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Safeguards

How we verify

Ten checks, in a fixed order, before a property reaches your shortlist. A property that fails any step is either fixed by the seller before presentation, or not presented.

For every property

  1. 01

    Title search at the Land Registry

    The chain of ownership traced back up to 30 years, executed by an independent lawyer — not by us, and not by the seller.

  2. 02

    Encumbrance check

    Mortgages, caveats, pending litigation, seizure orders, unpaid rates (local property tax).

  3. 03

    Survey reconciliation

    The survey plan matched against what physically exists on the ground, by our local team, in person.

  4. 04

    Approvals audit

    Planning permission, building approvals, Certificate of Conformity; for condominiums, registration under the Apartment Ownership Law.

  5. 05

    Seller verification

    The person selling is the person on the title, confirmed against identity documents.

Additionally, for developers and off-plan

  1. 06

    Track record inspection

    We visit the developer’s completed buildings and check delivery history against original promises.

  2. 07

    Payment structure review

    Milestone-linked schedules only; deposit protection examined before we present the deal.

Additionally, for operating businesses

  1. 08

    Revenue verified from bank statements

    And from supplier records — never from the profit-and-loss statement alone.

  2. 09

    Licence audit

    Liquor, tourism and operating licences confirmed valid and transferable.

  3. 10

    Liability sweep

    Staff entitlements, tax arrears, lease terms and transferability.

What the reporting looks like

Three sample artefacts

These are format samples, built to show what our reporting covers. They describe no real property and contain no real transaction data. Sample formats of each document are shown below. Once transactions complete, redacted real examples will be available on request.

Sample — illustrative of our reporting format. Not a real transaction.

What our title report covers

Property
Land Registry folio
Chain of ownership
30 years traced, 4 transfers examined
Registered proprietor
Encumbrances found
None / listed with discharge status
Pending litigation
Searched: partition, testamentary, district court
Survey plan
Plan no.
Condominium registration
Apartment Ownership Law — confirmed / N/A
Lawyer
Independent, instructed by the buyer
Conclusion
Marketable / marketable subject to / not marketable

Sample — illustrative of our reporting format. Not a real transaction.

Due-diligence checklist

  • Title search at the Land Registry
  • Encumbrance check
  • Survey reconciliation
  • Approvals audit
  • Seller verification
  • Track record inspection
  • Payment structure review
  • Revenue verified from bank statements
  • Licence audit
  • Liability sweep

Every box carries the date it was cleared and the name of who cleared it. Unticked here because this is a blank form, not a completed one.

Sample — illustrative of our reporting format. Not a real transaction.

How your money moves: the Inward Investment Account (IIA) route

  1. 1

    Lawyer engaged

    Before any money moves. Yours, not the seller’s.

  2. 2

    IIA opened

    At a licensed commercial bank, often remotely.

  3. 3

    Funds remitted

    The full price, from your overseas bank into the IIA.

  4. 4

    Payment released

    From the IIA to the seller, at deed execution, on your lawyer’s trigger.

  5. 5

    Deed registered

    Remittance, IIA and deed now form one permanent paper trail.

Money that enters any other way does not carry the right to leave: the IIA record is what permits your capital and any gain to be repatriated later. This is the single most common self-inflicted wound among overseas buyers.

The whole protocol is the product

Chapters 6, 7 and 9 of the buyer’s guide set out the same process from the buyer’s side, including the seven ways purchases go wrong and how each one is caught.

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