Portugal’s main estate agency association says it refuses to be a scapegoat in the backlash over the Golden Visa corruption enquiry and said the money used in buying top end property is in effect scrutinised twice.
The Association of Real Estate Professionals and Business (APEMIP) issued a strongly worded statement today to defend the importance of the Golden Visa programme to its members’ bank accounts, and took the bold step of informing the public that its members are not involved in "money laundering and other crimes."
APEMIP said the Golden Visa programme is important for employment in Portugal and said that the capital used under the Golden Visa programme is "doubly scrutinised."
There is the legal scrutiny that everyone has to undergo in any real estate transaction, then there is an in-depth investment analysis when people apply for the Golden Visa, similar to many other existing checks elsewhere in the European Union, according to the association headed by Luís Lima.
APEMIP claims that it has only members who are trustworthy and that people can rest assured that his professional and corporate members operate under strict compliance with the law and with full transparency and a code of ethics.
"This most important of Portuguese sectors should not be scapegoated, or used as a weapon in political battles," the association commented today, adding that -
"The normal course of events in a police investigation is being transformed into an unwarranted and unfair assault on this programme set up to attract foreign investment which has relaunched the Portuguese real estate market and has generated greater domestic confidence in this sector."
The Portuguese Confederation of Construction and Real Estate also argues that "the Golden Visa programme is positive and doubts should not be cast over it,” adding that the programme has brought €1.07 billion of foreign investment into Portugal, €972 million of which relates to the acquisition of domestic real estate.
"This programme cannot be threatened by legal issues, which must be fully and rapidly cleared up by the courts, nor by political disputes," argues the confederation, adding that this is -
"a programme with proven positive effects, which exists in many other countries and that has to be defended, under threat of losing investors to other destinations that are in direct competition with Portugal in terms of attracting investment."
Luís Lima makes the mistake of stating that all of his members are as white as white when he knows this can hardly be the case in an industry bedevilled with sharp practice and lies of some estate agents.
His second mistake is relying on the government's word that each Golden Visa applicant carefully is checked out and the sources of his or her money is analysed. This too appears not to be the case with admissions of fast tracking and favours done running through the current court appearances of those involved.
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