Very interesting. Jerry didnāt even mention it.
Hi Cam,
Sorry for the late reply and just caught up on the thread.
It sounds like the Lapa project is still available base on the conversation in this thread? Iām not sure how many investors are already part of the Lapa project. Mercan would be the best to answer this.
This is the lawyerās website: https://iaservices.pt
In terms of my process, I am waiting for one more document then I can officially apply. So far the process has been pretty easy and uncomplicated.
I understand what you mean. It feels like such a big risk when you invest this much money and not really knowing the people/company and all you can do is to do research online. I am in the same position. But reading the information in this forum brings a bit of comfort and reassurance. But Iām not sure if we can talk to anyone who has been part of Mercanās previous projects. Perhaps there is another forum out there? Iām not sure.
And also reading about Mercan on the Points Guy website helped a bit too. He has a promotion code if anyone still has not signed up yet (at least it was there the last time I read the post).
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Thanks for your reply, Queenie. In the interim, we had a zoom conversation with Jerry from Mercan. It went quite well overall, but he wouldnāt ask former clients to allow us to contact them. He said there were privacy issues, but I donāt see how that applies, given that we wouldnāt contact the clients without their prior permission. He referred us only to the Points Guy.
He said there are a few spots still open for investing in both the Lapa project and the Evora one. Weāve asked for more info on them, construction progress reports/plans, etc. I think construction of both projects has barely begun.
Yes, itās all kind of scary. No matter what is āguaranteedā in terms of stability or early payback, I imagine there is always risk the projects (or Mercan) could go under.
Please let me know how things progress for you in the coming days and weeks. We havenāt yet committed, and it would be great to know that things are still going smoothly for your approval on the Golden Visa. Likewise, Iāll try to let you know how things go on this end.
By the way, I havenāt been able to figure out how to Private Message anyone on the forum page. Could you please advise?
Thanks again, Queenie.
Best,
Cam
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Here is what one company says about their buyback. It seems encouraging.
The good news is you can purchase from ā¬280,000 and some of the projects have even a buyback included from developers.
The buyback is a contractual option that you have displayed in your investment purchase (legally protected) that states after 6 or 7 years the developer can buy the investment from you for the same investment value. If you invest ā¬280.000 you will receive the ā¬280.000 back which you invested.
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Until they provide bankās guarantee on their buyback promises, there are just words on paper. 
OK, bank will charge them some money for it, they may charge you - but it will be something you can rely on.
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Hello,
Iām curious to learn more about La Vida. Do you have any updates on your progress? It sounds like you are able to purchase a residence to live in immediately? Or do they provide rental service initially?
Thanks
Kathy
Hi Elisa ā I have been looking into [cencored due to company repeatedly spamming the forum with shill accounts] and their 280K euro real estate rehab options and donāt recall having spent much time on La Vida. I believe it is ownership share in the property development (hotel) with on 7 to 14 days annual use rather than āowningā full use of a designated unit ā at least for the options I am looking into. My biggest issues for resolution is getting a guaranteed in writing buyback at the end of the GV period and the potential for major tax complexity if I am considered a, āownerā of this foreign company.
I am also considering another GV program for a Caribbean country given the much lower opportunity costs but this would not preclude my future reconsideration for Portugal citizenship later.
I am meeting with a developer tomorrow and hope to get the actual contract info so I can review along with my tax attorney.
Regards/Robert
Hi Sarah ,
Would love to hear how your application is going with Mercan now that itās been 3 months:
Thanks
Lloyd
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Hi Cam and community
I had a similar chat with Jerry this week and reading your story was literally word for word the same as our call!
Really nice guy but my concern is that there is not much in the public domain on them besides a couple articles and their websites and marketing sites, and itās not often you have the founder pitching the deal to you.
I even had myself googling āMercan Scamā, āMercan Fraudā to see if anything comes up but only 1 article back in 2008 where 7 Filipino truck drivers went to Canada and were really short changed to pay for the full expense so CNBC got involved.
My wife asked about the client referrals , and he said they canāt do so for privacy reasons (fair enough however if I went through a positive experience with them I would of said he can gladly use me as a referral) and then in the next breath he mentioned some famous guy, āthe points guyā.
My wife googled the points guys and his story and it made her feel great that this guy mentioned Mercan but not sure why I still have my reservations, maybe because when someone āguaranteesā anything (besides death and taxes), im a glass half empty guy .
Anyways Iām just sharing my views, take them with a pinch of salt, they still one of my top 3 Iām considering, maybe Iām just to used to the stock market and publicly available information!
See the link to the points guy below!
I find it hard to believe the Points Guy or any other website for that matter would promote Mercan out of their goodwill guys and gals. That includes NomadGateā¦
Not that I know anything, but Iām highly inclined to believe they are all compensated. Butā¦ maybe not.
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Thanks, Lloyd. Very interesting.
I too remain interested in going with Mercan but have similar reservations. It may be simply that Iām very risk-averse, but I think itās good for us all to remain in touch, in terms of sharing info on our experiences.
Do you have a clear sense at this point as to what happens if the given project in which one invests via Mercan winds up not happening or not getting completed or if winds up going bust? Are we still guaranteed getting all our money back, given that we (I think) are investing with Mercan, so any risk would come down to whether Mercan itself remains viable? As they seem, as far as one can tell, to have a good track record, that might suggest our money is relatively safeāthough of course nothing is risk-free and any guarantee is contingent on the continuing viability of the entity making the guarantee.
Of course they are. But even if you are being compensated, recommending something bad is a great way to get your name besmirched, and for someone like Brian Kelly whose entire cash flow is dependent on eyeballs and people trusting TPGās reviews of stuff, having a bunch of people lambasting him for a bad recco is simply bad business sense.
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I wrote somewhere back up chain that basically you can think of this as a 3% corporate junior secured bond being issued by Mercan. Mercan has an interest in seeing it paid, and a reputational risk in doing so, but EOD they can default on the bond and leave you holding a deed in this shell of a building in .pt.
IMO from my DD I think itās by and large a pretty safe risk. If you dig at Mercan, you see that underneath it is AII, which is a firm thatās done a lot of the same work for US EB-5 immigration purposes in the US for a really long time. Itās just what they do. Portugal is a newer line of biz for them so there isnāt as much track record. But thatās just one personās opinion.
Dear Sara,
Good day.
I am also worried about the power of Attorney and the Proxy. It give the lawyer almost the full power over the bank account and i can not sign that? What have you done regarding the power of Attorney? did you find another lawyer to revise the POA? did you changed it? I think the pointed lawyer through Mercan group gives all the permillage to Mercan group.
Regards,
Khaled
Hi Bobby - have you looked any further with [cencored due to company repeatedly spamming the forum with shill accounts]? We had an initial consultation and starting our research. Thanks.
Hello @Coffee @RandomUser2021, Queenie Mak and everyone ,
I am catching up here, lots of good information. It has been over 30 days since your last comments, i was wondering if any of you decided to go forward with Mercan and if not, why not!
Greatly appreciate your help, this re-search and finding hte best option has been very confusing 
Hi, Armin.
No, no decisions made at this end. Iām letting a little time go by. Re the Evora project, Iām waiting in any case to see whether and when construction begins.
Queenie, on the other hand, sounded much further along on her decision and the process of following through.
Youāre not alone in finding the options confusing.
Thanks for staying in touch.
Coffee
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Cam,
Thank you for quick replay 
I saw a webinar from Mercan march 31st. hopefully the timing works and i can join it.
I am also re-searching the difference between a real estate fund and investments like Mercan, any thoughts?
Hi again.
Donāt know much about real-estate funds. My impression is that theyāre more like mutual funds invested in real estate whereas Mercan may be more like real-estate purchase. But you should definitely look carefully at any prospectuses, talk to the firms, consult an attorney, etc.
Pls keep us posted as to how the webinar goes.
Cam
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