ADVICE

In response to numerous emails from investors across a number of developments I highlight just some of the pitfalls you are likely to face if buying property in Cape Verde:

The UK Foreign office advises of serious problems buying property in Cape Verde at https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/cape-verde

1. Stage payments are unprotected. If you pay stage payments up front then, unlike in Spain and other EU countries, those payments are unlikely to be protected. Do not trust Cape Verde banks or lawyers. Insist on full protection of your stage payments via an escrow account and use the services of a reputable lawyer (if you can actually find one). Do not release a penny to the developer until the deeds are ready to sign.

2. Ensure you fully inspect the property before you pay any money or sign deeds. Do not be lazy and trust someone else to do it, otherwise you only have yourself to blame. Ensure there is permanent water and electricity supplies. Do not rely on temporary site power or water supplies.

3. Regard your purchase contracts as effectively worthless , no matter how detailed. You do not want to have to take legal action in a Cape Verde court - it will take years to sort out and may never be sorted out at all. If a developer runs into difficulties he will hide behind the poor legal system, shrug his shoulders and say, "So try sueing me"

4. Do not rely on any contractual clauses that promise to pay compensation for late payment or guarantee rental upon completion. As I say above, contracts are effectively worthless in Cape Verde because lawyers are, on average, useless or take months to reply to you and the legal system moves slower than a glacier. You cannot rely on any legal safeguards.

5. Do not rely on your property for rental income. It has proved to be extremely difficult renting holiday homes in Cape Verde and many developers have reneged on rental guarantees.

6. Basically, treat Cape Verde as the wild west of holiday property development, where developers can get away with murder safe in the knowledge that it is almost impossible to sue them.

In summary of the above, if you want to buy a property in Cape Verde, the safest way to do it is to not hand over a penny until the property is ready to move into, there is a habitation license, the deeds are ready to sign and the property is serviced by permanent supplies of power and water.

 Below is just a few external links that confirm the properties you are likely to face buying property in Cape Verde...

http://www.expatriatehealthcare.com/cape-verde-information.htm

www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/investing/article-2487929/Savers-lured-catastrophic-investments-feeble-rates.html

www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/cape-verde#property

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