Boa Vista Experience

[jak]

The Creola Sands development took another step closer to completion with the fitting of the first window units. Please see the pictures below.





Regards,

John Dowling

[jak]

FM developments have organised a clean up of Cabral Beach (see pictures below). It is great to see the involvement of many local people in helping with the clean up. This is not the first time FM have organised such an effort to improve Cabral Beach, last year FM organised fresh sand to be placed on Cabral Beach only for the local authorities to cut a track through the new sand without prior planning. Lets hope this effort to improve Cabral Beach will be longer lasting.













Regards,

John Dowling

[Rusty]

maybe a long time in the future all the complexes that front cabral could club together to buy and run one of those tractor cleaners I see on european beaches . We could keep it in Andres garage! ...and that German woman who lets her dogs shite on the beach could drive it!!

[andre]

Russell,

When you move out to Cabral Beach you could orchestrate the clean-up by organizing the people with the litter bags and driving the tractor!
In fact, there are more things we could find for you to do!

Andre

[PAUL]

Has building restarted yet on either of the FM developements sites?
_________________
PAUL

[Bert]

Not sure what the current state of Sabi Sands is, but construction at Creola Sands has been powering head since te first stone was laid 18 months ago, in fact Phase 1 is almost complete. I spoke to someone the other day who had just returned from Boa Vista. He reported over 100 workers on the Creola Sands site, with all units in blocks A and F scheduled to be handed over to owners in the next couple of months. The pools have been excavated and the pool bar, restaurant and other amenities almost finished. He also said the general construction standard was first class and better than anything else he had seen in both Boa Vista and Sal.

[PAUL]

Thanks Bert,
Thats good news.There was no work being done on either developement when we were there beginning April.In fact we were told that a lot of the FM workers were working on VC2. Our hope was that when our developement ,VC2, is finished, that the other properties along Cabral beach would be finished around the same time, so that the road and landscaping of the area can be finished off.
Regards,
_________________
PAUL

[Xman]

[jak]

Hi Xman,

these are the latest photos of Creola Sands that I have recently been sent dating from June.

















I hope this helps. I am not aware of any progress at Sabi Sands.

I would ask that if anyone else does have any more recent photos of any developments, then please post them here for others to see.

The instructions for posting photos are on a sticky posting at the top of the "Boa Vista News" section. Alterntively send photos to admin@boavistaexperience.com along with a description or narrative and I will post them for you.

Kind Regards,

John Dowling

[Xman]

Hi Jak and Bert,

Many thanks for these pictures, very impressive, shame FM Development cannot post them on their own website for all to see....(It seems like it has not been updated for a couple of years).
Hopefully someone will post some more pictures of their other developments at Sabi Sands on here......only time will tell, because the chances of seeing it on their website are very small and remote.

[BUF1E]

I have bought in block A at Creola

I have just been speaking to FM about completion dates. Originally block A was due to be completed in April then it was put back to July, I have now been told that it will be December. They have changed the contractor building Creola !! I was told there was a dispute over money

Just wondering has anyone bought at Creola on the forum ? If so are you pleased you did ? With the credit crunch etc, do you think you will have negative equity when you get the keys ?

[andre]

Hi Buf1e,

Welcome to the forum.

Sadly I believe you will be in negative equity. I believe those that invested 2006 or earlier will have lost most of what they believed they had advanced in value in euros, however should be in profit in pounds; however recent investors, paying instalments with the battered pound, will be in serious negative equity.

My views. Sorry!

Andre

[BUF1E]

The units unsold at Creola have not come down in price though, not yet anyway, to my knowledge ? So how do they think they are going to sell them ?

[Bert]

Hi BUFF1E. I too have bought in block A at Creola Sands. Whilst the delays, and the complete lack of any updates on FM's website is frustrating, I am generally happy with my investment. The build quality looks suberb, there's a decent enough rental guarantee scheme and I'm sure that in 5 years time when Sal Rei, the marina and the whole strip along Cabral Beach is redeveloped, Creola Sands will be the premier development on that side of Sal Rei.

The room sizes and ratio of bathrooms to bedrooms are much more generous than the vast majority of developments in Cape Verde, and the views of the bay (facing the setting sun, and sheltered from the prevailing wind) are out of this world. Even though they've had their teething problems, I think FM deserve to be congratulated on (hopefully soon) delivering such an ambitious project in a very challenging environment - not just economically, but logistically too. Not many developers on Boa Vista have managed this.

In terms of negative equity, I guess that depends on the size of deposit you put down. But as far as I'm aware, prices at Creola have stayed the same since they launched in 2006, so negative equity doesn't come into it. Also, I thought that Block A had sold out. Anyway, I'm sure that being front-line, almost adjacent to the new marina, close to the centre of Sal Rei, and of a high build quality, an apartment in Block A in Creola Sands will have a better chance of holding its value than most other developments in Cape Verde.

[BUF1E]

Hi Bert,

Thank you for your response.

Yes I agree the FM communication is a shambles, lets hope they are doing a better job of the construction. Have you been and seen Creola under construction or are you just relying on photo’s, when you say the build quality looks superb ?

The price of units at Creola has changed some over time. In the early stages there was about a 5% price increase, then I believe they appointed a new sales director and he/she cut the price by about 15%. This was before the credit crunch. Since the credit crunch I think they now include the furniture pack in the price and the price is the same so this is in effect another discount. So the price now is about 10% cheaper (in Euro’s) than in 2006 and with a free furniture pack, I think.

The wind in CV is not a good aspect of the climate in my opinion. When you said “they are sheltered from the prevailing wind”. Did you mean that block F shelters block A from the wind ? I have heard people comment about how windy it is on Cabral beach which is in front of Creola. Would I be right in saying that if you are at Creola the wind direction is coming from about where Sabi Sands is ? As buildings are built along Cabral will this help shield the beach a little ?

The marina at Sal Rei, is this just speculation or is it definitely going to be built and is it definitely going to be built almost adjacent to Creola ?

A few months ago, I believe there were still a few ground floor single bedrooms apartments in block A still available. In block F, I believe about ½ are sold.

Blocks B, C, D and E were supposed to be built as soon as blocks A and F are finished, but it would not surprise me if they were delayed because of the credit crunch

Philip