...Normal Times!!...

ISSUE #461: May 26-June 1, 2013

2013-06-02

Brian Timmons, Newsletter Author
Brian Timmons

Dear friends,

When I started Residencias Los Jardines, I started writing a weekly news letter -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 resales and rental availability. Some readers may be interested in this information.

Brian Timmons
DEVELOPER / PROPERTY MANAGER
Residencias Los Jardines / https://www.residenciaslosjardines.com info@residenciaslosjardines.com
ResidenciasPropertyManagement@gmail.com

 

Featured house this week

UNIT #114:
FOR SALE: $235,000

Unit 114

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

Full details of Unit

 

Residencias Los Jardines
Property Management, Rentals, Re-Sales

Normal Times: Whatever happened last week, didn't repeat itself... And two clients didn't bother to tell me they were terminating until I delivered their invoices... I'll revert back to my previous criteria... we are not a hotel.

Market Activity

Sales: no calls.

Rentals: 1 client.

 

FOR SALE

Unit #114: $235,000 / See Unit

FOR RENT

Unit #112: $1,250 mo. / Available June 5 / See Unit

Unit #113: $1,350 mo. / Available July 1 / See Unit

Unit #123: $1,650 mo. / Available July 1 / See Unit

Unit #124: $1,000 mo. / Available June 5 / See Unit

Site Plan

 

HOUSE FOR SALE

UNIT #114
FOR SALE $235,000

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

This 1,290 sf. (plus covered parking for one car and two lockers 67 sf.) single story, semi detached house, with garden terrace, two bedrooms is a beautiful executive style home. This home consists of two large bedrooms one with six piece en-suite bathroom with additional access to separate full shower. Each bedroom has large closets with extensive built-ins for personal organization. The vaulted living room and bathroom ceilings provide a feeling of grandeur while allowing the warmer air to rise and exit through the ceiling ventilating system. There are four TVs (one in each bedroom, one in the living room and one in breakfast / dinning room.) This is a beautiful well appointed home.

 

HOUSES FOR RENT

UNIT #112
FOR RENT $1,250 mo.
Available June 5

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

This 1,290 sf single floor home includes a 300 sf front terrace plus parking for one car. It is attached on two sides by a 6 inch cement demising (common) wall, which prevents sound transfer.

 

 

UNIT #113
FOR RENT $1,350 mo.
Available July 1

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. It is attached on one side by a 6 inch cement demising (common) wall, which prevents sound transfer. The three other sides allow light, ventilation and garden views.

 

 

UNIT #123
FOR RENT $1,650 mo.
Available July 1

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 #124
FOR RENT $1,000 mo.
Available June 5

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.

 

 

Our Lives

WEATHER: the rainy season kicked in this week... fairly regular rains and overcast --some overcast dreary days but no hard rains. The garden loves it and it's not so bad for living if you recognize and adjust to the weather patterns.

All in a Week's Living in CR:

A quiet week. My butt found the hammock and I found I had to replenish at the cheap booze place in San Rafael de Alejuela... it was busier than usual and I was told they stopped taking CC --who cares when the price is 30-50% less than anywhere else... guess the word is getting around...

Below are a number of news articles I ran across this week which I thought useful to understanding what's happening in CR. Actually there were a lot of other articles which I didn't capture because they were all too depressing.. continuation of crime, corruption, abuse of power and position, etc. The country is great; it's the politics which are terrible... For example... the DIS (read that as CIA--CR) deputy director who was charge with DUI having 3Xs the blood alcohol level which normally commands 103 years jail sentence, got off by paying $800 (probably 1 wks. salary) and a few hours (probably unsupervised) community counselling... There are reasons why Ticos have no confidence in the political system and the wealthy and influential who control the system (this is not the only country which operates this way but in a small country it is sometimes more transparent).

Not included below is a recent article about an environmental activist, 26 years old, trying to save large turtles. He was found dead on the beach in Limon --killed by egg poachers... dead over turtle eggs... wow!!!!!!!! life is cheap when people's back are to the wall and moral turpitude is lacking and law enforcement is lacking as well... The news barely make a ripple in the news.

CR was place one below the USA in "democracy". I find this difficult to accept when the President wants to outlaw public worker or just about any organized body of employees in CR. Basically, the only people left who are "activists" are the students...

 

 

News Items of the Week

President seeks to make public worker strikes illegal
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

The Laura Chinchilla administration is prepared to take on the public employees with a proposal to prohibit strikes.

Casa Presidencial sent such a proposal to the legislature in exchange for a proposed labor code rewrite that would have permitted strikes.

Strikes are common among public employees. Workers at the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social are always ready to stage a partial walkout over working conditions.

Dock workers in Moín and Limón have been known to cost exporters of perishable products thousands of dollars with unannounced strikes.

The Chinchilla proposal would prohibit completely strikes at hospitals and clinics, other services of emergency, strikes by workers in electrical and water companies, strikes by all the police forces, strikes by those delivering services to children and the aged, strikes by fire fighters, the Cruz Roja, sanitation workers and those involved in inspection of incoming and outgoing vegetable and animal products.

Employees in other agencies would be allowed to strike as long as that job action would not disrupt services. Casa Presidencial mentioned specifically administrative workers in the health field, courts, workers in child support and domestic violence, workers in food service for children and also those in transportation services.

There is a general clause prohibiting strikes in undefined areas that would hamper socioeconomic development and those that would affect the living conditions of part or all of the population.

Dock strikes are specifically prohibited as well as those by workers who distribute fuel, engage in public transport, provide banking services, deliver passports as well as documents for foreigners and those involved in providing services at the Tribunal Supremo de Elecciones.

The bill also gives the executive branch the powerto fire strikers or replacement on the job and sets up a speedy legal procedure of just three days for the courts to decide if a strike is legal.

Casa Presidencial did not say it, but there is fear that dock workers at the Caribbean ports will walk out after they have exhausted legal efforts to annul the concession awarded APM Terminals for a $1 billion container handling facility there.

Previous administrations had to send police into the docks to keep them operating when the dock workers union walked out.

Online sources say that just 11 U.S. states allow strikes by public employees. Such an action made the news when Chicago teachers went on strike. Students there missed seven days of school in September. It was the first by teachers in 25 years.

Bridge collapse leaves 400 people isolated

Heavy rains on Tuesday caused a creek to overflow and a bridge to collapse in Santa Cruz, Guanacaste. A total of 400 people are cut off, and repair work is expected to take five months.

Full Article Published in Diario Extra on May 29, 2013

Lawmakers determined to punish those who disclosed their fuel use

May 30th, 2013 (InsideCostaRica.com) The Board of the Legislative Assembly, based on an investigation that it ordered in late April, is determined to punish those responsible for the leaking of information regarding the amount of fuel used by the members of Congress.

“No one should have access to that information,” said the President of the Legislature, Luis Fernando Mendoza.

The investigation comes after the newspaper La Nacion published information on April 10th regarding fuel purchases made by lawmakers on their government-provided expense cards.

It was revealed that many lawmakers had purchased gasoline for their relatives, amongst other non-approved uses.

Former President of the Legislative Assembly, Victor Emilio Granados, said that the dissemination of the information might have violated bank secrecy laws.

 

Brian, Lita, the Late Hugo IV, irreverent Vicka, the pigeon toed parrot, Chico II and Chica II

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