Invest In Los Cabos Blog

Cerritos Beach - Tequila Ranch Update September 2008

janetkfish — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 20:32:00 GMT

Welcome to our latest update on Cerritos Beach and Tequila Ranch. I have decided to combine my update so you will first get a general update and then an update specific to each project.

I recently visited Cabo after a long hiatis.   Part of the reason that I haven't visited Cabo as regularly as I had been 6 months ago is due primarily to what we are currently experiencing here in the US credit, mortgage and real estate markets. Our recession, down-turn, whatever you would like to call it has effected a number of things. In general the slowdown here has effected many of the investors who were pouring cash into Mexico. While the damage has been somewhat mitigated by the Europeans and Canadians who, thanks to the strength of their dollar continue to invest, primarily investment dollars were coming from the US and as that has dried up, projects have slowed.  As I'm sure many of you are painfully aware people are stuck, doing nothing, hanging back, holding on to their cash - waiting. The effect has resulted in a general slowdown in Cabo and other regions of Mexico. I'm hearing estimates of a 20 - 40% slowdown in real estate sales in Cabo. I'll attempt to address how this slowdown could effect our projects with each individual project below.

That's the bad news. The good news is that Mexico continues to grow. The roads and other infrastructure projects are funded and moving forward. The road appears to still be on track for completion in 2 years. The work continues and progress is apparent.   The existing condo project on Cerritos Beach is almost sold out with only a handful of condos still available. The first tower is up and should be open early 2009. It's so exciting to see building activity on Cerritos Beach.

Tequila Ranch
The tequila ranch distillery is coming along and current estimates are that is should be open early 2009.  Construction has taken longer than we had originally thought, but there's been much progress - the basic structure is complete. 500 barrels of tequila have been delivered and was in the process of being stored on-site while I was there. I was treated to the experience of how you hand make regular tequila into aged anejo. Each individual barrel (actually red wine barrels) will be hand charred before the tequila will be put into the barrels.  The tequila will age a year and one day as specified for anejo. Once again a testimonial to Tony's eye to every detail.

Completion of the Tequila Distillery has always been a key component to our marketing of our fractionals at Tequila Ranch. We know that people buy when they are there - as evidenced by almost all of the condos at Sol Pacifico being sold at the beach club on Cerritos.    150 couples touring the Distillery each week is important to our sales strategy. As such we made the decision to delay the construction of our Villas until the Distillery was closer to completion.

I'm a firm believer that things work out as they were meant to.   The market has changed considerably since we began this project over a year ago. We feel strongly that we need to be flexible with our product to ensure we have what people want to buy. This is especially important for fractionals as there are a lot more of them to sell. On my recent trip I sat down with Tony and the architects and tweaked the project plan. As most of you know I have never been satisfied with the site map or the floor plans and had yet to find a solution that I could get on board with. We are working with a new group of architects who are fantastic, get it and are easy to work with. Their offices are right across the hall from Tony's office instead of in La Paz where our former architect has his offices. Here is our current concept which we are aggessively moving forward with. We are building a small mexican villiage within the walls of Tequila Ranch. Current working name of resort is The Village at Tequila Ranch (let me know what you think of the name). We have removed the tennis court, two pools, will reconfigure the site map, none of us liked the layout of the roads. Loral, Will and I had personnally purchased a large beach front lot which we have dedicated to the project as the site for an exclusive Beach Club - complete with Palapa bar and grill, large infinity pool, workout area, and all the amenties you'd want at a private beach club. We believe this exclusive amenity will be and excellent incentive for our prospects to buy. We have taken the sizes of the villas down from our original floor plan of 6000 square feet to a more desireable 2,500 - 3,500 square feet. We will offer monthly shares at a price point that will build sales momentum. We will build more villas, the total amount has yet to be determined, the architects are working on that as we speak. I will be back in Cabo early November and hope to share with you more specifics (site map, floor plans, etc.) at that time.

So I know you are all asking, how does this impact me? First I absolutely believe we are working on a product that will sell in the current market place and that is our first priority. Our goal is to produce the most desireable product for the greatest market value vs have a product that doesn't sell.  With fractional sales momentum is key so we need to launch with a product that stimulates sales.   While we don't have a definitive answer for you yet, we are talking about such solutions as giving our investors additional monthly shares which will keep them whole.  Most of our investors are going to flip their shares before taking title which gives us much more flexibility.   I feel fortunate that we are able to be flexible in our offering during a time where markets are so tumultous.

As a result of this synergy of thinking, I am even more excited than ever about our product and project now. I feel confident we are on-track. I am back to my 4 - 6 week visits to keep the project moving forward. So look forward to more frequent updates.

Cerritos Beach - La Amanezca
I have continued to work with Larry Henry, our design architect and the architects on the ground in Cabo to make progress on the condos, hotel, restaurants, spa, conference center, pool, lobby and all the other wonderful structures that make up La Amanezca. On my recent trip we revisited the overall plan and have taken down the size of the hotel to be truly a boutique hotel for prospective buyers. Along with everyone in real estate these days we are responding to the inactivity in the market. I don't have to tell anyone that people are on the sidelines waiting for something to happen. Some are waiting for the election to be over, the buyout to go into effect, the real estate market to bottom out and start its upturn. Money is tight and every location in the world is affected.   Luckily for us, Mexico is less affected than most places so once the logjam of money frees up, we will continue to see impressive growth. Don't get me wrong, Mexico is still growing, it's just seen the rate of sales in real estate slow. Our target market has always been US buyers and right now most of our prospects are sidelined. So as we continue to pursue our permits and entitlements, we are trying to time the market and determine the best time to launch La Amanezca. Right now our current target is late spring/summer 2009 if the real estate market in the US has started to recover. We own the land and have funded the architecture and permitting so we are in good shape to move forward once we have entitlements. Stay tuned for my next update in November.

Janet on behalf of Janet, Loral and Will

In the News - Cerritos Beach and Surrounding Area

janetkfish — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:21:00 GMT

More news on Cerritos Beach and the Tequila Ranch area. I received this email this morning, these guys are friends of mine from my many trips to Cabo. The are also working with Tony and are offering lots for sale behind Sol Pacifico and our project on Cerritos Beach. Check out their web site, some of those pictures should look familiar.

Well, here we are again another Spring in CaboMX and things are heating up fast and furious on Cerritos Beach so those of you who may be interested in annual cash-on-cash returns approaching 400% had better be quick about jumping on-board as there are not too very many Lots remaining and this could well be your LAST CHANCE to get in on this

Did I just say LAST CHANCE? Yup, and heres why

this current 48-Lot subdivision may very well represent the final batch of Cerritos Beach oceanview Lots to EVER become available for sale as larger parcels of land suitable for subdivision/investment are now next to impossible to secure for any kind of a reasonable price read that as extinct - and bidding wars for what is still available remain in a state of frenzy as values/prices continue to soar at a breakneck pace GREAT NEWS for those who began investing with us way back in 2007 as flip time is quickly approaching

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION at www.bajacalls.com or CONTACT Lon@bajacalls.com

UPDATE (MAY 2008) - CERRITOS BEACH MEXICO

Humans & Dolphins surfing peacefully together at Cerritos Beach - - - How many dolphins do YOU count?

THE CERRITOS BEACH CLUB IS GOING STRONG

You can hardly find a parking space at the Beach Club on any given weekend, the food is great, the booze is flowing and live entertainment is provided every weekend as things heat up and the immediate area population increases with all the building/development already begun (or immediately pending - read on).

The Equestrian Center is open for horseback riding, there are plenty of ATV rentals available, there's a surf shop right there on the beach and buses run from many of the major hotels in CaboMX out to the Beach Club on a daily basis Cerritos Beach, the only swimmable beach on the entire Pacific Coast

1000-UNIT CERRITOS BEACH RESORT www.cerritosbeachresorts.com

is already advertising their hotel, fractional and whole-ownership opportunities in the airline magazines, generating a greater awareness of the area and with construction expected to begin this summer. There will be PreConstructionOps available shortly, so stay tuned And Roger Pollack - the largest builder in the State of Oregon - and one of the Partners on the Cerritos Beach Resort project is building a huge home on the point overlooking the project itself and construction is well underway and moving fast.

56-UNIT SOL PACIFICO CONDOMINIUMS www.solpacificocerritos.com

Our brand new beachfront neighbor the 56-unit Sol Pacifico Condominium Project - is already under construction and about 2/3rd sold out with initial occupancy projected by late fall And prices ranging from $500k-$1.6M (2/3rd sold out) And some PreSales are still available

This shot is from the rear of the project facing

toward the Pacific Ocean itself

This infinity pool sits directly on the Pacific Ocean between the project (to the right) and the Pacific Ocean (to the left) - And is the largest in the Baja Peninsula

A side view from the infinity pool in the front

(again, the ocean is to the left)

The first floor of the north building facing the ocean (the ocean is behind me)

163-UNIT LA AMANEZCA CONDOMINIUMS www.laamanezca.com

is in the final design phase with all preliminary hurdles satisfied and will break ground later this year

CERRITOS BEACH LOTS www.bajacalls.com

The Lots we have available for sale are located directly behind Sol Pacifico, a 56-unit Condominium project for which ground was broken in late July 2007 with prices ranging from $495,000+ (1bd) to $695,000+ (2bd) all the way to a high of $1.6M+ (3bd Penthouse) with initial occupancy scheduled in the fall of 2008.

The grand entrance to Sol Pacifico Condominiums is located on Lote 11 (plans for same are underway) directly on Mexico Highway #19 and will lend the impression that our Lots are one with the Sol Pacifico Condominium Project; Lotes 09 and 10 will be utilized as Commercial

If interested in Commercial, please contact us directly @ Lon@bajacalls.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ...

There are 4 Residential Parcels (Lotes on Plat) available at this time and each consists of 12 Lots of approximately 7000sf each with prices increasing by $5000/Lot the closer to the ocean the Lot is located:

Parcel/Lote 08

$ 89,950/Lot

Parcel/Lote 07

$ 94,950/Lot

Parcel/Lote 06

$ 99,950/Lot

Parcel/Lote 05

$104,950/Lot

If interested in entire Parcel or Multiple Lot purchases at bulk discounts, please contact us directly @ Lon@bajacalls.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ...

Seller-Financing is available on these Lots @ 25% cash down payment (plus $500/Lot Closing Costs) and the balance at 8% Interest-Only with a 5-year balloon there is no PrePayment Penalty at any time

And this Investment lends itself particularly well to Self-Directed Pension Plans

Please do not delay as these Cerritos Beach Lots have appreciated at the rate of a whopping 100%/year+ over the last couple of years, and with the Leverage weve negotiated with the Seller - the annual ROI has been running to 400% cash-on-cash at resale - so any delay on your part could result in increased pricing

OUR INVESTMENT STRATEGY

Simply position ourselves in the path of growth/development and let time do most of the work. As 'savvy' Real Estate Investors, we can no longer rely on the OLD RULE of Location-Location-Location as our sole investment criteria. We must now include Timing-Timing-Timing and Appreciation-Appreciation-Appreciation as meeting these 3 investment criteria virtually assures the attainment of our overall investment goals.

Our Investment Strategy consists of simply following the Big Boy Developers building Oceanfront Resorts and Condos and investing directly behind their projects and directly in the line of growth/development which theyve created positioning ourselves in the path of progress, if you will - taking advantage of the new roads they build, the new utilities they install and the new sales activity they generate, riding along on their coat-tails and watching our investments in Cerritos Beach Lots soar in value as a result of their activities.

While Insider Information may be illegal in the Stock Market, it should be illegal NOT to have Insider Information in the Real Estate Market as, if we know whats going to happen in any given area before most everyone else, then we have a unique and timely back door investment opportunity and thats what we as Real Estate Investors - are always looking for, isnt it?

CERRITOS BEACH LOT PURCHASE RESERVATION FORM

www.BajaCalls.com

Mexico prospering despite US slowdown

Workers on the assembly line at Volkswagen's plant in PueblaMX put together Jetta SportWagens, a hot seller in Europe.

The Latin American nation is holding up well with exports catering to the growing world economy.

By Marla Dickerson, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer - May 23, 2008

MEXICO CITY -- A sizzling stock market. A strengthening peso. Good economic growth. Someone forgot to tell Mexico that the U.S. has been flirting with recession.

Mexico's gross domestic product expanded at an annualized rate of 2.6% in the first three months of the year compared with a year earlier, according to government figures released Thursday. It's a respectable performance that highlights the nation's surprising resilience in the face of a U.S.

slowdown.

The growth appeared muted compared with the fourth quarter of 2007, when Mexico's GDP expanded by 3.8%. But there was statistical noise in the first-quarter numbers. The government this year adopted a new international standard for calculating GDP, which is the value of all goods and services produced in the economy. And the January-to-March period was hobbled by this year's early Easter week holiday, which resulted in fewer working days compared with the first three months of last year. Adjusting for those factors, first-quarter GDP growth was a solid 3.7%, according to the Treasury secretariat.

"Mexico . . . is not immune" to what's happening north of the border, said Gray Newman, chief Latin American economist for Morgan Stanley in New York.

But "it's not suffering the kind of downturn that everyone was expecting with weakness in the U.S."

Mexico is the world's 14th-largest economy, according to the latest statistics available from the World Bank, with GDP of $839.2 billion in 2006.

The fortunes of Mexico have long been linked to those of its northern neighbor, bound as the two countries are by geography, immigration, trade and investment. The U.S. housing industry, for example, which employs 1 in

5 Latino immigrants, is in a slump, resulting in a marked slowdown of remittances sent to Mexico. A prolonged downturn would undoubtedly hit Mexico hard.

Still, the nation's economy is holding up well. One factor is that much of the world economy is growing despite the U.S. slowdown. Although Mexico still ships about 80% of its exports to the U.S., its farmers and manufacturers are looking for new customers in Asia, Europe and the rest of Latin America.

That diversification is paying off. During the first quarter, Mexican exports to the U.S. grew just over 16%, while shipments to the rest of the world climbed 32%. Exports to Europe grew 56%.

The trend can be seen at Volkswagen de Mexico, the Mexican division of the German automaker, which manufactures Beetles and Jettas at a sprawling facility in Puebla. Through the first four months of the year, VW's Mexican exports totaled 123,000 vehicles, up 29% from the year-earlier period, according to company spokesman Thomas Karig.

The Puebla plant recently began manufacturing the new fuel-efficient Jetta SportWagen, which is proving to be a hot seller in Europe, Karig said.

Exports to Brazil and Argentina are strong as well. The Mexican government's decision to enter into free-trade agreements with a number of nations has made Mexico an attractive place to build cars, Karig said.

"We can export our cars very competitively from Mexico to these other markets," he said.

Other automakers are posting good numbers as well. Through the first four months of the year, vehicle exports from Mexico are up 18.5% over the year-earlier period, according to figures from the Mexican Automotive Industry Assn.

One of the strongest performers has been General Motors Corp. Mexico's largest automaker exported 127,625 vehicles in the first four months of the year, up nearly 38% over 2007, according to the association.

Part of that jump reflects production of a new model, the Saturn VUE, at GM's Saltillo, Mexico, plant. The crossover sport utility vehicle gets better gas mileage than traditional full-size SUVs, according to GM spokesman Mauricio Kuri.

Skyrocketing crude prices might be pinching U.S. drivers, but they've meant record oil revenue for Mexico, the world's sixth-largest oil producer. The petroleum windfall is bankrolling a slew of government spending and investment, which is helping to keep the economy rolling. Total public spending increased 9.5% in the first three months of the year compared with the same period last year and President Felipe Calderon plans to invest billions in roads, airports and other infrastructure during his six-year term, which ends in 2012. This includes the widening from 2 to 4-lanes of MX Highway 19 along the PacificCoast between CaboMX and our CerritosBeach projects along with the installation of electricity along its entire length (there has never been power along this stretch of the PacificCoast); the expansion of the CaboMX International Airport in an attempt to position itself to compete with the existing SanJoseDelCabo International Airport as well as the influx of lots of US investment dollars in an area where fully 1/3rd of all US to MX retirees flock to both invest and to retire:

BajaSurMX - ed.

"Fiscal policy is one of the main weapons that the Mexican government is activating to protect the economy from the American recession monster,"

said Alfredo Coutino, Latin America analyst with Moody's Economy.com.

"We're already seeing the effects."

The economy has also gotten a boost from a stronger peso: The currency has risen from 10.91 to the dollar Dec. 31 to 10.37 on Thursday and Mexico's IPC stock market index is up 5.8% in peso terms year to date and up 11.4% in dollar terms, thanks to the peso's strength.

Check it all out at www.BajaCalls.com

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Tequila Ranch Update

janetkfish — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 17:40:00 GMT

Hello Tequila Ranch Investors!! Welcome to our blog. If this is your first introduction to the blog, we are glad you are here. Going forward this will be our primary source of information and updates about our Tequila Ranch project. Please subscribe so that you will continue to get information and updates.

As many of you who have been involved in the project since the very beginning know, progress has been slower than we anticipated. Part of the reason is we are developing in Mexico and things move at a slower pace there. We expected that to be the case and intentionally increased our timeline by 30% to allow for that. We did not however take into effect the dramatic downturn in the economy. So here's the good and the bad of that. First, the bad: the slowdown of the economy has resulted in a significant reduction of availability of investor dollars needed to continue to fund the project. We have all heard stories of investors sitting on their funds waiting it out, and I can tell you it's true. We have sufficient capital to fund the land and we currently are in a final raise to finish the architecturals and fund marketing. That's the bad part, now here's the good.

While real estate in the US is suffering in most regions, in Mexico, just the opposite is true. The retirement of the baby boomers is fueling second home purchases particularly in Mexico. The weakening of the dollar has drawn investors from Europe and Canada to the region and they are buying in record numbers. The value of the land continues to increase as the area continues to develop. On Cerritos Beach the Beach Club is booming, Roger Pollack's house in under construction, Sol Pacifico Cerritos (a 54 unit condo project adjacent to our La Amanezca condo project) is almost sold out and two of the units are almost complete. Visit www.investinloscabos.com for recent pictures. Our lots continue to appreciate. As of August 2006, the lots we purchased were appraised and had already appreciated over 60%. So although things have taken longer that we expected, the good news is the area continues to grow and our property continues to appreciate.

Land development projects are complex with many steps along the way. The very good thing is that values increase every step of the way. When I first stepped foot in Tequila Ranch it was former grazing land for the ejido ranchers. When we came up with the idea to create a special community within the community and build very large villas and sell them as fractional ownership, I immediately saw the potential. Two years later I am even more convinced of the success of our strategy as I learn more and more about the fractional ownership industry. It is an emerging growth industry that will change the way people look at and buy luxury second home properties. I believe so much in it that I am writing a book about it called Paradise By the Slice - Realize Your Dreams Through Fractional Real Estate. www.paradisebytheslicerealestate.com. (I know, a shameless plug for my book, but also a great way for us to market our Tequila Ranch fractionals to the retail market). Although it seems like not much has happened over the course of the last year or so, actually much has happened behind the scenes.

Water has come to our lots.
Power has come to out lots
High Speed Cable and Internet have come to our lots.
The Tequila Ranch overall development has been graded, roads and curbs put in.
A one mile granite wall now provides exclusivity, privacy and security to the development.
The main entrance security pavilion is almost complete
The tequila distillery and restaruant is nearing completion (more on that below).
The main highway is in the process of growing from a 2 lane highway to a four lane.
Roads have been cut to the property.
Initial site plan and floor plans have been completed
The entire development has been landscaped
Two other houses are currently under construction in the development
There is a turtle sanctuary under development adjacent to the property
ATV's and horseback riding provide activities meant to draw people to the development
The value of the land has increased during each step of the process: re-zoning, infrastucture including utilities (water and power) and roads, topo plans, site maps, permitting, renderings and drawings, etc.
We have had several interested parties come to us looking to partner or purchase the project. We have evaluated each of these "offers" with care and have decided to continue on our original path.

The Tequila Distillery is nearing completion. Complete with a gourmet restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean, an impressive glass round elevator and a barrel and cigar cellar catering to private parties, the Tequila Distillery is truly a destination in itself. Oh, and the tequilla?? The best I've ever tasted and I'm not alone. Once complete it will truly be the draw that is the cornerstone of our marketing efforts. More on that as we get closer to ground breaking.

A word on our timeline. The Tequila Distillery is behind schedule as we had hoped to have it up and running by the end of last year. We, as a developement team made the decision to postpone breaking ground on our project until the Distillery was closer to completion. This is a conscious decision we made to delay the project as we believe having hundreds of potential buyers visit the Distillery each week is one of our key marketing strategies. We did not want to start construction without that key component to our strategy. Now that the Distillery is closer to completion we will move ahead with finalizing our plans, marketing to the retail market and breaking ground. I realistically expect to start retail sales this fall and break ground early 2009.

This is truly an exciting project and we continue to appreciate your contribution and support.

Much Thanks,

Janet on behalf of myself, Loral and Will

Cerritos Beach Update

janetkfish — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 23:06:00 GMT

For you newcomers, welcome to our blog!
Going forward this will be the main communication vehicle for updates and information for our Cabo projects. If you haven't done so yet, you will want to subscribe to get ongoing updates.

I know it's been a long haul and we are almost there. The architects are meeting in Mexico this week to finalize the complete site map, floor plans, renderings and drawings we need to submit the plans for permitting and entitlements. I was hoping to have the site map and floor plans available to you but it looks like that will take another couple of weeks, so be on the lookout for them. The entitlement process will take from 60 - 90 days once submitted. As most of you know this has been a process where seemingly no progress has been made as no dirt has been moved yet. I want to assure you that behind the scenes much as taken place.

Land development projects are complex with many steps along the way. The very good thing is that values increase every step of the way. When I first stepped foot on the property it was former grazing land for the ejido ranchers. The area is sandy desert and this lot of land is right on the ocean (not optimal for growing crops). I immediately saw the potential for a luxury condiminium resort. We decided to purchase that lot and wait for the infrastructure to come. Since that time:

Water has come to the region.
Power has come to the region.
The main highway is in the process of growing from a 2 lane highway to a four lane.
Roads have been cut to the property.
A topographical plan has been completed that has the grading plan for the resort.
The beach concession has been awarded.
The lot has been re-zoned from agricultural to commercial.
We purchased 7 lots from the property to the highway so that our project would own the access way to the property.
We purchased a large lot on the highway so that we would be able to have a grand entrance to our resort right visible from the highway.
We purchased a lot across the highway where we will have our sewage treatment facility.
We expanded our initial project to include a Medi-Spa and partnered with an well known medical professional. We made the decision to move away from that strategy when we realized that our goals for the project did not align with our partner.
We partnered with an accomplished architect and have been refining our design so that what we have is a very special resort plan.
The value of the land has increased during each step of the process: re-zoning, infrastucture including utilities (water and power) and roads, topo plans, site maps, permitting, renderings and drawings, etc.
We have had several interested parties come to us looking to partner or purchase the project. We have evaluated each of these "offers" with care and have decided to continue on our original path.

It is our goal to ensure the biggest return to our investors while at the same time mitigating as much risk as possible. We will soon submit our final plans for entitlements. As most land developers recognize, the largest amount of money to be made is between purchase and entitlements because, although it would appear little progress is being made, in reality the most difficult and time consuming part of development is this process. Our intention is to follow our original plan, but as good managers of any project we will revisit our strategy each step of the way to ensure we are moving forward with the best interest of our investors in mind. Until our next update, thanks for your support of our project.
Janet on behalf of the team, Loral, Will and I.

Trusts and Wills In Mexico, Are you Prepared?

janetkfish — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 23:17:00 GMT

Trusts and wills are key tools in the process known as estate planning. There is a common misconception amoung US and Canadian citizens that if they set up a living trust in their countries of origin, once they pass away, their trustee will be able to exercise his duties in Mexico. Trustees in Mexico can only be banking institutions, thus a trustee in the US or Canada cannot fully perform his duties in Mexico and is at best recognized as an executor or legal representitive of the estate.

Another misconception is that trusts and wills are subjects of interest to only the wealthy. Not true, and estate plan provides the legal mechanism for the disposing of property upon death in a way that recognizes your wishes and the needs of your survivors, while minimizing taxes and preventing or lessening legal costs.

When it's time to make out your will, you have several options:

Do nothing and have the state decided what to do with all your money and worldly goods.
Draft a will and go through probate
Draft a will and a trust and avoid probate.
If you own property in Mexico you can add a testamentary clause to your Fedeicomiso, or trust deed on your property, and save the beneficiaries a lot of headache and expense.

I was told by a Notorio in BCS that in order for me to create my Mexican will I needed to name an Executor to my estate and identify how I wanted my estate divided upon my death. I filed that information with the Notorio. He also indicated that my Executor could only deal with the estate in Mexico, so be forwarned that a trip to Mexico will be required.

Boomers on the Move to Mexico

janetkfish — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:44:00 GMT

A recent report released by International Living www.internationalliving.com states that Mexico is the number one destination for American retirees and investors who are aquiring a retirement home or a rental property outside the US. According to the report, Mexico is favorite because it's proximity to the US and because of it's competitive second home pricing in beach properties compared to Miami, San Diego and Los Angeles. Second among the chosen destinations is Ecuador and Panama. The report goes on to say that in the northern Mexico Rocky Point area, 50,000 second homes will be sold in 2008 at an average price of $350,000. The rate of growth in Mexican resort areas is approaching 50% a year... Good place to invest, or better yet retire.

Banking in Mexico?

janetkfish — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 20:53:00 GMT

Banking in Mexico can be tough, especially for us gringos who are struggling with the language. Most banks have a terrible reputation as having very poor service, but fear not, there is help on the way. Some history, until NAFTA became law in 1994, it was illegal for a foreign corporation or person to own a bank in Mexico. One of the provisions of NAFTA required that Mexico open up their banking industry to foreigners. Although Mexico put up a good fight to oppose this, eventually foreigners, most notably from Spain, United States and Hong Kong took over the industry largely closing out the Mexican who could not compete. Unfortunately for many of us, this deregulation has lead to increased fees and not a whole lot better service. Word to the wise, shop around. Find a bank that caters to Americans. BBVA Bancomer (Spanish owned) has what they call a preferred customer unit, a division that specializes in servicing the banking and financial needs of foreigners in Mexico. Their entire staff speaks English.

It's a common misconception that you need the immigration status of FM3 in order to open up a bank account. This is one step up from an FMt (tourist) and can signify anything from you are permitted to work to you are not permitted to work but you may stay there longer than the tourist visa of six months. When I opened my account in Mexico I needed an FM3, but it appears things have changed. Most foreigner friendly banks, such as Bancomer, are only asking for proof of at least part time residency, such as a untility bill to open a peso account.
Shop around, find a bank that is friendly. Happy Banking....

Where should I stay?

janetkfish — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 23:49:00 GMT

I'm frequently asked, "where should I stay when in Cabo, do you have any favorite places?"   After over a year, I've graduated from the Cabo Best Western, or as we like to refer to it, the One and Only Best Western. I could no longer stand the smell wafting from nearby. The origin of the stink was either the dump or the bull ring across the street or most likely a strange and stinky combination of the two.

My favorite place to stay is The Cabo San Lucus Inn www.cabosanlucasinn.net. The owner is a dear friend of mine and also the architect on our La Amanezca project. Staying there is like staying with friends.  A beautiful B & B, overlooking downtown has a small number of rooms which gives you the feeling of home away from home. Armando and Brenda are your hosts, let them know I sent you.  Ask them about hurricane Henrietta.  We spent 12 hours without power, which there means no water, showers or toilets, but we made the best of it.  Tequila helped..

I also like to stay at the Solmar, http://www.solmar.com/suites/.  I like it for it's proximity to downtown, a short walking distance, a hill going down into town and up hill coming back.  You may want to cab it home after a night at Cabo Wabo or the Zoo.  I'ts off the beaten track, so it's quiet, which is one of the things I like most about staying there. Even during spring break! The people I have met that are staying there are primarily timeshare folks that come back the same week year after year. They love it there. I found out about the place from my sister.  She and her husband have been going there for years. That is the only place they'll stay. Well until La Amanazca is built, they purchased one of the pre-construction condo's there. Most rooms over look the ocean, the ocean in not swimmable, but the sound of the waves crashing lulling you to sleep makes it worth it.

My good friend Elaine swears by the Hacienda del Mar, they own several weeks there and go every year. It's on the corridor, I've stayed there once and really liked it.  I'll let Elaine add her thoughts on where to stay.

I invite anyone who has visited Cabo to share their experiences and thoughts on where they like to stay.
If you plan on visiting Cabo make sure to visit Cerritos Beach Club and Surf. It's hopping these days. Darlene Jones, our favorite X-San Francisco jazz queen is playing Sundays. www.cerritosbeachclub.com. Check it out.

Welcome to our Blog

janetkfish — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 01:21:00 GMT

Welcome to our new blog. We created the blog in order to exchange information about Los Cabos, the surrounding areas, our development projects and Mexico in general.

I visited Cabo two weeks ago after a holiday induced 3 month hiatus. Wow, things are changing! I keep hearing people referring to Rt 19, the two lane highway between Cabo and La Paz being referred to as Mexico's PCS, (Pacific Coast Highway. These comments are usually followed by, "don't you wish you'd had the opportunity to buy along PCS 30 years ago? That's what buying on the Pacific side of BCS is right now". I don't know if that is true, but I do know Cerritos Beach and the surrounding area have changed dramatically since I first visited there 2 years ago. At that time there was just beach. Now there's a Beach Club in full swing www.loscabosguide.com, a condo project under construction www.solpacificocerritos.com, a huge single family residence being built on the point and much more in the works.

Cabo just continues to grow. Two major new developments have been announced. Emesto Coppel, developer of the Pueblo Bonito Resorts announced his latest venture, the construction of a $1 billion tourist resort to be name Quivira. It will be build on the fourlane between San Jose and Cabo San Lucas. The 2,000 acre development will feature two 18 hole golf courses, a 200 room Ritz Carlton hotel with 60 fractional ownership villas, a Mirival timeshare resort and 250 homes along the golf course. First phase development is expected to be complete in 2010. Cabo Cortes, the second resort will also be built on the fourlane. Hansa Urbana, a Spain based developer is working with Goodman Real Estate, a US based company. The Cabo Cortes development, built on 1000 acres will feature a golf course, condominiums, homesites, a hotel, marina and shopping center with multiple restaruants and bars.

Remember the old real estate addage, location, location, location? Well we've got that in spades, expecially on the Pacific Ocean side, outside of Cabo where the infrastructure is in place (water and power) and the timing of the new fourlane highway fits well with the timing of construction of our projects. Location is key, but then again so is TIMING