Death of a Dream

ISSUE #643: Jan. 22-28, 2017

2017-01-30

Brian Timmons, Newsletter Author
Brian Timmons

Dear friends,

When I started Residencias Los Jardines, I started writing a weekly newsletter -determined to tell all the good, bad, and the ugly. I knew some readers would be interested in the construction process. I expected others might be interested in the lifestyle of two people who had decided to live outside the box. For others, the adventures of Lita, the parrot and the cat took on an entertainment saga all its own.

Residencias Los Jardines is finished. We periodically have re-sales and rental availability. Some readers may be interested in this information.

Brian Timmons
Developer / Property manager
Residencias Los Jardines

Web: https://www.residenciaslosjardines.com
Emails: info@residenciaslosjardines.com
ResidenciasPropertyManagement@gmail.com

Featured
rentals & sales

Paradisus Condos / Rohrmoser
FOR SALE / RENT
Visit our website

Paradisus Condos - click to visit

Each of the units consists of two bedrooms / two bathrooms, and a large living/dining/kitchen area. The floor plan of each of these units has eliminated the optional "den / office" divider. The result is a larger area offering more flexible furniture arrangements while still maintaining the option of including an office area. At 105m2 plus two parking spots each and storage locker, they offer a great opportunity for someone seeking views, security, central location, and first class, all round living...

PRICE REDUCTION
Semi furnished unit: For sale: $235,000
Fully furnished unit: For sale: $245,000
Floor 12 -west view

FOR RENT
13th Fl / East view
furnished​
beginning Jan. 25
$1,400

Market activity
sales & rentals

Sales: Los Jardines: Units #106A, #114, #123 and #125

Rentals: Paradisus: For Rent: 13th Fl / East view / furnished​ / beginning Jan. 25 / $1,400
Los Jardines: Units #106C and #123 are available for rent.

Residencias Los Jardines
property management, rentals & re-sales

FOR SALE
Unit #106A: $ 165,000 / See Unit
Unit #114: $ 199,000 / See Unit
Unit #123: $ 199,500 / See Unit
Unit #125: $ 135,000 / See Unit

FOR RENT
Unit #106C: $ 1,150 mo. / Immediately / See Unit
Unit #123: $ 1,450 mo. / Immediately / See Unit

For sale

UNIT #106A
FOR SALE
$165,000

Total Area (Sq Ft): 1250
Total area (Sq M): 120
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2
Floor(s): 1
Type: Apartment
Furnished: Yes

This is a fully furnished 2-bedroom unit situated in a 2-story building, which has two units on the ground floor and two units on the 2nd. floor. Each unit is the same size (1,250sf) divided into 800 sf of interior space and 450 sf of covered front and back terraces. Units 106A and B are on the ground floor; Units 106 C and D are on the 2nd. Floor. The solid masonry demising wall (common wall) as well as the 5" concrete slab prevent sound transference.

UNIT #114
FOR SALE
$199,000

Total Area (Sq Ft): 1290
Total area (Sq M): 120
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2
Floor(s): 1
Type: Semi-Attached
Furnished: Yes

This 2 bedroom/2bathroom,1,290 sf single floor end unit home includes a 150 sf front terrace plus parking for one car. This house is fully air conditioned and has recently been professionally decorated by international decorator Alcides Graffe and has undergone a complete renovation—new modern furniture, finishings, window coverings, and art work by Carlos Gambino. It is arguably the nicest furnished unit at Residencias Los Jardines and only steps from the pool

UNIT #123
FOR SALE
$199,500

Total Area (Sq Ft): 1516
Total area (Sq M): 140
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2.5
Floor(s): 2 story
Type: Detached
Furnished: Yes

This two story, detached 1,423 sf home + parking for one car has two bedrooms, 2 ½ bathrooms and a 2nd floor covered terrace.
The open railed wrought iron cement stair case leads to the 2nd level where the master bedroom with en-suite master bathroom as well as 2nd bedroom and en-suite bathroom are located. Also accessed from the 2nd floor hallway is the covered terrace.
This is a very nicely furnished home with a good floor plan for those wanting two floors.

UNIT #125
FOR SALE
$135,000

Total Area (Sq Ft): 662
Total area (Sq M): 61
Bedrooms: 1
Bathrooms: 1
Floor(s): 2 floor
Type: Semi-Detached
Furnished: Yes

This 662 sf, + parking for one car and 33sf locker is a one bedroom home on the 2nd floor overlooking the large pool. It is ideal for a single person or couple—or investment property.

For rent

UNIT #106C
FOR RENT
$1,150 mo. / Immediately

Total Area (Sq Ft): 1250
Total area (Sq M): 120
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2
Floor(s): 2
Type: 4-plex
Furnished: Yes

This is a fully furnished 2-bedroom unit situated in a 2-story building, which has two units on the ground floor and two units on the 2nd. floor. Each unit is the same size (1,250sf) divided into 800 sf of interior space and 450 sf of covered front and back terraces. Units 106A and B are on the ground floor; Units 106 C and D are on the 2nd. Floor. The solid masonry demising wall (common wall) as well as the 5” concrete slab prevent sound transference.

UNIT #123
FOR RENT
$1,450 mo. / Immediately

Total Area (Sq Ft): 1516
Total area (Sq M): 140
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2.5
Floor(s): 2 story
Type: Detached
Furnished: Yes

This two story, detached 1,423 sf home + parking for one car has two bedrooms, 2 ½ bathrooms and a 2nd floor covered terrace.

The open railed wrought iron cement stair case leads to the 2nd level where the master bedroom with en-suite master bathroom as well as 2nd bedroom and en-suite bathroom are located. Also accessed from the 2nd floor hallway is the covered terrace.

This is a very nicely furnished home with a good floor plan for those wanting two floors.

Our Lives

Weather: Windy and normal -volcanic ash seems to have abated.

Death of a Dream: Last week I described a house and an "opportunity" in Montezuma. The marketing agent continued to call me begging me to put in an offer of $1.5 mil on the property which has been "valued" at $6.5 mi. Certainly there is a smell of desperation or complete dispair. At that price, it is an absolute steal... an incredible opportunity. I continued to "flirt" with this house and the idea of owning a "trophy" property. I tried to put together a group of 4-5 investors on short notice... I fell flat on my face... a confluence of individual events lead me nowhere... one was have significant surgery, another was traveling, two though I was crazy, one didn't respond... one was interested... not enough... I know what it would take to make this a possible success and I also know that I would be the guy pulling the sled... I have for the past number of years resisted the temptation to own more houses... I am trying to sell... reduce my exposure and hassles so I can spend more time in the hammock... I haven't been successful... this week I have 4 turnovers... vacancies, re-rentals, movings / cleaning and repairs, etc. all requiring personal attention... in buying this "trophy" property which would have to be marketed and short term rentals for a possible break even deal, while waiting for the right "rich and famous" to buy and occupy it... just seemed like too big a risk and all I was doing is buying myself a job... which I don't want... It goes to auction Tuesday, Jan. 31. It will be interesting to see what it goes for... I may never know but will try to find out... // I just received another desperate call from the agent... there are no offers... he is begging for me to put together something. I can't in such short notice.

Rentals: Lots and lots of activity... I'm sick of it... A friend's unit at Paradisus came up on schedule Jan. 24. I had it cleaned -still doing repairs- and re-rented the next day -short term but he missed only one day's rent. At Los Jardines, a long term tenant moved out... cleaning and repairs and re-stocking items... that is still on going today as the new tenant moves in... Negotiating with an agent who's client wants three units... it is a good fit for the client due to location and budget but company decisions take time... I am waiting... in the meantime, I have to clean, repair, re-stock another unit in preparation for re-rental.

Birthday: Just had my 71st. Thankfully, Lita didn't plan a "surprise" birthday... I think last year's fiasco stuck in her head!! This year she said she wanted to take me out to dinner... well, that got rolled back when I saw a table cloth with two place settings... o.k. at least I don't have to drive... she got all dressed up / dinner was served... she promised me a poll dancer!!! o.k.... it came in the form of a lighted candle, twirling and playing s Chinese song... and she even labeled the left over water melon as my "cake"... such is life... good for a belly laugh... and I avoided the argument of last year... progress comes in different forms.

Traffic: yes, I have mentioned many times this issue... but now a key bridge on the north side of the valley which carries traffic east / west is out of service... After 3 or 4 attempts to repair, they decided to basically build a new bridge... Since this cuts the north side / east-west traffic, a significant portion of that traffic is now diverted our direction... absolute chaos and long, long, long waits and extensive diversions... this is likely to be the case for about 6 weeks.

Local Construction: A large building which has been under construction for the past year is nearing completion. I found out that it will become a university... private educational center... Another lot has been purchased, cleared and is now being developed into large parking lot... wow!! just what we need... more cars... more people... more chaos and confusion...

Water Pipes: another one just broke in the same area as others were repaired...

INS Suit: They responded. Their response was the same to all 20 (?) suits... I am a bit hazy on their argument... so are the lawyers... but it goes something like this... the investors should have prevented INS from issuing this performance bond and it is therefore they... the investors... who are at fault and we counter sue... wow!!!!!! how convoluted thinking can get. We'll see.

...and all I wanted was a peaceful, quite life... it isn't happening... but rightly so, I won't be adding to my current woes having dropped my flirtation.

News Items of the Week

Comments

1. Economy: exports are doing well... medical devices are nearly at the level of agricultural products, the free trade zones are doing well, and CR is picking up markets in Europe. Everything is humming...

2. Jobs, Jobs, Jobs: and the result is jobs...

3. Rico Rice: guess the fields sustaning some damage. These rich and powerful are already screwing the country by already having a premium on their poor quality product. Now they want more!!

1. Costa Rica's exports up 8 percent in 2016

Sales abroad of Costa Rican products grew by 8 percent last year, while exports of services saw a 12 percent increase, according to an official report released Monday.

Officials from the Foreign Trade Ministry (COMEX) and the Foreign Trade Promotion Office (PROCOMER) noted that figures represent 98 percent compliance with the country’s export goals for 2016.

Foreign Trade Minister Alexander Mora said at a press conference that officials are very satisfied with these results, as Costa Rica achieved the best export performance in Latin America. Average export figures recorded last year both in the region and worldwide are negative 6 percent.

“Costa Rica’s results, by comparison, are actually very successful,” Mora said.

Costa Rica’s exports of goods accounted for $9.9 billion last year, up from $9.2 billion in 2015, COMEX reported.

Minister Mora and PROCOMER General Manager Pedro Beirute attributed the positive result to exporters’ efforts to diversify goods and destination markets.

PROCOMER in 2014 launched a social media campaign to encourage local companies to start selling their products abroad. The campaign dubbed “Queremos productos Ticos” (“We want Tico products”), and showed videos of Costa Ricans living abroad describing which Tico products they missed the most.

Mora said positive results in the goods sector was achieved mainly by strong sales abroad of agricultural products that accounted for 27 percent of total exports. Sales of precision and medical devices, as in recent years, also maintained a solid performance and accounted for 26 percent of the total.

Positive sales in both sectors also got a boost from a 14 percent increase in sales from free-zone based companies, the COMEX report noted.

Exports of agricultural products increased by 9 percent from 2015, driven mostly by an 18 percent growth in sales of bananas, and a 9 percent growth in pineapples.

Services exports
Foreign Trade officials said data on exports of services is only available up to the third quarter of 2016. Figures, however, showed an inter-annual growth of 12 percent.

Exports of services during the first nine months of 2016 accounted for $6.1 billion, up from $5.4 billion recorded in the same period during 2015, COMEX report stated.

Companies in the travel sector totaled $2.7 billion, representing a 15 percent increase from the previous period, and those in the business services sector recorded $1.7 billion, or 14 percent more.

Exports of telecommunication, information and IT services accounted for $786 million, representing a 4 percent increase, while the transport sector totalled $333 million, or 18 percent more from 2015.

Minister Mora said that COMEX does not rule out the possibility that Costa Rica could meet or even surpass annual export goals when data is included from all quarters, expected to be available in April.

By regions
Aside from efforts to diversify markets, the positive performance recorded last year reflect increases in sales to the country’s most important markets.

Sales to European Union countries increased by 15 percent, while sales to North American countries — mainly to the United States — rose by 10 percent.

The country also recorded a 3 percent increase in sales to Asian markets, and only recorded a 0.1 percent decrease in sales to the Central American countries.

Minister Mora said that in order to keep up the growing trend, trade authorities are targeting their efforts to improve sales of Tico products in Asian markets, mainly in China.

2. Companies to offer 2,700 posts for bilingual staff at job fair

The Costa Rican Investment Promotion Agency (CINDE) opened the online pre-registration of its annual job fair, scheduled for next month.

The XXIII Multilingual CINDE Job Fair will take place Feb. 17-19 at the Antigua Aduana, east of downtown San José.

Recruiters from 49 local and international companies will offer a total of 2,700 technical and professional jobs for candidates with a good command of two or more languages as well as technical or professional degrees.

Posts are available in diverse sectors, including business administration, computer networks, software development, technical support, graphic design, accounting, human resources, logistics, quality control, advertising, marketing, occupational safety and others.

Companies will also offer posts for engineers with specialties in production, electricity, electronics, electromechanics, mechatronics, and materials.

Pre-registration required

Recruiters will not be accepting resumes at the fair; job seekers are required to register online before attending the event. Companies at the fair will conduct job interviews with pre-registered candidates only.

Pre-registration is free and consists of an online form that will guide users step by step, requesting basic information such as personal data, completed studies, work experience and current availability.

The online form is already available on the fair’s website: www.cindejobfair.com.

The platform also allows applicants to test their English proficiency using the Business English Level Test, or BELT, which measures language skills based on standards from the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

A Portuguese language proficiency assessment using the PIP test is also available on the fair’s website.

Companies looking for people with a good command of other languages, such as German, French or Italian, will test candidates during the interviews.

CINDE General Director Jorge Sequeira said at a press conference on Friday that the fair has become a bridge between companies and people seeking high-quality jobs.

“A high percentage of people contacted to attend post-fair interviews get a job,” Sequeira said.

The list of participating companies includes:

Abbott Vascular, Accenture, Akamai Technologies, Align Technology de Costa Rica SRL, Amazon, BASS Americas, Baxter, Bayer, Bimbo Global Services, Bosch, Brightstar Shared Services, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, Costa Rican-North American Cultural Center, Citi Service Center, Citrix, Concentrix, Convergys, CSS Corp, Curtiss Wright Controls Costa Rica, Dell Costa Rica S.A., Do Gestión de Talento, Encore Capital, Equifax, Experian, Fujitsu, GFT, Glaxosmithkline Pharmaceutical, Havas Magma, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, IBM, Kareo, Microsoft, MicroVention, Moody´s Analytics, National Instruments, NTT DATA Costa Rica, Regroup, Roche, Siemens, Smile Direct Club, SYKES, Teleperformance Costa Rica, The Results Companies, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Thomson Reuters, Western Union, Wizard Instituto de Idiomas, WNS and 3M.

3. Tico rice would be nice

The country’s rice farmers met with President Luis Guillermo Solís Wednesday to discuss what can be done to ensure the survival of the Costa Rican rice industry in the wake of severe destruction to newly planted fields following Hurricane Otto. A subsidy to rice farmers was discussed but nothing so far has been agreed upon.

FOR RENTAL OR SALES INFORMATION
ON ANY OF THE ABOVE, CONTACT:

Brian C. Timmons
Property Manager RLJ and Newsletter Author

Costa Rica:
Cell: (+506) 8305-3965
Land line: (+506) 2282-4142 Ext. 101

Canada:
VOIP: (+416) 461-2203

Web: https://www.residenciaslosjardines.com
Emails: info@residenciaslosjardines.com
ResidenciasPropertyManagement@gmail.com

 
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