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Rincon
del Indio: This is my favorite sector in the area, centered around
parada 23. The area maintains a small-town feel. The beaches here are separated
from the rambla by tall, rolling dunes, and for most of the year they’re
deserted.
La Barra:
This
marks the end of the region on the eastern side. It’s not a neighborhood
of Punta del Este, but rather an independent, small seaside town. While
La Barra is a picturesque, quiet village in the off season, it’s known
for its hoards of carousing young people in January and February.
A shark
pool - At the end of our first day in town, we got a call from a realtor
at the hotel.
This was odd,
since no one knew where we were staying. As it turns out, knowing the week
we were arriving, this individual had called all of the downtown hotels
until he found us.
When we ignored
the first call, his next call came from the hotel lobby. Think this is
unusual? It’s not. It’s actually a good representation of the nature of
the Punta del Este market, especially in low season. There are more than
100 realtors operating in the area, and since none have exclusive listings,
it’s a free-for-all, with everyone after that commission dollar. This competition
can be good for the buyer, however, as it results in great service, quick
responses, and immediate action. Everyone I worked with was competent,
professional, and fast…no one wasted our time. Also, the selection of good,
quality homes is fantastic. I looked at more than 60 houses during a recent
visit, and all we re in my price range and had the features I’d asked for.
Here are
a few things to watch out for when dealing with realtors in this area:
Look for price
raising. You’ll often find a wide range of asking prices for the same house.
Sometimes this is because the owner lists the property with various realtors
at different prices, and sometimes—if they think you’ve got the money—it’s
because the realtor inflates the price of the house to increase the commission.
What to do? Try to contact the owner if you can. Ask neighbors, gardeners,
or passers-by, to see if anyone knows who lives there, and look them up.
I caught one realtor raising the price a whopping $30,000 over the owner’s
asking price. Be ready to negotiate with the realtor first. It’s customary
that the realtor call the owner with your offer before you go to the trouble
of signing an official contract. Most realtors, however, won’t call in
your presence if you’re making a low offer, but will say they’ll get back
to you… after which they’ll tell you that the offer was rejected. Did they
really call? Who knows? There seems to be no requirement that they convey
all offers. Every time a realtor refused to call in my presence, the offer
was rejected (we made four offers). The one time they called, it was accepted.Coincidence?
Not likely.
Double-check
the realtor’s answers. If you’re asking questions like, “Can they build
a highrise next door?” or “Are there mosquitoes here in the summer?” make
sure you double-check the answers you’re given with someone not interested
in the sale. The financial crisis of 2001 and 2002 dampened real estate
sales in Uruguay, with some property values dropping to less than 50% of
their pre-crash levels. During my first visit, two years ago, they were
still at a relative low point, but that’s changing quickly. Property values
are rising, and one person I know just netted a 120% gain on a three-year-old
property.
The hottest
sector in 2006
Condos and
apartments are leading the recovery, and have gone up significantly—approximately
10%—in the eight months since I was last here. Along Playa Brava, the authorities
have imposed a four-story limit on beachfront apartment buildings, which
has caused prices of those units to spike upward of $500,000…and they’re
selling out pre-construction. But most prices, while higher, are still
reasonable by any world standard for this quality of life.
The examples
given here are not the cheapest on the market, but provide a fair representation
of good value.
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On Playa Brava
at parada 3, a small, three-bedroom apartment with a limited ocean view
is selling for $70,000.
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On the peninsula,
a three-bedroom apartment is for sale with a view of the lighthouse and
the sea, for $85,000. Also on the peninsula, I found a larger, three-bedroom
apartment, with a view of the harbor, selling for $89,000.
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In San Rafael,
a one-bedroom apartment with an ocean view is selling for $35,000.
With respect to
post-crash prices, houses are lagging behind the rise in apartments to
some degree, having gone up about 5% in the last eight months—though this
is still good by most any standard. At the moment, I believe this is where
the best values lie. There’s a large inventory here—with houses to suit
every budget and style—ranging in price from $75,000 to more than $2 million. |
September
2006
