Archive for the ‘Real estate trends’ Category
We’ve just compiled Nicaragua real estate market statistics for 2009 and compared this against our 2008 data. With price falls across the main real estate categories, it’s clear that Nicaragua is not immune to the global contagion of sliding property markets.
The numbers that tell the story
Median asking prices in real estate developments that target the international buyer have fallen 9.57% for single family houses, 7.43% for condos and 10.54% for serviced lots since 2008.
Looking deeper into the numbers, we found that beach front lots (the premium end of the market in lots) showed the largest fall in median price at 20%.
But, this pattern of greater falls in premium categories doesn’t hold true for houses or condos. (In fact beach front houses showed a very modest fall of 0.63%)
After beach front lots, long ocean view houses showed the next largest drop at 15.33%. Overall (close) ocean view property held its own quite well against the other property categories, but if houses or condos only have a distant ocean view (defined as ‘long ocean view’), median prices have fallen more since 2008.
Not immune
Nicaragua, is clearly feeling the pinch of the slowing global economy. The falling GDP real growth rate from 3.8% in 2007 to 2% in 2008 (according to the CIA Word Factbook) paints the picture for the local economy. But the biggest factor at play in the international real estate space is the fall-off in demand from the US, Canada and, to some extent, European countries. Many of these buyers no longer have access to the necessary capital (be it from investment portfolios or built-up equity in their properties at home) to purchase a property abroad.
But, despite the darkening economic mood, Nicaragua is not experiencing the double digit drops we’ve seen in property markets elsewhere. One of the reason for this is the low levels of lender mediated activity in Nicaragua, making the real estate market stickier. There could be some pockets of finance-driven speculation, but the broad foreclosure waves as experienced in the US are not a factor. Another reason could be the low cost of living possible in Nicaragua. This is attracting a particular type of ‘lifestyle purchaser’ looking for a more affordable retirement.
The upshot for investors
All-in-all if you’re a buyer looking at Nicaragua, you’re in the driving seat. The factors you’d expect from a buyer’s market are present: developers are offering incentives, charter programs, package deals, heavy discounts for cash buyers, extended financing and so on. In fact, if you negotiate hard enough, you may get a deal of a lifetime.
From Reveal Real Estate - charting trends in international real estate in Central America focusing on Belize real estate, Costa Rica real estate, Nicaragua real estate, and Panama real estate.
The state of the real estate market in Nicaragua 2009
June 27th, 2009
Property investors looking at Nicaragua need good data to make good decisions. Until now, finding this data has been quite difficult. There are no centrally held databases collecting market data and no Multiple Listing System (MLS).
Our goal at Reveal Real Estate is to plug this information gap. We aggregate asking prices from real estate developments that target the international buyer and put this information online. It’s the next best thing to a functioning MLS or centralized database. Learn more about our data.
2009 Nicaragua property price report
The table looks at property in real estate developments - effectively the luxury end of Nicaragua’s property market.
Most of the developments are located in key ‘purchasing destinations’ or property hotspots such as San Juan del Sur, Tola Rivieria, and the Central Coast, offering close acccess to surf breaks, swimming beaches and other tourism attractions.
Ocean view single family homes registered the highest median price in 2009 - But when looking at price per square foot, condos come in as more expensive.
The only two property categories to have a median price/sqft greater than $200 are beachfront condos and ocean view condos.
Long ocean view lots have a median price/sqft of $4.11 - This is lower than the median price for serviced lots that have views of a golf course or fresh water (Lake Apoyo and Apanas primarily).
Beachfront and ocean view property has the highest price/sqft - This holds true for houses, condos and lots.
But if your view of the ocean is from a distance, you may find that lake view property has a higher price/sqft.
Comparing property prices with 2008
We’ve in the process of comparing this new 2009 data with prices in 2008 and will be revealing the trends in later posts.
We’ll also be digging deeper, breaking down the information by ‘property hotspot’ and running comparisons with other Central America markets.
From Reveal Real Estate - charting trends in international real estate in Central America focusing on Belize real estate, Costa Rica real estate, Nicaragua real estate, and Panama real estate.
Tags: Nicaragua
Posted in Real estate trends, Regional statistics and data | No Comments »
Fun with maps in Central America
May 8th, 2009
We’re using maps on Reveal Real Estate to help investors looking at individual real estate developments and property hotspots to see what’s nearby. After all, location is (nearly) everything in real estate. Our maps plot the following information:
Introducing country maps
We’ve now gone one step further and built a series of country maps. The maps load with all the map markers showing, but you can select individual markers to display by choosing from the drop down menu.
In aggregate the map markers tell us a great deal about a country overall. Here are some examples of maps we like:
This map of real estate developments in Nicaragua shows how the majority of developments fall in the south western part of the country. It’s the part of the country with the main tourism attractions, most dramatic geography and cooling lake breezes.
Check out Panama’s surf spots on the Panama map below. The waves are not only on the Pacific, you can also find breaks on the Caribbean side of the country.
Have a look at golf courses on this Costa Rica map - completed, planned and under construction. You’ll find that Costa Rica has more completed golf courses than other Central American countries.
And yes, Belize is all about diving - check out the dive spots along the Great Barrier reef on the Belize map below. The barrier reef in Belize is the largest in the Western Hemisphere and a World Heritage Site. (You can load a map showing World Heritage sites as well).
Here are the links again: Belize map; Nicaragua map; Costa Rica map and Panama map
Have a play around and tell us what you find. If you would like to include one of these maps on your website or blog, then contact us and we’ll be pleased to forward you the embed code. We’ll keep a link list of all sites that embed our maps.
This is an ongoing project, we’re planning to add more markers and functionality. What map markers should we add? Hospitals? Community projects? You tell us.
Posted in Real estate trends, Regional statistics and data | 2 Comments »
3 trends in Central American real estate as developers and buyers respond to market conditions
April 4th, 2009
Times are certainly tough. But sometimes its the tough times that provide space for innovation and new ideas. Yes, some real estate projects in Central America are stalling, but others are responding to the tough economic news with new products and attractive incentives to persuade buyers to purchase. Here are 3 trends that we’re seeing in the Central America real estate scene.
1) Developers are going to greater lengths to woo buyers
Developers, particularly those at early pre-construction stages, are pulling out the stops to generate sales and maintain project momentum. From guaranteed rental agreements, free in-country tours where all expenses are paid, lot/home packages where the home is built at cost, to attractive seller financing, special programs for defaulting buyers and even buy-back guarantees.
As one real estate agent remarked, ”It’s a way sellers can drop their prices without really dropping their prices.” Developers know that momentum is king. A stalled project is hard to re-start and prospects quickly sense a lack of activity and progress.
2) Plans are being scaled back, pushed back and offerings altered
Months are being added onto construction time-lines for golf courses, clubhouses, restaurants and even basic infrastructure work. Developers are no longer emphasizing trophy apartments and ostentatious mansions. Instead they’re releasing simpler, smaller and more functional properties more in line with the current economic mood.
Some are fractionalizing existing real estate to offer a more accessible price-point. There’s also more focus on green building to appeal to a demographic whose decisions take into account social and environmental considerations.
3) Re-sale properties offered for less than developer direct sales
Existing owners who are feeling the pinch are motivated to flip their properties and some are pricing them well below developer prices. In situations where they purchased pre-construction, the price for re-sales can be as much as 30-50% lower. Re-sale properties are harder to track down and don’t always have the same marketing support as developer direct sales. But right now, it’s worth putting in the effort to dig them out.
What trends are you seeing in the market place? Let us know in the comments below or leave a review of a property hotspot that you are familiar with.
The real estate market in Central America: In graphics
March 28th, 2009
Whether you’re in the market for real estate in Central America, or you are selling, market data matters more than ever. Without data how can you determine fair value, track where the market is heading or feel confident that you are making the right investment decision? Trouble is, in Central America market data and comps are not readily available from property institutes, registries or central bank databases.
To try and fill this data gap, we’ve collected data from real estate developments in Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Belize and put this information online. As part of our research we also collected country-level indicators that shed light on the investment climate. Here are some highlights from what we have found:
Real estate developments targeting the international buyer
Costa Rica has the largest number of real estate developments that target the international investor, with 34% of the total in our database. No surprise really. It’s been on the international real estate map for longest. Panama follows close behind. This is largely due to the explosion in condo projects in recent years in Panama City.
The price for an ocean view condo
The order from most expensive to least expensive country to buy an ocean view condo is Costa Rica - Belize - Panama - Nicaragua. The data looks at median price per sq.ft.
The ordering is what you would expect given the different levels of maturity of the markets and level of infrastructure. But did you think the differential between Costa Rica and the other countries would be greater? We did.
The average size for an ocean view condo in Costa Rica tends to be larger than in other countries, which may explain part of this. We’ll be publishing more data in later posts to dig into the comparatives further.
Internet searches on Google
There were more searches for ‘Costa Rica real estate’ on Google than for ‘Panama real estate’, ‘Belize real estate’ and ‘Nicaragua real estate’ combined. We predicted the order, but again were surprized by the differential between Costa Rica and the other countries - this time in the other direction.
Cost of living
Nicaragua stands out as offering the lowest cost of living. Using purchasing-power-parity (PPP) data we can determine what US$1,000 ‘adds up’ to in different countries. In the US $1,000 has the purchasing power of $1,000, but in Nicaragua it has a purchasing power equivalent to $2,629. We have to be careful not to draw too much from these averages as they don’t apply to all product categories. But for day-to-day goods and services your dollar will stretch further in all four countries than in the US.
Completed golf courses
There are several golf courses planned or under construction in the region. At least 3 in Nicaragua and 3 in Panama. The data below is for completed golf courses that can be played on. Before seeing the data, would you have guessed that there would be more than 2 completed golf courses in Nicaragua?
The data is drawn from research done in 2008, see notes to the data for more information. We’ll be updating for 2009 and charting the trends. Dig into our main site, run some searches, and check out the property hotspots and country indicators for Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica and Belize.
What’s your reaction to this data. Any surprizes for you?
Tell us about your real estate investment in Central America. Was it a triumph or a mistake?
March 19th, 2009
We’re looking for the inside scoop, your investment story. Why? Because we think personal insights, reflections and information direct from other investors will help those who come after make more informed decisions. It’s all about increasing market transparency and providing an additional lawyer of information to people researching the region.
So what makes a good review?
Reviews vary in tone and approach. Some deliver hard facts and quantitative data while others focus on softer attributes like the feel of a place or its reputation. Although there’s no single formula to follow, there are some content topics that we see in the best property reviews:
- Informed judgments based on real-life experience
- Comparisons between different options
- Examples (perhaps even with photos) of previous investments made and how they have performed
- Specific information on the kind of investor that would be be most suited to a particular area or property type
- Coverage of how a particular place or region has evolved over time
On Reveal Real Estate you’ll find reviews organized by property hotspot - the areas generating the most attention from international real estate investors.
Study after study has shown that people who read reviews say that their purchasing decisions have been influenced by what they have read. Your review may help someone confirm that an investment in a property hotspot is the right decision for them. Or it may result in them changing their mind about a buying decision.
And, over time, we want to highlight the people behind the best reviews and build a network of expert reviewers. If you are interested in joining the network, please contact us.
So, write a good review, upload a photo of an investment that you have made, demonstrate your expertise, and you’ll be helping those who come after you.
Tags: Ambergris Caye, Belize, Golf, Reviews, Tour
Posted in Property news, Real estate trends, site development | 1 Comment »
Highest, medium and lowest searches for real estate online
July 25th, 2007
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.
Risk and reward for real estate in Central America
March 21st, 2007
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…
Raising real estate industry standards across Central America
February 20th, 2007
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.
Posted in Property news, Real estate trends | 2 Comments »
California and Florida lead the way for buyers of real estate in Central America
February 17th, 2007
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.
