ACCA – An organisation who do so much in the local community for under privileged children hosted the annual charity bike ride.  Quinta Properties  sponsor and participate in this event annually as the community come together.

The sun shone and the temperatures soared well over 30 degrees as around sixty riders took part in this fun event.  Our hosts on the day were the new Conrad Hilton Hotel in Quinta do Lago who spoiled the returning riders with a stunning BBQ and well earned refreshments.  Great to see the community coming together for such a good cause.

We are looking forward to next years ride.

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1. Market Report February 2012

The Financial Times (FT) writes that Portugal is making the right choices in solving its structural problems.

The FT today examined the situation of the Portuguese economy, stressing the importance of structural reforms, which have begun to bear fruit.

According to the influential international newspaper, the Portuguese Government is following the austerity programme and the reforms that are vital to economic recovery, in an country that is in the deepest recession for more than 30 years, with an unemployment rate at a record level (15% in February).

The newspaper found that Portugal has a “huge appetite” for structural reforms, but stresses that the withdrawal of the Portuguese Government from the TGV railway line between Lisbon and Madrid, has contributed to an uncertain future for the European high-speed network.

The FT wrote that EU structural funds have contributed greatly to the modernisation of Portugal and the improvement of living standards in the country. However, some investments in infrastructure, and some public-private partnerships, have had questionable benefits and a lack of fiscal discipline has led to the current situation.

The “economic recovery should begin next year,” driven by increased exports, while banks expect a “better situation” soon.

The newspaper stressed that “external pressure is the best opportunity for change” and argues that after the crisis, Portugal will continue to focus on competitiveness.

Regarding the privatisation programme, the FT considers that this is perhaps the major point of conflict, despite being one of the highlights of the electoral program of the prime minister, Pedro Passos Coelho.

The British newspaper refers to Portugal’s cultural ties with Brazil, Angola and Mozambique that have opened doors to foreign investment in Portugal, as well as facilitating the entry of domestic firms into these countries’ markets.

“After all, this small nation of the Atlantic found most of the new world, which until then was unknown to Europe, making this country one of the most important of the sixteenth century.”

The newspaper adds that the tourism sector, despite the increase in VAT, has several factors in its favor, while in the energy sector “uncertainty in its regulation” threatens the prospects for the industry.

In summary the Financial Times’ report finds many positive signs in the Portuguese economy, leading to the conclusion that the country’s recovery is underway.

Source: Algarve Daily News

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1. Financial Times’ Hot Property
2. Green Portugal a World Leader
3. Portugal, EU and IMF Tax Memorandum Signed

Market Report February 2012

If you are looking for the bright side of things, look no further. We have had crystal clear beautiful uninterrupted sunshine since November! Actual statistics show 1 day of rain since the beginning December. We all remember it, it was on a Sunday.

So things do not get much brighter than that!

The Property Market

Contrary to popular belief, we have plenty of buyers. The stronger Pound coupled with lousy weather and too few interesting investment opportunities in northern Europe have brought cash buyers back to the Algarve, its sunshine and its Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo area… it is our vendors who are making our lives that much more challenging!

Of course it takes 2 to tango, and our buyers are certainly driving a hard bargain, but it is often our vendors who ask us, while we discuss offers with them, what they should do with the money if they do sell. Most continue to be very happy to keep their investments in Quinta do Lago and can think of no better place to put their money.

Yes, buyers continue to make low offers and yes it is true that for the first time in 15 years vendors are not making big profits when selling but this is the way of property markets -they do go up and down and currently it is a buyers market and a great time to invest.

We have been recommending to all of our vendors: only sell now if you have something better to do with the funds. To our buyers we say there are some good deals to be had, but do not expect property values across the board to have dropped in Quinta! Most property owners in the area are very strong in terms of wealth and will go on enjoying their fabulous properties in the sun and sell at a later date!

To recap, things remained completely unchanged until late summer 2011. At Quinta Properties it was business as usual and we even took on another excellent sales executive during the summer. In September we noticed a fall in the number of sales and this trend continued to the end of the year, but no further. January and February have seen buyers return and a good number of sales agreed. Yes, these continue to be to the advantage of the buyers but there continues to be lots of interest and the properties which continue to sell well are the ones in the best locations and in good condition. Tired properties are very difficult to sell and as always we are urging vendors who are keen to sell, to do what they can to keep their properties looking fresh.

On a note to vendors, we would like to invite you to contact us to discuss the marketing of your property. If you feel you are not getting enough viewings or would like some feedback, please call us. Market conditions have changed and to help us serve you better, we are happy to discuss your needs and if need be, adjust our approach to marketing your property.

Our Marketing Efforts in 2012

All our marketing efforts are continuing in full force.

We have tweaked our approach a bit this year and have targeted some new markets. Of course the British continue to be our largest group of buyers and our 15 year partnership with Savills has never been stronger. Buyers with Pounds are getting particularly good value right now as the Pound has become almost 20% stronger against the Euro in recent months.

Furthermore, we are planning to visit Moscow to meet up with our Savills colleagues there to see if we cannot get some new business from the Russian market and with other partnerships, we are also working on attracting buyers from Angola and Brazil. We have our work cut out for us!

Due to very attractive tax benefits for high and ultra high net worth individuals, moving to Portugal could be the best thing they ever do. To this end, we are planning to host a seminar around Easter with speakers from PWC and other tax specialists. This should be a very interesting event and if you would like to attend, please let us know!

Our new better and faster website is up and running. Please have a look and give us any feedback. All your comments are most welcome and we hope you like it. The “News” section is updated regularly.

5 new billboards have gone up around Almancil this week and we hope that they will put a smile on your face…! Look out for the one at Apolonia in particular.

For new buyers, we are very pleased to be able to offer a complimentary 3 month trail membership and Four Seasons Country Club. This is a wonderful way for new buyers to become involved in the local Quinta do Lago community and meet some new friends and neighbours. The facilities at the Club are excellent with something for the whole family and with the recent renovation of the bar area to mark the silver jubilee of the club, the club has never been more popular.

And last but certainly not least, please continue to recommend us to your friends and colleagues. A large number of our new clients continue to come to us because you send them to us and we are most grateful for your continued support on this front!

We hope this finds you all well. Despite more difficult times we are fighting fit and ready to make 2012 a great success!

With our very best wishes!

Kerstin, Alison and the Quinta Properties Team

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1. Quinta Properties Market Report – Spring 2011

International real estate advisor Savills continues to lead the UK Business Superbrand charts in the real estate sector and ranks at number 79 in the overall league table of the top 500 business superbrands.

For over a decade Superbrands has brought together a panel of industry experts and over 1,600 business professionals to choose the UK’s strongest B2B brands, based on three key factors: quality, reliability and distinction. Co-ordinated by The Centre for Brand Analysis, the prestigious Business Superbrands list is drawn from over 10,000 independently identified brands, before being whittled down to a shortlist of just under 1,500, that are then judged by the expert panel and UK business professionals. Savills beat tough competition to take its place in the prestigious list and continues to top rivals Knight Frank, Strutt & Parker, Jones Lang La Salle and CBRE.

Jeremy Helsby, CEO of Savills, says: “As our brand continues to evolve throughout the world we are proud to offer our clients the highest levels of service. We will continue to strengthen our brand and maximise quality, reliability and distinction across our global platform.”

Stephen Cheliotis, Chairman of the Superbrands Expert Council, adds: “A truly super business brand exudes success, quality and innovation. It is a huge achievement that Savills has made the official top 500 list for 2012, as the Business Superbrands poll is the definitive list of the strongest business brands today.”

Savills is a leading global real estate service provider listed on the London Stock Exchange. The company, established in 1855, has a rich heritage and over 200 offices and associates throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle East.

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Kerstin Buechner and Alison Hojbjerg have just returned from a very interesting trip to Gibraltar where Savills have just opened a new office.

The visit started with a tour of some of the fabulous properties the Rock has to offer. Stunning apartments with breath taking views across the straights of Gibraltar and across to Africa. Some of the best properties are selling for up to GBP 8.5m and buyers are in no short supply. An incredibly favorable tax regime for Gibraltar based companies and private individuals is attracting high net worth individuals and the Gibraltar economy is booming.

Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, formally opened the new Irish Town offices of Savills Gibraltar on behalf of directors Sammy Armstrong and Charles Weston Baker, Head of International Residential, Savills, on Thursday.

We wish them all the very best!

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The 38th road biking tour of the Algarve finished this Sunday on the Portimão riverfront. Five stages in Castro Marim, Tavira, Faro and Vilamoura to Portimão with a total of 744 kilometers challenged the worlds best cyclist since last Wednesday. The British Sky Sports team dominated the event from start to finish.

Source: Algarve Resident

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More than a million rounds of golf were played on Algarve courses in 2011, up 4.9% on the previous year, cementing the region’s reputation as one of the top golfing destinations in Europe.

The figures, released by Turismo do Algarve, show that the majority of golfing visitors still come from the UK, followed by Germany, Scandinavia, Ireland and the Netherlands.

Read the full article on the Algarve Resident website here.

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A charity Spinathon on January 27 at the Four Seasons Country Club (FSCC) in Quinta da Lago raised €20,000 in aid of ACCA, an association helping children in need in the Algarve.

More than 35 cyclists took part in the 25-hour Spinathon that was held as part of the FSCC silver jubilee celebrations.

Read the full article on the Algarve Resident website here.

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Europe’s best kept secret!

With no inheritance or gift tax burden and no wealth tax and reduced or deferred taxation on dividends and other capital income Portugal becomes very interesting for high net worth individuals . PWC explains everything in detail in the following publication:

https://www.pwc.com/pt/pt/fiscalidade/imagens/PwC_Europe_best_kept_secret.pdf

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1. Portugal, EU and IMF Tax Memorandum Signed

Good news for owners of company owned properties domiciled in Andorra, Bermuda, Gibraltar, Cayman Islands and Jersey.

Click here for further information: PWC.com

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