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Roatan and Bay Islands Discussion List Archive
| Posted On: | 21-Jul-2005 |
| From: | RRE [roatanrealestate.....com] |
| Subject: | [roatan] Roatan Real Estate News Letter |
News Letter July 21, 2005 IN THIS ISSUEŠŠŠŠŠ. -Legal ³Tid Bits²-Financing Options Using your retirement FUNDS to invest in real estate. -Rumor Mill -Listings / Deals / -Real Estate and the Cruise ship Industry -Walgreens Commercials Legal ³Tid Bits²- In the last few of months I have done a series of News Letter segments on various legal issues regarding both owning property here on the island and/or residing here. I have pasted the segments from each of these dealing with these particular issues into the web link on our site for ³Investing, Financing and Title Insurance². This month¹s topic is ³Financing and How to Generate both Retirement Dollars and a Great Place for You to Visit on Vacation". On the link on our web page for ³Investing, Financing and Title Insurance², we mention the possibility of financing your purchase here via an IRA, IRA-SEP, 401K, etc. There are many variables in accomplishing this but over all it, in most cases, can be done. Why do you not know about this? Easy and logical when you think about it. If you ask your financial broker, the company that administers your retirement fund, or banker/advisor about this, they will either not know about it or not want to tell you. Why? If they tell you they loose a client, the annual fees, dollars generated by trades you may make, all money out of their pockets. Giving a client away is certainly not in their interest, especially when you plan on moving those dollars off shore. How do you do this? It really depends on how much work you wish to do and/or how much spare time you have on your hands. . If you want to just have someone else accomplish this task for you, you can deal with a company like ³ENTRUST². We have had clients deal with them pretty regularly and they seem to do a very professional job. Their web page is http://www.newdirectionira.com This group has offices in both Colorado and California. My experiences with them have been very positive. If you wish to be proactive, have a lot of time and save a few dollars, this is actually something you can do yourself. The first step would be to read up on it. I would suggest the purchase of a book called ³IRA WEALTH Revolutionary IRA strategies for Real Estate Investment.² By Patrick W. Rice. This will outline the strategy for you and will point you in the right direction for ³do it yourselfers². There are some basics that I will cover here. First and foremost, I have not lived in the states even part time for six years. I am not an accountant and do not pretend to be. With that said it would not surprise me that your accountant does not even know you can do this, (purchase property in a foreign country with your retirement funds). I have mentioned this strategy in short in other earlier News Letters some time back, and have watched a few people in chat groups jump all over it talking about how you should not buy property with your retirement funds etc and if you are ultra conservative in nature that may be the best in advise. Do not want anyone out there not sleeping at night. For me, and again I have been here for awhile and have a comfort level, it is not something that I would not have any and every senior citizen do and I would have zero problem thinking that they will be in any way jeopardizing their future. In fact believe unless they are really good stock pickers cannot imagine most people doing any better. Caribbean real estate historically, (not just here, but across the Caribbean Islands), has returned handsomely, usually at a rate of 15%+ or more each year, though here seems to flatten then jump, flatten and jump, versus slowly climb. There is no doubt there are stocks out there that can do the same. Trick is finding them. Trick also is that they can go down as fast or faster than they went up at times. In ¹98 here on the island there was a major hurricane, (Mitch). Although the island averages one about every twenty four years for hurricanes, and there was very little for damage and no loss of life here on the island, the bad press killed tourism and property prices went flat. Yep flat, not down, flat. That lasted for about two years. Since then upward pricing pressure has been the trend and there is little end in site. How do I know this? Check it out for yourself. Find a condo or house here. Try to find one , (size, age, location, etc), in Cayman, British Virgin Islands, Šalmost any island and see what I see. Much higher everything. Not just prices but property taxes and in most instances closing costs and virtually all other expenses. Basically the same rules apply with this type retirement investment as any other. Just like the value going up in other investments the ³profit² stays in your IRA, same holds true in real estate. Buy a condo and rent it out, the money you make must be put back in the IRA in regard to the income received. According to the IRS you can buy rental income property for an IRA, BUT according to them, you are not supposed to live in it. So be it. You buy your property, home or condo here with a Honduran corporation, (outlined in previous News Letters). The IRA owns half the investment, (the stock of the corporation held by the Administrator of the IRA fund), you personally hold the remaining shares. Again, not an accountant but logic would dictate that you would (as an individual), be able to spend six months, (equal shares owned), on the island occupying the residence and not be able to for six months. Another interesting thought is, would your plane fare here and reasonable expenses be tax deductible so that you can check on your retirement investment? Hmmmm, (again you need to check with someone more knowledgeable than I). Owning real estate as your IRA is an interesting concept and one that offers opportunity for both nice returns and to a great degree ³coloring outside the lines². To me traditional paths of investment lead to traditional returns. Good for some but not for others. Up to you to decide, but certainly food for thought and a way of putting your retirement funds to work in a non-conventional way. (this obviously my personal opinion,- I have owned and sold or still own, several pieces here on the island). ). Consider thisŠWith over 76 million U.S. residents age 50+ today and someone turning 50 every 7 secondsŠŠŠ(AARP Magazine stats). Think it may be time for you to consider what and where your future is ? The Supply................... Island 33 miles long............... The Demand............76 million baby boomers looking for retirement paradise........Do the math. Even if this is not where you end up retiring, (who knows where we will be 10-25 years from now), it may just turn out to be a great investment. RUMOR MILL- Heard some news from a pretty good source last week , that a new major project would be hitting the island soon. I was told that mid island there would be a new large planned community setting with home sites, (white sand beach), town homes and a new version of a hotel/condo concept that would be very low density and upper end in rental income. I have been here for enough years now that you can tend to sort out the gossip from the fact, to a degree, though plans do and can change over time. My thinking is that it is all together possible. Prices in the planned communities on the island are getting stronger regularly, and that pretty much invites other developers to the table in itself. I will keep you posted when I hear more. CRUISE SHIPS- Each year more and more cruise ships hit the island. With some but not all of the industry finding Roatan the numbers grow each year. I met with a representative of Norwegian Cruise lines last week and he told me that their company will have 75 ships land here next season between. They have five different ships land here next season, (October to July) and that is just one cruise line. They will have more port calls here than in either Grand Cayman (43) or Belize (62). They alone will place almost 150,000 people on this island. If you do some math and say one percent of the people that land here like it enough to buy property here there will be an additional 1500 people that see this as an alternative retirement location. Even half that number substantial in regard to impact. Add Carnival, Windstar and a few others to the numbers and the impact increases. Supply and demand. Only so much dirt, (real estate), on this island. Nice scenario for the people who own property. REALESTATE BAROMETER AND LISTINGS- Summer here for sometime were ³dog days² in real estate. Not this year. There has been considerable activity with some larger end deals happening, either in process or done. Pricing pressure upwards continues and new people coming in, (especially California and New York it seems), shopping, comparing and buying. CHECK OUT THESE LISTINGSŠŠŠŠŠŠ.. HOT DEAL-BRAND NEW LISTING! - One Bedroom BEACH FRONT CONDO ON WEST BAY BEACH ! Mayan Princess END UNIT condo unit. These rarely come up on the market. Do not pass it up. http://www.roatan-realestate.com/listing.php?id6 OCEAN FRONT Large 1Ž2 ac Home Site-short walk to West Bay Beach-Residential area! http://roatan-realestate.com/listing.php?id5 This is a great overall value for a home. Roomy, great breezes, and a short walk to a very fine, (best on island), beach. http://www.roatan-realestate.com/listing.php?id=102 Mid island location, power, water, road. Nice spot to land bank or subdivideŠ.. http://www.roatan-realestate.com/listing.php?id=198 Price reduced by $60,000 U.S. ! Motivated local sellerŠ http://www.roatan-realestate.com/listing.php?id=172 Mid-island 250¹ Waterfront. http://www.roatan-realestate.com/listing.php?id=193 WALGREENS- Some years ago I lived in northern Indiana near Valparaiso. At the time a few miles to the west the planned community we lived in sat on its own, an island of sorts, away from. When we left twelve years later, there were ten new subdivisions going up all around the one we lived in. Much of the vacant land between the community we lived in and the town nearby was filled up or in process there of. I foresee something similar happening hereŠPockets of communities with the space between them being filled. Is Roatan a Walgreens commercial? (where everything is ³perfect²). Not hardly, but does it have many attributes that the general population of ³Baby Boomers² and Investors care for? Absolutely. Saw on cable the other night that they are building 72,000 condos THIS YEAR just in the Miami area. WOW what an impact that aging population is having. Don¹t miss out on Roatan like most, virtually all of us, missed out on Belize, Bahamas and others. We hope that you at least take a look and also that you choose Roatan Real Estate to represent you by doing our best to provide information on properties we represent or as Buyers agents, (no charge to you), Representing you and finding the best deals on the island that others may have for sale. Give us your goals and budget and see if we can not find what you are looking for. Last but not least next month we will travel to the states for the wedding of the youngest of my four daughters so there will not be a News Letter upcoming in August. Thanks for reading- have a great summer! Larry Larry Schlesser Owner/Broker Visit our regularly Updated Web Site http://www.roatan-realestate.com Member of Roatan Realtors Assoc., ANIBIR, (Honduran Realtors Assoc). U.S. FAX LINE - 786-319-9945 Phone 445-1612, (from the U.S. dial 011-504-445-1612) U.S. Miami Number 786-380-4864 U.S. MAILING ADDRESS 7801 NW 37th St. #5002 Miami, FL. 33166 http://www.roatanet.com To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/roatan/ roatan- : | |
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