One of the best ways to beat inflation is to live in low costs areas like the coast around Bahia Ecuador.
Here’s an update on this area beginning south of Bahia starting at San Clemente.
Beach at San Clemente.
The map below shows why San Clemente (marked with A), which is just a bit south of Bahia, was the first place on the coast where I bought Ecuador beach real estate.
San Clemente is a small village almost equidistant to the two airport access points on Ecuador’s coast, Manta and Bahia, plus it is on the coastal highway just before it veers inland behind a strip of low lying hills.
These hills run along the coast from San Clemente to Bahia and further north separating the highway from the beach, discouraging over development and encouraging quiet hidden beach opportunities.
In addition San Clemente is almost equidistant to Quito and Guayaquil, the two largest population centers, and is accessed by major roads also shown on this map. This creates holiday opportunity for the big city folk.
San Clemente is itself a tiny… dusty village so the attraction here is peace and quiet. This is what Merri and I love.
However, those who want to live in a lively town will do better living just a bit further north in or closer to Bahia.
Our Ecuador beach penthouse is at Vistazul. This community is nicely protected by those hills.
Vistazul is right on the beach and protected by these low lying Manabi hills behind.
Here is the view from our penthouse so you can see…
why we love it there.
Now Vistazul is about to get even better.
The developer of this project, Kjetil Haugan, recently sent me this note.
Gary,  This email is to inform you that we will close the hotel from next week on and until late June for renovation.  We will change the location of the kitchen, increase the capacity of the restaurant, redo the swimming pool (partly infinity pool), put A/C in all rooms, put in new beds and mosquito nets, fix all the sliding doors/windows, put in concrete walls around the hotel, fix the gardens, make more family suites, paint the hotel and change and redo everything from the dining tables, to the outdoor furniture. Most of this will be done during these 6 to 7 weeks but the rooms will be done throughout the year.
We will also start to sell club memberships to local people with a point system plus offer this to the ex pats living in Cuenca.
We are adding new administrators at the hotel; Edwin and his Canadian wife, Cris. They used to run our yacht operation in the Galapagos. She will also help out at Vistazul being the contact person for the residents and helping out with decoration, purchase of furniture and rental management.
So hopefully you will have time to come down to San Clemente later this year to discover the new Palmazul!
Vistazul is also doing well right now. The electricity work, water plant and gardening should all be ready by the end of May. Then I will help the residents start to form the HOA. I have also contracted all the doors/windows so the remaining units will be completed within 4 to 6 months depending on the workers.
I had a lot of interest in the one level units and we continue to offer finance. Regards, Kjetil
See more details on these condos here
For answers to specific questions contact, Kjetil Haugan, at kjetil@haugancruises.com
This is an exciting evolution for the small community and remains a great bargain… the $79,000 price includes club membership which includes use of all the improved facilities.
Back in 2007, my friend, Kjetil Haugan, sent me a note that he was building this hotel and would have his the new year celebration there.
When I saw the construction pictures… I wondered. A lot of work seemed undone.
This was the hotel in November 2007.
and the pool at the hotel.
Yet Kjetil did have the hotel open for the 2008 New Year celebration.
When we visited in early January 2008, the hotel looked like this.
Kjetil then told me that the hotel was also designed as the clubhouse for 60 + condos he would build on this land behind the hotel.
I knew the land.. I knew Kjetil. I was impressed and bought the first five condos myself. Kjetil said that he would have the first units finished by the end of the year.
True to his word, Kjetil kept to his timing and despite the recession of 2008 has completed and sold out this development.
Ecuador beach real estate is still inexpensive but prices have been rising. Those condos began at $79,000 but prices have risen over the last year to:
I personally have a unit here  in the Vistazul complex so this is my front yard.
Here are the first condos which originally went on sale at $79,000.
They are 1,200 square feet, two and a half bathroom, two bedroom units, on two floors and a roof terrace.
Here is a group of our delegates inspecting the roof terrace.
Here is the sunset view from the beach in front of these units.
They are one minute’s amble to the club house restaurant, where you can dine.
The seafood comes fresh from these fishermen who leave from the beach in front of the clubhouse each day.
Kjetil Haugan, a Norwegian who moved to Ecuador after being the administrator of Atlanta’s Olympic Village, became a prominent businessman, owning the largest Spanish school in the country along with several Galapagos cruise ships.
Kjetil and his wife Jessica built Palmazul Hotel which is also the clubhouse for these condos.
The owners of the condos enjoy Palmazul as their community center…all the hotel facilities are available to home owners. This provides living on the beach with tennis court, pool, beach, fine dining, exercise room and all.
Here is a shot taken from one of the Vistazul condo rooftops.
Until next message, good Ecuador living!
I always recommend that you look and then rent before you buy.
Gary
