Investing in Monte Santo

[flowgogranny]

Furniture Package

HI

I know your post was a few months ago, however it seems like your thoughts are correct in that the show houses we saw and understood would be used to furnish the rest of the properties if you opted for the furniture pack does not resemble the photos I have recenly been sent by the management team on site at Monte Santo.
Its gone from a cool brown and cream look with wooden furniture to oranges and red with "aged" white furniture. Have you been able to ascertain anything else.

I have asked Monte Santo prior to the photo's arriving at the weekend that the properties would be the same as the show houses and to a 5 star standard. A couple of days on it looks like its not the case. I have asked for clarity.
I also notice from other threads that there maybe a choice of 2 furniture option packs. Do you know anything about this as I have not been told of 2 options

Many thanks

Simon

The furniture in our home is really important to us as we are spending 6 months of the year in Monte Santo our Agent went to the site to report on progress for us and mentioned an orange and red theme going on not creams beige and browns as seem in the showhouses, photos and any publicity for the resort. When we purchased the pack we were told by the sales staff that if we did not like something in one room we could mix and match (from both showhouses). We are ready to pay the 2nd installment of the package but intend to have a word with solicitor about holding some money back until things are clarified. I would love to see any photos anyone has of the furniture (make it easy) I am not very good at opening pics ect. Thanks

We seem to have a different Agent from most who has been honest and upfront from the begining in their opinion the rental forecast for Monte Santo is achievable probably next year, we have stayed in the Tivoli Almanssor (check spelling) their rates for the peak period are either equivalent or more for 4 people to stay as are most 4 or 5 star resorts in Carvoeiro, the facilities are no way as good as Monte Santo, personally I believe the resort will be a success for both people who are on the rental programme and the likes of us who are just going to enjoy!

 

[Lea33]

hi Jumbo1
Would you mind supplying me with the link to photobucket please? Many thanks - we have booked to go Friday week for a week.

 

[Jumbo1]

Hi Lea33, my email address is in the post at the top of page 12 of this thread. If you can contact me on that I will be able to forward you the photbucket link (and an explanatory note!).

 

[JES]

The furniture in our home is really important to us as we are spending 6 months of the year in Monte Santo our Agent went to the site to report on progress for us and mentioned an orange and red theme going on not creams beige and browns as seem in the showhouses, photos and any publicity for the resort. When we purchased the pack we were told by the sales staff that if we did not like something in one room we could mix and match (from both showhouses). We are ready to pay the 2nd installment of the package but intend to have a word with solicitor about holding some money back until things are clarified. I would love to see any photos anyone has of the furniture (make it easy) I am not very good at opening pics ect. Thanks

We seem to have a different Agent from most who has been honest and upfront from the begining in their opinion the rental forecast for Monte Santo is achievable probably next year, we have stayed in the Tivoli Almanssor (check spelling) their rates for the peak period are either equivalent or more for 4 people to stay as are most 4 or 5 star resorts in Carvoeiro, the facilities are no way as good as Monte Santo, personally I believe the resort will be a success for both people who are on the rental programme and the likes of us who are just going to enjoy!

i have just received some photos of the furniture it is orange/gold unfortunatley. if you post you email address on the forum i will forward them on

 

[Jumbo1]

Hi, just posted five more photos on photobucket, taken yesterday. They are all of the central area, which it has to be said, looks very impressive from most angles.

Was reported that some of the apartments (not all) are in use now as well as the townhouses. It was also reported that it appeared to be quite busy with a good number of (hopefully) paying customers already.

 

[flowgogranny]

Hi, just posted five more photos on photobucket, taken yesterday. They are all of the central area, which it has to be said, looks very impressive from most angles.

Was reported that some of the apartments (not all) are in use now as well as the townhouses. It was also reported that it appeared to be quite busy with a good number of (hopefully) paying customers already.

Thank you so much for the pics it look great seems like we have made a good decision to buy after all it will only get better with time did you note the colour of the sky blue and not a cloud in sight cant wait for our first visit Thanks again.

 

[jenclark]

Hi I am new to this site but very interested in everyones comments as we have purchased a 2 bed apartment. and have followed everyones views on the progression of the site with interest. We are booked to stay ourselves in October 21st for 2 weeks and my concerns with M S are that there does not appear to be an owner's webpage as discussed and mentioned on Imocom's website so we are unable to see what bookings we can expect and budget for ( we are well mortgaged for this ) Does anyone have any info regarding the owner availability I have found that the email's to date are not very helpful and quick to reply although I appreciate it is early days yet!!

 

[jenclark]

Can anyone help me access the photo bucket - would love to see updates on the resort. thanks .

 

[Jumbo1]

Has anyone checked whether this is is a touristic resort and that there are rules as to letting only through the developer. That could have an effect on the market value and saleability later on

I am led to believe that the only restriction is on advertising or letting through a Portugese based agency or website.

Jenclark, if you contact me through the email address in the post at the top of page twelve, I will send you the link.

 

[Jumbo1]

[email protected]

 

[chrisandchris]

We have just returned from Portugal and visited Monte Santo a couple of times. It is looking fantastic and pretty close to completion. Quite a few of the apartments had been rented out but it didn't appear to be the case with the townhouses. We had a meeting with Azy who said that the resort is a touristic development - which concerned us as we bought freehold two years ago and are not tied into any rental agreement (intending to rent privately). Azy then said that it depends what is in your promissory contract. We haven't bought into the furniture package although they have put it into our townhouse!! It is as described on previous links as orange/beige with white 'aged' furntiture.
When asked about the official opening Azy said that there was no set date as they hoped to sell more of the townhouses first. He did say that the title deeds were ready but solicitors and Portugal generally grinds to a halt in August, so nothing is expected to progress again until September.

Azy has now left the company and has been replaced by Cristina who can be conacted at
cristina dot leal @ imocom-grupo dot com.

Hope this helps.

 

[JAIABEDO]

We have just returned from Portugal and visited Monte Santo a couple of times. It is looking fantastic and pretty close to completion. Quite a few of the apartments had been rented out but it didn't appear to be the case with the townhouses. We had a meeting with Azy who said that the resort is a touristic development - which concerned us as we bought freehold two years ago and are not tied into any rental agreement (intending to rent privately). Azy then said that it depends what is in your promissory contract. We haven't bought into the furniture package although they have put it into our townhouse!! It is as described on previous links as orange/beige with white 'aged' furntiture.
When asked about the official opening Azy said that there was no set date as they hoped to sell more of the townhouses first. He did say that the title deeds were ready but solicitors and Portugal generally grinds to a halt in August, so nothing is expected to progress again until September.

Azy has now left the company and has been replaced by Cristina who can be conacted at
cristina dot leal @ imocom-grupo dot com.

Hope this helps.

Hello ChrisandChris,

Good to hear that it is all looking fantastic and close to completion. Not so good to hear your other comments. It is a bit worrying that Azy has also left now. That is all 3 contacts we have had there that have now recently left (Azy, Nadine and Roya) just as the resort is opening. We wonder why this is, maybe something to do with putting cheap Zanussi appliances in all of the appartments instead of Miele or Bosch (although I undersatnd yours are the real thing in the townhouses) as in all of the advertising literature and perhaps some other things we have yet to discover where they are not going to stick to their word!

Where is the new web site that we were written to about on 29th May to say it would be ready shortly and where has the web site gone for the sister site in Vialamoura that also mentioned Monte Santo, this is now no longer available on line!

Hopefully it will all be OK in the end!

 

[Paul Stevens]

My wife and I have been watching all the messages in the past and we have invested in a T2. We are very apprehensive to how things will turn out in the long run. On the 12th October 08 we are going out to stay at Santa with a couple of friends, one of which can speak Portuguese( you never know). We are going to look into most things and take a few pictures and also look around the general out skirts of the complex. I am sorry that this letter is short but our typing and computer skills are not brilliant but if somebody needs to find out more about the place please let us know and we will try are best to help. HAYLEY and PAUL

 

[DrQ]

We have just returned from Portugal and visited Monte Santo a couple of times. It is looking fantastic and pretty close to completion. Quite a few of the apartments had been rented out but it didn't appear to be the case with the townhouses. We had a meeting with Azy who said that the resort is a touristic development - which concerned us as we bought freehold two years ago and are not tied into any rental agreement (intending to rent privately). Azy then said that it depends what is in your promissory contract. We haven't bought into the furniture package although they have put it into our townhouse!! It is as described on previous links as orange/beige with white 'aged' furntiture.
When asked about the official opening Azy said that there was no set date as they hoped to sell more of the townhouses first. He did say that the title deeds were ready but solicitors and Portugal generally grinds to a halt in August, so nothing is expected to progress again until September.

Azy has now left the company and has been replaced by Cristina who can be conacted at
cristina dot leal @ imocom-grupo dot com.

Hope this helps.

Hi Chris & Chris,

I shared your concern about what the touristic license actually mean't in terms of renting privately. I am currently in the rental agreement but may not always want to be so. I quizzed the lawyers on this one as well as Azy. I am advised that there is a disagreement in the interpretation of the law as it currently stands. Azy's company interpret the law, in relation to the touristic license, as giving them full authority over all rentals on the site. My lawyer believes this interpretation to be incorrect and that I would not need their permission to rent the apartment out on my own. He also mentioned that new legislation was on the cards which would reinforce his argument.

I would suggest you speak to your lawyer. If I get any more information on this I will let you know.

Regards

Rich.

 

[chrisandchris]

Hi Chris & Chris,

I shared your concern about what the touristic license actually mean't in terms of renting privately. I am currently in the rental agreement but may not always want to be so. I quizzed the lawyers on this one as well as Azy. I am advised that there is a disagreement in the interpretation of the law as it currently stands. Azy's company interpret the law, in relation to the touristic license, as giving them full authority over all rentals on the site. My lawyer believes this interpretation to be incorrect and that I would not need their permission to rent the apartment out on my own. He also mentioned that new legislation was on the cards which would reinforce his argument.

I would suggest you speak to your lawyer. If I get any more information on this I will let you know.

Regards

Rich.

Hi Rich

We have received an e-mail from our lawyers confirming what you say - we are within our rights to rent as long as we don't advertise with a company in direct competition.

Chris

 

[MikLyn]

Hi have been reading thread responses for some while but have only recently joined website. Also buying in the resort, please advise on how to get to the photobucket. Cheers

 

[jessie1]

My husband and I have also invested in a T2 apartment and have received little information on how the resort is coming on. If anyone could advise on how to access the photos on photobucket it would be much appreciated. Many thanks. Jessie1

 

[MJS]

Renting Privately

Hi Chris & Chris,

I shared your concern about what the touristic license actually mean't in terms of renting privately. I am currently in the rental agreement but may not always want to be so. I quizzed the lawyers on this one as well as Azy. I am advised that there is a disagreement in the interpretation of the law as it currently stands. Azy's company interpret the law, in relation to the touristic license, as giving them full authority over all rentals on the site. My lawyer believes this interpretation to be incorrect and that I would not need their permission to rent the apartment out on my own. He also mentioned that new legislation was on the cards which would reinforce his argument.

I would suggest you speak to your lawyer. If I get any more information on this I will let you know.

Regards

Rich.

Having read the posts with interest, I however understand that legislation is very clear on this subject; it does not allow renting out privately. You might want to check with your lawyer and quote the following paragraph, which basically says that the management company has this exclusive right.

Best


Decreto-Lei n.º 167/97, relativo ao regime jurídico do funcionamento e instalação dos empreendimentos turísticos.



Art.º 44.º

Exploração dos empreendimentos turísticos

1- A exploração de cada empreendimento turístico deve ser da responsabilidade de uma única entidade.

2- A unidade de exploração do empreendimento não é impeditiva de a propriedade das várias fracções imobiliárias que o compõem pertencer a mais do que uma pessoa.

3- Só as unidades de alojamento podem ser retiradas da exploração dos empreendimentos turísticos e apenas nos casos e nos termos estabelecidos nos regulamentos previstos no nº3 do artigo 1º.

4- As unidades de alojamento que tiverem sido retiradas da exploração de um empreendimento turístico não podem ser objecto de outra exploração comercial, turística ou não.

 

[Jumbo1]

Miklyn & jessie1,
Sorry for the delay, I haven't checked in here for a while. If you are still interested and have not been passed the photobucket link by someone else, just contact me at: [email protected] and I will send it to you.

 

[day&jones]

Hi All

We have purchased a T3 with another couple as a business investment. We also have a number of other properties in the UK that we successfully rent out. The other couple visited the resort rcently to see the progress. I trust their views 100% and the acid test for me was when they returned I asked them if what we had done (purchased a place there) was the right thing. The reply was yes, dont think you will be disappointed. Thats good enough for me. They also took a load of photo's which I have seen and in my opinion looks great, just needs to get the greenage established which of course will take time to mature. We are heading out Oct half term for our first stay as we are part of the 3 yr rent agreement. So I hope I'm not disappointed.

I feel if there are still many concerns people share, then they - we should join together to get these iron out with the developer before its too late. Judging from recent correspondance the deeds are to be signed in the next couple of weeks which does not give a great deal of time. I would be interested to know how many have these concerns and feel strong enough to form a joint campaign focused through a single voice.

Finishing on a positive note....

The interior colour scheme (compulsory on the rent programme) is not all red and orange and actully in the flesh it does not like the photo's Monte Santo sent out a couple of months ago. Also as they say this colour scheme will be much more forgiving than the beige and creams we all saw in the show house, especially if your renting heavily like we hope it will.

Lastly our Portuguese bank went to take a look at the development a few months back to release the 2nd stage payment to ensure the state of the development was sufficently worth releasing the funds. I'm no expert on Portuguese banks, but they valued the property way over what we have paid which was rather pleasing as the UK banks tend to only tell you of a property you are buying is worth the asking price, not what it is actually worth.

Of course time will tell and I am sure that some of the negative concerns that we have all shared to date will start turning into positive ones