Real Estate Prices in Brazil

01/29/24 @sfcastro.  Just speculating, but the Brazilian economy has been stagnant since before the pandemic, and the real estate market in many parts of the country has been dead right along with it.  Inflation is eating into the owner's equity, and rents go up in line with inflation, while condo assessments and taxes don't necessarily do the same.  Between low property taxes, uneven collection practices on condominium assessments, and the national penchant for deferred maintenance, the cost of holding onto a residential property while holding out for an improvement in selling prices is not that great, particularly if the owner or a family member is living in it.

In my experience, the 3 top reasons for Brazilian homes to appear expensive, and not sell for long periods are: 1/ the owner wants too much money, 2/ the owner wants too much money, and 3/ the owner wants too much money. Some Brazilians tend to have a very over-inflated view on what their home is worth, and it often bears little resemblance to market values.

Often, when advised by a broker what the true value is, the seller will remark "well that is my value, and I will wait until some gringo pays me that value, or the market value rises to what I think it should be". After 2-3 years on the market, they usually come to their senses after being advised why it has not sold - price...

Today I know of a number of properties that are R$200,000 to R$500,000 overpriced. Sometimes the sellers accept this but try to hold out for a ridiculous price. But the holding costs are far, far less than this - so this is why they are not bothered about rushing to sell.

I even know of one house that is not overpriced, but inherited by several siblings. One of them is a broker, and does not want to sell but has listed it. The others want to sell, but have entrusted the sale to the first sibling - but he never turns up to open the house for viewings as he does not want to sell...!

If you want to buy, work with an experienced and licensed real estate broker who has lots of experience in a the immediate area you want to buy, speaks English, and who you trust implicitly and he will make sure you are not ripped off. Unlessof course, you have your heart set on something, and do not care about the price...!

01/30/24 I even know of one house that is not overpriced, but inherited by several siblings. One of them is a broker, and does not want to sell but has listed it. The others want to sell, but have entrusted the sale to the first sibling - but he never turns up to open the house for viewings as he does not want to sell...!

    -@Peter Itamaraca

I know more than one house here in Manaus where the owners didn't get their price or the heirs couldn't agree, and they finally just walled up and painted over the windows and doors, and walked away.  Some large buildings, too.  It reminds me a little of engravings you see of medieval Rome, with fields of almost intact ruins between settlements of people.  Future archaeologists are going to have a field day.

Trustworthy real estate agents (as well as any Brasilian business person) are rare. After working through many agents here in Brasilia, we finally found a trustworthy one.

An example of untrustworthiness is one we are working through now. We had a certified repairman fix our brand new Kitchenaid oven which we shipped from the States and haveneverbeen able to us because it blows out soot. He said that he would need to order the part. After no word for 3 weeks  we called to inquire on the status. They told us they couldn't get the part (which I see is available on US Parts websites). So they offered us an 'incredible' deal. They will offer one of three of their inferior ovens for 30% off and take our 'broken' Kitchenaid off our hands. We declined and tod them we'll bring the $86 part with us from the States next time. We have to admire their moxy for them to ask us to pay them to rip us off!! Kkkkkk

Often, when advised by a broker what the true value is, the seller will remark "well that is my value, and I will wait until some gringo pays me that value, or the market value rises to what I think it should be". After 2-3 years on the market, they usually come to their senses after being advised why it has not sold - price...
    -@Peter Itamaraca

@Peter Itamaraca, I understand the feeling of needing to hold for more money if the market is going up.  Is the market still going up or is it stagnant?

If the goal is to get a fair priced property, would the buying strategy be to make as many fair price offers as possible with knowledge that most of them will fall through?

@Peter Itamaraca, I understand the feeling of needing to hold for more money if the market is going up.  Is the market still going up or is it stagnant?
If the goal is to get a fair priced property, would the buying strategy be to make as many fair price offers as possible with knowledge that most of them will fall through?
   

    -@Pablo888

Hi Pablo, no I do not think the market is rising at such a rate, and to such values, as to make holding out for these extreme prices worthwhile for the seller. Normally after a few years the sellers ask why there is no interest, and then start to think about sensible prices. At that point they often decide to keep and use (here I am talking about second or third homes), or their family members start to express an interest, or (as @abthree mentioned) they family still cannot agree on a stratgey, or they have so much money they really do not care!

A good buying startegy would be to view a few homes and locations to help you decide what you want (there are a lot of options) then start narrowing down exactly what you want. A good broker will advise and direct as to sensible prices (perhaps even to what the seller might accept), and then I would think about offering on just those one or two that appeal the most.

Remember also, that often some works of renovation may be required, often a lot - and that can help when negotiating...

It's called RECENCY BIAS.........and it affects most novice investors.

My wife and I bought our apartment in Copa 20 years ago for about 1/3 of what it is worth today. We paid cash, as was the custom for decades of Brasilians beforehand. You save cash and buy your home.

FF to today, and you have had 15 years of newly promoted aggressive mortgage lending when coupled with consorcios, that has created a bubble amongst those in the 30-50 year ago group.

All these people have seen is 20 years of price appreciation due to leverage. Ergo......real estate only goes up.......

When was the last real estate collapse in Brasil where prices dropped 30-50%...........?? Not in their life times.

I've watched tons of dead inventory sit in Copa for almost a decade. Now you've got people dying and apartments that the heirs cannot afford to carry the monthly expenses on coming onto the market as well.

Their economy as it pertains to RE is where the US and Canada were in 1980 before our great RE crash.

My wife's aunt is the syndicato in a luxury high rise in Petropolis. We told her we were looking for a place and suddenly she has 4 unit owners wanting to sell to us......almost desperate.......a couple dropping R$100K on the spot due to the scent of the gringo dollar.

I’d be interested to hear what @sprealestatebroker has to say about this subject. I’ve noticed that there’s a ton of inventory here in Sao Paulo and alot of places sit unsold. My wife says some places can sit for 5 years or more. Could another reason be that alot of Brazilians don’t trust the system with their money so most of them only invest in realestate? What are some of your thoughts? Could this be the result of historical times of hyper inflation and currency devaluation?

What are the costs of not selling?

  Property taxes?

  Condominio fees?

What are the expected returns from inflation?

Or do these owners have no financial concerns?

@alan279

These owners probably do not have major financial concerns - certainly in my experience, but they will still have to pay some, if not all, of IPTU, SPU, Bombeiros, Condo fees, Electric, Water... and of course ongoing maintenance and cleaning of pools, grounds, etc...

@abthree They better "wall it up" or there will be someone calling "home sweet home".

  01/30/24  @abthree They better "wall it up" or there will be someone calling "home sweet home".-@KenAquarius

As the owners have learned by observing.   My understanding is that if a building is government property, squatters can never establish property rights.  If it's  private property,  though,  that's not necessarily so.

squatters
    -@abthree

@abthree, I am reading about the principle of usucapião w.r.t squatting.  How can squatters occupy your property and how can owners take action to prevent that?

There were illegal pot growing operations on some of the properties in the mountains.  The local sheriff department would not get close to those squatters.  Even the DEA would not go there.

Owners had to push the county to enforce laws - because of the paid property taxes.

    @alan279These owners probably do not have major financial concerns - certainly in my experience, but they will still have to pay some, if not all, of IPTU, SPU, Bombeiros, Condo fees, Electric, Water... and of course ongoing maintenance and cleaning of pools, grounds, etc...        -@Peter Itamaraca

It costs us R$1,600 roughly per month to carry our place when it's empty. And it's a small apartment at that.

My wife and I did a lot of walking the last 2 months. There are around 6 real estate offices in the area of where we live with listings in the windows.

Realtors have the best prices in part I think because when a vendor has a person who is not emotionally involved in the pricing , telling them the facts, they tend to react accordingly.

Each time we'd stop to read the window a realtor would come flying put the front door trying to get us to come inside.

KKKKKKKKKKKK

 

@abthree, I am reading about the principle of usucapião w.r.t squatting.  How can squatters occupy your property and how can owners take action to prevent that?
   

    -@Pablo888

Here is a complete breakdown of the whole process, of which there are 3 steps:

OCCUPATION, often in Brazil called invasion, in English squatting. The owner may initially send a formal notice through the local notary office demanding the occupier leave, and then make an application to the local court for the judge to make a legal order to this effect.

If the owner does this within 1 year and 1 day of the initial occupation, then the judge can order the occupier to leave at once, pending a full hearing. If the period of occupation exceeds 1 year and 1 day before the legal application is made, then the occupier may remain in occupation until the court case is heard.

POSSESSION. This is a period of time when the occupier possesses the property, but does not have any legal ownership. For example, if the owner never applied to the court for the removal of the occupier, and so the occupier continues to use it.

In many instances the process stops here, since some Brazilians are happy to simply pass possession to family members, or even sell it. After all, they are enjoying the full benefits of possession without any of the costs associated with actually tranferring title, or of the final stage:

USUCAPIÃO. This is the process whereby an occupier applies for legal ownership of the property on the basis that the owner has, to all intents and purposes, abandoned it. The occupier must prove that for a continuous period of at least 5 years in a city location (or 10 years in a rural one), the owner has made no effort to recover the property, pay any bills, pay taxes, carry out maintenance, etc.

This process is not without costs (several thousands of reais), as a surveyor and attorney have to be employed, and detailed supporting documentation is required as well as witnesses. It can also take a 2-3 years to complete due to court delays, or even longer if any of the subject property is within 33m of the high tide mark of 1831 (or some such) and therefore SPU marina taxes are payable requiring the involvement of a federal court.

How to avoid this? Simple - maintain your property or home, pay your bills and taxes, employ property management in your absence and nobody can ever claim you have abandoned it...

Thank you @peter itamaraca for the detailed explanation.

Just to make sure that I understood the process clearly, there was an expat who wanted to let his girlfriend and her son stay in his house in Brazil while he was not there.

From a legal perspective, occupation would start when she steps into the house.

After 1 year and 1 day, if there is no removal notice, she effectively would have achieved possession of the house.

In brief, was this the reason why this "act of kindness" was not recommended?

@Pablo888

If he pays the bills and maintains the house, she cannot claim it by usucapiao as he has clearly not abandoned it. However I imagine she could possibly claim half if they are together for a long time, then split up?

01/31/24 @Peter Itamaraca.  I haven't done the research that you have on Usucapião, but what you've written tallies exactly with what I've been told, and with what I've observed.

    01/31/24 @Peter Itamaraca.  I haven't done the research that you have on Usucapião, but what you've written tallies exactly with what I've been told, and with what I've observed.         -@abthree

I speak from experience from both sides, to be honest, rather than recent research...!

    @Pablo888
If he pays the bills and maintains the house, she cannot claim it by usucapiao as he has clearly not abandoned it. However I imagine she could possibly claim half if they are together for a long time, then split up?
   

    -@Peter Itamaraca

@Peter Itamaraca

Understood, in this case, civil law seems to take precedence over property laws.  If the couple in question were considered married, then the claim could extend beyond just half of the property - but up to half of all the assets.  That's much worse than just losing 1/2 of the house.  That's now in the court of divorce lawyers.... not the topic of this thread.

Muito obrigado.

    I been looking at properties in Brazil for a couple of years in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.  One observation that I find strange is that I see a number of properties that I have been tracking and despite the fact that they have not sold in over two years, the owners never lower the price to try and get the property sold or in line with real market rates for real estate in that area.    I find this odd as I would expect that the owners would want to sell the property, even if it were for a bit less rather than pay operating costs of the apartments.  Thoughts?
   

    -@sfcastro

I've seen reductions from the listing and advertised price, not long after the property is no the market.

Factors affecting initial asking prices, and further changes may weigh in, include .....

1.It depends entirely on what predicament the seller is.   If the seller needs the money urgently, then the initial asking price will be competitive to begin with.   

2.If the seller is listing for what she/he can get, it will stay on the market for as long as it takes, and it won't move a needle.   

3.Listing updates are not that often accurate. Listing brokers seldom make changes unless they contact the seller back for an update on the demand. Garbage in Garbage out, is the old oxymoron on data.

4.Your  base of research isn't as same as mine. You going through the retail portals ( Viva Real, ZAP, Imovelweb, Loft, Quinto Andar, 1-2-3 ). All the seller is buying there are eye retinas. Which lead to sales opportunities, I reckon. But as far as the worth of the information you are getting, you are getting Butkus.

5.The market is flooded with new inventory, but the pricing  for those is calculated after replacement cost, no comps. Most sellers take the cue from new inventory offering,  but fail to realize they are dovetailing an  asking  that is not realistic.  I over explained this in this very form through and ad nauseum.  Go search for older postings of mine.

6.The relative yardstick is not asking price, is asking price per square meter. Which then is also no quite accurate, as other factors weigh in on a property by property case.  Factors such as condominium rates, improvements, building amenities ( for muilti dwelling buildings ) , micro location also affect the asking price considerably.

7.Larger older units, that have  fallen out of taste by the buying demographic often have their ask per square meter on extremely competitive or lowered rates. Smaller units, then command a higher asking per square meter.  It's is "What you can get away charging" factor.

8.Unit or building recent renovations factor considerably into the asking price. Seller needs to recoup the investment, and you are paying for it.   Want it cheap, searhc, the not so advertised," handyman's specials".

9. Marquee buildings. In Sao Paulo, old buildings circa 1950's -1960's as a subjeto to example, the ones  built and conceived by Jurado Artacho will always get a high asking price against competing units in the vicnity, on the same footage.

https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artacho_Jurado

Same goes for Adolpho Lindenberg buildings,. Elias Victor Nigri buildings.

All of the above have something in common. They have superior everlasting workmanship and architectural cues.  The seller will aptly remind you of such.

10.Zoning and Landmark Edits also affect supply, and therefore asking prices, only if the seller is aware of it.

11.Most of you fail to understand the City's Geography. So much so, expats always land on the same places , while expecting pricing miracles.  There is a lot of pounding the pavement to scoop bargains that bring in  ideal pricing, curbside appeal, proximity to public transportation. 

Folks, you can click  or kick the tires for all there is worth. It will get you nowhere.  Having a seasoned licensed broker makes all of the difference whether it is to score a bargain or to land in place worth every penny.

I am licensed, by the way.  I stole plenty candy from a kid in the park.  Listings in Sao Paulo are seldom ever on an exclusive basis, no matter what the broker tells you, FYI.

Myth busting, sorry....

"Often, when advised by a broker what the true value is, the seller will remark "well that is my value, and I will wait until some gringo pays me that value, or the market value rises to what I think it should be". After 2-3 years on the market, they usually come to their senses after being advised why it has not sold - price..."

Answer: The overwhelming majority of buyers are not "Gringos" , but rather locals.  In fact they account for a miniscule data sample. This is someone who combed data from property tax records ( year 2020,, about a million entries in the City of Sao Paulo alone ). Maybe Rio de Janeiro. Sao Paulo.... hardly the case.

"Today I know of a number of properties that are R$200,000 to R$500,000 overpriced. Sometimes the sellers accept this but try to hold out for a ridiculous price. But the holding costs are far, far less than this - so this is why they are not bothered about rushing to sell."

Answer: Anything on that range is considered affordable, at least in Sao Paulo's more centralized neighborhoods. A R$ 200,000 unit is within the range of "Federal Affordable Housing Program, or formerly " Minha Casa Minha Vida ".  This from a guy who brokered sales of Efficiency Studios under R$ 200k in the City.

"I even know of one house that is not overpriced, but inherited by several siblings. One of them is a broker, and does not want to sell but has listed it. The others want to sell, but have entrusted the sale to the first sibling - but he never turns up to open the house for viewings as he does not want to sell...!"

Answer: Estate Sales tend to close faster once the probate paperwork  is consumated. Reason being, heirs want their share of the money fast.  They become motivated sellers.  If they do not want to sell, then, either the recipients of the sale  have plenty of their own money, and the Estate Sale is not a factor in their personal finances, or the paperwork is far from being completed. Bottom line, you are getting jerked around.

"If you want to buy, work with an experienced and licensed real estate broker who has lots of experience in a the immediate area you want to buy, speaks English, and who you trust implicitly and he will make sure you are not ripped off. Unlessof course, you have your heart set on something, and do not care about the price...!"

Agree wholeheartedly.
   

    -@Peter Itamaraca

    What are the costs of not selling?
  Property taxes?

  Condominio fees?

What are the expected returns from inflation?

Or do these owners have no financial concerns?
   

    -@alan279

Property values in sought after areas tend to follow infationary trends.  So, a protracted sale will recoup the sunk cost on accumulated taxes and condo dues.

@sprealestatebroker

I think you missed several of my points:

1/ My first line - "in my experience". I am not referring to SP, (I cannot imagine anything worse than being forced to live there, unless it was for work purposes). I am referring to properties in my city, where I live and my experience of the market here. Sorry if I confused you.

2/ The ratio of gringos buying here is far, far, far higher than in SP - so sellers are influenced by that fact here.

3/ I did not refer to prices in the R$200-500k range. I said that I know many homes that are overpriced by that figure.

4/ When many siblings inherit a property is is not rare for them not all to agree to a sale. But any sale cannot take place legally unless they all agree to it... That is the point, nothing to do with probate.

Just to clear up some misunderstandings - maybe it is my English...?!

    @sprealestatebroker
I think you missed several of my points:
1/ My first line - "in my experience". I am not referring to SP, (I cannot imagine anything worse than being forced to live there, unless it was for work purposes). I am referring to properties in my city, where I live and my experience of the market here. Sorry if I confused you.

2/ The ratio of gringos buying here is far, far, far higher than in SP - so sellers are influenced by that fact here.

3/ I did not refer to prices in the R$200-500k range. I said that I know many homes that are overpriced by that figure.

4/ When many siblings inherit a property is is not rare for them not all to agree to a sale. But any sale cannot take place legally unless they all agree to it... That is the point, nothing to do with probate.

Just to clear up some misunderstandings - maybe it is my English...?! -@Peter Itamaraca

2/ The ratio of gringos buying here is far, far, far higher than in SP - so sellers are influenced by that fact here.

I am using real data from tax levies from the City.  The rate of Gringos that show up on records is nearly insignificant in Sao Paulo.  They are not a factor as they wished to reckon.

Close to Rio, or anywhere in Mexico, or Portugal, the rate of American Expats here is insignificant. Most of your North American dwellers are renters, not owners. 

    @sprealestatebroker
I think you missed several of my points:
1/ My first line - "in my experience". I am not referring to SP, (I cannot imagine anything worse than being forced to live there, unless it was for work purposes). I am referring to properties in my city, where I live and my experience of the market here. Sorry if I confused you.

2/ The ratio of gringos buying here is far, far, far higher than in SP - so sellers are influenced by that fact here.

3/ I did not refer to prices in the R$200-500k range. I said that I know many homes that are overpriced by that figure.

4/ When many siblings inherit a property is is not rare for them not all to agree to a sale. But any sale cannot take place legally unless they all agree to it... That is the point, nothing to do with probate.

Just to clear up some misunderstandings - maybe it is my English...?! -@Peter Itamaraca

#3 I misread it.  In any event, at least in Sao Paulo, It is hard to fathom that kind of spread.  Maybe in Florianopolis, Rio, places American Expats have been flocking to lately. 

      @abthree, I am reading about the principle of usucapião w.r.t squatting.  How can squatters occupy your property and how can owners take action to prevent that?        -@Pablo888

Here is a complete breakdown of the whole process, of which there are 3 steps:

OCCUPATION, often in Brazil called invasion, in English squatting. The owner may initially send a formal notice through the local notary office demanding the occupier leave, and then make an application to the local court for the judge to make a legal order to this effect.

If the owner does this within 1 year and 1 day of the initial occupation, then the judge can order the occupier to leave at once, pending a full hearing. If the period of occupation exceeds 1 year and 1 day before the legal application is made, then the occupier may remain in occupation until the court case is heard.

POSSESSION. This is a period of time when the occupier possesses the property, but does not have any legal ownership. For example, if the owner never applied to the court for the removal of the occupier, and so the occupier continues to use it.

In many instances the process stops here, since some Brazilians are happy to simply pass possession to family members, or even sell it. After all, they are enjoying the full benefits of possession without any of the costs associated with actually tranferring title, or of the final stage:

USUCAPIÃO. This is the process whereby an occupier applies for legal ownership of the property on the basis that the owner has, to all intents and purposes, abandoned it. The occupier must prove that for a continuous period of at least 5 years in a city location (or 10 years in a rural one), the owner has made no effort to recover the property, pay any bills, pay taxes, carry out maintenance, etc.

This process is not without costs (several thousands of reais), as a surveyor and attorney have to be employed, and detailed supporting documentation is required as well as witnesses. It can also take a 2-3 years to complete due to court delays, or even longer if any of the subject property is within 33m of the high tide mark of 1831 (or some such) and therefore SPU marina taxes are payable requiring the involvement of a federal court.

How to avoid this? Simple - maintain your property or home, pay your bills and taxes, employ property management in your absence and nobody can ever claim you have abandoned it...
   

    -@Peter Itamaraca

All of the above correct. 

I am using real data from tax levies from the City.  The rate of Gringos that show up on records is nearly insignificant in Sao Paulo.  They are not a factor as they wished to reckon.

Close to Rio, or anywhere in Mexico, or Portugal, the rate of American Expats here is insignificant. Most of your North American dwellers are renters, not owners. 
   

    -@sprealestatebroker

Again - I am talking about my city - the island of Itamaracá, not SP... Your data is irrelevant in this case.

    @Pablo888
If he pays the bills and maintains the house, she cannot claim it by usucapiao as he has clearly not abandoned it. However I imagine she could possibly claim half if they are together for a long time, then split up?
   

    -@Peter Itamaraca

Correct.  The claimant pleading usucapiao must provide ample proof that the occupied property has been maintained and dues paid by the claimant, consistently, year in and out. 

    Trustworthy real estate agents (as well as any Brasilian business person) are rare. After working through many agents here in Brasilia, we finally found a trustworthy one.
An example of untrustworthiness is one we are working through now. We had a certified repairman fix our brand new Kitchenaid oven which we shipped from the States and haveneverbeen able to us because it blows out soot. He said that he would need to order the part. After no word for 3 weeks  we called to inquire on the status. They told us they couldn't get the part (which I see is available on US Parts websites). So they offered us an 'incredible' deal. They will offer one of three of their inferior ovens for 30% off and take our 'broken' Kitchenaid off our hands. We declined and tod them we'll bring the $86 part with us from the States next time. We have to admire their moxy for them to ask us to pay them to rip us off!! Kkkkkk
   

    -@EricPau

I dealt with my fair share of shody contractors here, as a landlord.  And I've been gouged myself.

And if they ever get a hint  you are a foreigner, it's open season, and you are fair game. 

But using a subrogate broker to facilitate repairs is not such a great idea either.  Most brokers have no clue as to what needs to be done to enforce wormanship, deliverables. It's not theirs, so they don't care.. They will punch out and go about what does bring in the money. Commissions through Selling or renting. 

In this racket, you either DYI, or mind the store,  or take your lumps.   

Garbage in Garbage out, is the old oxymoron on data.
   
    -@sprealestatebroker

I promise I did try to resist this, but in the end I gave in...

"Garbage in Garbage out, is the old oxymoron on data." Mmmm. Hope this helps, but that is not an oxymoron, it is a addage. An oxymoron is when 2 words appear to contradict each other, but make sense. For example, bittersweet, deafening silence, or accurate estimate. Perhaps educated American also works here? Only joking...

01/31/24 Perhaps educated American also works here? Only joking... -@Peter Itamaraca

I'll be very interested in hearing more of your views on this subject in João Pessoa.  😏

@abthree

Again - I am talking about my city - the island of Itamaracá, not SP... Your data is irrelevant in this case.
   

    -@Peter Itamaraca

Itamaraca, PE

Circumventing  Area     67 km²

Population in Itamaraca, according to the latest census....  24,888 hab.

It shows it is within the Metro Recife Area, about 48km, 30 miles give it or take it.

The City of Sao Paulo, excluding the exurbs

Circumventing  Area     1,521,202 km²

Population as of 2022  11,451,999 hab.

What those numbers above say.... You are going to get noticed. Yes, you are going to stick like a sore thumb when you show up for land parcel viewings. And you are going to get gouged.  You may use a proxy or a buyer's broker to soften the blow.

And let's not forget, with  67 km²  and assuming the city enforces zoning and environmental ordinances ( which they probably won't do if there is any  at all  ), there are only so much in buildable plots that one can acquire.  After all you are competing with folks from Recife for those plots.

It says here you are on an estuary region,within the Hydrographic basins of small Rivers, including the Paribe e Jaguaribe. Short and sweet, there are plenty areas featuring  marshlands , and  very well possible, landfills.  I wiil assume, for all intents and purposes, the city and developers ignore envionmental safeguards for wetlands. 

Granted, in Sao Paulo, large purchases are circumvented by using proxies, but when it comes to post the transaction in the record of deed ( Cartorio ), the name or corporation will show up.

The overwhelming number of foreign buyers in Sao Paulo, I| would daresay, Arabs, and then Chinese,, followed by Italians from the old country. 

You want your little piece of paradise on the shores, pay up.  You are fair game. End of story.

@sprealestatebroker

I will not bore everyone by responding to each of your points, but let's say this: it is a little foolish to make statements based on assumptions when you have never visited a place, nor had any experience of doing business here.

Planning controls here are fierce, and much stricter than on the mainland - most of the island is a protected forest and, with few exceptions, you cannot build more than 2 floors.  So the afternoon sun always shines on the beaches, unlike most other cities in Brazil, and the breezes can be enjoyed in homes further away from the ocean.

@sprealestatebroker

Purely out of interest, my barber told me this morning that, according to Google, the most searched place to visit over New Year out of the whole of the Northeast of Brazil was... Ilha de Itamaracá.

    @sprealestatebroker
Purely out of interest, my barber told me this morning that, according to Google, the most searched place to visit over New Year out of the whole of the Northeast of Brazil was... Ilha de Itamaracá.
   

    -@Peter Itamaraca

@peter itamaraca, the google search report is highly subjective and it depends on how the search was made.  However, I admit that I may have skewed the search report since I have been doing many searches on many parts of the island as part of my "homework".  I may also have mentioned this search to people in my network around the world.  Mea culpa for contributing to the phenomenon.

@sprealestatebroker, I am trying to understand how the SP rental market works.  You mentioned that you have a vacant home.  Would it not be better to rent or make this property work hard for you?

@Pablo888

Not 100% sure, but I think he mentioned Brazilian-based searches...

    @Pablo888
Not 100% sure, but I think he mentioned Brazilian-based searches...
   

    -@Peter Itamaraca

Oh no.... I hope that it ain't so.... Or I will have Brazil based competition.....