I have today discovered that MNE Inverstments part of OPAL DEVELOPMENTS from Australia in Lodz is being made bankrupt. Anyone who has bought an apartment (like me) in this development and is waiting for their ownership papers will have to deal with the administrators but may lose the apartment or their money.
This was a high profile development in the old textile mill at Tymienieckiego 21–23 90-349 Lodz. I have been fighting to get the ownership papers for nearly 2 years and have just been told today by the company of this situation.
For such a big project to fail will be bad news for investment in Lodz people who have brought here.
Sorry to hear that, but nit surprised as lodz just doesn't have enough wealthy people for that development.
One lesson for the future is to withhold your final instalment until you have the ownership papers. Worked for me one time but not sure how desperate this situation is in. Lodz.
See another listed developer has also submitted bankruptcy papers, intakus.
this is a huge development for Lodz. Try not to lose hope- you never know....another developer may come in and rescue the buyers...it has happened before.
Unfortunately there is a very real chance I will lose the apartment. OPAL DEVELOPMENTS (WHO OWNED MNE INVESTMENTS) had most of my money 5 years ago and the balance 18 months ago. For the last 8 months they have been promising me the Notary papers - the truth of the matter is that I have been lied to and deceived - empty promises - its really disgusting
I have spent 2 years traveling from England to Lodz to fit out this apartment myself (Bathroom, kitchen, ceramic flooring, decoration - everything), my pension money was used to buy this place and fit it out to live - I had permission to live there from Opal before getting my Notary papers. Before I bought in Lodz I traveled around Central & Eastern Europe looking for an old building that had been renovated - I found what I wanted in Lodz and I visit there every month.
OPAL DEVELOPMENTS have other development sites close by, under other names.
If I lose this apartment I will put every piece of information I have out into the public domain including the names of the people who have done this to me, how they did it, and also the problems I uncovered with the development (I am a Construction Surveyor by profession). Future clients of OPAL DEVELOPMENTS - PART OF THE MEYDAN GROUP in Australia can decide if they like this company and want to do business with them in the future.
If you are really bored an have nothing much interesting to do I have a couple of videos of what we did:
First is during construction
dl.dropbox.com/u/52888877/IMG_0496.MOV
Second is nearly finished but I stopped because we have problem with developer
Try not to lose hope- you never know....another developer may come in and rescue the buyers...it has happened before.
Let's hope so. In the meantime the OP should consult a good lawyer - and fast. If he PM's me, I can recommend the one I use. Polish bankruptcy hearings are (if I remember) quite long, so there's plenty of time for another developer to be found.
Thank you, I have a lawyer on board - probably "shutting the door after the horse has bolted" though - I hope through awareness of my situation other people will not fall in to the trap I have.
PS the development is actually finished with 40% occupancy they just could not sell all the apartments they had left hence why they are applying for bankruptcy.
Guys from Opal use a fairly simple structure of companies ( MNE Investments with its whopping 220.000 polish złoty of stock capital, fully owned by another, foreign-registered as far I know, limited liability company, could be considered "shell" in many countries ) which pretty much guarantees their non-bankrupt companies won't be forced to sink any more money into the projects.
So don't count on getting anything out of them, look for a decent lawyer in Lodz, Poland that can help you with the whole ownership thing. I'd recommend mister Kona or mister Porczynski if you don't mind pricey or mister Orlicki if you're looking for a fairly young hotshot with a good grasp of Polish real estate laws who most likely won't charge you an arm and a leg.
I think that if you get a good lawyer worst thing that will happen will be that the court-appointed administrator ( syndyk ) will sell the unsold units for 50% of the price you paid.
why dont you then try and cut a deal with the new owner (probably a bank) to release your property for an extra payment e.g. 50.000 PLN - would give the bank a slightly smaller loss.
You are absolutely correct - that is in fact the only course of action. However I know the level they are looking at and its going to hurt. Banks are a bit like Rottweilers once they get their teeth into you they don't want to let go
that mne development and all of Opal's other "subsidiaries" i.e., shell companies like MFJ investments were going to go bankrupt was well known months ago. i remember back in november it was already on the news how mne/opal had monstrous debts and incredibly poor sales with their "u scheiblera" lofts plus already dozens of people who already "owned" them who were already oepning up lawsuits. if anything, did you at least know that another of their subsidaries TUP S.A. already declared bankruptcy over one month ago?
how the hell did you not follow this and continue sinking money into something that was not legally yours? i apologize for berating you and of course its too late to do anything about it but god damn... you are the umteenth foreigner i know who got ripped off from buying property in poland during the boom and not just by local thieves but major developers.
My problem occurred when the original apartment I was buying had a problem with oil coming through the walls, it looks like a water leak but it is oil. They could not stop it coming through the plaster. They have this problem in some parts of the development at U scheiblera.......... it was where the old machinery leaked oil into the old walls - now in some places it is coming back. I had to change the original apartment I was buying and sign an addendum to the contract - that's when they screwed me. They even lied about my parking space I paid for - originally I was told that my parking space was under the main building where my apartment is - on 'completion' they wanted to tell me that my parking space was in a remote building away from the main building.
I could write a story about this company......................but they have just lied and lied and lied. If it is found that they, the people working for Opal / MNE have acted illegally I will be instructing my lawyers to prosecute them.
I am not the only one to have been caught there are others that have also been caught.
Someone somewhere has a lot to answer - I have no intention of going quietly either........... I may not get my money back but equally I will pursue these people anyway I have to.
There are enough low life, parasitical scum bags scamming and cheating people in this world we don't need anymore.
Do not get emotional it is just business so act accordingly, if the company is being closed down in Poland it will take 6 months, you can go after the directors, start a civil case against the directors. Get in touch with other investors. Contact a lawyer ASAP. Good luck.
Check your contracts for all the company you signed the contract with.
, if the company is being closed down in Poland it will take 6 months,
You jest, right?
Companies in Poland can go out of business ( stan upadłosci ) for ages. The court appointed syndyk makes more money the longer the whole thing takes, so he's in no hurry.
Pit bull puppies are not born with "locking jaws" nor are their jaws the strongest of dog breeds. According to Dr. I. Lehr Brisbin of the University of Georgia, there's no evidence of a locking mechanism in the pit bull jaw. Dr. Brady Barr of National Geographic compared bite pressure per square inch (PSI) between a pit bull, a rottweiler and a German shepherd. The pit bull had the lowest PSI while the rottweiler had the highest on record for any domestic canine.
What they did is they basically stated the co-project they had with Opal in Poland ( Modena in Poznań ) is down the tubes. So I don't really know where you get your intel, if it can be called such.
Yup, you're right, I got my developers confused, apologies for that. I get so incensed with what these people do (and i think youre a developer arent you) in terms of shoddy construction, bad contracts, overcharging, hidden fees, hiding information or not being upfront and it goes on and on and on
My condo went through similar in Vancouver. The developer ran out of money at 80% and the banks forced the developer into receivership. Every situation is different but I can certainly sympathize. In the end it worked out well for us and the development although it looked bleak in the beginning - so there is hope? Alternatively the Vancouver Olympic village also went into receivership and the presale buyers ended up purchasing at a huge premium. (30%), with not much hope of selling to break even anytime soon - maybe in 10 years?
What is the status of the development now - is it one ghost town?
Hi Neil63. I have a very similar problem with MNE. Would you please contact me by email at anlewandy(at)aol.co.uk if you are prepared to discuss this issue outside the forum? Thanks
Did someone heard about problems of Polish Investments & Acquisition sp. z o.o. who also sell apartments in "U Scheiblera" in Lodz? We run legal proceedings against them but they all the time transfer and hiding money. They are also frauds but in this case probably we can collect the advance payment. I'm curious how many people they cheated.
I do not know Polish Investments & Acquisitions sp zoo. I bought my apartment from MNE Developments direct and have appointed a Lawyer to complete outstanding paperwork.
I am assuming that this company tried to sell apartments that they did not own
Hi Neil. Here's some info (if you don't know it yet) on the Meydan family who are the investors in the Opal Property Developments. The Meydan family AREN'T POLISH.
meydangroup.com.au/about-us.php
I feel very sorry for you, man.
May Heaven protect you and help you get back your money.
The final date to register any claim for anyone who has been tricked into parting with money, lied to by the sales people at MNE / Opal Developments, continually deceived and generally treated in a pretty disgusting way........ closes shortly.
I understand that the receiver on behalf of the bank has started to sell off apartments left unsold.
I paid for this apartment in full - 100%.Opal Developments have taken all of the money AND NOT PASSED THE MONEY TO THEIR BANK. They have now left me without the ownership papers.
There are also serious defects with the building which have never been addressed........ As a Construction Surveyor and someone who bought this place to live in Lodz I have been following this development for 5 long years, ever since I paid my deposit......they have never been addressed.
I am not the only person to have been conned by Opal Developments, I have spoken with several other people from this site who have had similar experiences.
Opal Developments have started another subsidiary company and are building another development down the road........ Shame on you Lodz council / Municipal Authority for letting this happen......
After 5 years in Poland I have had enough.......anyone thinking of investing in Poland I have this piece of advice.......DONT, SERIOUSLY DON'T DO IT, I was advised by my Polish friends not too, and I didnt listen.
Neil 63, I'm sorry to hear of your issues with the Schreiber Lofts. I visited the sales office, run by Ober-haus agency, I believe (correct me if I am wrong), and I went to view the show apartments. I was seriously impressed, but at that point the prices had increase do 7 or 8.000 per m2 and only the less interesting apartments were left. To you and me those apartments looked amazing but for the Polish market in Lodz, I have been told by a Polish surveyor that they are not liked at all. Maybe in Warsaw they would have been popular but Lodz is not Warsaw.
I spoke to another Ober-haus agent last week, and he told me about the SPV for Schreiber Lofts had gone into receivership (i.e. the bank's charge on the property was exercised in court and the bank had taken ownership and was selling apartments). He also told me there is a problem with the heating system, which is the municipal piped hot water supply - apparently some of the big apartments do not heat up above 15 C in the winter, even if left on all day.
I know the Polish laws regarding off-plan residential sales changed a few years ago in order to protect consumers from the development companies, and give consumers more protection. I'm not sure when this came into force. I understood that the instalments paid by the buyers have now to be paid into a escrow account or something similar and should be completely ring fenced from the developer's SPV.
Did you sign your contract with the developer before or after this change in law?
The problem is that Polish legal system is generally so slow and ineffective, and often the statute has been written without proper care and thought (rushing through EU directives) that it is ambiguous and interpretations vary, that the expression "possession is 9/10 of the law" is particularly relevant in Poland. It's all about who has the cash.
It is well known by estate agencies, developers, everybody, that foreign investors are easy to scam, rip-off and generally take advantage of, because often they are not physically in the country and that they don't speak the language, and they don't read the newspapers, and are less likely to start litigation. I would get together with other investors in the same situation and use the same lawyer to save on legal costs. I would start up a specialist internet forum for all the investors in the property, to share information and coordinate action. maybe you have already done this. I have witnessed similar cases in other countries - Bansko Bulgaria for example - see Bansko forum.
The are many many problems with the Opal Development in Tymienieckiego.
1. The heating does not work in bigger apartments (as you described). This is a big problem 2. Many apartments and common areas have oil which leaked from the old textle machinery into the walls years ago and is coming through the plaster. We had to change our apartment because they could not solve the problem.
3. When they constructed the building they reduced the thickness of the sound insulation in the floor and the screed on top was made thicker to save money.
4. The screed they put down as a floor finish is substandard. The finished screed has a hard skin on the top surface but underneath the screed is soft and crumbly - classic signs that the mixture is too weak - again proberbly to save money.
5. The finish screed was suppose to have reinforcement mesh in - there is no reinforcent in the screed. 6 . The roof leaks. 7. The door entry system does not work. 8. Tiles and plaster are falling off the walls in the stairwell area - again problem with oil leaching through the walls 9. No services installed for the kitchen areas (water / drains). 10. There is a ventilation system in the building - vertical pipes with outlets serving all rooms. We have had to block the ventilation grilles up because it is continually blowing very fine black and white dust into the apartment. The dust gets into everything. We have had throw out one TV which was destroyed by the dust.
The development was late finishing and they had problems getting labour to finish the development. The used cheap foreign labour. The building on the face of it looks good, but it is superficial. The build quality is very, very poor.
The list above is just an example - the futher I look the more problems I see.
The developer OPAL DEVELOPMENTS are building other projects in Tymienieckiego. They are a walking disaster. They are now trying to sell the remaining apartments (possibly 200 Nr) off cheap.
If anyone wants a real challenge buy one...... Alternatively you could open a window and throw your money out the window - it would cheaper and less stress..
In conclusion and following legal advice I will be starting criminal proceedings against some of the people at Opal Developments for the lies and deception (I have lost 613,000PLN). I have kept a detailed account of this purchase going nearly 6 years now and he is disgusted at what he has read from OPAL DEVELOPMENTS.I am in Poland now speaking with local media to publicise what has actually be going on here. I won't get my money back and I will lose the apartment - but I will make public what this company has been doing.
Results of sealed bids auction yesterday: 65 registered bidders.
45 of 233 apartments sold. 1 of 7 buildings (the cheapest one).
Examples: 40m2 sold for 175k pln with 4 bidders. 156m2 sold for 635 pln.
The liquidator says she will hold another sale in the new year at the same prices. Doubt they will get anywhere. This sale will have cherry picked off the best apartments, and at 4,000pln+ per m2 you can get better apartments elsewhere in Lodz. The lack of enough windows and balcony's will mean IMO the remaining are not even worth 3,000 pln m2.
Opal Developments have started another subsidiary company and are building another development down the road.
Not any more. A fire destroyed the building - "suspicious".
As I have mentioned before I have been involved with this disaster now for 5 years. I bet no one has informed the recent purchasers of all the problems in the Development. I was over there a few weeks ago, put a banner up and said my piece and got lots of media interest. Opal Developments and the people now trying to sell off the unsold apartments put pressure on me to remove the banner and keep quiet - probably because they had the auction coming up and didn't want me to 'spoil their party'. I haven't finished yet - in fact I have hardly started. The whole situation smells bad - really bad.
