Time for some positive news....**Sierra Golf - is a good investment** Discuss

Guys

Been a while since I was last on, and I must say, there is a selection of positive and negative news on this forum, the majority somewhere in between

I would like to take this opportunity to write a few positive comments, and hope anyone reading it takes it for what it is,

I am lucky enough to have purchased an albatros many moons ago, but got posession in April this year (with some family members).  We originally bought in M11, and were one of the many many people waiting and waiting, and would probably still be waiting, only for Rob & Sue did a swap to M13, and they very kindly located our house M13 03, which was available as a cancellation, told us and 2 weeks later we were in, no fuss, no drama, and happy to complete finally.

We have been blessed with decent neighbours, and a dry basement, and luckily enough the sunami that came down our road 4 weeks ago, just missed our garden, so that makes being positive easier, however, I still think it prudent to point out the many positives we have experienced since completing.

A very decent house, bought at the right money, on a site with fantastic prospects long term, I am a realist, Masa are a business, they sell houses, and at the moment they are selling none, that makes it very tough to invest in a site with little chance of seeing a return of investment for many years.  This is not their fault, its life.

So confident I am  of good long term prospects that we have invested and converted the basement and Steve Amber did a fantastic job, really turned the house into a lot more than it was (in hindsite, we should have waited to see if it flooded, but if I am honest, flooding in Spain never entered my mind.......Ireland yes, Spain, no.)

I have been over 4 times this year, and will return again in 3 weeks.  Each time better than the last,  We keep meeting really nice people, (Admitedly in Tipsy bar after a few, or in the chineese which is unbelievable value, great service, beautiful food for €8.95 buffet  etc etc.  The Indian is fantastic, and the taverna besdie it brilliant and cheap.  Even the bowling alley behind it is excellent, with free bowling for you Thursday and Frifday evening if you buy a drink....where else will you get it?

Wine for €1 in the bodega in Balsicas.......

Mar Menor 15 mins away....

Great shopping in Murcia (20 mins), CArtagena (25 mins) and Dos Mares (12 Mins)

Draught Guiness everywhere......cheap

Great roads,....

2 airports within throwing distance.....

Cheap golf.......

The list goes on.

I am sure many people can find lots of negatives.  Me, I'm not interested.  This is a work in progress, come over, expect issues, leaks, a bit of mud, outages, dead trees etc etc.  It is Spain, enjoy it and watch your investment recover and thrive over the next couple of years, I know I will....

regards

Jason Campbell   M13 03  (green Honda Shuttle Irish Reg)

Over again December 5th, drop by for a beer

BTW.  Has anybody got Freeview/Freesat installed onsite yet with a big dish?

Hi Jason

I couldn't agree more with your post - I LOVE SIERRA GOLF!

Like you we put a deposit now many years ago, and completed back in April.  We have since been over 4 times and seen slow improvements on site each time.

There have been moments of despair over the years with lack of info from Masa, as well as our agents, slow service from solicitors, and then changing completion and snagging dates, but as long as you acquire the 'manana' attitude of the Spanish and accept that nothing moves fast in Spain, none of it seems quite so bad.

We have been quite lucky with our Eagle.  A small amount of damp in the basement originally - MASA weren't interested and just painted over it.  However Amber have paved the front garden area and this seems to have solved the problem.  In the heavy rain a few weeks ago had a small amount of rain getting in the windows but nothing that a bit of silicone couldn't solve.

My husband is into golf, and where else could you play a round of golf for $10.  Even if you don't play, it's a great area for walking round.

Where we are M14.33 is relatively quiet with no direct neighbours, but everyone we have met on past visits have been very friendly and helpful.

As you say the Chinese and Indian restaurants are good places to go, especially the Chinese for value.  Last time we went there we were even given a bottle of wine to take home with us.  Also great selection of restaurants in Loz  Alcazares.

Plenty of nearby shopping areas - where would we be without IKEA (highly recommend their meatballs!).

It would be nice if a shop, bar, restaurants opened on site, but obviously with sales not moving at the moment, it wouldn't be a viable proposition of anyone.  Hopefully these will come in time as it would nice not to have to drive everytime we wanted to eat or drink out.

As long as you look at Sierra Golf as a long term investment and not just want to make a quick buck, in my opinion, I can't think of a better place to have a house.  We are out again for Christmas as look forward to seeing everyone again. (especially Lucy the dog!)

Hi Jason

I totally agree with everything you are saying, the site, the area, everything is great, my family and I are so looking forward to our endless holidays here and have enjoyed meeting so many nice people, i put negitive comments on about Masa and Masa only as the Villa they are asking me to complete on is shambolic, i hope they resolve the issues and we like you can enjoy all that Sierra Golfs location and site has to offer, I have two brothers who have also purchased on this site who feel like wise, so lets hope everyone gets the property they purchsed in a condition they have been promised and we can all get drunk together.

Regards Byro and Family

hi everybody

   couldnt agree more ,we came over and completed last week and left feeling great about the whole thing.usual high jinks with masa at the notary,masa tried to get us to pay plus valia tax,but our solicitor made them remove it from contract.so athough we have a fairly long snagging list as long as masa sort it in a reasonable time we will be happy.we love the area,love the neighbours,food in el gordo is great,looking forward to coming back out boxing day.its been a long wait but only see positives from now on

          regards dominick/tracey   53-09

yes both my wife and i think its the best move we have done..we now live on sierra golf like any other new urbaisation there will allways be problems and once we have bars ect on sierra golf it will be great ..the golf course is open and cheap enough for beginers like me to learn how to play..as you all say the people here are very friendly with allmost everyone very possative about sierra golf..other urbanisations aroud here have just as many problems if not more so come on lets all pull together and make sierra golf the best place to be in spain

NOT POSITIVE NEWS - sorry to dampen all your great news, but until the problem with the site is resolved your houses will not be an investment, the shops, restaurants etc etc will not be viable as there will be not enough residents to keep things going.  There is a big problem with M11 and other blocks, maybe these blocks were built by a different builder,  There seem to be various people involved, agents such as Atlas, developers such as MASA and builders such as Procobar.  Does anyone resident already have these three involved in their property.  If not this is the key, nothing to do with the actual site but more to do with the builders. Apparently there were several builders on the site, maybe you were the lucky ones, but until the problems are sorted out with the remaining unoccupied blocks the Sierra Golf site will never be as good an investment as it should be.

On a good note, when we saw our house..... which was built when we put our deposit on several years ago, we loved the house, loved the site, loved the position etc etc.  But unlike yourselves our dreams will not materialise as the bubble has burst and we think .... maybe the builder has gone bust and cannot complete on various contracts, ie M11, M20 and the other later builds on M53 etc

If anyone knows any different please let us know.  We are over in a few weeks and hope to do some more investigating.  Atlas and Masa have not replied or contacted us for over 12 months, our solicitor does not seem to be having much luck either.

Good luck everyone, spare a thought when you are celebrating.

Hi, I can understand your frustration with having to wait for a property for such a long time when others are already in.

There were many Agents involved in the sales at SG, not just Atlas. Mercers, Parador, Porpertunities Luz del so, etc., but they have nothing to do with the development of the site. Procobar is the "money" side of Grupo Masa and operated from the same office in Murcia.

As for different builders, you are correct. Just like Barrat 's, Wimpey Homes etc etc in UK, they employ teams of workmen, moving around as required.If you get a shoddy worker in that team, then any house they worked on will have a defect. This is why they have snagging lists (in my opinion, snagging list should be done by a professional).

In the present economic climate, any builder would be wrong in his head to continue building. As for the shops and restaurant, we have mentioned this before. There are not enough people on SG to make it worthwhile at the moment.If Masa finished another 30 houses next week, it would still not be enough, as not all would end up a residents.

I know that this is not what you want to hear, but SG is a good site, with far less problems that many others and I believe our investments are sound. I cannot help feeling from reading your messages, that you are trying to convince yourself that all is woe. I waited two weeks short of 5 years, but always tried to look on the bright side, it tends to let ypu sleep better!

You do know that if Masa are in breach of contract due to late delivery, you can have your money returned, with interest, by applying through a Notary?

We are over in a few weeks also, so we may meet up.In the meantime, keep your chin up.

Pat & Trish

Hello again M11 Block

I also understand your position, I also was a M11 purchaser, and swapped to M13.  Have you considered that as an option?  Have you enquired to Masa if any propoerties are available to swap?  They jumped at the chance with ours as it was paperwork holding up M11 and they want the cash as much as we wanted to complete.

Didnt post this to gloat, just to try lighten up the post, lots of people bought here, and I believe what I posted.  Ask and you may receive, there have been many cancellations (ours was a cancellation) you might get lucky.  I hope you do.

Regards

Jason

Hi all, I've just returned home after 2 weeks working away and was so pleased to see this thread started by Jason.  Thanks Jason.  I wholeheartedly agree with you.  As some on EOS know I have another property nearer to the beach and have been coming to this area for over 30 years.  I am thrilled with our property on SG and the excellent value it represents.  On SG we have houses with gardens and a lovely golf course whereas lots of other new sites not too far from us have block after block of apartments on their golf courses for the same price.  I've met lovely people on site and every time I visit it just gets better and better.

Spain is no different to us in this crash.  Nothing is moving and we can't expect all the facilities we thought we were buying into until the world wide situation improves.  Many housing sites here are in the same situation, but we are luckier on SG, because as Jason says, we have all the benefits of the Spanish lifestyle, loads of beaches closeby, all within a short driving distance.  Nothing is perfect, and buying at SG has been very stressful with all the delays since we first paid our deposits way back when the site was launched.  I hope everyone waiting for their houses gets to complete their purchase soon.  Yes, Masa is still handing over finished houses.  My son's will be next month, and I hope all houses with problems get sorted out soon for you.

I love it, warts and all, and am glad we gound it.