Complying with IMF Requirements -Not Going to Happen
ISSUE #830: Sept. 20-26, 2020
2020-09-27
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
rentals & sales
Paradisus Condos / Rohrmoser
FOR SALE / RENT
Visit our website
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
sales & rentals
Sales: Los Jardines: Units #116 and #124
Rentals: Los Jardines: Available immediately: #106C $900 mo. / #121 $1,300 mo. / #126 $650 mo.
property management, rentals & re-sales
FOR SALE
Unit #116: $ 195,000 $ 189,995 / See Unit
Unit #124: $ 125,000 $ 115,000 / See Unit
FOR RENT
Unit #106C: $900 mo. / Available immediately / See Unit
Unit #121: $1,300 mo. / Available immediately / See Unit
Unit #126: $650 mo. $625 mo. / Available immediately / See Unit
UNIT #116
FOR SALE
$ 195,000 $ 189,995
Total Area (Sq Ft): 1290
Total area (Sq M): 120
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2
Floor(s): 1
Type: Semi-Attached
Furnished: Yes
This 1,290 sf single floor home includes a 300 sf front terrace plus parking for one car and a separate, secure storage locker. It is and end unit and therefore attached on only one side by a 6 inch cement demising (common) wall, which prevents sound transfer.
UNIT #124
FOR SALE
$125,000 $ 115,000
Total Area (Sq Ft): 662
Total area (Sq M): 61
Bedrooms: 1
Bathrooms: 1
Floor(s): 2nd Floor
Type: Semi-Detached
Furnished: Yes
This 662 sf, + covered parking for one car, is a one bedroom home on the 2nd floor overlooking the large pool. It is ideal for a single person or couple.
UNIT #106C
FOR RENT
$900 mo.
Available immediately
Total Area (Sq Ft): 1250
Total area (Sq M): 120
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2
Floor(s): 1 Floor
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 #121
FOR RENT
$1,300 mo.
Available immediately
Total Area (Sq Ft): 1432
Total area (Sq M): 131
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2.5
Floor(s): 2 Story
Type: Detached
Furnished: Yes
This is a detached, two story, two bedroom, 2 1/2 bathroom house. It is nicely furnished as the prictues indicate. Ground floor consists of den/TV room, dining room, living room, kitchen, and 1/2 bathroom. Second floor: master bedroom with full bathroom including a jacuzzi, 2nd bedroom with ensuite bathroom, terrace.
UNIT #126
FOR RENT
$650 mo. $625 mo.
Available immediately
Total Area (Sq Ft): 530
Total area (Sq M): 50
Bedrooms: 1
Bathrooms: 1
Floor(s): 1st Floor
Type: Detached
Furnished: Yes
A small one bedroom with outside covered terrace with top of the line finishes (granite, stainless steel appliances, fine crafted wood cabinetry, +, +, +), with lots of well thought out storage...
What Happened This Week
Weather: Normal rains for this time of year.
Stories
1. Security Cameras: The guy who was scheduled showed -late but did show up. His initial assessment was that the equipment was old and obsolete... Right away a became suspect... when I explained what it was, now recently it was installed, and put him in touch with the guy who installed it, he then changed his mind... (He didn't know what the equipment was nor how it worked). He then said the problem must be the cameras and their installation... to which I raised serious doubts saying it is unlikely that 5 of 7 cameras are off line because of this reason... he then came back to that perhaps it was the programming and perhaps a piece of office equipment that was not ????... since I had lost a bit of confidence with this guy by this point in time, I asked for a written proposal... it was promised for yesterday... I am stll waiting... my current thinking is that he is an equipment salesperson and a one trick pony... like so many of these guys... they know one thing and nothing else... we'll see. but I am not hopeful...
2. IMF Compliance: I seriously doubt that CR government proposals will pass the legislature... The $1.75B is in addition to a recently received $500 mil... and the tax revenue has dropped to virtually nothing while the government continues to claim it is restructuring all it can and contiues to pay everyone for continuing to do nothing... yet civic projects and roads continue, and private construction contiues to thrive... Friday, the roadways were so clogged with cars that their was virtual stand still parking lot traffic on the road I was on... yet we still have officially 25% unemployment... and people are still at the beach on the weekends... I know two people who have had license plates removed (one person now has two cars out of service due to this... one of which has been out for 3 months).
3. Market Activity: No showings... several appointments / inquiries which were cancelled nor never any follow up.
4. Building Re-hab: After a long hiatus, we are now back to repairing existing residences... During the break, we did a lot of needed work and some discretionary work all of which was successful and was usefully done.
5. Front Sidewalk Irrigation System: I am not the one who solved the final problem. I hunted for the sprinkler head nozzle I wanted... they don't exist here. I bought a drip line... we tested it out before installation...I did not think the water would spread the 14" needed to feed the grass... I was now at a loss for a solution... at which point the oldest (62) of our staff came with a drill, small bit, held it up and goosed it a couple times... and suggest drilling several holes in the stems of the pop ups... what the hell... I didn't have any better ideas... tried one, tested, did all... works like a charm... he was the "king" on that one... project is done and I am comfortable. (Don't know why such a small project gives me such pleasure having it done as this one has... perhaps because it presented more technical challenges than some larger projects... or maybe my Covid world has collapsed so far inward that small pleasures are great successes...)...
Comments:
1. Proposals and Reality: The government is a long way from convincing the Legislators to be one board with the proposals. The Legislators are more inclined to insist that the government plug the leaks, reduce the costs, reign in the outragous excesses, before increasng taxes on a tax base which is increasingly unlikely, unwilling, and in some cases, unable to pay. But there will probably be some lipid agreement and the IMF will advance the funds and CR will default on it's lipid committments. Typical... repetitious behavior...
1. IMF confirms beginning of conversations with Costa Rica for $1.75 bn loan
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday confirmed it has begun preliminary conversations with Costa Rica for a $1.75 billion loan.
At a press briefing, spokesperson Gerry Rice said the IMF is looking forward to its discussions with Costa Rica. The loan would help Costa Rica “expand economic plans to restore sustainable inclusive growth while protecting the most vulnerable,” Rice said.
When a country borrows through the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF), as Costa Rica intends, it “commits to undertake policies to overcome economic and structural problems,” according to the financial entity.
The Costa Rican Presidency presented those economic measures to the Legislative Assembly, and to the public, last week.
While the Presidency says an IMF loan is necessary to avoid a financial crisis rivaling that of the 1980s, the proposed fiscal adjustments have been met with significant resistance.
Deputy Eduardo Cruickshank, president of the Legislative Assembly, has said he doesn’t think it appropriate to approve more taxes, and instead suggested that the government prioritize tax evasion and exclusions.
The Presidency says government income has fallen by 1.2 trillion colones in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and that “making decisions in this moment is necessary.”
Earlier this year, IMF approved a separate $504 million loan to Costa Rica for emergency assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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