Clubman,
I dont wish to start a debate on the whole issue, becuase i have read so many of them i find it tiresome. however i found the tone quite negative in general when sounding out investment ideas. i appreciate devils advocacy and it made me think twice about buying in Portugal. Nearly all posts pointed out the negative, not one suggested it may be an okay idea, which it was. My point, devils advocacy is super but it should be evenly weighed with encouragement. IMHO most people on this site are beginners and need advice which is mixed with both caution and encouragement in equal measures.
EFM,
i bought from Oceanico, The purchasing side of things was easy. they were helpfull and the process went relatively smoothly. It was one of their first developments (in Luz) which is a superb development. The only issues i had with them was when selling time came, I was made to feel like an annoyance. They got a little snotty towards the end and the process dragged out over the last 6 months. Glad to say I received the money, although I dont think I would deal with them again. I was at their new prelaunch with 10% discounts about 5 months ago in Dublin, couldnt believe both the prices and the demand. let me know if their is anything further I can help you with.
also with reagrd to flipping. the charges for selling are quite high. I have been told that setting up your own website and linking it to the developers and advertising yourself can be just as effective. Sounds like a lot of work but they charge over 5% to sell which is alot. e.g. 400,000 5% = 20,000.