Our property journey in Portugal - Ken & Lisa from the UK
Ken and Lisa from the UK discovered Portugal’s Silver Coast during a visit to ‘A Place in the Sun Live’, in London. In this article, they share their journey as Simple Life Home Buyers...
Tell us about your family…
We are Ken and Lisa and have two children: Rhys, 21 and Anais, 20. Lisa is a born and bred Londoner, whilst I have lived all over the UK but consider myself a Welshman. We are self-employed mortgage and protection brokers based and living in North London. Rhys is working in the film and TV industry, and Anais is currently studying Criminology, in her second year of university.
What was your experience with Portugal before you purchased this property?
We had travelled to Portugal in the past, but these visits were always the Algarve, the typical Brit destination.
Lisa has connections ancestrally to Portugal as her family is of Goan descent (Goa was a Portuguese colony from 1510 to 1961) so we always felt that Portugal was in her blood to some degree. We loved the climate and the locals are always very friendly.
Why did you choose the Silver Coast to invest in Portugal?
In fairness, we did not really choose the Silver Coast, it chose us!
We had in the back of our mind that Portugal could be a destination we could holiday in and work from, given the time zone is the same as the UK. Then in later years possibly make the move to live there, the only issue is that I am a bit of a beach and sea person and Lisa is a city person and we were at odds as to where we would look.
“We decided to go to the London Place in the Sun exhibition in 2022 to get a bit more of a reality check and to ask questions to further our understanding about what a move would really involve. It was this that led us to learn about the Silver Coast.”
We met the team from PORTUGAL REALTY, and they told us all about an area (Silver Coast) we had not even thought about as we had not previously heard of it.
Dylan Herholdt from PORTUGAL REALTY was a guest speaker along with a few others and he spun his love of the region and we thought this could be what we were looking for.
Everything about it sounded right, less touristy, more the REAL Portugal, great beaches and surfing plus only an hour away from Lisbon and a little further away from Porto.
We decided to do a trip and explore the area and see a few opportunities in and around São Martinho do Porto. We never expected to make a big decision to buy on this trip, it was purely explorative.
Can you share how PORTUGAL REALTY helped you make the decision to buy?
When we arranged to visit Dylan, he wanted to have a breakdown of what it was that we really wanted from the property, so he could set about creating a tour that would deliver this. Initially, this started with a FaceTime call when we were still in the UK and then later, the actual meeting in the flesh in São Martinho do Porto.
From the start, Dylan was warm and welcoming and he took us on a full day exploration of not only the developments but the area. This was amazing, we really felt that he was not trying to sell us the property but showing us the beauty of the Silver Coast and what that could offer us.
Having a home is one thing but loving where you live comes with the things that surround you and the area was just breathtaking!
Did the buying experience meet your expectations?
We had no preconceived ideas of what buying in Portugal would be, and in fairness, we are still going through the experience as the property is still under construction.
We know that the bureaucracy in Portugal can be slow, and we have experts in place e.g., solicitors to help us navigate the red tape.
What type of support did you receive during the building process?
We have been allocated a Project Manager from Leisure Launch Group and she is helping us with all aspects of the build as we go along.
We are arranging a visit soon to look at materials such as tiles and discuss the internal details, which will allow us to catch a glimpse of the work being done as well.
Do you feel that having access to several services under the same roof is a plus for international clients?
I do. If we had to do this on our own and tried to deal with the builders plus any other aspect of this, I feel it would have created a lot more stress and been much more time-consuming.
“Having a team that knows what they are doing and have experience with international clients has made this experience for us better than I thought it would be.”
Buying a property in Portugal
What advice would you give to someone who is planning to buy a property in Portugal?
Get guidance from people who know the area and have established links in the region you want to buy. We felt the relationships that Dylan and PORTUGAL REALTY had cultivated were important, as the builders know them and there is a strong connection with the other services that you will need when buying a property abroad. As the Silver Coast is made up of several small areas, I am sure everyone knows each other, and this made it just feel that all the dots were connected.
Do your research and check out the company and how long it has been established. At the end of the day, trust your gut as this is such an important decision for most people, both financially and emotionally. •
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Article originally published in Portugal The Simple Life Magazine, Edition #4
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