The person behind Costa Aurea

I founded Costa Aurea on one conviction: that a property on this coast deserves to be managed properly, and that managing it properly takes more than an occasional visit. It needs someone who answers for the details while the owner is away.

In Brazil I founded a construction company that developed and built residential properties for sale. I was responsible for the business side of the operation: working with suppliers, overseeing costs and following the progress of each build, including while living abroad, with regular visits to stay close to the work on the ground. It is why I look at a property here as a structure and an asset, and not simply as a holiday home.

Building houses taught me to look past the finish. I have a working understanding of how a house actually works, so I know what to ask a tradesman, whether the answer makes sense, and when a small repair now saves a large one later.

In England, where I lived for ten years, I worked in human resources and compensation, and on projects across both. A different industry, with the same demands: accuracy, confidentiality, and other people’s funds handled correctly.

Having lived in Brazil, Canada, Ireland and England, I know what it is to deal with a country that is not your own, in a language that is not your first.

Today my home is here, at Finca Cortesín, in Casares Costa, among the golf communities and the coastline this region is known for. My son goes to a British school nearby. I speak Portuguese, English and Spanish, and most weeks you will find me cycling somewhere between Estepona and Sotogrande. This coast is not a posting for me. It is where my family lives.

For me, good management means taking responsibility, making decisions I can explain, and looking after every property the way I looked after the ones I built.