Accommodation in Portugal: scams you should look out for

I have been dealing with a global real estate company and will one of their registered estate agents.
They sent me a signed promissory contract with what they said was the sellers IBAN. I paid the 10% deposit to purchase the property, and the agent confirmed via email that the funds were received.

3 weeks later another agent from the same agency emails me saying the deposit never turned up in the sellers bank account. I produced the recipe from my bank showing payment was made.

The estate agent email me a similar looking Promissory contract with a different IBAN on it. It had the sellers and my signature on it, but was different from what I signed with the other estate agent.

The estate agent quickly declared the contract null because according to them I paid my deposit into an unknown account. At this point they stopped all communication.

Be very careful of electronic promissory contracts and don't trust the estate agent. These scammers have offices in most of the towns in Portugal and all over the world (they use hot air balloons in their logo..) The agents I was dealing with are listed on the corporate website and all the emails came from their corporate email addresses so impossible to know you are being scammed.

I think they use the fact that you are not in the country so have to rely on email and electronic signature that can be copied over to a different contact.

Stay safe out there, these crooks are looking for any opportunity, I have lost €21k to these sharks
-@marc639

Sorry but would you just clarify   The promissory contract included you agreeing to pay 10% Deposit monies to the Seller ?

    """ I have been dealing with a global real estate company and will one of their registered estate agents.

They sent me a signed promissory contract with what they said was the sellers IBAN. I paid the 10% deposit to purchase the property, and the agent confirmed via email that the funds were received.

3 weeks later another agent from the same agency emails me saying the deposit never turned up in the sellers bank account. I produced the recipe from my bank showing payment was made.  """

@Strontium yes....

I was also very surprised by that. I have bought property in South Africa and the United Kingdom and always deposits go into some 3rd party escrow account.

But I was told it is normal in Portugal to pay 10% into the sellers account. The Promissory basically seals the deal so to speak, if the seller pulls out they have to pay you 20% back or are forced to sell you the house.

Where it gets blurry for me is how disputes are settled, I assume some form of binding arbitration.

The problem comes in where you have a 3rd party that mediates the transaction because you and the sellers never meet. If they can fool you into thinking you are paying the sellers but in fact you are paying into another account and forge signatures they can pocket the money and claim you paid the wrong account. Now it becomes he said she said between the estate agent and the buyer.

In my case it seems like Remax is trying to make out some 3rd party inserted themselves between the encrypted email correspondence and change the IBAN and signature on my copy. For encrypted email this is a lot more difficult because everything is encrypted so you would have to decrypt all communication.

What I think may happen is somebody has access to the email account and time to do the swap then pocket the money. What makes it feel like it is very close to the estate agents is the covering up of their tracks by changing the bank receipt of payment that I sent to them, it has also been modified to make it look like I paid into the sellers account! This allows them to get me running around asking the bank where the money went instead of them having to look into fraud on their end.

Smoke and mirrors 🤬

@marc639 This whole story is just horrific and I hope that many people read about it. There is definitely a lesson to be learnt from your experience. It is sad that it was you who had to go through this trouble.

My lesson: Never buy real estate when you are not present on location. These days it is so easy to safely rent short term accommodation. Based there you can look for a one year rental, which gives you time for more permanent home hunting. When you actually buy your new home you are already somewhat established, understand more about the location and are able to reduce your risk significantly.

@nz7521137 I agree with you. I would never buy at a distance and always want to check the property and who I am dealing with in person. It's already complicated enough when you are present.

Also, it would be much better if buyers didn't have to pay the 10% to the seller directly before all the background checks have been completed and so early in the procedure, like it's customary in Portugal. That would avoid tons of potential problems. The deposit should go into a trust account at either the real estate's office or lawyer's.

It is thanks to my free contribution that many expats are on this forum by providing useful posts themselves ... and the few portuguese that are here as a result of that (!) are real estate agents promoting their own real estate services, like you...

It's not a lack of transparency. I know countless cases where your company has misbehaved. I didn't just have one case that I mentioned here, but three!

And for me, that's the limit of what is acceptable!

You can try to sell your company here. And because of that, it's not the first time your posts have been removed... have a nice day.

Also, it would be much better if buyers didn't have to pay the 10% to the seller directly before all the background checks have been completed and so early in the procedure, like it's customary in Portugal. That would avoid tons of potential problems. The deposit should go into a trust account at either the real estate's office or lawyer's.
-@juliajonesjy

I think that a banker's cheque placed with the notary office that will later close the sale would be ideal. Usually (?) the sales price is paid via a banker's cheque handed over in front of the notary if the sales goes through. However, I wouldn't buy real estate without being present on site.

@Pedro Silva Remax That's exactly my point, who needs an appraisal with such a wide range of 140 000 euros ? It's not accurate and any dummy can come up with those numbers. As a buyer, I would want a very narrow range and not such a wide estimate that finally doesn't do much for the buyer since he/she will end up paying what he/she thinks is reasonable. No need to pay an appraisal for that. Also, in this competitive market, by the time you get all the info you need about the property, it' may be too late already and the property could be easily sold to someone else who really likes the property and is ready to buy at a price close to the asking price. Given the fact that there are usually several offers, all this business about appraisal doesn't matter anymore. That's why, it would be better to have all this info readily available to anyone like many other countries do and not waste additional time and money unnecessarily. The system would be much more accurate and user friendly.

@juliajonesjy: You are absolutely right in what you are saying, of course. However, sometimes it might be unavoidable to buy a property while not being physically present (i.e. in my case, just having a serious accident, unable to walk for a while, AND still living far away). But after reading all the very helpful comments on this site, I am now seriously concerned and have become more hesitant, seems it is like the Wild West in the Portugal real estate sector!

Not all the Portuguese estate agents are like ReMax, I bought property without seeing it and there were no problems, my Lawyer even arranged the water and electric to be turned on and billed to me.  I had previously met and talked to the estate agent and the lawyer so had some confidence in them.

@whgwhg001 I totally understand your concerns. Of course, there are cases when one cannot be present it the country for whatever good reason.

@Bhavna hi bhavana , i also need advise to buy small apartments . Need to know how an Who tu trust !!

@Jk1976 hello thanks for your commwnt . Would you please give mi historia email or Phone número? As well as his name ?.

It will surely help me

Best!

I am actually on my way to Portugal to look at property in a few weeks. I have reached out and been in good communication with a real estate agent that is with remax, but if am I reading this entire thread correctly I am now under the impression that in Portugal Remax can't be trusted?  or is it that certain agents cannot be trusted do your normal diligence type thing?   Could someone please clarify if you wouldn't mind.

Much appreciated.

How to find a T1/T2 accommodation for rent in Lisbon, I have been trying from two weeks to find possible homes for me to move in with only knowing English. Most of the listings don't respond even if they are from agents and they either don't receive calls or hang up telling something in Portugese. I need help, someone please help me...

I am actually on my way to Portugal to look at property in a few weeks. I have reached out and been in good communication with a real estate agent that is with remax, but if am I reading this entire thread correctly I am now under the impression that in Portugal Remax can't be trusted? or is it that certain agents cannot be trusted do your normal diligence type thing?  Could someone please clarify if you wouldn't mind.
Much appreciated.
-@Timothy1975

Hi and Welcome,

Different offices and different agents will act differently, there seems to be no set procedure and no definate way for doing things. As you seem to have arranged a visit then also see other estate agents who are located in the area. Not all agents are internet based so you may have to actually walk into their offices and talk to them, this will also show that you are serious and not just another foreigner sending speculative emails. Also try the two main property listing sites 

https://www.olx.pt/

[link under review]

and look at what MAY (don't beleive all that is listed) be available in the area. You may find the same property listed by different agents/people.  Try and see as many places as possible (I assume you have limited time) in order to do comparisons between whatever the listing says and what actually the property is.

@Strontium Thank you kindly for the detailed reply I appreciate your time and response. Yes my time is limited to 3 weeks and it will be made up of mostly pursuing property. I may stay behind and send the family back if all is going well, we'll see what happens.  The advice you gave is solid and I will take it, thank you.  I really didn't think to walk right into some offices but I will definitely take that advice and check out as many places as possible, hoping the agent will have the time to spend showing properties.  I will check out the link provided as I was using Green - Acres alone.

There were two links but one seems to be under review,  do interweb search for ' Idealista' should give the other big listings site and many hours of looking at seemingly random property details and dreaming. .  Hint: have some business type cards with your name, email etc to hand to estate agents as something with a spelling mistake in an email address will never get to you, also a local PAYG sim (available from airport) may help so you have a "local" number for locals to call rather than an "international" one . Portuguese are people people and small offices are there for you to go in and chat and ask for their advice, I've also found that one local estate agent knows others and may even give their details and arrange joint viewings where as the "chains" do not.