Magnate, you are popping up all over the place - Morocco, Brazil, and now Egypt. HOT for sure, but no finance options, so similar to Brazil in that respect, and why (although prices have already gone up) you probably won´t witness the hoards of investors that you will have witnessed in Morocco.
on other forums i have not seen a bad word about sahl hashesh. this could be like the story of the emporors new clothes, as the truth is, it is so far behind schedule it is a worry about the finances of the developers and whether it will ever be completed, the truth is the emporor is naked, there is nothing there - no shops no golf courses no entertainments. pizza apartments still unfinished, work barely started on andalous and ocean breeze. all does not appear well, i would guess that based on the progress made so far it will be another five years before it will be worth going to sahl hashesh and thats hoping that the next lot of off plan apartments can be sold to raise the money to build the ones they are doing now. i have looked at this project an although on paper it may look good, my instinct says stear clear, up tits going are three words that spring to mind. I may be wrong, but if I were an investor I would not be sleeping well.
Originally posted by magnate: Time to seperate general opinion from the Moroccan threads i believe-more than sufficient views and interest to merit its own debate. So HOT or NOT?
Bad investments. BUy in Orascom or Emaar projects. Sahl Hasheesh is a dream that might turn into nightmare.
Hi, i received some pictutes of this development, the beaches look great & you can see building work taking place but on the "airel" view nothing could be seen for miles, not even roads? forget anything else.
Might be a good longterm investment if the infrastructure goes in but at the moment its 'nothing to write home about'.
Hi - big believer that all the time mortgages are not available, Egypt is never going to take off in the same way as Morocco. However, it is a refreshing change that the UK investor gets there at the same time as everyone else. Why not get involved in a country before it becomes an emerging market rather than waiting until all the value has gone (ie Cape Verde, Thailand, Bulgaria)
distantdreamer, from what i saw on the pictures i was e-mailed no roads couldbe seen, but as you have been there i take your word for it. Ive had a look at their website & yes the development does look good, can you advise how much the cheapest apartments are? which agent did you deal with when purchasing, i'd like to find out more, Thanks
dear distantdreamer. Yes my statements are sweeping and I have no proof, but i would not be comfortable as buyer in this development. I like Egypt and am keen to buy as i think this is a market waiting to explode but I am holding back at the moment for the right project at the right price. I might be tempted by Sahl but in my opinion the prices are 40-50% too high for the current state of the site. It is noticeable that nearly all the positive comments come from people (like you) who are selling properties. From what i read on egyptsearch forum you have, personally, effectively received a 50% discount on your apartment, have you not? I suspect so many agents are buying mainly because the builders are giving them massive discounts, free furniture, etc etc and it seems that nearly all the positive comments on other forums are from agents who have been given the freebies by the egyptian builders. The man in the street investor is getting a raw deal and the price he pays subsidises agents like yourself in getting the right price. I have no proof of this and I may be wrong but would bet there is some seriously large brown envelopes changing hands here to get punters in.
I repeat again, Sahl is years behind schedule, there is nothing there, apartments are being sold but next to no building work going on, etc lots of things just dont feel right at all.
Whilst undoubtedly a very exciting,inspiring project,the website is diabolical and i can understand how this continues to convey the wrong impression. May i suggest to anyone with contacts within ERM to advise them to update the site as a matter of some urgency as quite simply it is putting off prospective investors.
one website news is 2 years out of date! and the other website news shows photos of andalous apartments building progress in the dark (so you see nothing, very clever) and bulldozers in the sand for breeze apartments, not much going on there either. Some of the hotels seem to be showing some progress but it it pitifully slow. Beware of agents ramping, distantdreamer et al, sahl may yet fall apart.
Hello. Having bought an apartment in Sahl Hasheesh it's interesting to note the comments made about the place. Regarding the website pictures Rolling, one of the pictures of Andolous is in half light (sunset) I agree, but the other one is quite plain and you can see work progressing. I think one should be careful about causing unnecessary fears. Of course I have concerns that it is progressing slowly which I think it is a bit, but it is going to be a huge resort and nothing in Egypt ever moves that quickly!! So much money has been put into the infrastructure I do not believe it will come to nothing. Knowing Egypt well, I do believe it will be a very special resort. As to past comments about some agents getting discounted flats, I happen to know the person that Rolling was referring to, as I personally put her in touch with the developer and she was not an agent!!! Believe me, apts. are selling well in Andalous although maybe not so well in Palm Beach Piazza but I don't think they are such good value. Anyway, it's fine to raise concerns but I suspect some people are just very cynical - and it's easy to get scared by them after all, all us investors take a risk. Good luck to everyone.
By the way, I am getting a friend who lives in Hurghada to send some photos to confirm how the site is getting on, so promise to update you all as soon as they come through...
As it is not my practice to invest my hard earned money in anything that i am not sufficiently comfortable with,the only solution for me was to go and see for myself. Just back and make no mistake-this is an absolutely stunning development,and my advice would be to not allow conjecture to cloud your judgement and i am definitely pressing ahead. The first hotel,the Pyramisa is already built looks magnificent,and actually opens next month.It is five star, palatial in its internal dimensions,and enjoys a beachfront location overlooking the sunken city of Isis..Sahl Hasheesh is a class act and i am delighted to have discovered it.
Originally posted by magnate: overlooking the sunken city of Isis..Sahl Hasheesh is a class act and i am delighted to have discovered it.
What do you mean by "discovered it"? The place is on sale for more than 11 months already and prices have doubled? Do you think people are happy to pay double the original prices just for speculators hapiness?
to zayneb, magnate,ditantdreamer, and any other investors in sahl hasheesh. I have decided not to buy here but i am buying in egypt further up the coast ain sokhna, my opinion is this area represents value. We each have an opinion - perhaps we are both right - egypt has excellent potential. I may have been a little personal in some of my comments and I apologise for any offence caused - however, my pet hate is agents and developers posing as buyers to ramp up sales/prices. Sahl IS expensive but like all things time will prove whether or not you are getting value. Cheap does not always mean value either. If you have a holiday home in an area you like perhaps that is value enough. I do not often post on forums but I have looked at egypt and sahl carefully and was looking for opinions and not agents sales patter and buyers blindly congratulating each other on there wise "investments" as you get in some forums. I still think there are problems with this development, perhaps I have done you a favour if the investors start asking some searching questions of the developers. I think i am disappointed at not buying in sahl to be frank because it is a nice bay but i have made my decision and thats it, i do think it is overpriced.
actually Rolling I do agree with your last post in some ways. I think your distrust of agents did show in earlier posts but what you say is somewhat true. Sahl Hasheesh is more expensive than some resorts in other parts of Egypt. And certainly if one is buying for a holiday home one should choose an area that is right for you rather than just look at the price. However, i think you might be missing a big one here. Sahl is more expensive but that's because I really do think it is different from many other resorts. In Egypt you have to be careful because standards are not always high. El Gouna is a lovely example of high standards but even in El Gouna there are aspects missing (to my mind). Sahl, I think has learned from the mistakes of other resorts and the planning and thought that has gone into the infrastructure and archictecture will make it special. Anyway I promise I am not an agent and really not trying to sell it. Just an enthusiastic buyer, who bought incidentally for a holiday home not an investment. These forums are full of us congratulating each other on our investments, but it IS fun to discuss it with like minded individuals. Good luck with your purchase Rolling, Sokna is also a nice area and certainly much cheaper.
And another thing, when you say 'blindly congratulating each other'.....can I ask, have you been to Egypt and personally examined the projects you discuss? Certainly I have been going to Egypt for over 10 yrs, know the country very well and have visited Sahl Hasheesh as well as other projects in the Red Sea. I know that Distant Dreamer has also done. So of course that is not a guarantee of success but definitely an advantage when it comes to having an opinion. No, 'blindly' is not really appropriate I think. Regarding Egypt in general, it is starting to be pushed as an upcoming market. I can see there is going to be a 'glut' of developments which I don't think is a good thing although tourists visiting Egypt is increasing every year. But some developments are just blocks of apartments with swimming pools, whereas Sahl is a carefully thought out complete 'city' with cinema, market area, marina, hospital.....you just can't compare. Still as I say, I'm not selling nor defending just happy to discuss and argue.....
For those of you who might be interested, following on the discussions of Sahl. Yesterday I had a long chat with a someone from the Serrenia Development. They have experienced delays because of a dried up Wadi on their land. It would have posed a significant problem if there had been a torrential downpour (it sounded like this does happen from time to time). They have had to change their planning as a result. They are also looking at making the finance options more attractive as well. Serrenia really is like nothing else I have ever seen and the prices are astronomic!! Their brochure is all about having somewhere to park your private jet, or flying over your daughter's pony etc! It is a very brave development but they have had a lot of interest from end users!! It is hard to believe that people have that kind of cash. No-one will be allowed to occupy anything there until the whole of the site is finished, 2010. Interestingly he was comparing the marina to Puerto Banus and Monaco, yet the marina has half the amount of berths as Saidia! People staying in the other resorts in Sahl will have to make an appointment if they want to visit the marina, the shops or dine at one of the restaurants there. I would have thought that such a 'world class/high profile' resort next door would benefit the other resorts in Sahl. I still question whether the summers there would be too hot though? To get people to part with well in excess of a million quid (and the rest), they must be planning to give it massive exposure.
zayneb - i liked your replies, especially the bits where you agree with me. Seriously though, I concede to your vastly superior knowledge, I have only been to egypt one time and feel inadequate compared to your experience and knowledge. I did not get to Sahl, my comments are on what I see on the internet, but I will say I am very good at reading between the lines. I concede that there is no substitute for going to the resort. I like Egypt not only as an investment but I was totally blown away by the history and culture. I fell in love with the country and intend to spend a lot of time there (3-6 months per year) It brings a tear to my eye everytime I think of when I was stood in awe at the pyramids. Shall we agree to disagree on the investment value of sahl and/or when/whether it will complete - you clearly are in love with the resort and I congratulate you on making a fantastic investment for yourself. When I said blindly congratulatimg before, I did not mean you - it was more general ie "investors" in bulgaria and turkey or from wherever.
Egypt has every chance of being a major force in the property stakes - me and you are in from near the start and should do well. But what the heck - we have a place we love so we cant lose!!
One more thing, I did not realise your friend distantdreamer was a woman ( and you are aswell i suppose). Please apologise to her for the tone of my comments, I am an English gentleman and would not speak so agressively had I known. I have noticed that she does not post here anymore, if I remember her posts I think it will not be anything I said as she seemed quite capable of looking after herself - more likely daft C4 deleting her responses for being a real estate agent.
I sincerely hope that Sahl Hasheesh will be the paradise you and distantdreamer expect that it will be.
PLEASE NOTE - last post was from me ZAYNEB (not zane052) (he's my son and was logged in - I didn't realise!!) Sorry for the confusion.
This was my post.... 'thanks for your gentlemanly response Rolling. No offence taken. Yes, Egypt is a wonderful country although I have always had a love/hate relationship with it. But there is something there that you feel is timeless and beautiful. Anyway this is a forum about property investments so I won't get carried away with Egypt as a country. Discussion on Sahl seems to have dried up a little, I guess it's now just waiting time till the project moves on a bit. Maybe 6 months down the line we can compare notes again...but so far so good.. Reader07 - true, prices are so much more expensive now in Egypt, but there's still a way to go - this is now like a new 'era' in resorts and I reckon people can still make money. Overseas investors are only now really taking notice.'
Oh no..now even more confusion because they deleted the last post (the one mistakenly posted in my son's name)..so now i just look a bit crazy. Oh well, I probably am.
