Pushing Rope Up Hill

ISSUE #738: Dec. 2-8, 2018

2018-12-10

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


Real de Santa María / Borreal de Heredia
FOR SALE
$ 185,000 $175,000 (reduced)
Private financing available

See location on Google Maps

Real de Santa María / Borreal de Heredia






Download more pictures (8.35 Mb)

Market activity
sales & rentals

Sales: Los Jardines: Units #114 and #124

Rentals:

Paradisus: Nothing available

Los Jardines: Units #112 and #126

Residencias Los Jardines
property management, rentals & re-sales

FOR SALE
Unit #114: $ 199,000 / See Unit
Unit #124: $135,000 $ 125,000 / See Unit

FOR RENT
Unit #112: $ 1,250 mo. / Available immediately / See Unit
Unit #126: $ 675 mo. / Available immediately / See Unit

For sale

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 #124
FOR SALE
$135,000 $ 125,000

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.

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: 1 Story
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 #126
FOR RENT
$ 675 mo.
Available immediately

Total Area (Sq Ft): 530
Total area (Sq M): 50
Bedrooms: 1
Bathrooms: 1
Floor(s): 1
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...

Our Lives

Weather: We are into the dry season... winds have not yet started but will... no rain, few clouds, beautiful but we need to keep the plants happy... nature is not doing it for us...

What Happened This Week:

Pushing Rope Uphill:

Heredia House: Closing still has not happened. The lawyer left town and I have not heard if the mortgage which had not been removed and should have been a year ago, has been removed. And Lita is still reluctant to sign the deal regardless... ooohhh me...!!!!

Gardening: We continue to make progress but our administration is not going smoothly...

INS suit: I asked for a status report it now being about 1 month after the deposition. Since then each side had been asked for final arguments. The status report told me that INS has filed a request with the Sala IV (highest court in CR) to "annul" the whole thing. What???? While I do not know the stated reasons, yy take is that they see they are loosing (two rulings have been handed down both against INS) and could be on the hook for $21 million so want to annul the whole proceedings... Who knows???

Fiscal Situation: The fiscal plan has been passed. It really won't make much of a difference in the overall scheme of things. Moody's downgraded CR again with a "negative" outlook rating. We are currently "B1". The exchange rate continues to stay around 595 : 1. The government does not have the money to pay the alginaldo (13th month) and has had to postpone payment in hopes of securing financing ...but I am sure the teachers are still getting paid... wow!!! talk about a screwed up system... CR has it in spades...

Note: The older I get the more important it is and the more rewarding it is to work with people who solve problems not create problems.

Rentals: We rented 106C and now have two more... 112 and 126. Few people looking...

Murder: A Venezuelan / US citizen was murdered this past week. The homicide rate in CR is about double that of the US. While tragic in it's own right, it is strange that this story is getting such US media attention...

News Items of the Week

COMMENTS

1. Moody's rating: No surprise. Fitch did it the week before. The heading says it all...

1. Moody’s Downgrades Costa Rica’s Ratings to B1 and Assigns Negative Outlook

American credit rating agency Moody’s announced this December 5th they have “downgraded the Government of Costa Rica’s long-term issuer and senior unsecured bond ratings to B1 from Ba2 and changed its rating outlook to negative, concluding the review for downgrade that was initiated on 18 October 2018”.

Moody’s stated that the key drivers for the downgrade are:

1. The continued and projected worsening of debt metrics on the back of large deficits despite fiscal consolidation efforts.

2. The significant funding challenges emerging for the country as rising debt, deficits and interest costs lead to rapidly rising borrowing requirements. The credit agency also lowered Costa Rica’s long-term country ceilings, the foreign currency bond ceiling; its foreign currency deposit ceiling and its local currency bond and deposit ceiling as well as the short term foreign currency bond ceiling.

“Moody’s expects that Costa Rica’s ongoing fiscal consolidation efforts will be insufficient to quickly and materially reduce its high fiscal deficits. As a result debt metrics will continue to rise in the coming years and remain much higher than countries with Ba ratings”.

The Minister of Treasury, Rocío Aguilar, stated her disagreement with Moody’s position, and considers that the only way to understand this decision is if the analysis was done prior to the Constitutional Chamber’s decision regarding the fiscal reform.

Meanwhile, the President of the Central Bank, Rodrigo Cubero said that Moody’s decision “is inconsistent with the rating they had given in the past”, and considered it “illogical”, “2019 looks better than 2018 right now and it makes no sense to downgrade the rating".

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

Brian C. Timmons
Property Manager RLJ and Newsletter Author

Costa Rica:
Cell: (+506) 8-455-59-35
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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