Albufeira’s ‘Pine Cliffs Ocean Suites, a Luxury Collection Resort’, has won the ‘Best New Hotel & Design Construction’ in Europe at the International Property Awards in London.
These awards are given for "the performance of companies operating in all sectors of the real estate and property industries," after a jury of 70 people asses design, quality, service, innovation, originality and commitment to sustainability of the entrants.
State-owned bank Caixa Geral de Depósitos remains headline news as one of its more ambitious loans seems to have turned sour, leaving a potential loss of €278 million to be accounted for.
The bank, troubled by recent poor management appointments and a huge overhang of bad property debts, loaned millions to companies involved in the Keys development at Quinta do Lago – money that the bank is unlikely to see repaid in full as Birchview Imobiliária has applied for protection under a Special Revitalization Process.
The two accepted bidders for the Espírito Santo family’s ‘jewel in the crown’ Comporta estate are Pedro Almeida, a successful former stock broker and oil trader who has returned from Switzerland to live in Portugal, and Orion Capital Managers, LLP, a European real estate private equity firm owned by the founders, Aref H. Lahham, Van J. Stults, and Bruce C. Bossom.
Two of the Orion Capital partners held discussions in the past with Asher Edelman and David Storper of Amory Merchant but these did not lead to any working arrangements for the purchase of the Comporta Estate, probably as Orion is known for deals with a shorter pay-back time than many of those handled by Armory Merchant.
The Great Creditor Rip-off is close to being finalised as two low bids are being considered by Haitong Bank for the two companies that control the Espírito Santo family’s Comporta Estate summer playground and future gold mine.
The Luxembourg administrator of Rioforte, the Espírito Santo Group property offshoot, the one that borrowed from and still owes Portugal Telecom around €800 million, instructed José Ricciardi at Haitong bank to 'advise on' and filter any bids for the two Comporta companies that control the estate.
Fueled by frenzied foreign demand and an alluring residency-for-investment programme, the Portuguese property market has flourished in recent years. And with analysts predicting that housing prices in the country will continue to rise, many investors are scrambling for a cut of this burgeoning market.
The ski season is now upon us and many people will be jetting off to the Alps, Pyrenees, USA and Canada for some snow and après-ski.
If you are a keen skier and are thinking of buying a property in a ski resort, these are the main points you need to consider, according to overseas property and finance expert Simon Conn.
Exclusive Algarve Villas December News
The Espírito Santo family playground, the Comporta estate, has long been considered outside the normal property laws to which normal citizens must adhere to.
Espírito Santo clan members wanting to build or refurbish properties on this idyllic stretch of coast and farmland seem simply to have ‘made arrangements’ with the complicit local council and carried on regardless.
