Lock Down -House Arrest

ISSUE #819: July 5-11, 2020

2020-07-12

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
12-2 at Paradisus $1,400 mo.
this one has white living room furniture

Market activity
sales & rentals

Sales: Los Jardines: Units #114, #116 and #124

Rentals:

Paradisus: 12-2 at Paradisus $1,400 mo. (white living room furniture)

Los Jardines: Available immediately: #106C $900 mo. / #121 $1,300 mo. / #125 $825 mo.

Residencias Los Jardines
property management, rentals & re-sales

FOR SALE
Unit #114: $ 199,000 / See Unit
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 #125: $875 $825 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 #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.

For rent

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 #125
FOR RENT
$ 875 $825 mo.
Available immediately

Total Area (Sq Ft): 662
Total area (Sq M): 60
Bedrooms: 1
Bathrooms: 1
Floor(s): 2nd Floor
Type: Semi-Detached
Furnished: Yes

This 662 sf, (62M2)+ 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.

Our Lives

What Happened This Week

Weather: Enough rain to keep all happy... garden is looking great. Over the past several weeks, we have experienced a series of low pressures resulting in lots of rain... more in parts of the country other than the Central Valley but even here we have seen lots of overcast days.

Stories

1. Pool Work: Tile work is now completed and the faux rocks as well. It looks good. The people hired were the right people... they performed as expected... no complaints. We are left to fix up some minor things.

2. Slippery walkway tile: I now have a solution... it is the easiest, maintainable, and least expensive alternative under the circumstances. I will use the self adhesive anti slip 3M tape. The problem will be in finding enough of it but it will work is cost effective. Implemenation will have to wait until the lock down is over.

3. Foreclosure: The additional paperwork was filed. We wait... now since Jan. 21.

4. Lock Down - House Arrest: Well, not really house arrest but the new lock down has the same effect. Within 12 hours of announcement, the new rules were effective. Driving to / from home to pharamcy, grocery store, hostpital, or banks, is limited to 1 day a week depending on license plate number / week end driving is also limited to one day depending on license plate number and only to the same destinations... all non-essential businesses are closed. Employees have to show they have a place of employment to travel / public transportation is working on a very limited basis / taxis are able to operate but not Ubers / Face masks required indoors, hand washing / shoe washing / temperature taking is normal as well as limited / controlled entry. We have to live with all this, there is no discussion or exceptions that I am aware of... I really, really, really hope nothing serious breaks... I do not know how we will get it fixed. My current nightmare.

5. A New Deal: Given that a deal I had been working on for 6 weeks fell apart at the last minute, another opportunity came along and Lita and I looked at it on Monday... It involves some nice property and a house in a beautiful rural area -ended up meeting a broker who was only a voice on the phone for the past two years- the property was so far from anywhere that WAZE gave up -but the borrower is a young (30 yr old) who needs capital to buy red beans in Nicaragua to service his Walmart and other contracts in CR. He has been buying on credit but doesn't get as good a price and as Nicaragua hurts more and more, I think the credit option is drying up... he needs to pay cash to get and to get the best deal.... He is one of three principals in the company -one buyer in Nicaragua, one logistics guy here, and he seems to be the business administrator... small business... Walmart contracts are about $120,000 over two months, importing about 2-3 truck loads a month... and I expect there will be opportunities to work with him on special deals. Now, however, the problem is closing since we are all locked down... this was suppose to happen on Monday but the logistics are not yet all worked out... we are having to work our way through this...

6. Scotiabank: Spent two hours with them filling out 15 pgs of forms all asking the same info that they already had. I have some addtional info to give them, much of which I have but now everyone is locked down so who knows...

7. Carib Harrassment: My friend is still having troubles. What N. Am. expats do not appreciate is that CR operates under Napoleonic Code of Law... Under English Common Law (which is the N. Am. code), the prosecutor files charges and then has the obligation to prove that the charges. Under Napoleonic law, it is the opposite... the prosecutor makes the charges and then it is the individual's responsibility to prove their innocence. A big difference... there really are no consequences for false charges nor for the prosecutor is really investigate his allegatons nor for the presecutors orders to be reasonable...

Unit #121

News Items of the Week

Comments:

1 / 2: Lock Down: CR has been a model of Covid management but that may be changing... seemingly, a significant (for CR) spike in cases occurred this past week and the government, unlike elsewhere, has taken immediate, definitive, and drastic actions in an attempt to contain it. This will certainly creat hardships for many and we will all be affected... but hopefully, not infected... Guess I can get some of those procrastinated office projects done... at least I will not have the same excuses...

1. Costa Rica announces new restrictions to limit mobility in Greater Metropolitan Area

Costa Rican authorities on Friday announced a series of health measures to limit mobility in the Greater Metropolitan Area, which includes the capital of San José and surrounding cities.

The following measures take effect beginning Saturday, July 11. They will last through Sunday July 19.

The entire GAM (and elsewhere) elevated to an Orange Alert

The below image indicates which cantons are under an orange alert starting Saturday:

Orange alert in Costa Rica as of July 11, 2020. Via CNE.

Map of Orange Alert in Costa Rica as of July 11, 2020. Via CNE.

Near-total vehicular restriction in Orange Alert areas

In regions under an Orange Alert, there will be a near-total weekday vehicular restriction. This applies 24 hours a day:

Monday: Vehicles with license plates ending in 1 and 2 can drive to essential services (pharmacies, health centers, supermarkets) only. Vehicles with license plates ending in other numbers cannot circulate.

Tuesday: Vehicles with license plates ending in 3 and 4 can drive to essential services only. Vehicles with license plates ending in other numbers cannot circulate.

Wednesday: Vehicles with license plates ending in 5 and 6 can drive to essential services only. Vehicles with license plates ending in other numbers cannot circulate.

Thursday: Vehicles with license plates ending in 7 and 8 can drive to essential services only. Vehicles with license plates ending in other numbers cannot circulate.

Friday: Vehicles with license plates ending in 9 and 0 can drive to essential services only. Vehicles with license plates ending in other numbers cannot circulate.

Weekends: There is a total nighttime restriction from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. During the day (5 a.m. to 5 p.m.): Vehicles with license plates ending in ODD numbers can drive to essential services on Saturday. Vehicles with license plates ending in EVEN numbers can drive to essential services on Sundays.

Workers are permitted to drive to their places of employment but must carry proof of employment. Public transport will continue operating at 20% capacity; taxis can continue operating without restrictions.

“For those people from cantons under an Orange Alert who on the weekends […] want to move to Yellow Alert cantons, they can do so if they have a hotel reservation that is located in a canton under a Yellow Alert,” said Pilar Garrido, Planning Minister.

According to Delfino.cr, this hotel exemption is only valid on weekends.

Essential services can operate

Essential businesses can remain open in areas under an orange alert. This includes supermarkets, pharmacies, and health centers. Delivery services are also permitted.

Non-essential commercial businesses must remain closed in all areas under an Orange Alert.

The following businesses are considered as essential: Supermarkets and grocery stores, pharmacies, medical centers, bakeries, butchers, food delivery, agricultural, veterinary and hygiene suppliers, banks, funeral homes, farmer’s markets.

Health Minister Daniel Salas said these essential services will not close in Costa Rica during the pandemic and asked the public to avoid panic-buying.

Ongoing measures in yellow-alert areas

All areas under a “Yellow Alert” (i.e. any location not listed under an Orange Alert) remain in Phase 3.

In those locations, most businesses can remain open during the week and on weekends; religious ceremonies are permitted; and beaches are open from 5-9:30 a.m. daily.

What is the purpose of the measures?

According to President Carlos Alvarado, the restrictions will help health authorities regain control of the outbreak. The population-dense GAM has been identified as the current epicenter of COVID-19 in Costa Rica.

2. News briefs: WHO says Costa Rica facing community transmission of coronavirus

The coronavirus crisis has transformed life in Costa Rica, which has enacted measures to protect the capacity of its health system.

Here’s what you should know as a new day starts in Costa Rica:

Community transmission in Costa Rica, WHO says

The World Health Organization (WHO) now says there is community transmission of the coronavirus in Costa Rica.

According to its “Situation Report” released Thursday, Costa Rica has advanced from having clusters of cases to experiencing community transmission.

The WHO defines community transmission as: A country experiencing larger outbreaks of local transmission defined through an assessment of factors including, but not limited to: large numbers of cases not linkable to transmission chains; large numbers of cases from sentinel lab surveillance; and/or multiple unrelated clusters in several areas of the country/territory/area.

Transmission classification is based on self-reporting, and Costa Rican authorities have themselves acknowledged there is growing spread of the coronavirus in the Greater Metropolitan Area (GAM) that eclipses contact-tracing capacity.

Eighty-six countries or territories have community transmission, according to the WHO’s latest report, including Nicaragua, Panama, the United States and Canada.

New health restrictions to be announced

Costa Rican authorities met Thursday night to discuss what new restrictions will be applied in the face of an “exponential” rise in coronavirus cases.

“This situation merits the advancement of closure measures that will be […] duly communicated to the public,” Casa Presidencial said Thursday.

President Carlos Alvarado said he will heed recommendations from the nation’s top epidemiologists.

Typically, health measures are announced at the daily 1 p.m. coronavirus press conference and don’t go into effect until the following day. Check back at TicoTimes.net for full details as soon as they’re announced.

Costa Rica announces 26th COVID-19-related death

The Health Ministry on Friday announced Costa Rica’s 26th death related to COVID-19.

An 89-year-old Costa Rican woman, resident of San José province, died at the coronavirus-specific hospital (CEACO). She had been hospitalized there since Monday.

Costa Rica’s COVID-19-related deaths comprise 16 men and 11 women ages 26 to 92. The majority have been older adults with additional risk factors.

Through Thursday, Costa Rica has 4,437 known active coronavirus cases and 120 hospitalizations.

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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