Our goal is to help real estate investors make smarter decisions by providing valuable data and information.

Costa Rica, Belize, Panama and Nicaragua have all come onto the radar of international real estate investors. But there is an information gap that we are planning to fill.

We’re working behing the scenes to provide the hard and soft market information that investors need. Armed with this information, investors can take action with more confidence.

We are in beta at the moment and will provide updates during the second half of 2008 as we start to build out the site. We don’t want to start with global coverage that feels in-complete. So the first phase will focus on Costa Rica real estate, Panama real estate, Nicaragua real estate and Belize real estate.

And don’t wait for one breakthrough launch. We’re going to be adding layers of information over time as we compile and analyze the data and build our network.

Could we be witnessing the beginnings of a green movement in Nicaragua real estate?

On a hillside a few kilometers south of San Juan del Sur on Nicaragua’s Pacfic coast, a green community, completely off-grid, is being born.

A team from Earthship Biotecture (gurus in green building from the US) and a local Nicaraguan crew have joined forces to build the first Nicaraguan Earthship - a house made out of all recycled materials that generates its own energy, recyles its own waste and harvests its own water.

A day-to-day property construction blog is being written and we are currently on Day 24.

If you are interested in the green movement or green real estate of any kind - this is something to watch. In the words of Dave Kniffen:

Developments happen everywhere, so we’ve made a choice on how we are going to develop. If we don’t do it this way, someone else will do it their way. Maybe our way helps the local community, instead of using them to help ourselves. Maybe our way is a little better for the environment than the conventional build. At the end of the day though, it’s a logical decision.

We live in a world, especially in Nicaragua, of limited resources. A sustainable home gives you total freedom and independence. The decision to build or live in an “off grid” home is not moral, it just makes sense. Who you rely on is who controls your life.

Create your own electricity, capture your own water, treat your own sewage, and grow your own food and then you are not talking about ideals of independence or freedom, you’re living them.

Read more about Dave’s vision for this green real estate community and help spread the word.

The National Association of Realtors released a report this month that pulls together data and trends on Americans living abroad. This kind of data is hard to come by making this white paper an important contribution to the field.

Download the paper here.

The data does not include Americans still living in the US who have bought second homes and investment property abroad. This number is likely to exceed the number who have moved abroad.

Belize offers some of the most affordable Carribean real estate in the region.  And some of the properties for sale are magnificent.  Have a look at this private island for $650,000.

Click here for a Video Tour

Central America continues to attract investors and tourists alike.  But not all countries have the same pulling power. 

The graph below shows which countries rack up the highest number of searches for real estate online based on the generic country-followed-by-real-estate search phrase.  As you can see, there are more searches made for “costa rica real estate” than for “el salvador real estate.”  And every day the search term ”belize real estate” is typed into search engines more times than “guatemala real estate.”

The results that underpin the graph above are for July 07.  But the trends have stayed the same for a number of years.  Perhaps we will see the numbers of searches for “Panama real estate” and “Belize real estate” catch up with “Costa Rica real estate.”  At the moment though, Costa Rica is the leader for real estate searching online.

There are over 100 real estate developments dotted along Nicaragua’s Pacific coast.  Most are located in the southern part of the coastline between El Astillero and the border with Costa Rica with the fishing town of San Juan del Sur emerging as the major investment hub for the region. 

The “Tola Riviera” lies within this southern stretch slightly to the North of San Juan del Sur and is home to some of the oldest and most established beachfront projects.  See the links below from Coldwell Banker Nicaragua for location maps showing the major developments.

Map of real estate developments south of San Juan del Sur
Map of real estate developments San Juan del Sur and to the North
Map of real estate developments on the Tola Rivieria

Further north lies Nicaragua’s Central Pacific Coast.  A stretch due west of Nicaragua’s capital city, Managua and closeset to the international airport.  A number of high end real estate developments are taking advantage of this strategic location.

Map of real estate developments on Nicaragua’s central Pacific coast

The real estate opportunities available in Central America span a range of risk / reward profiles.  There is real estate on offer to suit different investment goals.  Properties that are good candidates for short term capital appreciation exist as well as properties in lower risk environments with the promise of an immediate rental income. 

Of course there are markets within markets so the graphic provides only a general representation of relative position of the country as a whole. The Costa Rica real estate market is the most mature, Panama and Belize real estate represent classic middle markets - not quite emerging and not quite developed - with Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala at earlier stages of the development curve.  We plan to dig a little deeper and highlight the relative positions and profile of different real estate areas within each country.  More on this to follow…

National real estate associations exist for most counties in Central America.  And, given the sharp growth of real estate investment in the region, these bodies seem to be getting more active. There are some big ticket items on the table not least the question of licencing, code of ethics and ultimately (maybe) development of an MLS.   The associations are as follows:

• The Costa Rica Chamber of Real Estate (CCCBR), Costa Rica Global Association of REALTORS® (CRGAR),
• Camara Salvadoreña de Bienes Raíces (CSBR),
• Asociacion Nacional de Agencias de Bienes Raíces de Honduras (ANABIR),
• Camara Nicaraguense de Corredores de Bienes Raíces (CNCBR),
• Asociacion Panamena de Corredores y Promotores de Bienes Raices (ACOBIR),
• Camara de Corredores de Bienes Raices de Guatemala (CCBRG)
• Association of Real Estate Brokers of Belize
• Federation of Real Estate Associations of Central America and the Caribbean (FeCePAC) - an umbrella organisation that ties the other bodies together with a focus on integration and networking.

The recent activity is a good sign.  The FeCePAC and CNCBR conference held in Managua, Nicaragua last week had a strong turnout with some key action steps to take for more regional integration of real estate approaches and standards.  We were also pleased to see the recent announcement that the Association of Real Estate Brokers of Belize will be working together with the government to establish a code of conduct and general property industry standards.   The US National Association of Realtors (NAR) currently has bilateral agreements with real estate associations in Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Panama and is affiliated with the Federation of Real Estate Associations of Central America.

Most of the foreign buyers for real estate in Central America are from the US - with California and Florida leading the way.  The graph adds the detail to this trend.  It includes not only buyers but people researching Central American real estate markets over the internet.  The last two years have seen a slight but perceptible shift with more buyers appearing from Europe and South Asia.  Many of whom are likely to have business interests in, and/or spend time in, the US.

Savvy investors are always on the look out for emerging destinations - especially those with a twist on a familiar theme. The Inland Mountains region of Matagalpa and Jinotega could be just that. The area shares many of the characteristics of Boquete - probably the hottest spot for real estate in the Panama after Panama City - such as enchanted “hidden” valleys, mists that shroud the mountaintops, a perfect spring like climate, rushing rivers, flowers and high quality coffee. 

This is where you come to commune with nature, hike, fish, cycle, kayak and recharge your senses in a setting of peace and tranquility. Prices in the area are still 1/4 of what you will find in Panama and around 1/3 of property on Nicaragua’s Pacific coast. Read more on the mountainous, coffee growing areas of Nicaragua.