We thought very carefully about putting this information on our website. It is not our intention to frighten anyone thinking of moving to Spain. Extremadura Dream Property guarantee you that the following warnings will never apply to any of our valued clients. These types of problems occur all over Europe when people don't have the correct information or choose to use companies who are not recommended by their relocation experts. Some people choose to go it alone, this page is for them, please be wary when you are not using a professional company.
More and more I am reading about problems with foreign purchases all over Europe, Agents putting on huge amounts over the asking price, shame on them, they know who they are. What exactly am I getting at here, the most important thing you have to consider................the price you pay for your new home. How do you know it's genuine, and what can you do to ensure you don't become a victim of this despicable tactic.
Lets give an example, a for instance. You see a property for sale, fall in love with it and decide to buy it, but you unfortunately have chosen a very greedy agent who will pocket a huge amount of your cash and worse still you will only find out after your money has gone. Don't think I am only talking about Spanish/European agencies here, Some of the english speaking agents are at it as well.
What can you do about it?
Our advice, when you are looking on websites, check the other websites in the same area and compare the price differences (chances are they will all be selling the same property). It is not uncommon to find a difference of 3-4000euros as some agents put their commision on top of the asking price but when you find differences of 100,000euros or more do the smart thing and walk away, these agents are not looking after you, they are ripping you off. Check and compare properties, owners selling property do not need to give exclusive selling rights to one agency so every agent will have the property on their books, so there is no need to jump in, don't be rushed into closing the deal until all the boxes are ticked.
Artistic licence in property descriptions, we found recently a 200 year old property advertised and when we checked it out, it had actually been constructed approximately 7 years earlier, you would think that was a positive, getting a newer property, in this case the house had been constructed with reclaimed materials making it look very authentic, but we find generally that older property here is valued higher, plus when any new construction is finished there are huge amounts of paperwork to be finalised and also the building would have to be declared, now if you thought that was an old property, would you ask if there was a building guarantee, nope,probably not. In this case there is, the house is beautiful and well worth its price, however wrong information as serious as this could cause huge problems for you at a later date. This website even has the audacity to offer it for sale at 150,000euros over the asking price,
Get a lawyer to check your property details out, know what you are buying before you part with any of your hard earned cash. Use a professional relocation service. any worth their salt will offer you a money back guarantee. Even if they don't the money will be forgotten long before a bad service will be.....
International Removal Companies - The Facts You Need to Know About Moving
We want to give our website visitors who are thinking about moving to Extremadura some crucial information about International Removal Companies, this information is so important for you, it could save you thousands of pounds. This information is completely free, you are important to us and we are not going to allow any of our clients to be ripped off.
How do you safely move your house contents to Spain? There are thousands of removal companies advertising on the internet, each promise a wonderful service, we are not saying that all removals companies are bad but there are a lot of cowboys out there.
A True Story About Moving To Extremadura
We have clients who recently moved to Extremadura, they chose an internet removal company (not recommended by us) and it proved to be the disaster that we all think will never happen. We never pressure anyone about any aspect of our service, we only ask that you listen to our advice. Our clients decided to use a internet removal company, they got the link from an Ex-pat website, this removal companies website looks fantastic, it promises the best service, your own personal advisor, states clearly that they take the stress out of relocation. Great quote, pay instantly over the internet, no problems. Do you believe it?
Our client filled out his quote for moving to Extremadura on the internet,
He underestimated the cubic meterage of his possessions, let's be honest, how many of us are experts at how much space your furniture will take up. Do you know what a cubic metre is? He was unaware as most of us are that removals companies charge you by the cube therefore if you under estimate your load you are going to be charged a lot more money, in this case 1,500 pounds extra. If you don't read the small print, you are going to get a shock. Now, the company came and loaded the furniture, no one mentioned that it was over the quoted amount. Wondering why? This company then had our clients treasured goods in the back of their van, now they have you over the proverbial barrel or more painfully by the balls. Almost no removal companies take single loads, there is not enough profit in it for them. Your stuff goes with at least 3 other families possessions that are moving to Spain, be aware that your goods can be loaded and unloaded on numerous occasions before it actually reaches you ( therefore increasing the risk of damage and loss). Our client was told his goods would be delivered on the following Monday (approx 8 days after his arrival in Spain) .When the load did not arrive as promised, he phoned his personal removal advisor who did not have a clue who he was, nor did the advisor know where our clients furniture was, the advisor promised to find out and resolve the situation, as you can imagine the stress of this was overwhelming, not a good start to his new life in Extremadura. At this point perhaps the advisor could have informed our client that his cubic estimate was incorrect and more money would be required. Instead, they told our client his furniture was in Alicante or Malaga ( no where near Extremadura). They were given a number to contact someone in Spain, who said they could not deliver for another two weeks, our client then phoned his removal advisor who then passed him to the accounts department for the SHAFT. The demand was Pay an extra 1,500 pounds or you will not receive your furniture. Do you understand the picture now? Unfortunately, he paid and gave up the only weapon he had to fight the oncoming battle. Stress free our ass, We apologise to our readers for our language (it has been toned down considerably) but we are passionate about our clients health and well being, which was suffering greatly by this stage of the saga. And still no one phoned them, or knew where his furniture was.
At this stage, 2 days later, our client told us!
Let me tell you, even though we had no part in booking this removal company, Extremadura Dream property will not tolerate the mistreatment of our clients. If we need to step in, we will do what it takes to resolve the situation.
We contacted the company by phone at our expense, we demanded to speak with the Manager, who didn't know anything.
We explained the situation fully, demanded that he deal with this immediately and get back to us with an expalnation of where our clients goods were, when they were being delivered and also an explanation of the dramamtic cost increase.
The manager responded in under 1 hour with an explanantion of the cost increase, the reason the original quote was for 21 cube, our clients was actually 28 cube.
Next question from us, Why was our client charged for 35 cube by his accounts department? His answer, the computer must have made a mistake, obviously not the person pressing the buttons, the company had his money and his furniture. This is why you should never pay more.
We advised the Manager that he was obliged by law to adhere to the agreed conditions within the contract, we asked him to provide all documentation relating to this contract, as our client had not been given any.
He responded by asking for a written letter of authority from our client to allow us to act on his behalf. This is a time delay tactic as mail could take 7-10 days to arrive, by which time the furniture may have arrived and everything would be forgiven.
We spoke with him on a few occasions, sent him e-mails which our client could use as evidence in any claim which could have arose. We told him to do what it says on his website, phone our client, deliver his furniture and let him know what is happening. We reminded him he was in breach of contract because if it's written, if they guarantee and don't deliver on the contract terms his company was breaking the law.
Low and behold, the personal advisor was immediately in touch with our client, with delivery dates and apologies. All he wanted was his furniture, what a nightmare of a situation to be in in your first weeks in Extremadura.
Easy ways to avoid this happening to you?
1.Do your research! We are at present speaking to companies about their service and asking what re-assurances they can offer our clients who are moving to Extremadura.
2. Make sure your removals comapny are registered members of B.I.F.A. (British International Freight Association).
3. Check that your chosen company is registered with the F.S.A (Financial Services Authority) The U.K government registration now requires all moving companies to be F.S.A registered before they can sell any type of removal insurance. You can check if your comapany is registered by visiting www.fsa.gov.uk
4. Speak to someone from the removal company, ask them to send someone out to cost your move. (that way they are responsible for stating cubic metres, not you).
5. Make sure you receive copies of all paperwork, certificate of shipment, arrival time of your goods, contact agents details. Don't forget, bring them to Spain with you, don't pack them away.
6. Ask if the insurance that they provide covers you for all risks, check the small print after all its your lifes possesions.
7. If they demand more money, never pay. Tell them you are contacting the B.I.F.A. and ask for their operators licence number, they are required to provide this on request. If you feel unsure, use a professional to act on your behalf.
8. Counter Claim them, tell them you are sending the bill for additional accomodation and meals that you incur after the agreed delivery date has passed, I think it's fair to say a few days wait is acceptable but no longer.
9. I would go a little further, see if you can build in a late penalty clause in your contract.
10. Tell the Removal company you are going to contact the Spain magazines with your story, if nothing else works the threat of bad publicity will quite literally get them moving.
11. Allow for any possible delays, bring some extra cash with you.
Extremadura Dream Property will always act on our clients behalf at their request, we hope that this information about moving to Extremadura has been valuable to you our future clients and stops anyone being ripped off.
