Catch up on Misc.!!

ISSUE #656: April 23-29, 2017

2017-05-02

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​
$1,400

 

Escazú
FOR SALE: Agent says this is a Bargain...

$225,000
2700 sq ft house in best area Escazu
Owner finance at 8%
This is 3-4 bedroom house with garden and views with owner finance at 8% for balance of $200,000. 2 car garage with watchman directly in front of the house. Downpayment is $25,000

Market activity
sales & rentals

Sales: Los Jardines: Units #106A, #114, #123, #124 and #125

Rentals: Paradisus: For Rent: 13th Fl / East view / furnished​ / $1,400
Los Jardines: Units #112 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 #124: $ 135,000 / See Unit
Unit #125: $ 135,000 / See Unit

FOR RENT
Unit #112: $ 1,250 mo / See Unit
Unit #123: $ 1,450 mo / 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 #124
FOR SALE
$135,000

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 #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 #112
FOR RENT
$1,250 mo.
Available Immediately

Total Area (Sq Ft): 1290
Total area (Sq M): 120
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 2
Floor(s): 1
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 #123
FOR RENT
$1,450 mo.
Available 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: Winds have died, regular showers...

Catch Up:

Paradisus Phase II is underway. The first of two new towers is nearing floor 11 of a planned 15. The footings are poured for the 4th and final tower in the project.

Bari Project on our El Dorado Land: Phase II of that is underway as well. Marketing and construction are both happening.

Construction for the new extension in Santa Ana of Hospital Biblica is under way.

A huge parking lot replaced a dysfunctional building in Pozos... where the demand will be I don't know... while finished, it still has the gates closed... another parking lot near a huge commercial building now has it's parking lot closed. Cars park on the street and block free flow of traffic...

Paul's car is suffering some of the same problems I just fixed... mmmm.... I am tired of car problems.

Tried to go the beach with family this weekend. It is a long weekend... May Day (May 1)... streets were empty Friday morning... the holiday is Monday... no matter, government employees take off a day before and return a day after... Our two favorite hotels at Playa Carrillo... $100 per per person per night... ridiculous... won't do it. We will go to our friends in Jaco, have a great time, and save $1,000...

The Escazu house featured above is being fixed up... It is a good house, now even better, with a fantastic financing package for someone needing a big house with little money down...

INS law suite... another year, probably

Foreclosing on another house... owner didn't think he had to pay when he took my money... now I take his house... how dumb can you get??? He never made one payment... I will get my money, he will be out on the street -some people can't figure it out...

Lita's family from Toronto arrived... they will be here for a week... and then return to tedium of work, and cold. We will have a good time...

A tour group just passed through Los Jardines: It used to consist of 25-30 people. This time 5 only.

Have heard about three people looking to buy... but not our product... larger...

Have a current dispute between an owner an a tenant: The tenant smoked heavily inside the unit for two years. In addition to the smell which gets into the paint, carpeting, drapes, etc, AC air filters, and the two burns on the white leather sofa, it was left is a RUSH move out condition... in other words... a mess. The owner is holding on to the security deposit due to damages... I am in the middle... damages there are for sure... these are above normal wear and tear... the smoker doesn't want to acknowledge this...

News Items of the Week

Comments

1. Agricultural and free trade zone products are doing well as are services (call centers). Mfg. is not doing well. North America is still the dominant buyer; other South American markets are not doing well... perhaps because of Venezuela...

2. Mfg. is not doing well... they say it is partially attributable to high electricity rates... ICE denies this... and other costs, eg. poor infrastructure which increases distribution costs.

3. Morin port: it is coming along but will not open on time due to what seem to be some self inflicted problems... soil compaction, piling in wrong...

1. Costa Rica's exports of goods up from last year

Exports of goods during the first quarter of this year grew 8.7 percent over the same period last year, officials from the Foreign Trade Ministry and the Foreign Trade Promotion Office (PROCOMER) reported this week.

Costa Rican exporters sold goods worth $2.5 billion in the past quarter , representing a $208 million increase over the previous year.

Sales of agricultural products led the sales figures at 27 percent, followed by medical and precision equipment at 26 percent, and food products at 15 percent, the agencies noted.

Companies operating inside the free zone regime are the ones driving the boost in exports. Sales from these companies grew by 17.4 percent.

North American countries were the biggest buyers of Tico goods, accounting for 43 percent of the total sales. The Central American nations followed at 22 percent, the same figure of exports to European Union countries.

Exports to Asia showed a big improvement, driven mainly by a 76 percent increase in purchases from China.

The only negative figure in the past quarter was a 20 percent drop in sales to South America, caused mainly by a decrease in sales to Venezuela.

Positive comparison

Foreign Trade Vice Minister Jhon Fonseca said the figures are quite encouraging and reflect the efforts of both public and private sectors to keep the country growing.

According to the report, even after removing figures from the Intel effect — referring to export figures from the plant that the microchip giant closed here in 2014 — “the quarter’s figures are the highest in the last five years.”

PROCOMER General Manager Pedro Beirute said that growth figures are positive, especially when compared to those from other Latin American countries and even from more advanced economies. He said that the United States, Colombia, Chile, Brazil, Mexico, China, Guatemala, El Salvador and Panama all reported drops in their export figures during the same period.

Despite the overall good news, exports of textiles, leather, footwear, paper and plastics recorded a drop in sales during the last quarter.

Services also up

COMEX and PROCOMER officials also presented a report of service exports from 2016. Costa Rica last year exported $8.2 billion in services, representing 11 percent growth over 2015. The increase came mostly from the strong performance of companies in the tourism sector, which accounted for 44.4 percent of the total.

Business services as well as telecommunications and information Services followed with 33.2 and 13.4 percent respectively.

The report highlighted that Costa Rica surpassed the services exports target by 8.3 percent. Sales in the services sector have maintained a positive trend for the past five years, PROCOMER said.

Industrial sector disagrees

TheCosta Rican Chamber of Industries, which this week reported a less than favorable outlook for 2017, expressed disagreement with the government’s sunny outlook.

“There is definitely a huge difference between what the government and we call favorable behavior,” said Chamber president Francisco Gamboa in a news release.

Gamboa cited as an example that manufacturing exports outside the free zone regime “barely grew by 0.46 percent and actually fell in several destinations.”

The chamber also cited products that recorded drops in sales during the past quarter such as electric cables, medicines, disinfectants, beverages, aluminum, labels and cardboard.

2. Employment outlook among industrial sector shows no improvement

The employment and production outlook among industrial sector companies does not look very positive for the rest of this year, a survey from the Costa Rican Chamber of Industries (CICR) found.

The conclusion is part of the results of a study that the chamber presented on Tuesday.

More than half of company heads surveyed — 60 percent — said they are not planning any changes in their staff in the next eight months. Only 25.8 percent of them are considering hiring more employees; 14 percent said they will reduce their staff. While the net balance of the expected employment behavior for this year results in an 11.7 percent increase, this is lower than the 15.3 percent recorded in 2016.

The net balance of production is 43.7 percent, which is also down from the 45.8 percent from last year’s survey.

Chamber President Enrique Egloff said at a press conference that his organization is very concerned about the downward trend.

Surveyed business leaders said the country’s high electricity tariffs are the main factor affecting their companies’ competitiveness.

The costs for them of Social Security and other mandatory benefits for workers followed in second place.

Other negative factors mentioned included high fuel prices, bad road infrastructure, unfair competition from informal businesses, and high taxes. Egloff noted that excessive red tape is another factor that is seriously damaging the country’s competitiveness.

Trump effect: limited

The CICR’s survey also asked entrepreneurs about the influence on local production of the new U.S. administration and its policies.

A majority of them — 65 percent — considered that recently approved policies would not impact local production. Another 23 percent said that the effects are still uncertain and 12 percent said U.S. policies will negatively impact the local industry.

Those who said President Donald Trump’s policies will negatively affect them said they believe the main impact will be on their supply chains. They also said policy shifts could affect the destination markets for their products, and that will hurt the attraction of new investors and financing options.

The CICR conducted its survey by telephone and email of a sample of 121 companies between January 30 and April 7. Results have a margin of error of 3 percent and a confidence level of 95 percent, the chamber reported.

3. Moín cargo terminal will not be ready in January

APM Terminals, the Dutch concessionaire currently building a container terminal in the Caribbean port of Moín, announced Friday that the $1 billion project will not begin operating as planned on Jan. 18, 2018, due to unexpected situations.

General Manager Kenneth Waugh in a news release said that APM has notified the National Concessions Council on that the company encountered unexpected, adverse situations “that force us to rethink the construction plan of the terminal.”

These problems relate to the surface compaction of the 40-hectare artificial island for the port, damage in the breakwater, and problems with the angles of 20 piles.

Waugh said that despite these issues with the project’s timetable, the company’s priority is to deliver a terminal that meets the highest standards of efficiency and quality capable of operating for 60 years, as established in the contract. Company engineers and other experts are evaluating possible solutions, he said.

APM Terminals said it will announce a new delivery date of the project in 30 days, and that the company will pay the fines for the delay. According to the contract, the company will have to pay $2,000 for each day of delay in construction and $2,000 more for each day that the terminal is not in operation.

The company stressed that despite the problems, there are aspects of construction on the 40-hectare island that are moving forward as expected, and that construction work is 73 percent complete.

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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