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Robinson Crusoe never it so good

May 3, 2013 by 3 Comments

Isla Palenque is a island in the Gulf of Chiriqui about thirty minutes from the small port of Boca Chica, Chiriqui Panama. This is the last of three posts about what we experienced in one weekend exploring Isla Palenque.

Here are links to the earlier posts if you missed them, the first on the hotel, the second on the food.

IslaPalenquemap1

The island is the polar opposite of the desert Island of Daniel Defoe’s novel Robinson Caruso. Isla Palenque is tropical rain forest and most of it will remain as it is, a nature preserve. The coasts and beaches, about five percent of the island, are scheduled for development. The development is environmentally sensitive, no clear cutting, minimal environmental footprint. The developer is integrating the homes into the landscape as much as possible.

The entire island is privately owned and varies between 400 acres at high tide and 440 acres when the ocean recedes and reveals some wonderful sand beaches and great tide pools.

Tide pools

Tide pools

Beach Isla Palenque

Beach Isla Palenque

Beaches and more

Beaches and more

Mayra hiking with a guide

We stayed in the current six room resort which will become someone’s home and ate some wonderful food. In addition we took a hike, saw some howler monkeys and a lone monster iguana marching the narrow roads cut into the island.

Howler Monkeys outside the hotel

Howler Monkeys outside the hotel

The developer Amble Resorts, is an American company and is selling innovative houses on the island. I doubt anyone will want to live on Isla Palenque full time, so the houses have the option to enter a rental pool.  If you did decide to invest $300,000 or more in a home you will have the potential to reap some rental income. If you choose not invest and just want to rent for short stays there should be many options to choose from.

Houses are selling and many more have been reserved. The developer is doing something not seen in a Panamanian project, they are using a US based escrow company. Buyers put down a deposit into escrow with payment due on delivery, something that makes purchasing pre-construction a bit safer than normal in Panama.

If you ever wanted to have a piece of a tropical island for escape from reality this might be an opportunity for you. I suspect we will be intermittent visitors and enjoy the change from the mountains periodically.

For more information see their website. This is the LINK to their website for more information.


Filed Under: Featured, Real Estate, retirement, Survival Kit Items

Pedasi Panama Real Estate Update

October 1, 2012 by 2 Comments

I have been having people ask about Real Estate in Boquete and other areas in Panama. It appears that after this next election in the US we are going see another wave of immigrants. The only difference will be who come, one group if Obama wins, another if Romney wins. So here is a first in a series of updates, this one is  from Panama Equity,  http://www.panamaequity.com . I was going to edit the content but I decided to post it unedited for those who want all the details.

Slow and steady has been the sales climate this year in the Pedasi, Panama real estate market.  Active real estate agents in Pedasi have reported tangibly more visitors than the years prior, but this has not necessarily translated in to more sales.

Some buyers are coming down expecting great bargains and end up disappointed by the fact that prices have remained relatively unchanged,  but retirees and expats looking to escape a changing financial climate in their home countries have been pleased with what they have seen, which led to consistent sales for the region.

What’s New In Pedasi?

In general Pedasi news, our new hospital is over half-finished at the entrance of town and should be open by early next year.  Built on five acres of land, the 23 room hospital will feature a 24-hour emergency room which is a huge welcome to those of us who live here year-round.  There is also a new commercial center being built on the main street that will house a large supermarket, a hardware store, and eight other retail shops.

The road to Playa El Toro and La Garita beaches is currently being paved with completion scheduled for this November, which makes the developers of both Andromeda Ocean Estates and Costa Pedasi (both of whom happen to be located on this street) very happy.  The road to Los Destiladeros, home to several high-end hotels and developments, has also been completely paved and now workers are finishing the replacement of the road’s three bridges. What used to be a 20 minute drive now takes about 5 minutes!

The Development Landscape in Pedasi

The Dekel group, which is developing Andromeda Ocean Estates, among other projects, has signed an agreement with Cocige, a large construction company that has built several high-rises and shopping malls in Panama City.  Cocige has committed to moving a considerable amount of manpower and materials to Pedasi in order to take over construction of both infrastructure and homes in Dekel’s various projects.  This could be a game-changer for the development, which has struggled to get home construction going to keep up with sales.

Cocige is already building warehouses onsite to store materials and we know of at least two existing lot owners who have been given reasonable quotes by Cocige to build homes.  Construction of homes and further infrastructure is set to begin at the end of the year (the start of the dry season) and we are excited for both the developer and for Pedasi in general. Actual, physical progress is a good thing.

The Dekel Group has also purchased 6 hectares of beachfront land at Playa Venao and has announced pre-sales of Blue, a new development which will feature three 3-story condo buildings with 20 units each and sixty bungalows with a hotel, community pools and a restaurant/common areas on the beach.  Prices start at around $140,000 and the developer reports that roughly half of the units have already been sold (unverified).  Cocige will also be the builder for this new project, slated for delivery by 2014.

As for Costa Pedasi, they continue to add beautiful new homes to their growing beachfront community.  A total of twelve homes have now been completed with more under construction.  The entrance road has a brand new surface and a beach club with the restaurant and massive swimming pool also slated to be completed this coming dry season (January).

As for other projects, Bellamar is a planned three-story condominium to be built on roughly ¾ acres of land inside the Andromeda Ocean Estates development.  This is going to be a high-end project with all the bells and whistles, being developed by a nice couple from Missouri who have done similar projects in the US.  Pre-sales have begun and 3 of the 18 units are currently under contract.

One our our favorite projects along the beach, Lomas de Playa Venao has finished its second home overlooking the beach at the world famous surf break, Playa Venao. Power has now been fully installed in the project and the first owners are living there full time, which again, is great tangible progress to take note of.

Update on land sales

Large land purchases have been occurring recently in the area.  In addition to the Dekel Group’s purchase of six hectares at Playa Venao, a group of investors lead by the Prince of Lichtenstein has purchased over a hundred hectares on the beach in Puerto Escondido, 15 minutes from Pedasi in the Los Destiladeros area.

Wildlands, the development group behind the well-known Azueros project in the same area is under new management and plans to begin lot sales shortly.  This should breathe new life into what is arguably Pedasi’s most beautiful neighborhood, with large homes designed by the French architect Gilles St. Gilles.  In another great coup for the neighborhood, the South African resort management company “Mantis” has taken over management of Pedasi’s most exclusive hotel, Villa Camilla.

On a smaller scale, several small developments of 10 to 40 home lots have sprung up in the center of town and lot sales are steady, attracting both foreign and local buyers.  Price points start at $25/square meter ($25,000 for a ¼ acre) and go up to double that.  These communities feature titled lots, mature trees and nice green areas.  They are attracting a lot of folks for whom the ‘$100,000+’ price tag of lots in the beachfront developments is out of their comfort zone.

A little bit about home sales

An American investor is building spec homes in Pedasi and has sold two recently for $130,000.  He has three more currently under construction and has acquired enough land to continue building many more.  These homes are 2 to 3 bedrooms, roughly 1100 sqft enclosed with another 400sqft of covered terrace.  Built in a local style with block and stucco walls, hand-fired clay tile floors and roof and lots of exposed wood, these Pedasi Homes for Sale are going to appeal to a lot of buyers.  I expect to see other developers follow suit soon and to be able to offer clients very attractive homes at affordable prices.

There is still a big lack of beach homes and homes with ocean views available in the area but hopefully those will be coming along as well, both inside and outside of the gated communities.  A beautiful 2 bedroom/2 bath home by Gilles St. Gilles was recently purchased as a resale for $315,000 in the Azueros community in Los Destiladeros.

Opportunities in Pedasi

Panama Equity has just listed two prime lots in Costa Pedasi available for resale.  One is an ocean front lot of 1,385sqm (1/3 acre) for $285,000.  The other is a second-line lot of 1,467sqm for $124,700.  Both prices are negotiable and are already discounted 20% OFF of developer pricing.

We also have a 1.3 hectare (3.3 acre) ocean view piece of land about five minutes from Playa Venao that is just steps to a great beach.  This unique property is priced at $200,000 and the per meter price on this land is WAY less than other land in the area and the owner will sell half the land for $120,000.  Several nice homes, a boat ramp and new pizza parlor are within proximity to this great piece of land.  Power and water are already installed and the land is ready for building.

 

In Pedasi we have a fenced 2,000sqm (1/2 acre) lot on the main street just outside of town for only $50,000.  This would be perfect for a business or large home.  We also have several houses in the $120-$140k price range beautiful home lots starting at $25,000.

Thanks for reading!  We are always available to answer any questions you may have about the real estate market in Pedasi.  If you are in the area, please stop by our office on Main Street, downtown Pedasi!


Filed Under: Real Estate, Survival Kit Items

Roy Knight, an update

July 17, 2012 by 4 Comments

Back in May 2012 I wrote a piece on the carpetbaggers who come to Panama and exploit others. One of the characters in the discussion was a man locally known as Roy Knight. Until then  I am going to discuss only the criminal charges for fraud discussed in May because I have the documents. This is a fast simple, to the point update.  If any of the other people who told me they have legal issues with Roy want to provide court documents, I will share them also.

In this case Roy was personally charged with the crime of fraud. The charges are criminal and were instigated by another expat who alleged Roy, personally, sold him land that Roy did not own. The public court record in this incident alleges Roy sold the land, that money was deposited into a bank account in Panama to his benefit and that he never delivered the land and in fact was never an owner of the land sold.

This allegation made it through a prosecutor and to a judge in the local equivalent of a preliminary hearing. The trial which could have ended up with Roy either acquitted or jailed was scheduled for last week.

Just prior to the trial Roy made an offer of financial restitution which was accepted by the complainant and under the laws of Panama the criminal charges were dropped.

Roy was neither convicted, nor acquitted, but paid sufficient restitution to resolve the matter.

Panama is a Mecca for white collar crime. To those who do any business in Panama do not deal on a handshake; have your own lawyer and good contracts. Contracts and actions do matter here, but only if it is in writing. In this case the legal system worked to the satisfaction of the plaintiff but it is always best to avoid court in any country.

If choose to do business with Roy,  that is your decision. If you discover  you need to contact the lawyer who successfully forced him to pay this time, he is Julio Espinosa Brown.

Julio Espinosa Brown , jcbrown@cwpanama.net

 

 


Filed Under: Government, Legal, Real Estate, Survival Kit Items Tagged With: , , ,

TCM: Heliconias and the environmental reality

June 19, 2012 by 1 Comment

Today in Boquete Panama at the Tuesday meeting Carla Black provided some education about the genus of plants known as Heliconias.

According the Wikipedia “Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, wild plantains or false bird-of-paradise. The last term refers to their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply referred to as heliconias.”

Carla showed some specimens ranging from small to one cut into sections so she could transport it’s thirty foot stalk. She discussed her garden, one I have not seen for several years and her up coming plant sale June 30- July 1. More on that at her website http://www.heliconiagarden.com/ .

In all of the discussion that happened one part stuck in my head, Carlas trip into the Nogbe Comarca with the Panama Audubon Society. The bird watchers went to see the birds, Carla and her husband Angel went to find Heliconias in the wild. In addition to discovering many heliconias they did not know they observed the destruction of the forests in the comarca. People clearing land for pasture even when they had no animals to put onto the pasture. The destruction of what is a unique environment, in this case only for the hope of future gain, not even a reality.

If I was Christian I would be preaching that we are only Stewards of this planet. Stewardship in a Christian context refers to the responsibility that Christians have in maintaining and using wisely the gifts that God has bestowed. God wishes human beings to be his collaborators in the work of creation, redemption and sanctification. Increasingly this has referred to environmental protectionism. This also includes traditional Christian Ministries that share the resources of treasure, time and talent. [2] wikipedia

If I had a pulpit I would be preaching Panthesim. Pantheism is the view that the Universe (or Nature) and God (or divinity) are identical. Wikipedia. Actually since the Internet made me a minister, perhaps I need to find a pulpit. Unfortunately not being a citizen here my rights to point out the obvious are limited to whispering on this blog.

Many of us came to Panama because of it’s extraordinary beauty. When I arrived in Boquete I said I had no idea there were so many shades of green, all those trees along the path from Panama City. Costa Rica has recognized their treasure and protects huge areas from development preserving them for the future and becoming a tourist mecca. Panama, it’s government and too often it’s people, see what is created by god or nature, as a only something to be used, consumed or destroyed for a profit; this is short term thinking.

Please do not read this a tree hugger manifesto, read it as a plea for balance. There needs to be a balance, nothing will prevent people from chopping trees for lumber, but they could plant more for the future. Nothing will prevent urbanizations and new hotels, but they can be built in a balanced environment. Many tourists and residents would like to see heliconias from their windows and monkeys in the trees, many of us flee from cities to escape concrete and cars. Destroying irreplaceable rain forest for pasture is poor land management. Developers, be they indigenous trying to raise cattle or builders of hotels need a perspective  that is longer term. Think of our children and generations to come.

We lose species daily and one day our grandchildren or their children will see nothing but trees in museums and wonder what it was like before the paved over Paradise. (thank you again Joanie Mitchell and Ron Cobb).



Filed Under: Featured, Real Estate, Survival Kit Items, Tuesday Mornings Tagged With: , , , ,

Boquete Condominiums in Volcancito

August 2, 2011 by 10 Comments

I have rarely written about construction projects in the Boquete Panama area. I wrote once about Montanas de Caldera and if I were to write again the story would be very different. Still, because I know there is a need for quality condos, built to North American standards in Boquete I am going to discuss what I saw at Boquete Condo Homes in Volcancito.

Boquete Condos


The developer of the project is a friend of mine and if you knew him you would know he strives for quality in his life. That reflects on this project. He has learned as he has built and created very nice, simple, North American quality, two bedroom condos for about $110,000.

If you have not had a building experience in Panama you might wonder why this is so exciting or worth a posting here. Building in Panama is not easy. Finding people who can build to North American standards is a challenge. Finding people who know plumb, level and square is a challenge. Preventing building materials from sprouting legs at night is a challenge. Building is a challenge, so when you find someone who builds them, then sells them so that you actually know that you will receive what you paid for it is a lucky find.

These Condos are located very close to town in lower Volcancito, but far enough to avoid the noise that sometimes floats from the fair grounds.

Building number two of a planned eight is currently under construction, each building has four units, two on each level. Each unit is 1440SF as measured in Panama, meaning everything under roof, inside space is 1000SF. That 1440 SF number provides a large covered porch and laundry area, both important essentials in the Boquete lifestyle.

Construction techniques are evolving as the project progresses. Building two is M2 construction, the next will be steel and concrete panels, engineered for a 9.5 earthquake. Short of Baru loosing it’s top that building will survive about any shake possible.

The project has it’s own water storage, pumps, active septic system and all the basics. All the inside plumbing is Pex, which means fewer fittings and fewer problems with leaks in the future. This becomes very important to those who know how local plumbers work with PVC, the standard of all Panama plumbing and source of geysers in all areas.

Pex interconnect

If you are looking for a good investment the ROI on these units is excellent, they are renting for about $750 a month, that would be about 8% a year ROI. If you are interested in more information follow the breadcrumbs to Boquete Condos at this link.


Filed Under: Constuction, Featured, Real Estate, Survival Kit Items

Boquete Panama Real Estate

September 1, 2009 by 1 Comment

Panama has become a destination of choice for English speaking retirees from many countries. A growing population is migrating from the United States. Panama has the unique distinction of almost one hundred years of American presence. Because of the Panama Canal and the long term US occupation of the Canal Zone, Panamanians are accustomed to English speakers and indeed many are bilingual. The cultural gap is less than in Mexico.

Boquete Panama is a unique colony in the remote western mountains of Panama about thirty minutes north of David Panama in Chiriqui Provence. The climate is temperate, the population a mixture of ethnic groups from around the planet.

As the world economy has melted down I was curious about how it has effected the Boquete Panama real estate market. This week I met with Janeth Gomez-Suarez of Casa Solution. Casa Solution is the most visible real estate brokerage in Boquete.

I asked Janeth if houses and properties are selling and if the price structure has dropped as the US and Panama City markets have lowered. I was surprised to hear the Real Estate business in Boquete is alive and well. People are coming to Boquete and shopping for houses. Most sales are in the two to three hundred thousand dollar range for homes. Sellers are a bit more open to offers and some will take less than asking prices. Most sellers are under no pressure to sell so although prices are not increasing, properties are not offered or sold at fire sale prices.

In addition there are many perspective buyers waiting to sell in the US so they can move As the resale housing market in the US recovers this market is set to boom.

The obvious question is why. There are several groups of buyers coming to Boquete. People who are politically disaffected, people who are economic realists and people who just want to change their lives. The politically disaffected come in cycles as the politics in US changes and many current residents left the US under G. W. Bush, the new group dislike the current administration.

A more interesting group are those baby boomers who realize they now have less. Less equity in their homes, less in their retirement savings, less need to consume and a desire to chance a change in exchange for a different life at a lower cost.

Boquete homes and properties are not the least expensive in Panama. The cultural and environmental aspects along with a new pro-investment government are becoming encouraging indicators of future growth. The crystal ball on Boquete seems pretty clear, growth is happening now, growth will continue and accelerate.

In July Business Week called Panama the “New Florida”, their reasoning is a mirror of mine and a harbinger of a bright future for Boquete.


Filed Under: Real Estate, Survival Kit Items Tagged With: , , ,

Twisting at Panama’s Beach Towns

June 25, 2009 by 3 Comments

It is summer, or it is winter depending upon region perspective. Either way it has been a shuttle from Boquete Panama to Playa Blanca Panama to Panama City. Between furnishing and pushing for the post occupancy completion of Heather’s condo at Playa Blanca and visiting doctors in Panama City, it has been a highway experience. I can tell I have been driving too much when I can predict where the traffic police will be hiding.

The condo experience has some lessons for future buyers. Most contracts for new construction in Panama require final payment when an occupancy permit is issued. In our North American concept an occupancy permit might imply that the building and apartment are ready to be occupied. Leave that naive concept at the airport.
playablancaPanama.jpg
In Panama occupancy permits are issued long before the building is complete. It seems by observation that at some time in the course of construction, perhaps when the builder needs to collect more funds from buyers to make payroll, the permit is magically granted. I think the official logic is you need the permit to turn on the electricity, which of course is long before completion. In any event when we first occupied this condo it had no gas, limited water pressure and a long punch list of defects. We now have gas, water, electricity, Internet and a long punch list of defects. The builder and developer have smiles of their faces and appear to be moving on to new projects leaving the punch list to be handled by divine intervention. It will be amusing to see if they honor their warranty and expensive if they do not.

Yesterday we went to a beach area, gringo, social event at Twister restaurant in Coronado. Twister is a fusion of pseudo Mexican and pizza that must appeal to someone. In any event the gathering had about fifty people from far and wide, we met two of them. The significant observation about these events is that here and in Panama City there are periodic gatherings of the English speaking tribes. In Boquete we have so much more.

Boquete has a rich small town culture for English speakers. For better or worse Boquete Panama is a micro environment of Anglophones in Panama. Boquete is a very different environment both climatically and culturally than the rest of the country. This is a double edged sword, nice if you want to isolate yourself in a micro culture and not so if you want to live in the real Panama.

I know Boquete Angophones who live in Boquete, fly to Panama City, take a cab to Tocumen and leave the country. They never learn the language or culture of their new home country. In my opinion they are missing out on the opportunity of their lives. Why move here if you want to live in the US or Canada?


Filed Under: Constuction, Opinion, Real Estate, Survival Kit Items Tagged With: , ,

A Tale of Taxes

May 2, 2009 by 9 Comments

I not writing this as a manifesto nor a slur but as advice to future property buyers in Panama. After more than two years of effort, two lawyers and significant expense I have partially undone a critical error.

When I purchased my Finca in the hills of Jaramillo I bought not from a Panamanian or developer experienced with the tax laws of Panama but from a pair of gringos who were naive. I too was naive and in self confession, a bit stupid. I failed to ask the right questions and did not yet understand that in Panama information is rarely offered without asking right questions.

To put this discussion and the lesson into context you need to know the Real Estate tax laws of Panama. Most developers here are selling condos or small parcels of land and will discuss the 20 year tax exemption for improvements. It is real as long as the rules are followed and the rubber stamp man does his job. The exemption however does not cover the dirt, the land, tierra.

All land valued at over $30,000 a parcel has a tax due annually. Don’t expect a tax bill in the mail. It is your responsibility to know and to pay or you will have penalties and interest accrue. They will bite you if you ever decide to sell your property.

Taxable Amount Rate percentage (%) Accumulated (US$)
Under US$30,000 zero
US$30,001 to US$50,000 1.75%
US$50,001 to US$75,000 1.95%
Over US$75,000 2.1%

If you own property valued at $100,000 you owe $2,100.00 a year in property taxes. The value is determined by the recorded sale. If it values your $150,000 purchase as $50,000 improvements and $100,000 land then you have land valued at $100,000 and a $50,000 house with a possible 20 year exemption. If you valued $75,000 for a house, $45,000 for personal property transfered and $30,000 for land you may have no property taxes for 20 years.

Why the conditionals on the house exemption, if you do not build, be sure the exemption already exists and transfers to you and see how many years remain . If you build, be sure you are within the rules of the exemption stature.

There are ways to structure a sale to reduce if not avoid this tax burden. In the paraphrased words of ex-justice of the US Supreme Court you are not obligated to pay more taxes than you owe, The same rules apply in Panama.

If you have a farm on your property there might be a MIDA exemption. It will exempt a property of $100,000 value or less if there is no house on the property. Farms in Panama do not have houses. You might want to segregate your property into multiple parcels and apply for exemptions on these new smaller fincas without houses and valued under $100,000.

These and several other lessons were learned late for me. You can do better if you have a good lawyer to help you and I recommend the lawyer who helped me untangle the bureaucratic mess. If you are not yet in Panama you probably do not yet understand that finding a good lawyer who actually does his job and communicates is a challenge.

I have found Carlos helpful, communicative, knows immigration and property law and is bilingual. His English both language and comprehension are excellent. Carlos Olmos is in David, his telephone is 6619 8581. I am making his information public because he is a rare find and has followed through with each person I have sent to him over the past year.

This is one of those cases of learn from my mistake and you can save thousands of dollars and endless recrimination.


Filed Under: Constuction, Government, Real Estate, Survival Kit Items, Taxes Tagged With: ,

Montanas de Caldera Boquete Panama

April 2, 2009 by 13 Comments

Updated August 8, 2012: This article was then, much has changed, today I would not write the same thing. See this Post for more current information http://www.boqueteguide.com/?p=8262

Almost two years ago I visited a dusty, windy site proposing to be a major new development in Boquete Panama. When I drove into the gates of Montañas de Caldera I saw little that would suggest hundreds of houses in a planned North American styled community. On that first trip I met Jane, who along with her father John, are the developers of the project. Jane was located in a ramshackle building filled with plots, maps, drawings and promises. Even two years ago I knew many local projects never happen, many start then stop and only one, Valle Escondido seemed to be completed. As Jane waved her arms and painted a vision of the future, I smiled and thought, another pipe dream.

As serendipity would have it, Heather and I are currently residing in Montanas de Caldera. As our house is being renovated we are staying with our friends Geoff and Caroline who live in a three bedroom house surrounded by a lawn, trees and construction. Montanas de Caldera is taking shape, the visions of two years ago are the concrete forms of today.boquetepanama035.jpg

Being an opportunist and currently very focused on construction I have used my vantage point to learn a bit more about the project. My friend Geoff is managing the project and at my request has taken the time to orient me to something unlike any other development project I have seen in Panama. In summary, Montanas is more like a planned community in the US than a project in Panama.

Two years ago Jane described the massive planned investment into infrastructure. Today you can see it or more correctly, you cannot. The water, sewage and electrical systems are all underground. The internal roads are laid out, many are paved, others close to completion. Instead of the traditional V drains, known as car traps, along the roads there is a real underground storm sewer system. It does not look like Panama.
boquetepanama034.jpg
Unlike other Boquete projects I have seen, water is not an issue and not dependent on the Municipo or a local Junta. Montanas has multiple springs on their property, they harvest water, pump it into storage tanks and are adding three more 330,000 liter tanks. In addition they are planning their own development wide filtering and UV treatment, so each house will not need to do filtration.

Equally impressive from the infrastructure perspective is the sewage treatment concept, actually the reality. Instead of septic tanks each house has it’s own mini active sewage treatment plant. The condos share a massive plant being installed. These are active bacterial processors that take raw sewage and produce water ready for UV treatment and drinking, not grey water. The cleaned water is being discharged into the alluvial drainage after treatment. I have never seen this type of practical environmental effort in any other project. There is a video of the system at this link. boquetepanama0221.jpg
The image above is the underground chamber for the FAST sewage treatment plant being installed for the condominiums.

boquetepanama0211.jpg
Unlike so many driveways I have seen in Panama the concrete being poured here has rebar in it, not just 3/16 wire or worse, nothing at all.

We have been living in one of the first houses completed in the project and had the opportunity to witness the construction in various phases of many others. After seeing disastrous projects around town and monitoring my own remodeling I am a curious observer.

Perhaps the most interesting observation is that few owners are on site. The construction is being managed by Geoff and his staff, which includes two on site architects, Wladimir and Giovanna. I have known Geoff for about two years and know he is a perfectionist. The process of implementing US standards into the construction has been an education for many of the local contractors and employees but Geoff will not accept less. Although occasionally frustrated by having things removed and replaced to his standards, he says the workforce is learning.
boquetepanama030.jpg
This is Giovanna in a condo kitchen checking on the tile installation. Unlike most other projects, Montanas has hired specialists to work on each house. They have plumbers, electricians, tile layers, roofing people on staff doing the trades in which they have been trained, instead of block layers installing pipe and wire.

Instead of adhering to the Panama electrical code which is the US electrical code of 1978 they have fought a battle to use the latest US code. Doors, cabinets, water pipe and more are being imported directly from the US, Australia and other points of origin. After watching local plumbers gluing PVC together at most projects I was impressed by the newer PEX plumbing system being used in the houses here, no glue joints to break. In general the project quality is to North American expectations.

After years of hearing horror stories it has been refreshing to find a project where the developers have the will and resources to actually follow through. Maybe that is why Montanas is continuing to sell lots and continuing to build houses while other projects in the area have come to a screeching halt.

If you are looking for property in Boquete Panama and want a North American style subdivision I suggest looking at all of those being constructed and then go to Montanas de Caldera and compare the vision and the reality of what is here.

In re-reading this I realized it reads like a marketing piece written for Montanas, it is not. I would not live in a planned community. However if I was looking for this lifestyle, Montanas is head and shoulders above the other projects I see being built in Boquete today, both in concept and execution.


Filed Under: Community, Constuction, General Interest, Real Estate, Survival Kit Items Tagged With: , , ,

A Rainbow over Boquete Panama

January 17, 2009 by 1 Comment

Yesterday I photographed this rainbow over the Feria Bridge in Boquete.boquetefloodladera013.jpg
It inspired some thought of not too long ago, November 2008 when the Feria was cancelled and Boquete struggled to recover from the floods of 2008. I later drove by the Ladera Hotel. This photo was taken during the flooding.
hotelladeraorwhatsleftofit.jpg

Today the relic of the Ladera looks like this from the other side of the hotel ruin.
boquetefloodladera011.jpg

Here is a closeup of the corner that is literally floating on air.
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The Ladera owners made a major investment in their hotel, it was built in the path of what is both a beautiful and frequently angry river. Those who live here have little doubt about why a permit was issued to build the hotel, more people question the wisdom of asking for the permit. The question and the lesson is never to underestimate the power of mother nature or greed.

In this dry season Boquete seems to be flooded in a different way, flooded with people seeking to invest in property many speculating that Boquete Panama will continue to grow despite the world economic melt down. Economists in Panama seem to agree, Panama had a reported growth rate of 9.5% in 2008 and a projected growth of 5.5% for 2009. These numbers may or may not be reliable but the mood is growth is coming. The reality is building permits applications are down in Boquete and a slow down is looming here also

The message to those who do not have a long history here is “you are not in Kansas anymore” do not leave your brains at the airport. Research before invest, this could be a great opportunity if either you have cash you want to invest into a long term property speculation or if you are ready to flee from another part of the world.

There are both great opportunities and great risks here and both will continue to be real in the near future.


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