Investors 'should get independent legal advice'

Monday September 10th , 2007

People who are buying an overseas property have been advised to get independent legal advice.

Overseas property lawyer John Howell stated that prospective investors could benefit from taking advice from an independent source - someone who is not connected to either the developers or estate agents.

However, he recommended that it would be better for investors if they worked with lawyers who were fluent in their own language, in order to prevent possible communication problems.

Speaking to the Sunday Mirror, Mr Howell added: If the seller tells you this is not necessary, walk away.

If the seller says you must use their recommended lawyer, walk away.

This comes alongside comments from Jackson International, which stated that people should not attempt to write a contract with a mortgage lender in a non-English speaking country unless they could speak, read and write it themselves.

The firm warned that some words that appeared similar could in fact have different meanings, making fluency in the language essential for buyers.