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Because I feel rather disinclined to settle down in the developed world, my interest in real estate there may be summarized as “more than limited”. Because I feel a bunch more at ease in the less developed world, my growing interest in real estate zeroes in on the less developed world. As far as I can get a grip on the situation there, real estate prices in Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines tend to be a lot lower than in the developed world. But my interest in Asia may be described as a little limited. Because I currently reside in Mexico and feel very at ease there, the real estate market there manages to attract most of my attention. As usual, my entire system is opposed to following crowds. That’s the reason why property on the Pacific Coast and the Maya Riviera doesn’t make me jump for joy. Because of the property revival going on there, the thundering herd seems to have arrived already, which always affects prices. I fortunately reside a little off the beaten track. Property prices there appear to be more civilized. However, I don’t wanna cackle before the eggs are laid. Let’s wait and see a little more. Of course there’s a second – less personal – reason why I’m inclined to wait a little more with property, no matter whether it’s in Colima or somewhere else. Everybody with at least half a brain between his ears is aware of it. To quote The Economist: ”Measured by the increase in asset values over the past five years, the global housing boom is the biggest financial bubble in history. The bigger the boom, the bigger the eventual bust”. In a nutshell, yours truly is rather inclined to wait for the bust. Again, let’s wait and see. When global property prices crater, it may be the right time to join the party. You may be wondering why I’m starting to toy with the idea of acquiring property in Colima. The reason is quite simple. When I arrived in Colima a little more than four years ago I looked old and tired, to quote Mexican friends of mine. Four years down the road, I’m probably more healthy and at ease than I’ve ever been before. That’s arguably reason enough to settle down properly in Colima. On the other hand, I don’t tend to mince words. About eighty percent of Colima’s population are virtually aliens for me. However, that’s no reason for not considering acquiring property here. It’s just crucial to keep a healthy distance from the aliens. I’m quite good at it. All this means that yours truly can well imagine doing something about property in Colima, in due course, when the time is ripe. In case you look at purchasing property in the less developed world, and your emphasis isn’t on riding into the sunset (settling down) there but on bargain hunting, there are a few interesting options available. But they entail a little risk. After trying to get a handle on the topic, I do have the impression that there are some marvelous property bargains available in some marvelous trouble spots. Peter Caroe,
a partner in the global real estate firm Knight Frank, who specializes
in Africa, notes that a four bedroom house with a swimming pool on a golf
course in Zimbabwe can be acquired for about US $36.000. Peter adds: “But
you’d have to be a brave man to buy now”. A place a little closer to my
current home turf Mexico worth sussing out for property bargains, in particular
beachfront lots, is Haiti. But again, being a little brave in this respect
does no harm.
However, looking at Mexico’s history with the aid of hindsight, there seems to be a pattern of dramatic announcements while the follow up leaves a little to be desired. As far as I can get a handle on the topic, it appears more realistic to note that Mexico’s oil production has been rather constant since 1998. At the same time, Mexico continues to import natural gas from the United States. The country’s strategy seems to focus on boosting domestic gas production for the domestic market. In case that strategy is going to be successfully executed, it will eliminate Mexico’s dependence on imports from the United States. As a result, more crude oil may be exported. Because I tend to be a little opinionated, my approach to boost my current stomping ground’s oil and gas production reflects my attitude to life in general. Just get the state and the government out of that business. At the very least, put together some joint ventures with the corporate sector. Even better, let the oil and gas exploration as well as production be done entirely by the corporate sector. However, to get the corporate sector involved in Mexico’s exploration and production of oil and gas, it seems to be necessary to change the country’s constitution. As far as I understand the situation rightly, organizing a majority for that sort of thing appears to be rather slim. And slim seems to be out of town. All this indicates to me that Mexico’s future in terms of oil and gas production looks a little muddled. However, Matthew Simmons – an investment bank specializing in energy investments – reckons that “Mexico will be a player in the Western Hemisphere energy industry and bears watching with a closer eye than it has historically been accorded”. I’m tempted to remark “let’s bloody hope so”. In a nutshell, looking at both the property market off the beaten track and the energy market in the Americas, I may currently be at the right place at the right time. But once more, let’s bloody hope so…. The following is a list of articles written by Jurgen for the magazine:
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Some
Thoughts On Living In Latin America ~ 