Mr & Mrs J from Preston, within two years of retirement, were on holiday on the Costa del Sol when they were attracted to a development that was under construction. They were persuaded that the development contained the retirement home of their dreams. They signed a "Purchase Agreement" and paid a deposit of £10,000 (10% of the price) without taking any legal advice.

The developer went bankrupt, and needless to say they lost their £10,000 and even the land, that the developer told them was theirs, disappeared as the Spanish Liquidator moved in.



Mr & Mrs W from Cardiff, on holiday in Greece, were offered the "Bargain of a Lifetime" when they went looking for a holiday home. They sought the advice of a Surveyor and found that the "Bricks & Mortar" value of the house they liked was £15,000 more than the asking price. They decided to complete the sale quickly for fear of missing this "bargain" without consulting a Lawyer. The house purchase went through and they were very happy, congratulating themselves on their good fortune, and negotiating skills.

One year later, whilst on holiday in the house, Mr W was arrested by the Greek Police for debt. They found out to their cost that over £90,000 debts were attached to the house and that they had bought these, unwittingly, with the house.



Mr & Mrs T from London, paid a £2,500 deposit on a timeshare property in Lanzarote whilst on holiday there, and signed a finance agreement for a further £11,300. They enjoyed two years holidays in their timeshare home (four weeks in total = £3,450 per week) before the development was sold by its unscrupulous owners. The new owners then informed them that they had no legal title and that if they wished to continue it would cost them an additional £9,000 that they didn't have.

After belatedly consulting a lawyer they found that they did not have title, were committed to making the loan repayments and would have to pay the extra money if they wished to keep the timeshare.



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