Mexico Resort Real Estate Update from The Settlement Company
 John K. Glaab - settlement-co.com
October 06, 2010
| | US and Canadian media are having a field day scaring their citizens into avoiding Mexico, despite the fact that the Mexican "Drug War" is a battle fought far from the most popular tourist and resort real estate destinations. | |
Welcome to our Third Quarter, 2010 Newsletter. While putting this edition together, it is impossible not to think about the future of the Mexican real estate industry. What will the high season bring to the tourist zones that have been hit so hard by the global economic crises?
I am afraid the answer is beyond my ability to predict. We can only watch the economic indicators and observe the future unfold. According to the National Association of Realtors, home sales in the United States during August were up, providing a source for hope. The Mexican Association of Real Estate Professionals (AMPI) recently presented a full day Symposium on the subject of market recovery and how to profit from it.
Shipping Activity Up at Major Mexican Port
The Port of Lazaro Cardenas, Michoacan, is closer to the U.S. Eastern Seaboard than either Long Beach or Los Angeles. Lazaro Cardenas has become the gateway to Mexico and other parts of North America for goods coming from the Asias. It is a deep water port served by rail and a modern highway. Kansas City Southern Railway has made substantial investments in the port and infrastructure on both sides of the Mexico – U.S. border during the past five years.
Lazaro Cardenas has become the number one port in Mexico with 26% of national shipping traffic. Shipments have increased by 49% in the First Quarter of 2010 versus the same period one year ago. Over 14.6 million tons moved in and out of the port versus 9.8 million in 2009.
In the first quarter of 2010, the number of ships arriving at the port increased by 29%. The number arriving was 761, up from 651 a year ago. International ships represented 86% of the movement, with 14% being coastal shipments. The port currently has a customs processing system capable of handling the increased traffic. In anticipation of further growth, in 2011 a new customs station, featuring the latest in high technology, will be opened at the Port of Lazaro Cardenas.
Invest in Mexico... Advice from a Business Guru
Jim Cramer, the bombastic, high-energy investment Guru and host of CNBC’s massively successful show Mad Money, gave Mexico real estate investment a big boost. Cramer told his audience, "It's not such a bad idea to diversify away from stocks, I think that out of favor real estate in Mexico, that's easily accessible to Americans, represents a great buy."
With as many as 2.5 million investors viewing the show each week, the controversial host wields quite a bit of influence among his viewership - and in the marketplace as a whole. His following is so intense that it has created a unique phenomenon in the stock market known as the "Cramer Bounce," which can be best described as "the sudden overnight appreciation of a stock’s price after it has been recommended by Jim Cramer on his CNBC show, Mad Money."
Why does Cramer have such clout? Well, after graduating magna cum laude from Harvard College, in his first year as a rookie broker with Goldman Sachs, he made over $700,000 USD. After he paid his dues at Goldman, Cramer he started his own $450 million hedge fund where he earned 24% after fees, regularly taking home over $10 million a year. Cramer’s fund finished up 36% in 2001, compared to 11% for the S&P 500 average, and he walked away with $100 million and change.
Since then, he founded TheStreet.com, has written five New York Times best selling books and his articles are featured in Time and New York magazines. He also a frequent guest on Meet the Press, Today Show, 60 Minutes, NBC’s Nightly News, The Tonight Show and most major financial networks.
Following his own advice, Cramer recently announced to his audience that he had already purchased three properties in Mexico within the last few weeks. When asked about hyped headlines about drug violence and turmoil in Mexico, Cramer downplayed those fears, saying, "Mexico is a big country and not every province, every state is involved in the drug trade," and he added, "it has to be one of the nicest places I've ever been."
When asked why he invested money in Mexico real estate, he replied, "There is 'no property tax,' the properties are incredibly easy to maintain, and there are property managers everywhere."
Errata: The statement about property taxes is not correct. BUT, they are substantially lower when compared to countries such as the U.S. and Canada.
Major Real Estate Meetings Coming Up
Both the Mexican Association of Real Estate Professionals (AMPI) and the National Association of Realtors (NAR) will be having educational events, in the middle of the fourth quarter of 2010.
The National Association of Realtors will meet in New Orleans November 5-8th. A wide variety of educational events will be included, along with a major Trade Show. Those attending will have an opportunity to hear a delightful and motivating keynote presentation by Regis Philbin, the cultural icon and energetic host of Live with Regis and Kelly.
Philbin first stepped in front of the camera 40 years ago. He now holds the Guinness World Record for 'Most Hours on Camera' and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences at the 2008 Daytime Emmy Awards.
New Certified International Property Designees (CIPS) will receive their pins and certificates at a CIPS breakfast. On the social side, there will be a welcoming reception for international delegates and the always popular International Night Out and Awards Ceremony. The legendary musical group, Earth Wind and Fire will present a celebrity concert.
The Mexican Association of Real Estate Professionals (AMPI) will hold its Annual Conference and General Meeting in Monterrey, N.L. from November 10th-14th. There will be a series of classes for those attending. Also several social events, including a program for spouses.
A new Vice President and members of the National Advisory Board will be elected. A trip to look at the market in McAllen, Texas will take place at the conclusion of the conference. AMPI’s Annual General meeting will take place during the Conference.
Many Travel to Mexico Despite Media Warnings
Source: Ole - puntodigital.com
US and Canadian media are having a field day scaring their citizens into avoiding Mexico, despite the fact that the Mexican "Drug War" is a battle fought far from the most popular tourist destinations like Cabo San Lucas (Los Cabos), Puerto Vallarta (Nuevo Vallarta - Riviera Nayarit), Cancun (Riviera Maya), Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Huatulco, Guadalajara, Mexico City and others.
Despite this, many Canadians, maybe the most informed part of them, are still traveling to Mexico and predictions show that the amount continues to grow.
Already in the first half of the year, there is an 18.2% growth in travel to the region compared to 2009. This is why Mexico predicts that the number of Canadian tourists choosing the country will have a significant increase in 2010 compared to 2009.
This, despite the Canadian government advising its citizens to avoid nonessential travel to the United States-Mexico border. It’s important to note that the US-Mexico border is thousands of miles from Cancun or Puerto Vallarta, something many tourists tend to overlook.
The Mexican Embassy in Canada indicated that the number of Canadian tourists that traveled to Mexico only in the first half of 2010 was 18.2% higher compared to same period in 2009 and 32% higher than 2008.
This increase is almost double the Canadian tourists in the first half of 2010, compared to that of 2008, totalling 925,401 Canadian citizens this year.
According to numbers provides by the CTPM (the Tourism Promotion Council of Mexico), more than 500,000 Canadian tourists visited Cancun in Quintana Roo in the Gulf of Mexico last June, over 157,000 visited Puerto Vallarta in Jalisco on the Mexican Pacific side, and around 75,000 traveled to Mexico City, the capital.
Among the countries with most tourists that travel to Mexico, Canada remains in second place with 1,222,739 visitors in 2009 – second only to the United States, who sent five million 387 thousand 287 visitors, stated the embassy.
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