. All affected investors are being invited to meet Probir Chatterjee, a representative of Smart Investments, next week.

Mr Chatterjee was previously financial controller of Profile Group, which in turn was the parent of Larionovo. He and a fellow Indian businessman have completed a deal to buy the Eagle Heights, Bermuda Views and Profile Residence developments in Sports City. Larionovo controlled a 25 per cent stake in Profile Residence, and Smart is thought to have agreed a sale of that interest with the agent’s Dublin liquidator, Grant Thornton.

The Dubai Action Group is taking advice from Dublin law firm, Anthony Joyce Co, which has become involved in a number of problematic overseas property cases over recent years.

The firm is also looking at options for investors in a separate Sports World development – Kensington Royale – where construction has been slow and further funds are being sought by the developer, MED.

It is thought a substantial number of Irish investors could be involved, having purchased through British agents.

Next week’s meetings are being held at the Carlton Hotel at Dublin airport. Bermuda Views and Eagle Heights investors are invited to attend at 7pm on Tuesday 8th. Profile Residence investors are meeting on Wednesday at 7pm."

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2010/0605/1224271907093.html

The same story featured on today's Arabian Business Website, written by former Sunday Tribune property reporter, now resident in Dubai, Shane McGinley:

"An Indian company will meet with a group of Irish investors in Dublin on Tuesday in a bid to strike a deal to rescue a number of projects in the Dubai Sports City development, Arabian Business has learnt.

Up to 1,000 Irish investors bought properties in Dubai Sports City through the Dublin-based Larionovo overseas property agency, which ran into financial difficulties and went into liquidation in early 2009.

Around 130 investors, who had each invested a minimum of 75,000 Euro ($89,797.99), set up the Dubai Action Group and attempted to recoup their money from Profile Group, the Dubai-based parent company of Larionovo.

Last week, Probir Chatterjee, the former financial controller of Profile Group, and a number of other Indian businessmen, set up the Innovation Group and took over the Profile Group’s Dubai Sports City projects, which include Eagle Heights, Bermuda Views and Profile Residence.

“The original developer… sold or gave his shareholding to this new Indian company because he either cannot or does not want to build out these units,” Tony Hynes, chairman of the Dubai Action Group, told Arabian Business.

Earlier this week, Chatterjee met with British investors in the developments and he has arranged to meet Irish investors in Dublin on Tuesday and Wednesday, in a bid to persuade them to invest the remainder of the money due in order to complete construction of the units.

“A lot of [Irish investors] have paid 65 percent upfront and I imagine [Chatterjee] needs the 35 percent to finance the building out. So I imagine that is what he is doing here, getting a feeler for who is going to close and who isn’t,” Hynes said.

He added that Chatterjee is aiming to get the finance in place to start construction on the units this month and plans to have them completed within eighteen months.

It is estimated that since 2002 up to 5,000 Irish investors pumped money into developments across Dubai, some of which have now run into difficulty since the onset of the global property downturn in 2008.

‘The simple fact is that too many apartments were being built. It was unsustainable. Investors who got in very early did well if they sold. But most didn’t," said Ronan O’Driscoll, director at the Savills agency in Dublin told the Sunday Business Post newspaper in November last year.

In March 2009, John O’Dolan, one of Ireland's leading building developers and owner of the island of Ireland on The World manmade project off the coast of Dubai took his own life amid rumours of financial worries as a result of the global economic crisis."

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/589990-investors-in-talks-to-rescue-sports-city-projects

The Property Show Abroad to Launch

2010-06-04T00:40:00.000-07:00

Globaledge has recently revealed that a multi-millionaire former greyhound track owner is to launch a series of overseas property exhibitions in cities around the UK.

Kevin Wilde, who sold his racing track portfolio to betting chain William Hill in 1998 for over £10 million plans to plough a significant chunk of his fortune into bringing overseas property shows back to what he calls the UK’s 'forgotten' cities.

The events will take place in Manchester on 4th and 5th September this year followed by events in Glasgow, Exeter, Birmingham and Harrogate in 2011.

Wilde promises to invest more than £500,000 in marketing the shows and believes he has spotted a part of the market not being covered by other companies:

“Northern cities have been forgotten by UK exhibition companies but the people I speak to are crying out to buy property overseas. The population of Glasgow and Manchester combined is more than a million but there has been very little coverage of these areas by exhibition companies in the last three years”.

So why does Wilde think he can succeed where others have failed?

“I’m under no illusion, I’ve been an overseas property investor for years and it’s a tough market. It’s a question of timing. I’m an entrepreneur and it’s no use launching something in three or four years’ time when the market is booming again and our competitors are there. Our research shows that there are people in these cities who want to buy property now”.

The shows will be branded “The Property Show Abroad” and will use a combination of radio, local and national press and the internet to bring in visitors.

Globaledge says the response from overseas property companies in Spain and France has been postive but questions if it is the time right for a new exhibtion business to target overseas buyers in the UK.

There are, as yet, no plans to run any of the shows in Ireland, where there are currently no overseas property exhibitions in existence following the demise of the last one in 2008, the Sunday Business Post backed and iQuest run Property Expo.

Agents and developers interested in exhibiting at the show should contact Mick Tyler.

Ciaran Maguire PR Resigns

2010-06-03T03:26:00.000-07:00

We've just received the following communication from Paul Allen, who has been Ciaran Maguire's PR for just a few weeks:

"I write to inform you that we have decided to resign our account with the Ciaran Maguire Group.

Should you wish to make contact with Ciaran Maguire directly you can reach him on 087 1473608 / (01) 6251542.

Kind regards,

Paul."

No reason has yet been given for the resignation but we will publish it here if it is revealed.

New Subscribe Link

2010-05-31T08:50:00.000-07:00

We've been asked by a lot of people to put a 'Subscribe' link on the blog so they can keep up to date with what's going on with the blog without having to check back regularly.

It's taken us some time to get around to it, but we've finally managed to facilitate those who would like to be updated when the blog has new posts or anyone who would like to receive informative mailings about the overseas property industry from time to time.

You'll see the Subscribe button on the top right hand corner of the page, simply enter your email address in the box provided, click on 'Subscribe', fill in the resultant word given to prove you're not a spam robot and you'll get an email asking you to confirm that you wish to subscribe to the service.

If you have a spam filter of any description tell it to allow the following address through - contact@overseascafe.com - so that you can receive the confirmation email and the resulting updates from the site.

That's it, you're done, and you need never worry about missing posts on the blog again.

Flash Developments in Liquidation

2010-05-31T01:07:00.000-07:00

The following story appears in the Sunday Business Post of May 30th:

"The developer behind a proposed €100 million resort in Cape Verde has said that the project will not be affected by the liquidation of one of his main firms.

The High Court last week appointed a liquidator to Flash Developments, which is headed by businessman Ciaran Maguire. It has received deposits from 200 Irish and British investors for apartments and villas in the planned Palm View resort on the west African island.

Maguire told The Sunday Business Post that all of the deposits were safe, despite the winding-up of Flash Developments.

He said that all the ‘‘contracts, development lands and credit lines’’ had been transferred to another company called the Ciaran Maguire Group.

Maguire said that Flash Developments was ‘‘simply a sales and marketing company’’ and that its liquidation would not have any effect on the development.

He said that 63 per cent of the initial 400 apartments had been sold, and the scheme would be completed next year.

A number of people who paid deposits to Flash Developments for properties have already sought the return of their money, while others are putting together an action group to try to recover their money, following a 16-month delay in starting the project.

Flash Developments went into liquidation last week following a court petition by Hays, an international recruitment firm which was owed money by the firm. The liquidator, KPMG accountant Kieran Wallace, is examining the company and its links with the Ciaran Maguire Group.

He is seeking all details relating to the Cape Verde project. Maguire said that Flash Developments had lost a significant sum of money due to a bond deal with a now defunct British company called Exchange Insurance.

While this prompted the liquidation of Flash Developments, he insisted that the project was going ahead.

He said that the first phase of the development was valued at €100million and would include apartments and a five-star hotel. Maguire said Flash had a 15-year licence with the Cape Verde government to build on the island, and would ultimately build developments valued at €1.8 billion over that time."

Answers to Queries put to Ciaran Maguire

2010-05-18T04:54:00.000-07:00

Queries for Ciaran Maguire sent last week and replies (printed as received):

Query: Having posted your press release on our blog a number of inconsistencies have been pointed out to us. Firstly, the pictures provided with the press release were not even taken in Cape Verde, they were in fact taken in Brazil in 2008 and, most likely, lifted from the following website - http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/JJeYtJdf6yzE49AraKSStg.

Answer: Firstly I am glad we are able to communicate about these issues. To answer your questions, in relation to the pictures of the machines you mentioned I requested pictures from the contractors of the machines that had arrived to Boa Vista from Santiago and they send me the pictures I forwarded to you and said these were the machines being used, however I am attaching pictures of works commencing when I was on site last week (one is attached to the blog post) which should clear up any miss understanding.

Query: It has also been pointed out that the new bonding company is the subject of some legal queries in the US, a Dunn and Bradstreet report apparently costs no more than £250 so you've been advised to look for a refund, particularly seeing as they appear to have missed the above.

Answer: In relation to the Dun and Bradstreet report costing £250, is that a joke, you come across as very smart so surely you can see that some one out there is on a sabotage mission. The report is a 50 page dossier on the company incorporating all the companies previous audits and existing assets which equate to 250,000,000 USD, can you honestly tell me that a company who needs to clarify every asset and put their name to a certified rating does this for £250, I am actually embarrassed for the uneducated person who suggested that.

Query: We've had a number of emails stating that there has been absolutely no work of any description carried out on the site on which you purport to be building the development - which is very disconcerting considering all that has gone before.

Answer: In relation to the works that are claimed have not been carried out, firstly you can see the pictures for yourself secondly the plot goes back 1 kilometer from the beach and obviously provisional works will always start from the site access road so if some one is walking past the from the beach it is possible the person will not see anything but he only has to walk up to the site and its there for all to see.

I hope you can understand my frustrations with a hand full of people who no matter what happens they will always have a negative opinion on Palm View, First they said we would never get the land which we have now done then they said we would never get the planning which we have now done and now they are saying that we will never start the project which we have now done. The latest thing they are saying is something about the credibility of our underwriters PCI in which they were given a credit rating of A which is currently a better credit rating than Ireland.

Query: We've also had a lot of queries about the Jacuma Beach Resort and the fact that the company from which you were to buy it, Paraisos do Brazil, claims you never came up with any money to pay for it and is now taking legal action against you.

Answer: In relation to Jacuma, we had signed a protocol of intentions to acquire Paraisos do Brasil and had the bond and credit ready to be get everything rolled out and get things started however it came up in our due diligence that condominiums 4 and 5 did NOT have full planning and having suffered the delays on Palm View I was not willing to go through that entire process again. You can verify this with IDEMA the planning authorities in Brazil and there is NO legal action taken against me as there are NO legal grounds.

I understand that there is a lot of frustrations in the current market place and a lot of investors have lost money in investing in the over seas property but I have done everything to protect my clients and investors and will continue to do so, if them hand full of un educated people who continue to try tarnish my name and Palm View actually done some proper due diligence and spoke to Cape Verde government officials, respected lawyers, UK brokers and finance houses and underwriters they will actually find that Palm View is one of the safest investments around at present.

Again I appreciate you coming directly to me with these questions.

Ciarán Maguire

Chairman & President

CastleBaggot House,

Baldonnell,

Dublin 22.

Ph: +353 1 6251542

Ph: +353 1 6251544

web: www.ciaranmaguiregroup.com

www.palmview.ie

Seminar on Investing in the US - May 19th

2010-05-13T09:53:00.000-07:00

A seminar on US Property opportunities for investors and their financial advisors is to be held in Dublin.

The seminar, which will outline the current investment climate in the US among other topics, is to be held in the Herbert Park Hotel, Ballsbridge, Dublin on Wednesday, 19th May 2010 between 5.30 and 7pm.

The seminar will explore why there are those who consider the US to currently be an excellent opportunity for both personal and pension fund investments. It is being hosted by ClearSky Capital whose directors promise to share their own experience as well as bringing independent experts to highlight the benefits of investing in, and opportunities currently available in, the US market.

ClearSky Capital claims to be the first property investment company of its kind in Ireland offering the opportunity to invest privately in the US property market. It is an Irish/American company that partners with clients from purchase right through to sale and also offers a full property management service.

Advance registration for the seminars is necessary in order to attend. You can register online at www.clearskycapital.com or telephone Orlagh at 01 514 3780.

Topics and speakers:

“Global Market Fundamentals” – what you haven’t been told!

Brendan Slein, Global Reach Securities Ltd

“A Unique Window of Opportunity” – an experienced investors view.

Tom Ryan, Chairman & CEO Ryan International Corporation and Vice President – The Ireland United States Council for Commerce and Industry

“How you can use your Pension fund to invest in US property”

Richard O’Farrell, SSAS Pension Advisor, IFG Group plc

“Personal and Pension Investment – the opportunities”

Ciaran Hynes, Managing Director, ClearSky Capital Ltd.

The seminar will be followed by an informal panel discussion/Q&A.

For further information please contact ClearSky Capital on 01 514 3780.

Seminar on Property Investment in Brazil - June 24th

2010-05-11T10:21:00.000-07:00

Just received the following message from the Brazilian Embassy:

"The Embassy of Brazil in Ireland will hold a whole day seminar on Commercial Properties and Investment Opportunities in Brazil, on 24th June, at the Royal College of Physicians, 6 Kildare Street, Dublin 2.

Several experts will address attractive real estate and investment opportunities for a target audience composed of developers, investors, financiers from investment banks, private banks, private equity firms, infrastructure funds and construction companies.

Political and economic stability, competent and transparent legal and regulatory framework, strong banking system, dynamic trade sector and a domestic-driven economic growth made Brazil resilient to world recession and rich in attractive business opportunities. With a forecasted economic growth rate of 5-6% for 2010, the discovery of the Pre-Salt Oil Layer, the upcoming major sports events taking place in Brazil, such as 2016 Olympic Games, have created additional demands that need to be satisfied in the near future.

Brazil's $1.3 trillion GDP is bigger than those of India and Russia, and its per-capita income is nearly twice that of China. Recent discoveries by Brazil's state oil company made the country one of the world's largest energy-producing country which will fuel growth for many years to come. In 2009, despite the sharp contraction of capital flows, Brazil attracted $25.9bn of foreign domestic investment, and should reach more than $35bn this year.

Topics to include:

Sites for development of low and middle income housing, construction of shopping centers and resorts, profitable bio-fuel investments and attractive infrastructure projects.

For further information, contact: The Embassy of Brazil in Dublin, commercial@brazil.ie or ring +353 1 416-1216."

Erroneous Ryanair Cancellation Announcement

2010-05-10T00:08:00.000-07:00

The ash cloud, oh my God, the ash cloud - would it ever simply move off and leave us alone?

I had an interesting encounter with the big baddie at the weekend.

We were to travel from Gothenburg in Sweden back to Ireland via Stansted. Having nothing better to do we decided to make our way to Gothenburg City Airport early to return our car and have a bite to eat at the airport before takeoff. There had been no indications of any delays or cancellations so we were pretty comfortable in the knowledge that we were to leave as scheduled. Travelling back to Ireland was, literally, a problem for another day.

Having checked in my bag and had something to eat we still had some time still to spare so I decided to check my email. Imagine my surprise to receive the following:

Important Information Regarding your Flight

Dear Customer   We sincerely apologise for the cancellation of your flight departing the 08 May 2010 The flight has been cancelled because of the closure of Spanish/French airspace due to the ash cloud caused by the volcanic eruption in Iceland   TO REBOOK FREE ONLINE:  Click on the link below to rebook to the same destination airport on an alternative flight free of charge, subject to availability. Customers can access this link up to the 11/05/2010 for travel on flights up to the 20/05/2010.  PLEASE NOTE: If your booking has a return flight included and you have already checked in for this flight you will NOT be able to transfer your flight to a different departure airport online.  If you wish to do this you will need to call our reservation centre on the following number. Alternatively, go to the airport ticket desk and they will transfer you onto an alternative flight.  We have instructed airports that passengers affected by these flight cancellations may not be able to check-in online and therefore airport staff will reissue boarding passes at the airport free of charge.  TO APPLY FOR A REFUND ONLINE:  Customers who are booked on any of the below flights, who wish to cancel and claim a full refund on the unused flight(s) can do so directly by clicking on the link below and entering the required details. Refunds will be processed in 30 working days back to the form of payment used to pay for the booking.

Slightly bemused, I had my partner go around the corner to check (Gothenburg City airport isn't exactly Heathrow) where the lady on information said that it was "an IT mistake" on the part of Ryanair. The flight, she said, was definitely running - and on time at that.

A pretty serious "IT mistake" it has to be said. If we had got the email before we left the hotel we would still be busily running around Gothenburg looking for accommodation and re-booking flights to Ireland.

Is the dreaded ash cloud not enough of a distraction for air travellers without Ryanair's IT system firing out cancellation notices willy-nilly?

I sent full details of my problems with the notification by email - but I wouldn't be holding my breath for a reply from Mick and Co.

Ciaran Maguire Group Announces Granting of Planning Permission in Boa Vista

2010-04-26T15:01:00.000-07:00

This communication was received earlier today from Ciaran Maguire (documents were attached and are available should anybody wish to see them - email info@OverseasCafe.com - the picture to the left is referred to in the text below):

"I have attached documentation for your perusal. I understand that you have a keen interest in Palm View Resort.

The documents attached outline that SDTIBM (Tourism Development Corporation of the island of Boa Vista and Maio) representing the Cape Verde Government, have signed a declaration forming a partnership between SDTIBM and Ciaran Maguire Group for the development of the tourist development project under the name Palm View Resort.

I can confirm that the tourist development project under the name Palm View Resort in Chaves North on a plot of 451,669m2 has detailed planning granted under the POT-Chaves regulations for a build environment of 51,5333,68 m2 with the Palm View Resort master plan being within the environmental build allowance. The agreement between SDTIBM and Ciaran Maguire Group under the POT-Chaves regulations authorizes Ciaran Maguire Group to carry out the construction of Palm View Resort.

I would also like to convey that the private purchase contract has been signed off by the two largest and most respected law firms in Cape Verde. The legal report shows that the Palm View Resort purchase contract duly fulfills with the Cape Verde legislation in force. The law firms have also confirmed that they deem there be no obstruction in signing the purchase contract having undertaken the due diligence.

I have also attached pictures of the machines now on site, I was supposed to be there for the PR event on the 19th of April when the machines arrived to Boa Vista however due to the disruption with the airlines I have had to postpone my trip until the 3rd of May, I can confirm however that machines have arrived and works have commenced on Palm View Resort despite the very clear and disruptive sabotage campaign against my Company. Under difficult circumstances I have delivered and most importantly protected my client’s investment.

I think it is very important to note that I have signed a contract with a new bond company Provident Capital Indemnity (PCI) to underwrite the Palm View Resort and I am very proud to say that the Palm View Resort is the ONLY development in the world to have the Guaranteed Rental fully bonded with the financial market place in London hailing the brokering of the deal as a “pioneering product that will change the overseas property market for good”. I understand that the previous bond company we entered into a contract with has now gone into administration that is why I personally outlayed in excess of €100,000 on carrying out a full financial report on PCI via Dun and Bradstreet, a market leader in carrying out financial reports on Finance and Insurance houses and the report shows that PCI have assets in excess 250,000,000 USD and deem to be very secure as an underwriter for Palm View Resort.

On a personal note I would like to say that on the back of works commencing on Palm View Resort, I will be creating 25 new positions based in Dublin within my Company and a further 15 positions in the first quarter of next year as well as 1300 positions for the construction of the resort. I believe that we need to back entrepreneurs and avoid putting obstacles in their paths as we are fundamental to getting Ireland back on its feet.

I anticipate your next question to be” what about the clients looking for refunds etc”, I would like to take this opportunity to outline the actual facts rather than uneducated guesses that appear on forums. As I mentioned the previous bond company we entered into a partnership with has now gone into administration and effectively taken nearly a million euro of clients premiums and it is these clients who are looking for refunds even though there money has gone to Exchange Bond and NOT my Company. I have given the clients an undertaking that I will personally repay their deposit even though Begbies Traynor (Administrators appointed for Exchange bond) have formally informed me via a written letter that I received a few days ago that I will not receive any compensation for the loss of nearly 1 million euro as the first people to get the assets of the company will be the banks (surprise,surprise). I made a commitment to these clients and I will refund all clients however this can be a 4or 5 month process as Ciaran Maguire Group’s credit line facility is structured to be tied into stages of construction.

I think it is worth pointing out and I hope you agree that with all the unethical codes of business our country is practicing between the banks, the Developers and the politicians that I am being extremely harshly judged. I set about building a stunning development in a stunning location and through very difficult times have achieved my objectives and formed strategic relationships with the Government of a country that I believe to be the European Caribbean and believe is destined to become the number one sun destination for Europeans over the next ten years, and since signing our partnership agreement, Ciaran Maguire Group will become the biggest developer in that region.

I understand that some clients have lost money through Exchange Bond but I personally have been left with bonds with a value of nearly 10 million euro that is now worthless to me. I will still undertake to refund every one of our clients as it is morally the right thing to do. The clients that have stayed with Palm View Resort have done so because they know me personally and knew despite the adversity I would deliver and subsequently since the commencement of construction and the introduction of the new bond company, there investment has now increased by approx 27%.

As a leading entrepreneur of this country who wants to create success and new opportunities as well as creating employment I would urge you to support Palm View Resort. I do understand that you have to ask certain questions and by all means ask any relevant questions, but myself and my personal associates do find some of the comments posted on the forums highly offensive as my only objective is to build Palm View Resort and I am now happy to say that despite the delays and frustrations the first 6 blocks, 28 villas and the Palm View hotel looks set for completion by the end of December 2011.

I would also like to say that as part of the partnership agreement I have with the SDTIBM, I will be constructing a new school for the island as well as hundreds of social homes. Ciaran Maguire Group looks forward to a very fruitful relationship with the Cape Verde Government as well as the people of Cape Verde. Our plans and partnership agreements means we will be developing in Cape Verde for the next 15 years.

On a final note I would like to comment on an issue that appeared in the national paper and indeed your forum in regards to an outstanding issue I have with a recruitment agency, without going into to much detail, the amount in question is very nominal but I refuse to pay something that is simply not justified and in this case the agency provided me with someone that was sacked after 16 business days for theft within the company. The agency still requested a full payment on their invoice which I contested, I offered a payment which I deemed to be fair however it was rejected and subsequently the matter went before a court and the courts agreed with my case and a settlement payment has been finalized. I think its worth pointing out that on the day this story appeared in the press and subsequently blasted all over the forums, I was actually signing contracts with the builders for the commencement of construction on Palm view, an agreement worth tens of millions and which as outlined above will create new opportunities and many new jobs as I will be implementing Irish project managers and engineers on the project. This deal was greeted with great joy and optimism in Cape Verde however there was “nothing” positive written or said back in Ireland and I believe that the constant negativity being displayed not just about my project but anybody who dares to be successful in these current times will have a major impact on this countries entrepreneurs. I was invited to the entrepreneur expo in the RDS on Friday last were I met with Gavin Duffy who has extensive experience working within the press and as a key note speaker, he emphasized the damage the negative press was having on our country and actually urged entrepreneurs to remain focused and avoid reading the constant negative press.

I do recognize that some mistakes have been made on Palm View however this was due to my Company receiving assurances that final planning would be granted within 3 months of commercializing Palm View and it has subsequently taken 22 months which is frustrating for everyone and then the moving of the location which was done for no other reason than we were informed that if we moved to the south of the island there was less red tape and planning would be finalizes sooner than on the plot on Chaves, this turned out not to be the case but we were informed of this directly from the head of State Patrimony in Cape Verde, again I have to stress that our objective was to commence works on Palm View and to develop a Resort in what I believe to be a stunning location and to create success for our investors and for my Company which we have now managed to do.

I welcome any more relevant questions and hope that the outlined good news story reaches your audience. God only knows this good news is long over due.

Kind Regards

Ciarán Maguire

Chairman & President

CastleBaggot House,
Baldonnell,
Dublin 22.

Ph: +353 1 6251542

Ph: +353 1 6251544

web: http://www.ciaranmaguiregroup.com

http://www.palmview.ie"

Anthony Joyce to Seek Client Refunds from Flash Developments

2010-04-15T07:27:00.000-07:00

Anthony Joyce is on the case of another high profile overseas property development, namely the Palm View Resort in Cape Verde, sold by Flash Developments and run by Ciaran Maguire. You'll see previous posts about Mr. Maguire and his 'Palm View Resort' development here.

Joyce, who has made somewhat of a name for himself in this niche industry - having taken on such high profile overseas property cases as Kuvera, Larionovo and Simple Overseas Properties - has been appointed by a group of Irish and British investors to recover their funds from Flash Developments and its owner, Ciarán Maguire. Joyce is looking for investors to come on board so that the cost of any action can be spread out among as many affected investors as possible.

Joyce's contact number is 00353 (0)1 4545 000 and the website is www.anthonyjoyce.ie.

Polaris World in Talks with its Creditors

2010-01-04T06:53:00.000-08:00

It would have been nice to have a 'feelgood' story for the beginning of 2010, but I'm afraid it's not to be. The big news in the overseas property world over the Christmas period has not been rocketing sales, instead it has been the revelation that Spanish developer, Polaris World, is in talks with its creditors to avoid administration proceedings.

The developer is most famous for its connection to 18-time golf Major winner, Jack Nicklaus, with its courses referred to as the “Nicklaus Golf Trail”. The site claims: "Polaris World presents the Nicklaus Golf Trail, a circuit which will boast 8 courses within a radius of 25 km and the best golf experience in Europe. With 4 courses already up and running, 2 with work in progress and 2 in the planning stages, unique in the world and exclusive to Polaris World."

A number of newspapers, websites and blogs have carried the story that the company has asked the court that several of its companies be allowed to access the three months given in the Spanish Insolvency Act in order to allow it to renegotiate its debts. The company sought this protection in Murcia on December 22nd 2009.

If you've currently got a deposit on a property in Polaris World now might be a good time to check with your solicitor what your options are depending on the outcome of this situation.

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Attention Dubai Clients of Larionovo and Profile

2009-11-30T03:54:00.000-08:00

Solicitor, Anthony Joyce, has been in touch with the site to say that he is currently looking for clients of both Ennis based Larionovo and its Dubai based sister company, Profile.

Larionovo, of course, went into liquidation in November 2008, but its former clients are undeterred. They have now formed The Dubai Action Group to fight their corner against what they feel is the unjust way in which they have been treated. Developments in which worried investors bought include: Eagle Heights, Bermuda Views, Stadium Point and Profile Residences; all are developments within the landmark proposed Sports City project. Other developments in which investors had become involved include: International City, Snowdome Residences, 050 Waterfront and the Island of Ireland in the, now infamous, World development 20 minutes off the coast of the Emirate.

Such was the volume of property sold by Larionovo, the Group currently has 200 members signed up with a further 100 who have been in contact and shown an interest in joining. The Group is currently recruiting new members with a view to instigating legal action. The Group will close before any action is taken and no new members will then be allowed to join.

The group has appointed Joyce to undertake litigation on behalf of the purchasers in relation to parties involved in the projects both in Ireland and in Dubai. Readers of the blog will be aware that Joyce has experience in recovering funds for overseas property owners, having taken a high profile legal action against Irish agent Kuvera regarding developments it was promoting in India. In July, Joyce used the new facility in the Commercial Court to secure property assets, company shares and cash for the Kuvera Action Group just eight weeks after injunctions were issued. A legal action is also currently in motion against the indemnity insurance that covered Kuvera’s legal adviser, Seymour Major. Action in India is also progressing.

See here for further information on the Dubai action.

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Larionovo & Profile Clients Fear Money is Gone

2009-11-11T14:27:00.000-08:00

A report in today's Irish Independent claims that investors in Ennis based Larionovo - which shut down a year ago - and its sister company in Dubai, Profile Properties LLC, fear that their investments are now gone forever.

From the piece:

"A group of small Irish investors who bought into a dream property scheme in Dubai now fear that as much as €20m of their money could be lost.

The Concerned Dubai Sports City Investors Group, which hopes to recruit hundreds of members, bought off-plan apartments through the now defunct Larionovo property agents. They are worried that as much as €20m - cash many hoped would fund their retirements - is caught up in Dubai.

The group is building up a war chest to help fund a campaign to retrieve their deposits.

...

A meeting of the group last week in the Citywest Hotel in Dublin heard that they have no idea if building work has even started on some apartments, such is the difficulty in getting information from developers. Some recently received letters telling them the project had been put 'on hold'."

The CEO of Dubai Sports City complex is U. Balasubramaniam (often referred to as Bala Subramanian or simply Bala), who can be heard here describing the progress of the project up to April 25th, 2007, at which stage he was quite bullish about the prospects of everything finishing on time.

According to the report above, however, the wheels would appear to have come off the wagon since that time as the credit crunch eventually hit Dubai with its full force. If you are to visit the Dubai Sports City website, however, you'd be hard pressed to tell that things were not as they should be.

The full article from the Irish Independent can be read here.

Jim Moore and Instant Access Properties Back in Action

2009-11-03T02:11:00.000-08:00

This is from some time ago (February 2009), but worth noting nonetheless. Andrew Penman, of Penman and Sommerlad Investigate, which runs on the Mirror website, has been on the tail of Jim Moore, a name that will be familiar to many, but perhaps not to others. The guy was responsible for the phenomenally successful (for him) but spectacularly unsuccessful (for his clients) companies such as Inside Track, which mass-sold (or more correctly miss-sold) thousands of over-priced apartment units, most of which now lie empty, around the UK. Inside Track spawned another, equally useless, offspring called Instant Access Properties, which has now resurfaced as IAP Global.

I'll let Penman take over here:

"With property company IAP Global running seminars (aka recruiting sessions) nationwide, the following might prove a timely alert.

It's from a retired couple who were badly stung by IAP's predecessor, Instant Access Properties.

Both are the brainchild, if that's the right word, of former perfume salesman turned buy-to-let property guru Jim Moore. Not that many of the thousands of victims who raided their savings to attend his Inside Track property seminars or invest through his Instant Access Properties will consider him a guru.

Both companies are now bust, which isn't stopping Jim. He's back with IAP Global. Before you decide to fall for the dream of becoming a 'property millionaire', it's worth reading this tale we received today from a chap we'll just call Clive."

Read Clive's story here.

In case you've had dealings with any of these, here's another piece from Penman on the seamless handover of information from the Instant Access Properties scam to another con-operation, European Mediation (who've been mentioned before on this blog with reference to Fortuna Estates and Oanna) and then onto another entity called missoldinvestments.com.

Suffice to say, buyer beware - the overseas property industry (and the property industry in general) is still, essentially, completely unregulated. A simple Google search on any of the entities above would get you a huge amount of information, unfortunately, normally too late.

Try to find out who is behind the company with whom you are considering investing your money. This will never be easy if they are a con organisation, so this should ring alarm bells for a start. If you do a bit of sleuthing around their website and documentation you'll often find hints, however. For instance, if you take a look at the following page in the IAP Global website you'll find the following statement:

“Rousing speech from Jim Moore!. I am open to options. I am very interested in high earning/high growth property/land fund. I consider property a safer investment than stocks and shares.”

Most of these con-men (they are predominantly men, but you should also be wary of the fairer sex as a few have also been implicated) are serial offenders, so you may well find a lot of information about them on the internet before you run the risk of losing your hard earned cash to their nefarious schemes.

New AIPP Annual 'Investor Advice' Document

2009-11-02T00:44:00.000-08:00

The AIPP (the UK based Association of International Property Professionals) has released its latest 'Green Cross Code' document, outlining what overseas property buyers should, and more importantly, should not, do when looking to purchase a property

The association certainly has been busy with positive initiatives recently. On top of a new newsletter promoting stories of a positive nature in the overseas property market, the AIPP has just recently also released a new version of its annual consumer guide, entitled ‘Buying Overseas Property Safely’.

There are a number of informative pieces in the guide, including the ‘top five’ pitfalls to avoid. Being honest, the pitfalls to avoid in purchasing an overseas property seldom, if ever, change, but there is no harm in having a look at some of them from time to time in any case. The ones who have made it to AIPP’s top five are, unsurprisingly, led by the need for an independent legal representative. If you avoid this step you’re simply looking for trouble so there is no surprise that it floats to the top of nearly every ‘How to’ or ‘Things to Avoid’ list when it comes to overseas property.

The guide also warns about the dangers of signing contracts too early, advice specifically aimed at stopping clients from signing binding contracts at property exhibitions. While you could argue that this particular problem is hardly critical at the moment, considering the paucity of property exhibitions these days, it’s good to know for future reference nonetheless.

The whole area of having a developer in breach of contract, one which is certainly a live issue at the moment, is also raised. The guide points out that, without sufficient legal input from your end you may get a contract that protects the interests of the developer, but not yours. The advice is to have your solicitor check through conditions of the contract, the type of guarantee of property delivery - if any - that is involved, and the circumstances in which you will be entitled to compensation. The advice is, admittedly, a little late for a lot of buyers, but it is still an area about which people should be aware and it is important to check out your contract’s provisions if you have not already done so.

Unreleastic budgeting is also addressed. Again, this advice is a bit late for many people, but will be very apt for others who are considering purchasing property, investment or otherwise, at lending rates that are currently as low as they can get. For such mortgages the only way is up, so investors should be very wary of this when making their calculations.

Finally the ‘5 Pitfalls to Avoid’ piece finishes with the ownership of land. It seems pretty obvious, but you’d be surprised how often it causes huge problems. Avoiding pitfall number one should normally suffice, but it is still important to note that the person who claims to be selling a piece of land or property, doesn’t necessarily always have the legal right to do so.

For further information on the AIPP guide visit www.aipp.org.uk.

US Property Investment Seminars - 5th to 8th October

2009-10-05T07:50:00.000-07:00

Had enough of the bad news? Then you should probably take a break from it all and find out how the bad news currently prevalent in the market could be of assistance to you, particularly if you're still in a position to purchase investment property in the US.

Dublin based ClearSky Capital will be holding a number of seminars around the country over the coming week. The seminars take place from Tuesday October 6th to Thursday October 8th in Galway, Limerick, Waterford, Cork and Dublin (see the bottom of this blog for exact dates, times and venues).

Topics & Speakers

An Overview of US Property Market Fundamentals with Particular Case Studies on Boston, MA & Rochester, NY

Ciaran Hynes, Managing Director, Clear Sky Capital, Dublin

A Look at Relevant Taxation & Accounting Issues in the US for Irish Investors.

Including benefits of:

A. Capital gains roll over

B. Annual depreciation

C. Irish US Tax Treaty

Peter Avila, Accounting & Taxation Consultant, Boston, MA, USA

The 8 Key Steps to Buying and owning property in the US

Todd Fessenden, Operations Director, Clear Sky Capital, Boston, USA

Investing through your SSAS or SSIP pension fund – Building future wealth through focused property investment & development

David J Topian, President, Westminister Real Estate Advisors, LLC - Rochester, NY

Buying through a partnership fund or on your own – what’s right for you?

Ciaran Hynes, Managing Director, Clear Sky Capital, Dublin

Todd Fessenden, Operations Director, Clear Sky Capital, Boston, MA

Questions & Answers Session

Dates, Venues and Times

Tuesday 6th October 2009

Waterford - Tower Hotel Waterford - 12.30pm – 2.00pm

Cork - Silver Springs, Moran Hotel - 6.30pm – 8pm

Wednesday 7th October 2009

Limerick - Clarion Hotel, Steamboat Quay - 12.30pm – 2.00pm

Galway - Radisson Hotel - 6.30pm – 8pm

Thursday 8th October 2009

Dublin - Herbert Park Hotel, Ballsbridge - 12.30pm – 2.00pm

Dublin - Herbert Park Hotel, Ballsbridge - 6.30pm – 8pm

In order to guarantee space at the seminars ClearSky Capital ask that you register in advance.

When registering, please mention that you heard about the seminars on OverseasCafe.com.

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File your Tax Returns before October 31st

2009-10-01T00:02:00.000-07:00

Not meaning to depress you or anything, but this is the first day of October, which means the filing date for tax returns for 2008 - October 31st 2009 - is just around the corner. Seamus Keating has been in touch to remind us that his company can assist in meeting filing obligations using a comprehensive tax compliance and planning service.

Keating says to remember that, as an Irish resident, one is obliged to return all sources of income including both Irish and overseas property rental income even where there may be a net loss or where funds have not been remitted to Ireland.

Keating also reminds us that the new tax on ‘second properties’ (in Ireland) of €200 Euro per property was due to be paid by September 30th. There is another month to pay up before a penalty of 20 Euro per property per month becomes payable. Only 15% of people have paid the tax thus far so we can see a significant windfall accruing to Revenue once they start to delve into this issue in some detail. The easiest way to pay is at www.nppr.ie.

Many thanks to Seamus Keating for the updated information. Seamus is registered as a tax agent with both the Irish and UK authorities. He can look after filing tax returns whether you are an employee or self employed and look after the complete process regarding all aspects of income tax, capital gains and gift or inheritance tax.

For further information contact:

Seamus Keating Investments Limited

Fitzwilliam Hall, Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2

Phone: +353-1-6698569

email: seamus@SKinvestments.ie

web: www.SKinvestments.ie

Google Sponsor's UK What House Awards '09

2009-09-23T05:21:00.000-07:00

Google, one of the world’s biggest companies, is sponsoring this year’s What House? Awards . The ceremony is widely recognized as the ‘Oscars’ of the house building industry and will take place at The Grosvenor House hotel in London on November 20th .

The What House? Awards, in their 28th year, are the most prestigious and long established in the UK house building industry. They unveil exciting, dynamic new developers, delivering pioneering projects to their local markets, as well as highlighting the innovations of the industry’s major players who build across the country. Recognising this hugely important role Tailored Home (www.tailoredhome.net) are also sponsoring three of this year’s categories – Best House, Best Small Housing Association and Best Large Housing Association.

The editorial director of Showhouse and annual host of the What House? Awards, said: “It is fantastic to have Google, one of the world’s biggest brands, on board as a sponsor. It is a tribute both to the search engine giant’s commitment to working with the house building industry to drive traffic, leads and sales, and to the reputation of the What House? Awards, recognised as the ultimate new homes accolades.”

Ben Wood, head of property at Google, said: "Google are delighted to be associated with the What House? Awards and look forward to further strengthening our relationships with the UK house building industry.”

Google is the latest in a line of prestigious sponsors, all leaders in their fields, to sign up for the Awards, rewarding the very best new homes in Britain.

Despite an incredibly difficult year with new sites mothballed and reductions in build numbers, What House? Awards judges are reporting entries across 23 categories. As the company explains “Last year’s Awards ceremony was still a great occasion, rewarding the best, if a little less celebratory than usual, given the widespread redundancies in the industry. There are still huge economic problems to overcome and housing issues to resolve, but we have got a great feeling that this year’s Awards could prove a seminal moment in the new homes recovery, with some great house builders and homes in the mix for awards and the marketing opportunities they give the industry going into 2010, backed by a phenomenal line up of sponsors supporting this fantastic event.”

For ticket information for the awards please contact Derek Smith ds@globespanmedia.com. Tel: 0044-207-002-8300 or go to www.whathouse.co.uk/awards to download a booking form.

Ask About Money Forum Loses the Plot

2009-08-24T00:02:00.000-07:00

Well, it's taken some time, but it was bound to happen eventually - and it has come to pass. OverseasCafe has been banned from the Ask About Money (AAM) Overseas Property Forum. We bit our tongues on the state of this section of the much renowned investment forum for a long time - but eventually the dam burst - and the inevitable banning ensued.

It's a pity really, it was quite a good forum once upon a time. People with genuine queries went there in the hopes of getting them answered. People who had put down deposits on properties abroad went there to query why the companies with which they had been dealing had suddenly disappeared - with their money. Those who were having problems getting developers to finish properties to the standard promised made sure that everybody else knew the score. If guaranteed returns were guaranteed to do nothing more than disappear then you would find someone writing about it there. It was used as a forum to enable those most vulnerable in the whole overseas property pyramid scheme - the misfortunate investor at the bottom of the pile - to gain some traction in an otherwise arcane, unregulated and unyielding industry. In its prime it was a vibrant and excellent example of what a forum can be and that to which many fora (forums, take your pick) should aspire.

Then it all changed. Most likely because of the popularity of the forum, agents and developers didn't like having their names in lights for all the wrong reasons - heaven forbid people should know how they actually ran their businesses - so they did what all good companies do - they threatened legal action. It's a natural, and very cheap, reaction to such blatant bad publicity - get your big-shot lawyers to send threatening letters and hey-presto - 99% of forums couldn't be bothered with the hassle and will remove their posts as quickly as they were put up there. And unfortunately AAM was no different.

All this legal traffic eventually became a bit tedious for the Mods at AAM though. For a start they don't really consider overseas property purchases to be 'investment' per se. It's always been treated as the idiot child of the forum - it had to be there but if it was going to cause nuisance then it would be severely reprimanded. No credence was ever given to the fact that overseas property is the least regulated investment in the spectrum, in what has proven to be a pretty miserably regulated industry to begin with, so it perhaps needs more, rather than less, assistance from those in a position of power such as the Great Ones at AAM.

Regardless, the Mods started introducing posting guidelines that essentially strangled the forum to death. Visiting it now is like passing through an old Wild West prospecting town after the gold rush - there is tumbleweed drifting down the deserted streets where once there was the vitality and virility of public opinion and debate. You essentially can't breathe a word about anything worth mentioning on the forum, so anyone of any consequence either got banned or left of their own volition.

In our case the disenchantment with the forum had been growing for some time. Shortly before the banning a completely innocuous thread about a book on the overseas property industry, on which we had posted a number of comments, disappeared completely without a mention of why this should happen. There was certainly nothing in the thread that, even in the newly regulated environment of the AAM overseas property section, could be found in breach. Some Mod obviously decided it simply shouldn't be there - as AAM Mods seem to do.

Our banning came in relation to another relatively innocuous posting that yet another overseas property agent, Property Secrets, had gone to the wall. The poster put in as an aside that: "This overseas forum is itself looking like it is going under! first it was consigned to a sub thread of property investment and now there is virtually no one posting any more. Have we all deserted at the bust? Is there anyone still out there? Where are all the regular posters!"

Well, that was it. The tongue biting could be entertained no longer. The question was out there and it had to be answered, so it was, in a frank and forthright manner (you won't find it there now, of course, the Mods at AAM are much too thin-skinned to leave criticism of the way they run their empire exist online).

We received a severe dressing down from the chief Mod via Private Message (PM) - apparently all this sort of stuff must be done in private, no dirty laundry washing in public. We sought to disagree with said chief Mod's interpretation of what the general public should be entitled to expect from the most powerful financial services forum in the country. We offered to have the debate on the issue publicly, which wasn't even entertained, and we were accused (as you'll see on the picture accompanying this blog) of being offensive. I can assure you we were not offensive in any way, but we did have an opinion we wished to express. Being offensive in AAM parlance is, apparently, speaking your mind and this is not to be entertained under any circumstance. It is an environment that seems uncomfortably close to the Communist ethos of suffocating the truth rather than the Democracy one would expect to find embraced by any forum seeking to deliver worthy debate on the topics that matter.

In any case, that is the price of having an opinion on AAM it would appear. It is somewhat of a standing joke in Irish forum communities that most other forums were started because people were banned from AAM for expressing an opinion that differed from that of the AAM Mods. Hopefully some good will come to pass from this incident and someone will set up an overseas property forum that will actually serve the community rather than being subservient to the opinions and desires of those who set it up.

It is a great shame though, AAM had the ideal platform, and for a time, served the overseas property community very well.

AAM Overseas Property Forum - RIP 2009

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Property Secrets Calls Time

2009-08-13T01:30:00.000-07:00

We're interrupting our annual summer hols, unfortunately to inform you of another overseas property agent that has bitten the dust. Those of you who have visited the Property Secrets website since August 11th will have noticed that the company is no more. You'll be greeted by the following message:

Dear Property Secrets members,

I regret to inform you that Visium Group, the owner of PropertySecrets.net, has closed its doors for further business and ceased trading as of Tuesday 11th August. In the end the recession has been too deep and too long to survive.

It is intended, however, that the Property Secrets website publishing business will continue as unaffected as possible, ensuring all advertising and membership commitments are met during this process.

This includes continually updated property investment advice, research and services currently available on the Property Secrets website, but does not include support for any previous investment property sold through Property Secrets.

i-PropertyAssets clients are advised to contact their letting and management partners directly or make alternative arrangements.

Notices to creditors will be issued over the next few days, notifying them of a meeting to be held on 8th September at the offices of the proposed insolvency practitioner, Walletts (click to download a pdf of the letter of notification of the creditor meeting).

In the meantime, a core team will remain to continue to provide a live website and collect outstanding payments such that amounts owing to staff and creditors can be met as best as possible, and that the value of the website and publishing business can be maintained should a potential purchaser be found by the insolvency practitioners.

Any statements of interest in purchasing some or all of the business assets of Visium Group Ltd should be directed to Walletts using the contact details on the letter of notification of creditor meeting.

On behalf of the directors of Visium Group I'd like to say thank you to all our customers, partners and staff for the last 10 years, and we wish you all the best of luck with your investments.

Best wishes

Neil Lewis, Peter Bennett, Simon Shepherd, Jez Touch

Directors

Visium Group Ltd

Simple Overseas Properties' Clients Threaten Legal Action

2009-07-27T04:10:00.000-07:00

Irish overseas property investment company, Simple Overseas Properties (SOP), is facing court action from a number of its investors for allegedly taking deposits on developments in Morocco which were not subsequently passed to the developer.

The developments, called Asilah Marina Golf and Asilah Beach Resort, are two of a number of Mediterranean coastal Moroccan developments that the agency was promoting in Ireland at the height of the boom.

Click here for full story on the website.

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No Place in the Sun - Book on Overseas Property

2009-07-27T04:02:00.000-07:00

If you've an interest in overseas property and you're looking for an easy read this summer you might be interested in the latest release from former overseas property agent, John Mulligan.

There's a pretty good review of the book on the website here, it might help you make up your mind whether it's likely to be something that is of interest to you or not.

The book retails for €9.95 and can be found in all good bookshops or by visiting http://www.noplaceinthesun.com/.

Derek Quinlan Retires from Quinlan Private

2009-07-08T01:05:00.000-07:00

Derek Quinlan has decided to step down as the head of the high profile Irish property investment firm, Quinlan Private. Today's Irish Times reports that the 61 year old has "withdrawn from a management role within the firm in recent times to focus on his personal investments. He has also been spending more time at his homes in London and France."

The piece by Simon Carswell continues: "Quinlan Private gained a reputation for attracting cash-rich investors into high-profile property deals financed with high levels of bank borrowings and completed in quick transactions. The global economic slump and financial crisis has forced banks to seek renegotiated loan agreements with Quinlan Private – and Mr Quinlan on his own personal investments – due to falling values across the property markets."

There is no doubt that the myth of the 'canny Irish property investor' which circulated the planet in the late nineties and early noughties, was to a great extent propagated by the many headline deals struck by Quinlan and his group, albeit that many of these deals were struck at, or close to, the peak of the market.

According to the Times piece: "The company came to international prominence in 2004 when Mr Quinlan led a group of Irish investors to buy the luxury Savoy hotel group in London for €1.1 billion." He has also become well known for high profile deals such as the Four Seasons in Budapest, Santander in Madrid, Canary Wharf in London and expensive personal and business investments in Manhattan and around New York.

Those with a slightly jaundiced view of the world may well say that Quinlan has, much like Bertie Ahern, waited until things have gotten tough to leave the mess for someone else to clean up. He is, however, not leaving the company completely. The Times reports that "the former tax inspector will remain a significant investor with the company which will continue to be managed by its four existing partners – Olan Cremin, Peter Donnelly, Thomas Dowd and Mark O’Donnell."

The piece concludes: "Mr Quinlan has been trying to sell properties including a house in Manhattan for €23 million and offices, also in New York city, for €19 million and has reduced the prices in a bid to secure sales. He has recently been involved in negotiations with some of his banks about his investments."

Pieces on Quinlan's retirement in the Irish Times can be found here and here.

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International Law Partnership To Cease Trading

2009-06-30T08:07:00.000-07:00

John Howell’s International Law Partnership is to close, reportedly due to a collapse in income at the firm.

The UK-based law firm, specialised in overseas conveyancing and legal issues. It is to cease to practice from July 10th 2009.

Howell has said the company had written off over £500,000 of anticipated income so far this year, while actual income had fallen by nearly 75%.

“Over the last few months our clients – and, in particular, our developer clients – have been going bust at a catastrophic rate and many of our other clients are unwilling or unable to pay their bills,” said Howell. “We have, therefore and with great regret, decided to close the business.”

Howell will be well known for his regular appearances at exhibitions and seminars at which he was invariably one of the best respected speakers. He has also been a regular advisor on TV and radio shows in both the UK and Ireland. It is to be hoped that he and his company will not be lost to the overseas property community completely.

The full story on the closure of ILP can be found here.

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Considering relocating to Spain?

2009-06-29T04:54:00.000-07:00

If you've ever had any notions about relocating to Spain then a read of this rather in-depth piece in our Editorial section will be very well worth a visit.

Justin Aldridge of Eye on Spain (who is a British expat living in Spain) gives a full run-down of all the issues that were dealt with on the recent ITV series - Paradise Lost.

Essentially the programmes outline how a selection of Brittish expats have managed with investments, homes and businesses in Spain. If you are feeling a little squeamish then it might be best you didn't read it, but if you are considering moving to Spain for any reason, it should be considered at least.

It's not for the faint-hearted, but then the time for the reality check is before you consider such a huge investment or move, not when you've already taken the first steps.

Enjoy, you'll find the piece here.

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Making Agents and Developers Liable for their Activities

2009-06-23T08:33:00.000-07:00

There's an interesting article by Diarmaid Condon in our editorial section of the site. The basis of the piece is the need for a proper framework within which overseas property buyers would receive the protection that any other consumer would receive when purchasing a product or service.

The main issues addressed are around where the responsibility for due diligence lies and what levels of governance should be expected by Irish citizens purchasing property anywhere.

A very thought provoking piece - you'll find it here in its entirety.

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Investors to Lose Money in Pirin Park Resort, Bansko

2009-06-20T08:08:00.000-07:00

A recent report in the Sofia Echo says that 300 British and Irish investors claim to have lost nearly six millions pounds sterling, or 13.2 million Bulgarian leva, in the Alpine resort of Bansko.

In a joint letter sent to Kafeneto.net the investors explain that they fear that their investments are likely lost because the future of the enterprise in Bansko now appears very uncertain.

The group claims that a combination of "bad circumstances, poor management and rampant corruption is to blame."

In its defence, the company promoting the development, Bulgarian Development UK, has argued that the problem lies with alleged corruption in Bulgaria and the global economic downturn. Investors, however, claim there has been financial mismanagement and that the company has used investors' apartments as guarantees to finance other projects.

Bulgarian Development UK has insisted that they were obliged to adopt such measures in order to pay the builder, MRI Construction, the construction arm of MRI Overseas Properties based in the Costa del Sol. Bulgarian Development UK claims that complications ensued after MRI had terminated construction operations, even though it had been paid fully by the customers in advance.

The investors have established the Pirin Park Resort Residential Association to conduct negotiations on behalf of affected clients.

The full article is available here.

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Bulgarian Property Action Group Formed

2009-06-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

If you've had any problems with property purchases in Bulgaria - and quite a few Irish investors have significant problems there - then you'll be glad to hear that someone is trying to do something to relieve the plight of Bulgarian property owners.

The Bulgaria Property Action Group (BPAG) is seeking to bring together as many people as possible that have experienced problems with off-plan property purchases in Bulgaria in an attempt to help resolve any issues which have arisen.

The group aims to provide help, support and information for those who need it. It is also an action group of people who want to see changes that will help them seek justice and recompense for any losses they may have incurred.

Pamela East, the project's administrator, says: "There are currently huge problems with the way that real estate transactions are conducted in Bulgaria. The group want to see legal and structural changes that will give protection and provide a legal framework in the Bulgarian property market. We also want to see a process which will enable them to seek redress for any losses and to prevent such problems happening again."

For further information on the group and how it can be contacted visit the full press release on the OverseasCafe.com website.

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Michael Lynn Continues to Generate Headlines

2009-06-08T09:40:00.000-07:00

He may have fled the country in disgrace two years ago, but Michael Lynn just can't keep himself out of the Irish newspaper headlines. Two stories, one in the Irish Mail on Sunday and the other in the Sunday Times, yesterday, prove that the on-the-run Mayo solicitor is most definitely alive and well.

The Mail on Sunday article, once again written by Michael O'Farrell (who seems to have become Mr. Lynn's tail in Europe) features Lynn directly. Apparently he's being accused of locking clients in his Cabanas development in Tavira on the Portuguese Algarve out of their swimming pool.

Residents at the complex have apparently, taken court action to be allowed to use their own pool. A letter was received by owners from Vantea (to whom Lynn transferred ownership of the development but is a company strongly suspected to be owned by him in any case) asking them to pay management fees due.

Owners at the complex are quoted as saying that; 'TV's and fridges have been removed from a number of apartments and that guaranteed rental payments owed by the management company had not been paid.'

The swimming pool and bar area are now, apparently, locked up and signs have been removed from the entrance to the pool area.

The piece also says that a group of investors is seeking to seize the land on which phase 2 of the project was to be built and the contractor, Bemposta, is also seeking to freeze the site as it claims it has not been paid for building work completed to date.

The Mail on Sunday article isn't available online, but we've scanned a copy of it and will upload a link to it here in the next day or two.

The second story, carried by the Sunday Times, refers to Lynn indirectly, via his former property agency, KenDar. Some of you might remember the company gave away a property in Bankso, Bulgaria on RTE's Late Late Show in association with the Property Expo and the Sunday Business Post.

Well the winners, David and Olivia Timlin, who are co-incidentally also from Co. Mayo, never received the property (surprise, surprise) and, in the absence of KenDar, have decided to sue RTE for breach of contract.

According to the piece: "RTE declined to comment on the case 'which is still ongoing'. The couple referred all queries to Manus Sweeney, their solicitor, who also declined to comment.

You can find the full article here.

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Investing in UK Distressed Property

2009-06-05T01:57:00.000-07:00

Find out how to invest in UK bank repossessed property at a free seminar on June 22nd in Dublin.

The strength of the euro relative to sterling presents a window of opportunity for the Irish investor looking to invest in UK distressed property. Most commentators agree that the euro is currently overvalued and is likely to weaken against sterling in the coming months following a combination of some positive economic news from the UK and the European Central Bank’s ponderous response to the financial crisis.

It is currently possible in the UK to buy bank repossessed property at discounts of up to 50% on the property's previous sale value. If an Irish investor had purchased a typical city centre apartment in Manchester, for example, at £180,000 in June 2007 when the exchange rate was 1.47 euros to the pound it would have cost him or her €264,600. A repossessed property in the same block in many cases would now typically cost £100,000, while the exchange rate is now 1.15. This means that the same apartment, if a repossession, would now cost an investor €115,000 - a staggering difference of €149,600!

This is an example of a property recently sourced for an investor in Yorkshire:

Purchased for £74,000 in 2009
Previously sold for £184,000 in 2007
Discount of 60%
Gross yield 8%

Typical yields on bank repossessed property range from 7 to 9% so an investor can achieve good income as well as a healthy discount.

The seminar starts at 6.30pm, lasts for two hours and will cover the following topics:

The outlook for the UK property market
How to source distressed property
Distressed property criteria (what to look for)
The legal pitfalls of buying distressed property
Arranging Finance
The services on offer

Places are limited and allocated on a strictly first-come first-served basis - please click here to secure your place.

If you can’t make the seminar but would like to meet up or discuss distressed property please email us at contact@OverseasCafe.com and we can have same arranged.

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Want to know more about the UK Property Market?

For a selection of property in the UK click here.

For independent articles on overseas property click here.

For news on the UK property market click here.

For new releases and product updates from UK agents click here.

For UK related stories on the OverseasCafe.com's topical blog click here.

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French Leaseback in Irish Times

2009-06-04T04:29:00.000-07:00

Today's Irish Times has an extensive feature on French Leaseback property, outlining some of the pros and cons.

It's an interesting piece, written by Frances O'Rourke, a well respected property writer with the paper, and features some input from ourselves to boot. What more could you ask for?

Why not nip over and check it out, you'll find it here.

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Links to French property information on the OverseasCafe.com site:

Property in France

French Property Advice

News relating to French Property

French Real Estate Agent News

Selection of French Property Agents

FBD Runs Aground in Spain

2009-06-03T01:10:00.000-07:00

Irish insurer, FBD Holdings, has run into problems with the sale of some land adjoining its La Cala Golf development in Spain's Costa del Sol, according to today's Irish Independent.

Shareholders were, according to the paper, hoping to benefit from a €50m windfall on the back of an €80m deal which was to be concluded on June 21st. The insurer has confirmed it is unable to meet an imminent planning deadline to clear the way for the sale of the land. This was to be the second tranche of a €200m deal agreed in summer 2006 where €120m was payable immediately for 58 ha while €80m was to become payable for the remaining 40 ha, subject to planning being received by June 21st.

According to the Indo report by Laura Noonan, the 80 acres will now be legally transferred to FBD although finance director, Cathal O Caoimh, stressed that it would have no financial impact on FBD since the €80m gain had never been recognised.

The 40-hectare site, which is adjacent to the group's La Cala golf course, already has roads and sewage and has planning permission for residential development.

The full article can be found here.

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Farewell to 'Raising The Roof'

2009-06-02T00:45:00.000-07:00

It is with a great deal of sadness that we have learned of the demise of the 'Raising the Roof' 'blog.

We received the following message from the blog's writer, Kevin Brass:

"I regret to announce the New York Times, as part of its latest round of cutbacks, has decided to drop “Raising the Roof,” the international property blog. In recent weeks The Times, which owns the International Herald Tribune, has absorbed the Web activities of the Herald Tribune, downsized the weekly international-focused “Escapes” section and slashed the contractor budget. The last “Raising the Roof” post will go up Friday, May 29.

I will continue to write about property markets for the print edition of the International Herald Tribune, as well as occasional stories for the NYT. I will also be pursing other opportunities in the property industry.

For all those who read the blog and helped develop stories over the last couple of years, I thank you for your attention and support."

What can we say Kevin? We really enjoyed the blog and are very sorry to see it go. You'll be badly missed in the overseas property blogosphere and best of luck with your ventures in the future, we're sure they'll be very successful.

The Lucky Banker

2009-05-25T09:42:00.000-07:00

Ok, at first sight a recent UK seller seems to have it all. He has just sold his Knightsbridge home for the princely sum of £18m. Some achievement, you might say, given current market conditions.

If you look a little closer though, all may not be as it seems.

The asking price for the house was a whopping £40m. before the bust hit. The developer actually rejected offers of £33m. before the economic hurricane swept all before it.

The buyer in question is Raffaelle Mincioneo, who you might also think is the luckiest guy in the world, but he is in fact a banker - not a jolly lot these days - but then he's obviously doing ok for himself if he can afford to shell out £18m for a Knightsbridge home in the depths of the worst recession in our lifetime.

He's obviously been blessed with good fortune in his life as he was once dating Heather Mills - now that is a lucky escape.

The full story from the Daily Mail is here.

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OverseasCafe.com May Newsletter

2009-05-21T04:15:00.000-07:00

Whew, there's been a phenomenal response to the May newsletter we sent out yesterday. We are experiencing a huge amount of interest in the properties listed in it in particular, which is no mean feat considering the economic turmoil the country is currently experiencing. It just goes to show, there is money out there looking for a home, it just takes the right product at the right price to get it moving.

We featured a number of UK repossessions as well as a selection of UK commercial property offering strong yields. That's one of them pictured, a very nice London commercial unit tenanted by Sainsbury's with four other shops and eight flats.

Just so that those who are not signed up for the newsletter don't get left out we said we'd put a link to the May version here. If you want to view other past newsletters you'll find the index here.

To make sure you are included in future email newsletters just sign up, it couldn't be easier.

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Legal Eagles Protect Unethical Practices

2009-05-19T11:58:00.000-07:00

There's an interesting piece on the relationship between the legal profession and 'big business' in relation to overseas property in our editorial section. It is written by Diarmaid Condon, who has seen and done pretty much what is to be seen and done in the Irish overseas property industry. It's well worth a read - very thought provoking - particularly if you've been on the wrong end of some less than ethical practices in the overseas property industry - and let's be honest, there's plenty of this in evidence these days.

It certainly raises the question of whether the average property purchaser overseas should have better access to lower cost and more effecient legal services in the quest to bring to book developers and agents who have failed to deliver on the promises made during purchase negotiations.

You'll find the article in full here.

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Apologies for OverseasCafe.com Site Outage

2009-05-16T07:23:00.000-07:00

Apologies to our faithful readers for the outage to our OverseasCafe.com website.

Essentially OC is moving hosting providers but the one it's leaving isn't best pleased and is being less than accommodating in hastening the transfer of the domain name to the new providers.

It's a real nuisance but hopefully everything will be back in action soon.

If you do wish to visit the site you'll find it here in the interim.

Apologies for any inconvenience experienced in the meantime.

Credit Crunch Causes Cape Verde Development Fallout

2009-05-16T06:16:00.000-07:00

There are signs of cracks on the veneer of the property industry of the idyllic island archipelago of Cape Verde.

A judgement granted against developers Tom Sheehy (Cape Verde Development) and John Cahillane shows the level of distress that is being felt in the industry at the moment, particularly in 'emerging markets' such as Cape Verde.

The case, brought by Brian Murphy-O'Connor and Ted Whittaker against the two developers, shows just how cashflow in the industry is rapidly running dry. Sheehy doesn't deny the money is owed but, like everyone else, they are finding it difficult to get their hands on funding at the moment. Under normal market conditions you suspect a case like this would never make it to court.

See our full editorial piece on the case and its ramifications for the island group here.

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Trichet Sees a Bottom

2009-05-12T03:33:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the headline could be taken as an indication that the venerable European Central Bank President has been spending a little too much time in naughty areas of Amsterdam, but no, he sees a potential bottom to the current malaise of the European economy, nothing more sinister than that.

This is, indeed, good news. Although you would have to say, the bottom in question may be a bit more distant for Ireland than other parts of Europe, we do seem to be in a particularly bad pickle.

Having said that, it is good to know that Europe may be able to see light at the end of the tunnel, because the chances of Ireland Inc. recovering without others around it first improving their situations are very slim.

According to Trichet: "As far as growth is concerned, we're around the inflection point in the cycle, that's the sentiment." He claims that a number of recent reports are encouraging but he issues the caveat that there's no time for complacency.

Of course, the fact that the European Central Bank President sees the potential for an upswing in an economy in which he has such a vested interest doesn't in itself mean much, it could be argued that he is merely talking up the European economy. It could also be said that he is ignoring a lot of negative sentiment still remaining in the market.

It is, however, an indication that at least there are some positive reports and sentiment on which to pin our hopes, which was not the case some six months ago, so perhaps a corner of sorts is being turned. Or maybe a bottom of sorts is being reached. Again, no pun intended.

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Potential Changes to Letting Rules in the UK

2009-05-05T02:26:00.000-07:00

The Times reports that all private landlords in the UK may have to be registered before letting residential property under new government plans mooted to curb abuse in the rental market.

It is estimated that the number of private landlords has risen to about one million in England and Wales and it is felt within the government that moves must be taken to prevent unscrupulous landlords from exploiting tenants.

The proposal is that anyone letting a residential property would have to pay a fee, mooted to be £50 to start with, to register with a national body. Those required to register would include developers, buy-to-let investors and those who have become landlords because they cannot sell their properties and have let them out instead.

See the full article from the Times here.

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EU Court Rules for Demolition of Northern Cypriot Property

2009-04-30T03:35:00.000-07:00

Brace yourself if you've bought a property in Northern Cyprus - a recent ruling by the European Court of Justice means that thousands of property owners may be in danger of losing their homes in the occupied areas of Northern Cyprus, or at least being liable to pay compensation.

The court upheld a previous ruling ordering a U.K. couple, Linda and David Orams, to demolish their house in Northern Cyprus.

It is unlikely that the ruling will be enacted because the land is under Turkish Cypriot control, but it means that the plaintiff, Mr. Apostolides, can now pursue a claim for compensation from the Orams through the UK courts.

Full details of the ruling can be found on the site here.

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Deutsche Bank Posts Q1 Profit

2009-04-28T01:12:00.000-07:00

If you've been scrabbling around looking for good news in the market then the latest Q1 report from Deutsche Bank will fill your heart with joy. Who'd have thought just a couple of years ago that it would be so unusual to report a bank that has actually made a profit, but there you go, it's a sign of the times in which we now live.

Anyway, Deutsche Bank has managed it. The iconic Frankfurt based banking behemoth has reported a first quarter net profit of €1.2 bn for January to March 2009. You wouldn't believe how much relief and rejoicing this has initiated (well you probably would actually). This is a considerable improvement on the bank's previous quarter which involved a loss of €141 m.

I won't go into all the gory details here, if you want them they are available on the bank's site here. Suffice to say, it is a chink of light in the Eurozone in what has been, to say the least, a turbulent and very dark year to date.

This news, allied to some good banking news from the US lately, may help to lift the whole doom and gloom scenario somewhat, and that can't be bad.

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Funds See UK Opportunities

2009-04-21T23:50:00.000-07:00

In the face of the current financial discomfort being experienced by most citizens, it is interesting to see how current events in the market are viewed by others, particular those in funds that have been set up specifically to invest in so called 'toxic assets'.

Take a look at this recent piece on the site courtesy of OPP. It essentially outlines how investment funds are hunting distressed property assets across Europe and the US at the moment - at a time when the average investor is doing exactly the opposite. It gives a significant insight into the mind of an investor looking for an opportunity to buy into the market when the 'populist opinion' is that you should be getting out.

The reason these funds are looking for these assets: "It’s cheap and no one else wants it but there’s always an asset behind the debt.” Remember that last part of the sentence in years to come - "there's always an asset behind the debt." This is also a topic that will be addressed in the Editorial section of our site in the not too distant future.

The UK is a particular target for investors because of the dramatic fall in prices and the weak Pound. According to Andrew Simcock, director of Global Property Investments: “We’re looking particularly at London and other UK centres, which are likely to be some of the first markets to come out of the downturn and where fundamentals remain strong.”

Well if you didn't know before, the secret to contrarian investmen t - buy when others are selling, sell when others are buying.

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Could Spain be Moving in the Right Direction?

2009-04-20T08:41:00.000-07:00

Mark Stucklin reports over at Spanish Property Insight that there may actually be some light at then end of the tunnel for the the misfortunate Spanish property industry.

Of course we're at a period when there may be a lot of straw grasping done, so I wouldn't be inclined to hold my breath, but it is, nonetheless, better than the constant barrage of negative indicators this market has thrown up over the past half decade.

An article in ‘El Mundo’, one of Spain’s leading news papers, suggests there may be signs of recovery in the Spanish property market, in one of the first positive articles on the outlook for the market since the crisis began.

The newspaper has described this as potentially; "the beginning of the end of the worst period for property sales since the crisis began."

The article has pointed out that real estate markets may have bottomed out in the US, the UK, and France, which isn't really a given, and then goes on to suggest that Spain may also be part of this trend - not really a given either unfortunately - but worth a shot I guess.

The optimism comes from a report by Gonzalo Bernardos, a property market expert and professor of economics at the University of Barcelona, who suggests that the Spanish property market may come back to life this year, following a dismal 2008.

Thee five key reasons he gives are that; “Interest rates are lower; house prices have fallen back to their 2003 levels; banks are lending more; investors are coming back; and many people who were thinking of renting have decided to buy.”

Let's hope the new found optimism isn't ill-founded.

You can read the full piece here.

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Distressed Property Owner? - This May Help

2009-04-07T01:50:00.000-07:00

Distressed property - it seems to be the topic of the day - which is all well and good, unless you actually own one. Those who have never purchased an asset to find that it is not - as they had intended - a wonderful investment, will simply never understand the horrible anguish experienced by those who have made a purchase that turns out to be less than exemplerary.

For those that are in such a position be aware that there is hope - however slim it may be in some cases. Diarmaid Condon has written a very enlightening piece on the website about the options open to those who have assets which, for one reason or another, are not performing as they had hoped.

It is good to find someone who will give positive and constructive advice to those who are in trouble at a time when newspapers and magazines are still full of promotional material for new developments in exotic locations. This is despite the very obvious fact that there is an absolute deluge of overseas property owners experiencing extreme distress with their overseas purchases at the moment.

You'll find the full article here.

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It's an Ill Wind That Doesn't Blow a Vulture Some Good

2009-04-02T00:33:00.000-07:00

Feeling a bit despondant? No hope of a recovery? Everything going down the toilet? Well, if you're looking for a positive outlook on the current property market you might well take a look at what property funds are doing. What are they doing, you might well ask? Well, they're salivating quite a lot and making movie type evil laugh noises to be honest. They see rich pickings in the property market and they're falling over themselves to pay very little for them.

A recent Reuters report says it all in its headline 'Debt buyers eye bombed out market'. According to reporters Tom Freke and Daryl Loo: 'Real estate funds are spying rich pickings from carnage in commercial real estate, stockpiling cash to buy discounted loans that may cost banks billions of pounds in the coming years.'

Admittedly it's not great news if you're working in the banking industry, although the chances are that any 'nationally vital' bank will be bailed out by ... well, us really. Isn't it nice to know that all these 'vulture funds' will make lots of money while we get saddled with the black hole of irresponsible bank debt? No? Have you no sense of humour? I guess not.

Well, the fund managers are happy anyway, at least the ones that didn't buy any property in the last few years are. According to Reuters: "Mortgages supporting high-profile office or shopping mall deals are in dire need of refinancing after a record crash in prices in 2008 that has hit commercial property markets much harder than its residential counterpart."

These mortgages, known as commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS) are, according to Barclays Capital, responsible for about €77 billion (millions are no good these days, it has to be billions if you want to have any effect). Barclays estimates that some €35 billion of this debt is due for refinancing by 2012, but banks, whether they like it or not, have to reduce their exposure to the property market.

The report claims that average UK commercial real estate prices have fallen by 40 percent since a market peak in mid-2007, this means that many CMBS deals have now breached covenants linked to the value of the property.

The recession is biting hard and payment defaults are now beginning in UK, Spain and France, according to Close Brothers. There are, apparently, not too many in Germany yet, but they are expecting some in the not too distant future.

So if you think there is no future in the property market you should probably ask yourself why eleven funds are seeking to raise about $6.5 billion to invest in Europe with a staggering $72 billion being sought for the North American market.

It's all they can do to stop the saliva slobbering from their mouths as they make these statements.

Another positive is to be found in an article entitled 'House Prices Post First Rise Since 2007'. According to the Nationwide Building Society, UK house prices this March rose for the first time since October 2007. The lender did, however, caution against jumping to conclusions about a housing market rebound. Apparently house prices rose 0.9% in March after a 1.9% drop in February, taking the average price of a house up to £150,946.

So there you go - it's not all doom and gloom out there.

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UK Mortgage Lending Increases

2009-03-31T23:39:00.000-07:00

Those with an interest in the UK market will be interested to read that things may be, even if only incrementally, moving forward. Information from the Bank of England says that the increase in net lending secured on dwellings (£1.5 billion) was higher than the January increase and the previous six-month average. Having said that the twelve-month growth rate continued to fall, down by 0.5 percentage points to 2.4%. The three-month annualised growth rate rose by 0.2 percentage points to 1.5%. The number of loans approved for house purchase (37,937) was higher than in January and the previous six-month average.

As you would expect in a time of borrowing restrictions, approvals for remortgaging (32,633) and for other purposes (31,372) were lower than in January and the previous six-month averages.

According to Sunday's Mail "the figures echo reports from estate agents of a flood of new buyers coming through their doors in recent weeks."

I was actually in the UK last week looking at commercial opportunities for clients. The impression I got was that there was definitely signs of a turn in the market, I'm not so sure I'd term it a 'flood of buyers' however, from what I was hearing on the ground.

The Mail's article did, however, come "with a health warning that rising unemployment could yet see the market suffer further reverses." It goes on to say that: "The total number of buyers is still relatively low in historic terms - 44 per cent below February last year - and is not considered enough to prevent further price falls."

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Stung in the Property Market? It Could Happen to a Journalist

2009-03-31T08:50:00.000-07:00

One of the great joys of the internet is that it helps you to trace things back through the passage of time. If politicians say one thing one day and another thing on a different day, then there is some eagle eyed blogger or forum poster that will spot it, or search for it, and bring it to light. If a journalist claims that a particular location is the bees knees and cats whiskers one year and changes their mind another year, then it can very easily be found online. It makes for a whole new level of transparency in the 'information stratosphere'.

In this particular case there is no great need for the tracing back, the person in question isn't trying to hide anything, in fact the exact opposite is the case, but reading the original article is interesting, when the outcome is considered, nonetheless.

With this in mind I read with interest a very honest recollection from a property hunter at the weekend, relayed in the Irish Mail on Sunday. Recollections of an overseas property hunter are, you may well say, two a penny and 'very 2007'. But this was no ordinary recollection, it was that of Zoe Dare Hall, a well known and respected British property journalist. Again, you may well say, 'isn't it well for her to have a platform to tell us how wonderfully she did in her overseas purchases when we have all been falling by the wayside' and again, you'd be incorrect.

Ms. Dare Hall was not, in fact, waxing lyrical about her wonderful timing in entering the market at 'just the right time' and exiting it having made a 'small fortune'. On the contrary, she was berating herself for 'losing her mother's Legacy - in Estonia'. You will find a scanned copy of the the piece here, (many thanks to Action Against Churchills for this). For those who don't wish to read it, Ms. Dare Hall basically outlines the nightmare scenario for every amateur (or professional for that matter) overseas property investor. She avoided all the so called 'hot spots' in favour of the little known seaside town of Parnu in Estonia. If you check out this article in the Independent, from July 2006, you will get the gist of why she decided to invest in this particular location. Here's a snippet:

'Many people believe that Parnu will be the next Tallinn. "Tallinn's market is very tight but Parnu is the place to be," says Chris Tonkinson of Crichton Developments, which is selling apartments on a golf resort near a white-sand beach in Valgeranna, and in Audru, from £50,000.'

Essentially, the Estonian property market has tanked. Added to this, the Isle of Wight based agent, Churchill, through which Ms. Dare Hall invested - despite being led to believe she was investing through Crichton Developments - has gone under. Not only that, Karl Goldthorpe and Paul Wade of Churchill's have been arrested by Isle of Wight police following allegations about their dealings in the overseas property market.

Essentially, despite her best attempts to avoid the 'sharks' in the overseas property market, Ms. Dare Hall found herself swimming among them.

I have to say, well done to Ms. Dare Hall for putting her story out there because, there are many who wouldn't (and no doubt many who haven't). It is a lot easier to ignore it and pretend it never happened, an unfortunate habit of Irish investors who get roasted. It also begs the question; "if an overseas property journalist who has been around the world and interviewed dozens of agents and developers, can get caught out in such a fashion, well, where's the hope for the rest of us?" There is no protection of any description for overseas property investors and amateurs regularly get stung for very large amounts of money. Everybody just seems to be prepared to turn a blind eye to it these days. My inbox is overflowing with stories of wealth sapping losses - but nobody seems to be in the least bit interested.

It's always the same, there's never a damned NPSRA around when you need it. We need regulation, but it appears we're not going to get it - but that's a story for another day.

It also begs the question - should property journalists be obliged to declare their investments so that those reading their columns can ascertain whether their guidance should be heeded or ignored.

OK, it's not an obligation yet, so I'm not telling you. Suffice to say, I'm a lot more solvent than most Irish developers or banks at the moment - but that's not saying a lot.

If you have had problems with the Isle of Wight based Churchills group or Karl Goldthorpe, you may like to visit the Action Against Churchills group which, as it says, will keep you up to date with what is happening with respect to actions against the group.

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Property Expo Cancelled

2009-03-26T08:22:00.000-07:00

Ireland's most prominent and, recently, its only multi-agency property exhibition, has been cancelled for 2009. The Property Expo, which was run by iQuest and promoted by the Sunday Business Post, has been a regular on the Irish exhibition calendar for a number of years but stand sales have been so poor for the shows that it has become the latest victim of our biting recession. The shows were scheduled to run in the RDS on April 18th & 19th and in Cork's City Hall on April 25th and 26th .

At time of publishing of this blog the Expo website has not been updated to reflect this information but it will, no doubt, appear on the site in the near future.

Hopefully things will have picked up by this time next year and we will be announcing the show's new dates for 2010. Love them or hate them, such exhibitions have always been a great means of meeting others involved in the industry to find out what is going on at the coalface. The exhibition's cancellation will leave a substantial hole in the information gathering process for the overseas property industry. We wish them well for the future and hope to see them back in action in 2010.

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