How Vanguard Properties benefits of using CASAFARI

Since May 2020, Portuguese real estate developer Vanguard Properties, led by José Cardoso Botelho, has used CASAFARI to save hours of market research. By leveraging CASAFARI solutions for real estate investors, the team sources investment opportunities across thousands of data sources and millions of property listings, runs property valuations with real-time comparables, and monitors how external agencies communicate its luxury projects.

Property sourcing and portfolio control

“The property sourcing for potential investments” is an indispensable feature of CASAFARI for the Vanguard Properties team from day 1. This tool is essential not only to have a full view of the market stock, through daily searches and alerts, but also to find potential acquisitions.

Through scalable data technology aggregating market sources and property listings, clients such as Vanguard are able to have the most complete view of the real estate market. Therefore, it’s only natural that this is one of our most valuable assets.

As expected, their business goes beyond just the property sourcing: monitoring their property portfolio is also something done daily by Vanguard. In the words of José Botelho, this is an important task for “identifying the way that real estate agencies and other players communicate our projects and for evaluating those that are being communicated incorrectly”.

This close follow-up of projects allow the company to control in real-time their best practices, ruled by a rigorous quality control, having in mind that we are talking about high luxury enterprises and projects.

A powerful Property Valuation

Along with a complete property search and a trustworthy portfolio control, CASAFARI’s Property Valuation also received compliments from the biggest real estate developer in Portugal.

“CASAFARI helped us considerably in optimizing our work”, reinforces José Botelho. With access to a global real estate data platform with property data in 16 countries, both for sale and rent, for all asset classes, Vanguard Properties can have a complete view of the market in real time.

Also, a Property Valuation report made with CASAFARI automatically gathers the most precise comparables, taking into consideration many characteristics of the property. This means you get to value any kind of asset, like apartments, houses, commercial or industrial properties.

Fast decision-making and curiosity for the real estate market

From fast acquisitions to monetization, time-management is a key factor for real estate investments and Vanguard Properties dominates this art like only few companies do. “There’s no secret, but a group of factors that make a difference”, explains José Botelho.

“The high financial and investment capacity of the group, a fast decision-making process, a vast knowledge of real estate and a strong network with the most relevant stakeholders of the market” are some of the factors that the manager highlights as catalysts of this speed.

“We are a self-managed company that covers the whole spectrum of our activity. This makes decision-making easier. Our team has a total of 54 collaborators that are constantly receiving training, encouraged to take risks and to develop new ideas”, reported Vanguard Properties in July 2022. Besides, José Botelho talks about a “strong investment in technology” and the decision of “creating an internal sales department, that allowed us to learn a lot from the final clients”.

But, since a business is not only about management, Botelho explains that curiosity is also a driving force that enhances their passion for the real estate market. “I always say to my collaborators that the more I know, the more doubts I have. I have this motto permanently on my mind. I try to learn every day by reading a lot, listening to a large number of interesting people from various market segments, as well as listening to relevant media”.

The present and the future of the real estate client in Vanguard Properties’ view

Looking at the present and anticipating new dynamics, for Vanguard, in the recent years Portugal “has been attracting a very diversified clientele in terms of nationality”.

“Today, north-Americans are highly relevant and the demand from Europeans continues (Spanish, French, German, British, Irish, Swedish, Finnish), as well as clients coming from South Africa, Angola, Turkey, Mexico, among other countries. Unlike in the past, today we attract young families that want to live and educate their children here – making it important to grow the number of good international schools. They search primarily for quality of life (the weather, the people, the environment), safety and an attractive tax package”, describes the manager.

The pandemic intensified the search for real estate assets outside the big cities. “On the cities, the sought-after units are the ones with more and better common areas, bigger windows and gardens. Ideally, although the offer is still reduced, workspaces inside the buildings, as we did in our project Infinity”.

And how are these deals sealed? Is the geographical distance of the real estate investors a relevant factor? For José Botelho, “it depends if we’re talking about existing units, to be constructed or under construction. With already existing units, the online sale is more complex because usually the homebuyer wishes to see with their own eyes the conditions of the asset. When it comes to something under construction or to be constructed, online sales works well because, actually, apart from the plot, in the first phase of the project there isn’t much to see on the construction site”, he clarifies.

By counting with the best of the digital world to circumvent the absence of physical presence, Vanguard’s manager advises companies to have “a good digital brochure, excellent presentation videos, realistic 3D representations and, of course, a useful corporate website”. These conditions “help selling in a long-distance”, reinforces Botelho, diving as example Vanguard Properties. “The majority of the villas at Muda Reserve were sold without any visits”.

Highly positive financial balance on the last 5 years

The year of 2017 marks the entry of Vanguard Properties in Portugal, after Claude Berda (currently shareholder of Vanguard) met the experienced manager José Botelho. The outcome? “It was highly positive”.

“We managed to create a high impact and renowned brand, that’s leader in the premium and high luxury segments and that was maybe the biggest group in real estate development, starting from scratch. We developed countless promotion initiatives in the fields of culture, art, sports and health that we’re very proud of, creating a corporation that is not only integrated, but also integrator”, describes José Botelho.

Frequently asked questions

How does Vanguard Properties use CASAFARI for property sourcing and portfolio control?

Vanguard Properties uses CASAFARI’s Property Sourcing and daily alerts from day one to view the entire market stock and identify potential acquisitions. The team also monitors its own portfolio daily to verify how real estate agencies and other market players communicate its luxury projects and to correct any inaccurate listings in real time.

How does CASAFARI’s property valuation tool support real estate developers and investors?

CASAFARI’s Valuation & Market Study tool automatically selects accurate comparables for sale and rent across all asset classes, including apartments, houses, commercial and industrial properties. It factors in specific property characteristics to give developers like Vanguard Properties a complete real-time view of the market.

What drives fast decision-making in real estate investment at Vanguard Properties?

At Vanguard Properties, fast decision-making relies on strong financial capacity, deep market knowledge and an extensive stakeholder network. The self-managed developer also relies on its internal sales department, 54 collaborators and continuous investment in technology.

What types of international buyers are investing in luxury real estate in Portugal?

According to Vanguard Properties, Portugal attracts a diverse clientele including North American and European buyers, alongside buyers from South Africa, Angola, Turkey and Mexico. These investors are increasingly young families seeking safety, quality of life, international schools and properties with gardens or shared workspaces.

How can real estate developers sell off-plan luxury properties to international buyers remotely?

While existing properties usually require in-person visits, off-plan developments sell effectively online when supported by high-quality digital assets. Digital brochures, presentation videos, realistic 3D representations and a functional website enable long-distance sales, as demonstrated at Muda Reserve.