Which Condo Resort to Purchase?

[curiousgeorge]

I have been considering buying a condo in Rocky Point for the past year. I was keyed into Las Palomas but have decided to not purchase there because they charge owners to have guests to stay in their own property. I would never pay to let my friends use my condo. I am going down this weekend and am going to look at units from other resorts. I was hoping maybe some of the condo owners here could give recommendations on what to look for and which resorts are the best value to buy. Thanks!

 

[Stuart]

Obligatory "Are you on drugs?" first reply... :rofl:

All kidding aside, I'm sure the condo owners here will chirp in with their thoughts.

 

[dry heat]

lowest price would probably be princessa. if you want more of a condo feel with some rental you could go with any of the sonoran properties (sea, sun, sky, spa). If you want a private elevator that goes to your unit (tessoro). if you want no rentals on the property (puerto privada). you have a whole lot of choices and if you are paying cash you can get an even bigger discount at any property.

 

[rockyptjoe]

Just check into the maintenance fees....and who controls the HOA.

Also consider how many owners are in arrears on their maintenance fees at the resort....which will translate into either higher costs for you, or deteriorating facilities.

 

[Rhino]

Don't miss seeing Bella Sirena on Sandy Beach. It is a gorgeous resort with beautiful grounds, great layouts and a much more intimate feel than of the other developments. Go to the sales office and talk with Ron or Scott. Esmeralda, also on Sandy Beach, has the best individual units but construction has stalled so its appeal is stunted. That said, a couple of units have sold there recently. If you would like additional info give me your email address. Good luck!

 

[Roberto]

There are a lot of choices so it gets down to personal preference and of course cost. I personally like the older developments best, Las Gaviotas and Pinacate. Smaller, closer to the water, not so much fuss going on. Pinacate rentals tend to do pretty well and the grounds are really nice. You can get into Las Gaviotas right now , a unit directly on the beach, first level, for under $200K. More than a distress sale unit in one of the high rises but, right on the beach. E-mail for more information if you want. [email protected]

 

[AZ ROB]

I looked at several places and found the Sonoran Spa to be our best value I enjoy the thought of someone else doing the maint. on our place when it needs to be done I am right on the beach and I feel we have the best Mexican food on Sandy beach right down stairs. (I can walk to Changos at the end of the drive) It is all personal preference. I just wish I could have gotten the 3 bedroom instead.

 

[rockyptjoe]

George, make sure you know your exit strategy.

Even if you do not need financing, use it.
They will protect "their" interest and in turn you ride along.
Do not mortgage your home in USA! And please do not liquidate your IRA or 401K!
Mortgage the condo so you do not poison other assets if one goes sour.

Much has been discusses on these threads, make sure you understand the Trust structure and costs.
Make a 5 year cost plan and assume fees/ utilities/ HOA/ to increase at a certain rate. Understand RE taxes.
After that again review the Taxes on any profits ( 30 - 35%) right off the top.
And understand how they calculate them, it is not based on sales price.

If you decide not to use financing (which I highly recommend since they have their own notarios) make sure you do due dil on him.

I have used "Lic. Jose Antonio Davila Payán " from Caborca, he had an office in RP.
Do not use any referrals from anyone with a hand in the deal.

A lot of good advice....I'll repeat something I posted earlier....carefully check into who "controls" the HOA. A friend owns at Las Palomas...which is a very nice resort...however, from what he has told me, it is "controlled" by Mexican interests (they own a significant portion), so have voting control. Plus, they have deep pockets, so any litigation that the other owners at Las Palomas might consider, could (and would) be tied up in litigation for years.

 

[dry heat]

A lot of good advice....I'll repeat something I posted earlier....carefully check into who "controls" the HOA. A friend owns at Las Palomas...which is a very nice resort...however, from what he has told me, it is "controlled" by Mexican interests (they own a significant portion), so have voting control. Plus, they have deep pockets, so any litigation that the other owners at Las Palomas might consider, could (and would) be tied up in litigation for years.

Your friend is incorrect regarding Las Palomas. The HOA is controlled by the individual owners. If you have a penthouse unit you have a larger voting share than someone who has a 1 bedroom due to the larger % of space you own. Las Palomas has space that is owned by the developer (ex. lobby building). In this example, they have roughly a 20% voting right based on the space they control. That being said, they have no voting rights since they have not been current on their HOA dues for the space they control. Any owners (including the developer) who is not current on their dues does not have any voting rights. The deep pockets comment... well if they are not current on their dues that may answer your question if they have deep pockets. Also considering their office building has recently closed may give a little more insight if they have "deep pockets".

 

[playaperro]

Best condo to buy is at bella sirena 505 D 2 bed $209,000 sold in 2006 for $475,000, That is a finished project.

 

[AZ ROB]

Personally I like the 1 bedroom at Sonoran Spa N201 it is right above the mini mart 734 sqft. with 800 sq ft patio with wet bar, b-b-q grill, and a 8 person Jacuzzi. Fully furnished Very nice for $117,000 I would have bought it except for the large down payment...

 

[InkaRoads]

What ever you buy make sure that it has four walls and a roof, nothing worst than putting your money down in an air bubble you can not see or probably get for a long time for that matter!!

 

[tyler]

I would never pay to let my friends use my condo.

How do I become your friend?

 

[moore_rb]

Wahoo- Very sage advice.... thanks.

I recently saw a 800sqf condo sitting above a 26 foot deep boat garage in Cholla Bay for 118k- that one had me drooling, but cooler heads prevailed.

I'm waiting the real estate market out for another 8-10 months: perhaps valuations might be appealing enough at that point to start making some bids... I'll definitley be re-visiting this post to refresh myself on your viewpoints at that time.

 

[rajulratna]

Laeeque, you are sick!

Laeeque approached our brokerage with some felicitous deal. We asked him that he do no involve our firm in shady deals like these. Our guess is, stay away from him while buying or selling. His sales pitch may seem too good to be true and it definitely is.

 

[GringoZona]

Stuart, what would you like to do with this CANADIAN rajulratna character? What he's doing is trying to smear this CANADIAN Laeeque guy all over any real estate board he can find on the internet, even though these deals relate to CANADA. Then when someone googles the guy's name, all sorts of bad stuff pops up. Which is fine, whatever, but he's posting on threads that have NOTHING to do with his agenda & is kind of giving Penasco's RE/MAX a black eye to the uniformed.

Nothing wrong with a user trying to out some shady dealers in Penasco and a debate on whether someone is good or bad for the community, deservedly so or not, but this is borderline spamming, especially if he never replies to comments addressing his posts. Delete the weird comments? Put this post in rants/off-topic? Ban the user? Too extreme?

Maybe best to just ignore and watch the thread get buried...

 

[marybna]

Is there anyone on this site that owns at Princessa? I used to stay there when they were building my Spa, which I sold. Stupid. I am thinking about buying at Princessa.

 

[Roberto]

I can tell you that Princessa has very few units available for sale right now. Twin Dolphins has the least expensive, a 2bd/2ba ground floor for $139,900 and the owner will carry some for a short period. 602-324-7241 if you wanna peek at it.

 

[sheep3mom]

We are at the Sonoran Sea and love it: well maintained, well managed, really nice people work there. I know nothing about what is for sale there, but we are completely happy!

 

[El Gato]

Don't miss seeing Bella Sirena on Sandy Beach. It is a gorgeous resort with beautiful grounds, great layouts and a much more intimate feel than of the other developments. Go to the sales office and talk with Ron or Scott. Esmeralda, also on Sandy Beach, has the best individual units but construction has stalled so its appeal is stunted. That said, a couple of units have sold there recently. If you would like additional info give me your email address. Good luck!

Belle is my favorite - we lived there for 3 years until DH got the wanderlust again (he does that a lot). I think it is the most beautiful resort. It tends to be more family oriented then a 'party' resort or young adult spring break type. They rent out for Spring Break but usually to families rather than a lot of students.