Tijuana at 30 miles per hour

By Sandra Dibble, UNION-TRIBUNE

August 30, 2010

Sandra Dibble holds a cup of clamato juice, a popular treat in Baja California, on Sunday in Rosarito Beach

This was a difficult assignment: In the space of just a few hours, give my new editor, Hieu Tran Phan, a tour of Tijuana. On one quiet Sunday afternoon, what could I possibly show him? Tijuana has about two million people, hundreds of neighborhoods, vast contrasts. After 16 years of reporting here, driving across Tijuana still fills me with a sense of wonder, and more than anything I wanted him to get a sense of the city’s rich texture and variety.


We started at Colonia Federal, a tiny neighborhood just southwest of the San Ysidro border crossing, cruising past the house where drug smugglers once dug a tunnel. Now a binational group has taken over, converting it into an arts center, La Casa del Tunel. We headed east into Colonia Libertad, to the top of a steep hill that offers a breathtaking view of the border. Then down into the Zona Rio, past the giant pastel globe and deep red cube that make up the Tijuana Cultural Center, past the Via Corporativo, a new office building that is Baja California’s first certified green structure.

Zooming down the Via Rapida, a highway that crosses the city, we headed toward El Cerro Colorado, Tijuana’s tallest hill and the gateway to eastern Tijuana, where the city has been growing rapidly in recent years. We drove and drove, past the huge boxlike factory buildings that make up El Florido Industrial Park. Past tens of thousands of tiny houses that make up the newer housing developments.

In El Nino, we stopped for tacos and ran into a church group from San Clemente whose members had come to build houses. We pressed on, toward Tecate, into Valle de las Palmas, where authorities are planning a satellite city with more than one million residents.

We drove down Boulevard 2000, and in no time found ourselves in Rosarito Beach, taking in the waves of the Pacific Ocean. Then back into Tijuana, to Colonia Chapultepec, whose large hillside mansions reminded Hieu (he was raised in Vietnam and Orange County) of the hills of Laguna Beach.

A day after our tour, Hieu says he was struck by the city’s contrasts and the determination of its residents to make the most of their circumstances, wherever they may find themselves

http://www.bajainvestment.com/
Your Baja real estate

Magazine: Rancho La Puerta best spa in world

By Sandra Dibble, UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER



Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 10:10 p.m.



Rancho La Puerta in Tecate had seen demand for its high-end spa services drop during the recession, but has recaptured that lost U.S. clientele in recent months.



Now more good news has arrived for the 70-year-old resort just south of the U.S.-Mexico border: Travel + Leisure magazine has named it the world's best destination spa.



"It tells us that guests appreciate what we're all about," said Roberto Arjona, the spa's general manager. "It's a great honor for Baja California and for Mexico."



The publication's 2010 Readers Poll recognized Rancho La Puerta along with honorees such as Bangkok (best city) and the Galapagos (best islands).



The spa's 88-year-old founder and owner, San Diego resident Deborah Szekely, is expected to attend next week's awards ceremony in New York City. She was traveling Thursday, Arjona said.



A largely loyal U.S. customer base meant the spa suffered far less than much of Baja California's tourism industry. But with rates starting at $2,715 for a seven-night stay, even well-heeled visitors dropped off during the financial downturn. At its lowest point, occupancy fell to 70 percent in 2009, though the spa is back to its 2007 levels.



Arjona said the economy was the strongest dampener of demand last year. Other challenges included the swine flu scare and drug-related violence along parts of the border.



And while the spa's prices may be out of reach for most local residents, the spa also has been a destination for 6,000 Baja California schoolchildren who come each year for environmental education offered through the La Puerta Foundation.

Baja Real Estate Back on Track

Tiger`s Golf Course coming soon






















By Gustavo Torres









CONTRIBUTOR





















Punta Brava developers expect to break ground this year









This piece contains a few excerpts from an article by Sandra Dibble on Tiger Woods’ Baja Golf Course, from the San Diego Union-Tribune. Sandra Dibble writes many articles on Baja and often attends Baja events, developments, etc.





















Punta Brava sales team member Ryan Osterdorf teed off at what would be the location of the golf course’s 10th tee.





















According to Rosarito’s AMPI (Mexican Realtors Association), sales in the northern Baja area are increasing at an unexpected pace.









“We are very excited to see what we are seeing, this is something we did not expect until 2011”said Blanca Guerrero of RE/MAX Baja Realty in Rosarito Beach. She added that, “sales levels are now at the 2003/2004 levels which are very good.”





















Most of the buyers are Americans: 70% were from California, a few from other West Coast states and the rest from the East coast. They range in ages, from 40 to 65 years old, and are looking for retirement (35%), a second home (30%), long term investment (25%) and other (10%).





















“Many of our buyers are escaping from the high cost of living in California, especially the extremely high property taxes” says Victor Loza of RE/MAX/Your Baja Connection. Loza further added that, “Indeed, property taxes in California could be around $7,000 annually, while in Rosarito - for an oceanfront condo - they are about $300 per year, and approximately $80 for an ocean view home.”









A number of incredible opportunities can be found at the moment, particularly in Rosarito Beach in Baja, and at just a short 30 minute drive from the San Diego border, it is an excellent option for many.





















Sales have increased tenfold compared to the start of 2009, when the economic crisis exploded and the influenza scare dealt Baja California a very strong blow. Then it was followed by the bad press about the drug cartels fighting in the region. The drug wars were portrayed as if they affected all citizens of Baja, not taking into consideration that these terrible fights where occurring in areas not visited by regular folks, let alone tourists.





















Americans living here – around 15,000 in Rosarito and 30,000 in Ensenada- immediately started posting testimonials, U-tube commentaries, blogs, etc. to show that life was very different to what the US media was “advertising.” Many even created blogs and forums which are easily accessible on the Internet now.





















Even with the crisis fading and sales improving faster than once thought possible, we still have several development projects that are barely beginning to renew their construction and some that are still in the wait-and-see stages.





















Real Estate prices in Baja dropped approximately the same percentage as Southern California. The 35% drop found in the third quarter of 2009, has since increased around 5%, making the average price of an ocean view and oceanfront residential property in 2009 in the Rosarito region approximately $285,000, and oceanfront condos at $306,000.





















Now, with Tiger Woods’ Punta Brava, Baja will be getting lots of positive attention again. “This is the best we could ask for. Similar to the type we were getting in ‘04 and ’05,” said James Bond, a U.S. retiree realtor working hard in Baja. “Back in those days, the U.S. media was portraying Rosarito and Baja as the ‘American Dream found… just south of the border’… then the whole economic turn hit, and Baja stopped being the darling of the American media.





















Since the announcement of Tiger Wood’s Baja development, almost 170 “super” prospective buyers have been flown down to tour the site; looks like most have showed excitement for the project.









Brian Tucker, the development’s director said “This is to be one of the singular golf clubs in the world.”









With views of the ocean at every tee or green, the Tiger Woods golf course will be the centerpiece of the development planned at the tip of the Punta Banda peninsula overlooking Todos Santos Bay. The project includes 120 units, with prices starting at $3 million for a lot and $3.5 million for a condominium, according to information released at the project’s unveiling.





















Punta Brava’s financial backer is Red McCombs, co-founder of Clear Channel Communications and former owner of the San Antonio Spurs, the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Vikings. McCombs is a principal of The Flagship Group, headed by the Austin-based developer Brady Oman. The project’s estimated cost is $100 million.





















This past President’s Day weekend/Valentine’s Day was a blast. So many tourists came, the weather was just perfect, and buyers were all over the place. “I had two different groups wanting to see the same oceanfront house, and at the same time! This hadn’t happened since 2007,” said Victor Loza, referring to a $245,000 oceanfront listing, a 3bed/2ba house in northern Rosarito.





















This is the best time to invest in Baja California real estate, and you should wait no further.





















By the way, for more information on this article, and excerpts of a related article by Sandra Dibble, and Baja real estate, please visit http://www.bajainvestment.com/

Gustavo Torres


AMPI Rosarito Realtors