PROPERTY - MANAGEMENT

Sal Island

Cape Verde Real Estate Agents, Management Agencies and Property Developers will have offices in Santa Maria on Sal Island, Cape Verde.

Property types and standards vary. Newer developments will have more modern features. Buildings and sizes or apartments will vary. There are some Cape Verde properties that are a better standard than others.

Tour Operators

Properties taken on for letting and use by Travel Agencies or Tour Operators may have to meet strict criteria before they can be let, will yours meet that standard?

Does it have roads to the building, do balcony rails meet the stipulated height?

There should be a full inspection carried out by tour operators before apartments etc can be let to their clients.

Furniture

For those looking to furnish or replace furniture in their property there has been a greater choice of furniture types, styles and suppliers than in 2005. A number of the suppliers have upgraded their stock or bought new furniture to meet the demands of individuals who have fixed budgets.

These are two of the furniture suppliers based on Sal Island.

• AIGA Furniture
• Novita Furniture Suppliers

Developments and Resorts

New developments: No-one can 100% guarantee a property will be completed on time, there are delays from external sources that may be placed on developers i.e. by contractors or legal services. There may be delays with some materials arriving on time or being delivered without any damages to items in containers. Then there are delays from the developers for various reasons.

Investing in Property

There may be other things you need to consider if buying a property. Here are some things to think about when Investing in Cape Verde. The new Land Management system has been introduced on Sal and will eventually be performed on other Cape Verde Islands. 

You will need to consider Property Insurance. There are Insurance Companies on Sal Island, or alternatively you may want to get a quote for Holiday home insurance

Without insurance you could find it costly to replace items that you may have bought as a furniture package that are matching, items that are damaged from water after a leakage from an apartment above yours, damage to items after rain water that has entered your property after a storm, or the furniture you shipped over from the UK will be more difficult to replace.

Management and Rental Agencies

There are a number of Management Agencies and Rental Agencies based in Santa Maria. You may have a choice of which Management Agency you choose, or it may include a voting process by the owners in each block of apartments. Some Resorts will have their own management agency.

There are a number of Rental Agencies in Santa Maria with a good portfolio of buildings for which they are responsible. Some have been established for several years, while others a few years. Rental Agencies may be run by people of different nationalities, but all should have staff who speak a few different languages.

Real Estate Agencies

There are also a number of Real Estate Agencies on Sal, many will have a number of the same properties on their books so it would be best to do your research in advance. There are some Real Estate Agencies in other countries that sell properties on Sal or other Cape  Verde Islands.

Condominium fees

If you have bought a property off plan you may not be told what the condominium fees will be, as they won't have the information prepared to pass onto you. Just keep in mind that properties with additional services such as Resorts where there are swimming pools, large areas of landscape, communal areas, cleaning services and restaurants will have a much higher annual condominium fee than those without those facilities or services.

Property tax

If your annual calculated tax amounts to over 5.000cve, the law states that you can pay 50% between 1st April – 30th April and then the 2nd 50% between 1st – 30th Sept. (Ref: Article 26).

If the annual amount due to be paid is less than 5.000cve you must pay the full amount in the month of April each year. Typically, payments need to be made during the months of April or, April and September. Always check if rules have changed, they often do!