Every thing About Mexico

When looking for Playa del Carmen real estate, it can definitely be a good idea to take a little look around while you’re down on vacations, see what’s for sale, what kinds of neighborhoods you like, etc. But what about your agent?

Easy, just call the number on the sign, right?

No. Here’s a very important point: your search for the agent to represent you in your real estate search and transaction should be a separate process, independent of finding the right property. Why?

The agent on the sign might not be the most qualified agent to ensure that you find the best property for you, and guide you through the process safely.
This agent might be dedicated to selling that property in particular. It is always to your advantage to have a variety of suitable properties shown.
How should you go about finding the right agent, then?

You can start buy checking on the internet, asking around town (if you are there) or talking to friends who have already bought.
Ask your agent for references, qualifications (certificates, degrees), experience, etc.
Make sure you feel confident with this person and know that you can trust them; this is a big decision for you.
Also, don’t think that just because it’s a big, international name, that they are more qualified. They could be, but make sure you research and ask for proof; don’t assume anything. Just like the agent you saw on the sign, they could be a good option, but you always need to do your homework to check things out, and find the best option.

After making contact with an agent, if you feel they are pressuring you to make a decision about property, you might want to find another option. This includes pressure to buy only one certain property, pressure to make a decision quickly without getting all available information, or evaluating your own needs and finances.

An agent who offers further information, and more options, on the other hand, is probably a good sign that they want to help you find what is best for you.

These guidelines apply to Mexico real estate in general. Go ahead, do some personal property and neighborhood research, on-line, using MLS listings, and while on vacation, but don’t fall into the trap of thinking that this replaces the search for your agent. If you invest the time into doing your agent search properly, the property search and buying process will go much more smoothly!

Mexico honeymoons have a little something to offer everyone. The coastal regions of the country have been highly developed into tourist towns, destination cities, and honeymoon havens for those who seek a romantic and scenic getaway. There are many different exotic cities to visit and plenty of places that you can choose to stay.

You can find your destination either by location or simply based on the different amenities or activities that you seek for your trip. Some people who enjoy hiking and other active adventures will have different ideas of great locations for a honeymoon than those who are looking for a five star resort on one of the many white sand beaches that offers all of the pampering that a person could ask for.

Resorts for Mexico honeymoons come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and styles. If you want a room with a view and a spa package that rivals the best in the world, you can find it in Mexico. If you want a cabin or a private room on the water that is secluded and romantic, there are resorts that offer that, as well. You can even have room service and concierge services deliver champagne, wine, flowers, and other romantic items to your room at any time in many of the resorts. Some even include honeymoon packages that will offer a romantic bed of flowers, a bubble bath for two with rose petals and candlelight and other romantic gestures that are sure to set the mood for your honeymoon.

Cozumel, Acapulco, Puerto Vallarta, and even Cancun offer some of the best Mexico honeymoons that you could ask for. The resorts are all top-rate destinations, and include many different amenities for every type of person that visits. Some popular resorts include the Hyatt Cancun Caribe Resorts, the Villas in Cancun, the Fairmont Acapulco, Las Rocas Resort and Spa, The Westin in Puerto Vallarta, and El Cozumeleno Beach Resort in Cozumel. These resorts have spa treatments, fitness centers, private pools, Jacuzzis, and much more to provide the most romantic backdrop possible for your honeymoon.

There are many different destinations that you can visit and tourist attractions that you can see during your Mexico honeymoons, including exotic cities, local shopping, and even water activities like day cruises and snorkeling excursions in the crystal clear waters of the Pacific Ocean or Gulf of Mexico. For a romantic, adventurous, and unforgettable honeymoon, Mexico has something for everyone.

When most people imagine a condo in Playa del Carmen they think of luxury on the beachfront with luxury prices. The good news for buyers on a lower budget is that cheap Mexico real estate is available in Playa del Carmen, while still offering the relaxation, services, warm-weather and high quality of life, not to mention close proximity to the beachfront. Several examples of Playa del Carmen condos for sale at less than $150,000 will demonstrate this point well.

One prime example is what may be the cheapest condo available in Playacar, Playa del Carmen’s original upscale gated neighborhood. This well kept-up 2 bedroom unit includes 2 bathrooms with a jacuzzi, specially designed cypress kitchen cupboards and closets in the bedroom, a balcony overlooking the complex’s poolside yard, and, overall, high-quality fixtures and finishing from the current owner’s investment. The current owner’s family outgrew the condo, and has already relocated to a new one, and so it is an urgent sale.

The asking price is only $125,000; condos in neighboring units are selling at about $140,000 (still well worth the price, after this one sells). Throughout Playacar, it is unlikely that buyers will find a unit cheaper than this one. This unit is near the west entrance of the community, and within walking distance to a Sam’s Club, a new mall with a large-screen movie theater and a golf course. The north entrance to the community is very close to Playa del Carmen’s famous 5th Avenue, a nice, outdoor shopping center and the beachfront. The north enterance is about a 5 -10 minute bike ride away – bike trails run along Playacar’s main roads. The streets in the community are tree-lined, quiet and safe.

Heading downtown, a cozy, 1 bedroom condo about 3 blocks from the beach can be found for as low as $105,000 U.S. While these units are not in the tree-lined, gated community of Playacar, they enjoy the convenience of being downtown, only a short walk from both 5th Avenue and the beach. Also nearby is a Walmart, many restaurants and a complete range of services.

For those who prefer a resort community outside of town, in Coral Maya, for example, an elegant new 2 bedroom condo can be found for as low as $105,000. This type of community provides a relaxing, quiet neighborhood, away from town, in new, modern atmosphere, with close access to nature and to Playa del Carmen’s beaches.

While these condo’s are not directly on the beachfront, each example is only a short distance away, often only a comfortable walk. They are also close to many other services and conveniences, and are available for a much more accessible price than Playa del Carmen’s well-developed reputation leads many to believe. To find a condo within your price range that suits your needs, start looking today.

New flight options coming available will give Cozumel Real Estate buyers increased convenience for visiting nearby cities and sites of interest. While Cozumel MLS properties have the benefit of being within close access to the islands many beautiful attractions, such as the Mezoamerican Reef for diving, excellent snorkeling locations and Mayan ruins, no name only a few, they also have the benefit of being close to many of Mexico’s top visitor destinations, making for excellent weekend outings.

The typical choice for travel to and from the mainland is a ferry to Playa del Carmen, which is 45 minutes away; from there Cancun and Tulum are less than an hour away, as well as the many beautiful sites of the Yucatan peninsula. These include the world-famous Mayan pyramids at Chichen Itza (now one of new Seven Wonders of the World), the beautiful colonial cities of Merida and Campeche, a remote, natural flamingo habitat, where, after arriving by boat, you can see the birds in their natural setting.

But all access to this is becoming easier. Besides the Playa del Carmen ferry, there are also well-priced and convenient flight options for MLS property shoppers to consider when making their choice to make Cozumel their new home. One flight operator, MAYAir, currently offers flights to Cancun and Merida for very accessible prices. The operator is also planning to offer flights directly to Chichen Itza for the summer of 2010, for quick, direct access for visiting these amazing pyramids, and for the special events which take place there, such as the Elton John concert in March 2010.

The principal purpose of these flights is quick access for cruise visitors who extend their stay in Cozumel. The recent decision of the Pullmantur cruise company to make Cozumel a Home Port means that cruise travelers will not just be stopping over in Cozumel, but will be arriving to await their cruises here, and many will stay up to a week afterwards. In addition to the new real estate opportunities that increased tourist stays will create, there will also be new conveniences, such as these new flight options from Cozumel.

International travel to and from home is already highly convenient for American and Canadian property owners here, since the island has its own international airport. Flight options are also expanded with the nearby Cancun International Airport.

MAYAir is relatively new, having started operations in early March, reaching 20% of its passenger capacity after 20 days from 20% and 50% for Easter, showing potential to become an excellent regular provider of transportation to local areas for Cozumel Real Estate owners. The flights already show a tendency for foreign property owners on the island traveling to Merida for vacation and for business.

Let’s start out by assuming that you’re a better than average investor; your 401k, IRA, or personal investments have kept up with the S&P 500 average during the past ten years and you’ve lost only about 35% of your life’s savings! Did you realize that the Mexican Exchange Traded Fund (EWW) which represents the Mexican stock market, even though it was annihilated during the current recession along with all other markets throughout the world (but is recovering rapidly), has advanced by 200% during the same time frame? In other words, $100 invested in the S&P 500 in 1999 would now be worth $65, whereas if it were invested in the Mexican EWW fund it would now be worth $200. Please refer to the ten year graph below in order to see the comparisons between these two areas of investment and perhaps you can speculate as to where might be the best market to place your next bet!

We have lived in Puerto Vallarta during the entire ten year period and have witnessed the changes and growth firsthand. As the economy has boomed, unemployment in Vallarta has been virtually eradicated while the population has doubled, prices for materials, labor, and land have tripled, and of course, real estate prices have also tripled.

Now, let’s compare this growth and real estate value appreciation in PV to what has been experienced in the US. The latest government released graph below from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) shows that average housing prices in the US appreciated by nearly 70% from 1999 through 2006. Since then, the rate of appreciation has dropped precipitously until the fourth quarter of 2007 when values actually started depreciating. Throughout all of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, prices have plummeted by about 10% and as you can see in the graph below, we can project prices to fall by another 5-10% before they once again start appreciating. In other words, the average investment in housing in the US made 10 years ago will have increased in value by 40-50% by the end of 2009. Even though housing values have recently been crushed, real estate has still way outperformed the stock market during the past ten years; hopefully, your real estate gains have more than offset your stock market losses!

With the US real estate market currently experiencing a serious recession, no real appreciation in housing values is expected for at least two more years. In summarizing, most Americans have enjoyed roughly a 40-50% gain in their property value over the past ten years and can expect the equity in their residence to be, at best, essentially dead money for the next couple of years.

Due to the extreme demand in second homes and retirement properties in resort destinations, Vallarta has witnessed an explosive ten year period of growth. So much so, that with the current global recession, the developers of the large condominium projects requiring long term planning, financing, and construction have been caught totally off guard. Once they committed, most of them (the reputable and fully capitalized ones!) felt it necessary to complete their projects regardless of sales. Consequently, with the recession driven reduction in demand and a supply of more than 7,000 units, prices for new condos are at a bargain basement level with some of the developers selling their surplus inventory at not much above their cost. This is truly a buyer’s market in PV for new condos however this supply/demand imbalance has had minimal effect on the value of existing condos.

The situation regarding the resale of existing homes and condos south of the border is entirely different than in the US. In Mexico, there are seldom any promotions or transfers requiring a housing upgrade or relocation, i.e., business related issues almost never require the sale of a resort property. Also, very seldom do owners decide to upgrade or downsize once they own a retirement property. More importantly, almost all real estate purchases in Mexico have been done on an all cash basis and therefore, regardless of the economy, there are no foreclosures on these fully owned properties. Mortgages became readily available in Mexico about five years ago however they require at least 20% down and substantial documentation proving one’s ability to pay. (Sorta like the good ol’ days in the US!) With this kind of financially solid buyer and this level of equity, there are virtually no foreclosures in Mexico. Although the rate of sales of existing properties has slowed to a snail’s pace, in the absence of foreclosures, prices of resale properties have held up fairly well; certainly not plummeting as in the US.

As we look to the future, we see very promising growth in the Mexican Bolsa as well as in Mexican real estate sales. In fact, FONATUR, the Mexican Tourism Board is still forecasting explosive growth in the Nayarit Riviera area, just north of Puerto Vallarta, during the next decade; only time will tell. As they say, “past performance is no guarantee of future results”! Assuming the global economy eventually rebounds, it is a given that the millions of baby boomers, just starting to retire, will be heading south for the benefits that Mexico has to offer. When this stampede of boomers hit the beaches in Vallarta, real estate
prices that have been essentially flat for a couple of years, will continue escalating.

With seven months of perfect winter weather in PV from November through May, when the average temperature is 73*F with virtually no rain and blue skies, eight magnificent golf courses, hundreds of tennis courts, world class deep sea fishing, hundreds of fine restaurants, clean food and water, and 50,000 other gringos to play and party with, our portfolios of stock and real estate investments south of the border are “en fuego”!

If you’re recently retired or considering retirement in the near future, you really ought to check out the investments that lie south of the border; enjoy your retirement to its ultimate, and put your dead money to work for you in beautiful Puerto Vallarta.