Archive for January, 2008
Azulera: Costa Rica Luxury
Azulera Resort Village on Costa Ricas breathtaking Guanacaste coast promises to be the luxury resort destination within the next two years.
By then, it is projected, Greg Normans challenging beach-to-mountain golf course will be completed as will the five- star Hyatt Regency Hotel and the 64 ultra-luxury condos that will be contained within this gated Brasilito complex.
The bio-sensitive Hyatt Regency Azulera Resort and Spa will coexist within a pristine tropical forest that stretches from mountain peaks to the white Pacific beaches below.
Following this first phase of development will be a large shopping and medical plaza and another projected 1000 condos, town homes and ocean view luxury estates.
We just returned from visiting the site and watched as Azulera owner-developer Anil Kothari (CEO Global Financial Group), golf legend Greg Norman, Hyatt executives, and Costa Rican Ministers of Transportation, Environment and Energy, and Tourism gathered for the formal groundbreaking ceremony that was finalized with the planting of a native Guanacaste tree near the beach.
We joined about 30 other real estate brokers from the US and Canada for the ceremony, and would spend the next few days learning more about the province of Guanacaste and this precious paradise. The spectacular natural beauty of the area struck us all, as did the gentle warmth of the Costa Ricans and, of course, the balmy climate. We learned that there is more biodiversity in Costa Rica than along the Amazon. This is because the climate is both sub tropical and tropical, and a varied terrain that ranges from plains to beach to jungle to mountains.
We all appreciated that Costa Rica is both a highly-educated country and one that fiercely protects its flora and fauna. Hunting is not allowed, and children are taught from an early age to treasure their natural environment, which includes magnificent foliage, various breeds of wild monkeys, parrots, macaws, and other exotic birds, along with reptiles of all sorts including iguanas and red-eyed lizards.
The Guanacaste coast is being developed with great care. The Four Seasons has developed a private resort to the north, Marriott is building a golf resort in nearby Pinellas and the Ritz Carlton is planning a luxury hotel with golf course and a 200-slip marina to the north of Azulera.
And just last month, Steve Case, founder of America Online (AOL) announced plans to open an $800 milllion beach resort with two boutique hotels just south of Playa Hermosa. At around the same time, two Minnesota developers announced that they would also be building a 150-room Regent Hotel on Guanacastes Papagayo Peninsula.
Guanacaste is a Costa Rican province abuzz with carefully-planned and eco-sensitive luxury development and we are honored to be among those representing the developer in the sale of the 64 Azulera luxury condos.
Additional articles about Azulera Resort Village, Guanacaste and Costa Rica will be forthcoming.
In the meantime, if you would like additional information about Azulera condo availabilities and pricing, please feel free to email me (roberta@sandiegopreviews.com) or call 877-818-8197 or 760-402-9101.
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read comments (1)2008 Luxury Home Design Trends
This piece is for those of us unable to make the biannual trek to Paris for the biannual Maison & Objet trade show that features the hottest home decor designs produced by the smartest and most influential names in the industry.
Those in the luxury home business are always on the prowl, trying to spot the latest trends that might help update, inspire and improve the luxury home decor.
Patty Bouley was fortunate enough to attend the Maison & Objet show and was able to sort through around 3000 new products and note the hot new home trends for 2008:
- Purple and grey are THE new color companions.The combination is classy and elegant and I am rethinking my bedroom colors.
- Nature gets glitzy. Floral patterns are now accented with metallics: Think bronze, platinum and silver.
- Aspen is hot. Look for nubby wools and furs, bare wood and hunting themes to create the cozy ski chalet feel.
- Morocco is in. Think perforated metal, hand-tooled leather, intricate textiles and hand blown glass. Great for eclectics.
- So is Japan. You will see vibrant colors (think red), stylized floral patterns, origami folds, and delicate hand stitching and embroidery,
Enjoy the following slide show from one of my favorite sites: PointClickHome
Bargains in Luxury Real Estate
To paraphrase Charles Dickens, these may be the best of times and the worst of times at least with San Diego real estate.
Few are surprised that the real estate bubble popped in the plethora of new home subdivisions that peppered San Diego County in the last few years.
Stupid loans and and unwitting buyers created a marriage that has crippled the real estate industry.
But not all markets and communities suffer in the same way,
For example, few would consider Rancho Santa Fe, California real estate a bargain, when single family Rancho Santa Fe homes start at $1.15 million and currently peak at $29.9 million.
Moreover, only 16 of the current 167 active listings in RSF are priced under $2 million.
The bargain bin of real estate? Hardly!
Still, we have stumbled across a few notable buys:
- A 3220 square foot Del Rayo Downs home in Rancho Santa Fe was purchased for $1.74 million on 3/14/2006. It is vacant, in lovely condition and has been reduced to $1.395. The owner will even consider a trade.
- A gated, private and single story Mediterranean estate with over 5000 square feet on one acre just closed escrow at $2.1 million. It needed TLC, but the lots and bones were probably worth the total price. Located just outside Fairbanks Ranch.
- A 19.4-acre gated Covenant estate was listed at $29.5 million last August and closed escrow at a paltry $21 million last month. It was reportedly a cash sale.
- A Notice of Default has been filed against a lovely and very spacious 3-bedroom Rancho Santa Fe condo that has recently been reduced to around $1.2 million. I am already calling clients on this one.
- Another Rancho Santa Fe townhome was reportedly purchased for $1.675 million in the summer of 2005. It is now on the market at a value range of $1.3 to $1.4 million, has assumable financing, and guaranteed golf membership in the Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club .
Do we expect Rancho Santa Fe real estate pricing to fall off a cliff?
No way.
But it is certainly worth our time to scout the market to find sound values such as these.
Moreover, many who are now home shopping in Rancho Santa Fe and other luxury neighborhoods now can thank their lucky stars that they werent buying two years ago.
If you would like more information on Rancho Santa Fe or other San Diego luxury real estate, just give me a call at 760-402-9101 or 877-818-8197. You may also email me: roberta@sandiegopreviews.com
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OpenHouse.com To Open Doors to All Brokers
Today, Realogy is announcing that OpenHouse.com will become available to all real estate brokers, which should send up a collective cheer from home sellers around the country. The site will be comprehensive, easy-to-use, and postings will come from an automated feed from each broker’s office.
Real estate brokers may also be smiling because this should sooner rather than later do away with the need to advertise open houses in newspapers. Given that at least 78 percent of all real estate shoppers search online, it just makes sense for all open house listings to be posted there as well.
Realogy’s President and CEO Anthony Perriello and Mike Good, President and CEO of Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliate LLC, issued a joint letter to Sotheby’s Realty owners sharing the news.
“In our opinion, consumers’ extensive use of the Internet in the homebuying process is enabling our industry to shift from expensive classified newspaper advertising into the nearly-free online arena–and with this major enhancement to OpenHouse.com, we are once again leading the charge.”
As a neutral, non-denominational site, OpenHouse.com will be available to every real estate broker for a nominal, one-time set up fee to initiate each non-Realogy’s brokers incoming data feed.
Additional information will be posted on Realogy’s site later today.
San Diego Real Estate Exchange
Bob Dyson is a real estate legend who recently launched Sothebys real estate offices in the San Diego, Palm Springs and Las Vegas markets. He has kindly agreed to share some exciting news with us about a new real estate exchange program that is set to rock the San Diego real estate market mid-January.
This program will do much to liberate locked-up equities in homes throughout Southern California.
But Ill not steal his thunder.
by Bob Dyson
How I See It: Lets Liberate Home Equities
With all the alarming issues facing us in Real Estate ownership and all the turmoil in Real Estate lending, I have been searching endlessly for fresh solutions to these problems. What if we could create a new and faster way to buy and sell homes in todays challenging market? What if real estate buyers and sellers could focus on the deal instead of getting lost in the details of granite surfaces, designer amenities and upgrades?
We believe our home exchange program will help stabilize our troubled real estate market and could be a program easily implemented in other cities outside of Southern California.
Quick Facts:
There are more than 25,000 homes for sale in San Diego County. We believe there are also more than 19,000 qualifed buyers who wish to purchase a home in San Diego RIGHT NOW.
So where are the buyers and who are they?
They are home owners living right here in San Diego.
They are home owners with œFrozen Equity - people who want to relocate right now but must sell their home first.
The Media:
Granted, there have real problems with the real estate lending industry . And the media has done an excellent job paralyzing the home buying public, scaring them away from purchasing.
Recent statistics provided by First American Title Company show that in San Diego County, the Palm Desert/Palm Springs areas and Las Vegas, foreclosure activity is centered in small pockets of those communities.
Areas like Rancho Santa Fe, Del Mar, Indian Wells and Summerlin have experienced very little impact from local foreclosures; however, those communities have been brought down by media hype and generalities.
It seems that nobody at the media level, or especially the government level, is paying attention to details. Our congressmen who are holding hearings on these issue dont even know what questions to ask - much less are able to present viable solutions.
Been There, Done That:
In January 1993 - in a similarly challenging Real Estate Market - several of us in the industry began calling our listing clients and we asked them one question: œWhen you sell your home, are you moving up in price, down in price or out of the area?
From that calling session forward, our little group began selling homes at an incredible pace. In January of that year alone, we sold 48 properties.
How We Did It:
We took our clients who had good equity, good jobs and good credit and matched their wants and desires to move up with other clients selling their homes who desired to move down.
We simply exchanged properties. It was actually as simple as œIll buy yours and youll buy mine.
Two purchase agreements were drawn up, each contingient upon the concurrent close of the other. Both clients got new loans and became a buyer in one escrow and a seller in the other.
The process and the response exceeded our wildest expectations. We provided all parties with work sheets, we moved sales prices and new loan amounts around with our lenders and, in most cases, satisfied the needs of both clients.
Exchanging Properties in Todays Real Estate Market:
Today, we are taking our exchange idea of the 90s, dusting it off and are updating it with todays technologies.
What is evolving is an industry-supported effort to help buyers and sellers with good credit, good jobs and solid equity move NOW.
To best understand this new program please click on the following link to visit www.HomeExchangeProgram.com. The site is still under construction, but you can get a feel for how exchanges work.
Real Estate agents and sellers alike can participate in this program. The more of us who participate, the faster this Real Estate market will right itself and and help œAll Ships to Rise.
If you would like to discuss the Home Exchange Program, please give me a call at 858.481.2020 or email me.
And thats œHow I See It.
Bob Dyson
Bob Dyson is the Broker of Dyson & Dyson Sothebys International Realty in Palm Desert/Palm Springs, Calif. and Las Vegas, Nevada and Villa Sothebys International Realty in Del Mar, Calif. With nearly 40 years experience in the Real Estate Industry, Bob has become an industry innovation leader. In addition to his many years in the brokerage industry, Bob is also involved in real estate mapping and development and currently has several thousand acres in various stages of mapping and development in Southern Nevada and Southern California.
About the Company
Dyson & Dyson Sothebys International Realty and Villa Sothebys International Realty were founded in Southern California in 1988 under the name Dyson & Dyson Real Estate Associates. Offering a variety of unparalleled real estate services, the brokerage operates offices in Las Vegas, the Palm Desert/Palm Springs area, and Garner Valley under the name Dyson & Dyson Sothebys International Realty and in the San Diego County area under the name Villa Sothebys International Realty.
Each office is independently owned and operated.
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San Diego Real Estate Exchange: Barter and Banter
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