Living in Los Cabos: 10 Reasons to Cabo NOW

Facebook is breaking my heart. On one hand I see wonderful postings about how every man, woman and child is working their buns off in the clean-up/recovery effort and what great strides they are making. There are near-constant reports of workers helping rebuild even though they lost their own homes. Even so they are very concerned about the return of the tourists.

And then there are the other threads: tourists discussing putting off their trips. NO!!!!!! These people rely on you, they are making huge sacrifices to get Cabo ready for high season, and they are winning the battle. So, don’t cancel your trip. Here is my TOP TEN LIST OF REASONS TO COME TO CABO RIGHT NOW.

1. FISHING. Sport fishing is what put Cabo on the map in the first place, and fall is under normal circumstances when it is the best. But fall after a storm? The fishermen tell me that’s when it is spectacular. On the morning of the 19^th at a neighborhood meeting Brian Solomon of Solomon’s Landing restaurant said that as soon as he could get his boat in the water he was going out to catch food for his employees. The next day he posted that he caught 16 dorado!!! A single fisherman with 16 dorado in a few hours???? Oh yeah, the fishing is fine right now. [As an aside Solomon’s Landing is now back open for business and even has live entertainment.]
2. TOURNAMENTS!! Bob Bisbee Sr. has committed that his tournaments will continue as normal. While I don’t know about the other scheduled tournaments, the Bisbee Offshore will be held October 17-19 and the mother of all tournaments Bisbee Black & Blue will run from October 21-25. I don’t lump these into fishing because they really have nothing to with fishing: they are legal, extremely high stakes gambling and everyone gets in the act. At this level one is not a fisherman, but an angler. The B&B is the world’s richest fishing tournament with millions of dollars on the line. Everyone in town gets into the spirit of things, following which boats are hooked up, who’s caught what, going down to watch them come in for weighing, etc. There are booths set up on the marina and it’s basically just a big festival. From the shot-gun starts to the last weigh-in, tournament season is a hoot.
3. FORE THE KIDS. On November 15 at Palmilla you will find one of the rarest events: the 100% fundraiser when Casa Hogar, which is the boy’s orphanage, holds their annual golf tournament. I’ve done fund-raising for years and it’s extremely rare for the charity to have zero out-lay. But in this case the venue, the meals, the beverages, the SWAG bags, prizes and every other element of the fundraiser has been donated by sponsors so 100% of your entry goes to the boys. Wow. So not only do you save money on golfing Palmilla you know that you are helping raise over 40 boys. And this year is very special. The original grant stipulated the money was to build a boy’s orphanage. But recently the board acquired the land to build a girl’s orphanage, too. I work with a board member and the executive director who told me that just from the sisters of the boys they are caring for they would have about 30 residents. Since I’m not in Cabo I don’t have the contact info if you want to participate, but if you call my office at 624-143-3011 you can ask for Chris or Ed and they’ll take care of you.
4. LIFE’S A BEACH. When people talk about beaches in Cabo more often than not they’re talking about Medano beach. Beautiful, swimmable, diverse Medano. From the elegant to the rowdy and raunchy there are restaurants, bars, ambulatory vendors, music, certainly lots of laughter, and oh-by-the-way an ocean. Every day I’m getting more reports of those bars and restaurants re-opening and the beach is clean. There are a number of live web-cams that came back online if you don’t believe.
5. GOLF. Admitted, I’d have a hard time picking Tom Fazio, Arnold Palmer or Tiger Woods out in a line-up. I don’t know golf. But I do know golfers. One friend of mine who plays daily told me that he has to go to the States from time to time to play their “cow pastures” so that he appreciates what we’ve got in Cabo. Cabo is world class golf and this is your opportunity to try it out without the crowds.
6. FOOD. Yum! I’ve said it before and it’s still true: Cabo is a city of Foodies. And our chefs don’t disappoint. But right now? The chefs, the wait staff, and management: everyone is anxious to make your Cabo dining experience over the top. Everything will be super-fresh, and it will be prepared and served with special care to impress our brave first tourists.
7. WEATHER. Right about now God should be flipping the switch. Every year our weather ‘flips’ overnight from summer to gorgeous. Bright sunshine, warm days and cool nights: can you tell me you wouldn’t enjoy that?
8. MOUNTAINS AND DESERT (oh and a few turtles). Cabo isn’t just about the beach. We’ve got gorgeous mountains and deserts to explore with hidden waterfalls, and lush vegetation. The desert in bloom after a storm is a sight to behold. Once seen, it will never be forgotten. Don’t miss your chance. And fall is when you might have a chance to help a just-hatched baby sea turtle find his way home to the sea.
9. FUN. Back in the old days we were a ‘big box’ franchise. I remember being at a meeting during the recession when we were advised to switch our focus from tourism to ‘other industries’. Great, I thought, we HAVE no industry. Then I realized we do have a manufacturing sector. We manufacture fun. If you can’t have fun in Cabo there is no hope for you.

AND NOW>>> DRUMROLL PLEASE >>>>> NUMBER ONE REASON TO COME TO CABO RIGHT NOW IS >>>>>>>>>>>>

THE PEOPLE. It’s not just me. It’s not just the results of the International Community Foundation survey. It’s not just the United Nations survey that determined Mexico is the happiest country. The number one reason people move to Cabo, and the number one reason people visit Cabo repeatedly is the warmth and friendliness of our people. For centuries the Baja, and Cabo, were literally cut off from the world. What resulted was a culture of kindness, respect, manners and most of all caring for one another. That culture, that spirit, lives on today. You will never, ever experience such a loving and nurturing environment. This one you have to experience for yourself. And there is no better time than now. CABO STRONG.

Carol Billups is Broker/Owner of Cabo Realty Pros. She has enjoyed working with both buyers and sellers for over thirteen years and still thinks hers is the best job on earth. She is also the real estate columnist for Los Cabos Magazine. You can read more of her articles on the website blog http://www.caborealtypros.com. You can reach her from the U.S. or Canada at 1-760-481-7694, or in Cabo at 044-624-147-7541. You can listen to our 24/7 broadcast on http://www.livecabo.net for a mix of happy music, weather reports and local information.

© 2014 Carol S. Billups

 

 

Living in Los Cabos: Lessons Learned After the Worst

 

We were prepared for a storm, not a natural disaster. As anyone reading this probably knows Cabo was trashed on Sunday night, September 15, 2014, by Hurricane Odile. On Saturday we went to bed with the prediction of a near miss by a Category 1 hurricane. When we woke up on Sunday the prediction had been changed: a direct hit by a Category 4. By that time there was really not much to do but maybe buy more food and stress.

What actually happened? We got a direct hit by a Category 3 (on winds) and a Category 5 (on pressure), three tornados and a 4.5 magnitude earthquake. Cabo’s perfect storm.

Don’t ask me about the storm. I’m sure it’s just a coping mechanism but my memory of the actual storm has been pretty much blanked out. I recall the family being in the ‘safe’ area of the home protected by hurricane screens, then windows popping and running to another room and finally downstairs into a window-less hallway. I recall driving through the eye to try and find safety, being turned down at the Wyndham because of the dogs, and then driving home. It was harrowing. No wonder the rest is blanked.

Thank God (and I’m not taking that in vain) we were in Mexico. When it comes to disaster relief my adopted country has their act totally together. I’m in awe. Both local people and the officials just instantly starting pitching in to help. I’m not there right now (wish I were) but am keeping close tabs on the recovery and everyone I’m in touch with agrees it is going much faster than anticipated. Cabo should be back open for tourism as soon as next week.

Now, every year I’ve blogged about hurricane preparedness, including this year. I stand by most of it, but have found a few things I’d like to add based on having experienced the worst hurricane in the history of Baja.

In addition to everything in the three blogs previously posted I need to add three items to put in your kit:

1. HEAVY LEATHER WORK GLOVES. I believe I did note real shoes (not sandals) to avoid stepping in glass. But when you’re cleaning up multiple windows and doors you’ll want to protect your hands, too. We’ve swept up before but this is the first time we had to handle window FRAMES full of broken shards. Gloves. Get them.
2. FACE MASKS. My good friend had to be hospitalized for a day from the effects of breathing so much dust. Having face masks in the hurricane kit might prevent that.
3. ANTIQUE PRINCESS PHONE. Remember phones that plugged into the wall? And handsets that had cords to the body of the phone? People who had one of those did not lose their phone service and were able to notify family of their condition. The rest of us were and remain cut off from the world.

One other note. After Hurricane Marty I informed Bob that he need never buy me a birthday, anniversary or Christmas present if he just got me a generator. He did. Much of my preparation was predicated on having that generator up and running. It failed. And so began the migration of the dog’s food. Here’s the thing…. I had to keep moving it (and the wonderful friend now in charge of their care continues to) as other generators failed. So it wasn’t just us. Bob is thinking if we had run it more often, I don’t know. I just know that you can’t bank on your generator. I do know one of the neighbors’ continued to run UNTIL THE PROPANE RAN OUT. So topping off your propane tank should also be added to your hurricane preparedness list.

Wow. We camped out but due to health concerns we evacuated Bob after four days. I can’t say enough about the people who handled that. It’s not easy being here while so much is going on there, but luckily for me we’re surrounded by good people who are taking care of the girls, have secured the house and are staying there for us. I’m just overwhelmed. We’ve even had to turn help away! If you think I loved the people of Cabo before…. Well…. That was nothing to what I feel after the worst. Hopefully these lessons will never be needed, but just in case. I’ll sign off with what has become our rallying cry: CABO STRONG!!!

Carol Billups is Broker/Owner of Cabo Realty Pros. She has enjoyed working with both buyers and sellers for over thirteen years and still thinks hers is the best job on earth. She is also the real estate columnist for Los Cabos Magazine. You can read more of her articles on the website blog http://www.caborealtypros.com. You can reach her from the U.S. or Canada at 1-760-481-7694, or in Cabo at 044-624-147-7541. You can listen to our 24/7 broadcast on http://www.livecabo.net for a mix of happy music, weather reports and local information.

© 2014 Carol S. Billups

Living in Los Cabos: Helping Handicrafts

Los Cabos is known internationally as a five-star location boasting world class resorts, fabulous sports including some of the best golf courses in North America, over-the-top fine dining and nightlife. And for many of our three million or so guests each year that’s what they see and what they take home. But underneath, hidden from the tourists, there is great need. Luckily there are many wonderful kind souls who live or visit here who do see the need (or at least are aware of it) and use their resources to help. Sadly, currently there is more need than help, but at least there is help. There is any number of wonderful causes working to fill that need: programs to feed children in the barrios, help families in temporary need, humane causes, scholarships to worthy students: the list goes on and on. From the smallest to the largest, they do something to make our part of the world a little bit better.
Just last week I learned of a new charity I can totally get behind. I had made a few dog sweaters and when I was at the Saturday Organic Farmer’s Market I took them to the Los Cabos Humane Society booth. Seems like it was a slow week, because the nice lady manning the LCHS booth was also manning her own booth for the Los Cabos Sarahuaro Foundation. I’d seen the booth many times but didn’t think to ask about it. She asked if she could keep one to use as a pattern for her ladies, then explained the cause, the Sarahuaro Foundation.
The Sarhuaro Foundation works with poor women and their children. That’s an understatement. I would be willing to wager that most people reading this, and the woman writing it, cannot comprehend the poverty of these women. This foundation works with them to teach life skills, including skills that may help them provide for themselves. Sewing is one of those skills, as is hair cutting and English (a skill that is prized by employers) and basic literacy. Nutrition and other survival skills are taught in workshops in the poorest of the poor barrios. Hence the booth full of handicrafts, those are the products of women looking to improve their lives and those of their children. Here is a link to a partial list of the classes offered: http://www.sarahuaro.org/blog/talleres-workshops/workshops/
And another link to the foundation’s website, where visitors can make a donation or just learn more about Sarahuaro: http://www.sarahuaro.org/blog/boletin-press/press/
I made my first purchase from the Sarahuara booth today, a lovely little jewelry pouch for my sis. But it won’t be my last. So next time you’re in Cabo, consider dropping by the Organic Farmer’s Market at the back gate of Pedregal (one block from the old town square) and buying a souvenir that just might help an impoverished woman get a leg up. Many hotels also contribute, if you can’t make it to the market ask if your resort has a program in which you can participate.
Yes, we live in paradise. But that doesn’t mean that everything is perfect for everyone. It may be naïve, but if we all try, perhaps someday it will be.
Carol Billups is Broker/Owner of Cabo Realty Pros. She has enjoyed working with both buyers and sellers for over twelve years and still thinks hers is the best job on earth. She is also the real estate columnist for Los Cabos Magazine. You can read more of her articles on the website blog http://www.caborealtypros.com. You can reach her from the U.S. or Canada at 1-760-481-7694, or in Cabo at 044-624-147-7541. You can listen to our 24/7 broadcast on http://www.livecabo.net for a mix of happy music, weather reports and local information.

© 2013 Carol S. Billups

Living in Los Cabos: Have a Safe Storm

I just got off the phone with a good friend who was livid (thankfully, not at me). I think the source of her anger is important enough to warrant a blog about safety in Cabo. Tourists need to be aware of the safety issues. Like my friend, I’m less worried about the possibility that discussing them might deter someone from vacationing here than I am about a tourist getting sick or worse.
First, as I’ve mentioned before, Cabo is incredibly safe. In fact, I recently saw a report that said it is the second safest municipality in all of Mexico. Which is certainly re-assuring. But there are hazards here, and today Los Cabos is experiencing one of them: Tropical Storm Erick. I love the storm (hey, it’s been nine or ten long months of perfect weather…we’re ready for some variety). But I also respect the storm. Currently he’s fifty miles offshore, probably as close as he’s going to get. He giving us a cool, cloudy, windy day with some much-needed rain. That’s all the good news. The bad news is that even from a distance a tropical storm can create very dangerous surf conditions. You don’t want to be anywhere near the beach on days like this: there can be rogue waves that come much higher than you thought and which have been known to sweep the unprepared tourist out to sea. If a rogue wave doesn’t get you, a dangerous riptide might. Your best bet on a stormy day is to find something to do indoors even if, as is the case as is right now, there is no rain falling. Isn’t that why God gave us shopping malls?
And although it might seem like a fun thing, stay far away from the water flooding the downtown streets. This was the point my friend was trying to make. That water isn’t safe, either. Downtown Cabo San Lucas is the lowest point in the area. And, although I could swear I saw a giant storm sewer going in when they redid the streets, there aren’t any grates. So even with a tiny bit of rain the streets will flood. And where does all that water come from? Of course, the high ground. And what’s on the high ground? Yes, homes. In some cases barrios (yes, there are poor neighborhoods in Cabo, the average tourist never sees them). By the time the water arrives at the tourist zone it is, ahem, not specifically clean. In fact, it’s icky. As in: carrying contagion.You want to avoid contact with the water, and with the dust that will blow around when the mud dries out.
This is why our city will hop on cleaning up the mess the second it becomes safe to do so. They know the health safety implications and want to protect both citizens and visitors. In the meantime you may want to be cautious about eating or drinking at outdoor restaurants. If you absolutely can’t avoid that, at least use one with an indoor kitchen. If you think a little rain is ruining your vacation think how wonderful getting sick would be. And don’t worry, the sun will be shining on us again soon.

Carol Billups is Broker/Owner of Cabo Realty Pros. She has enjoyed working with both buyers and sellers for over twelve years and still thinks hers is the best job on earth. She is also the real estate columnist for Los Cabos Magazine. You can read more of her articles on the website blog http://www.caborealtypros.com. You can reach her from the U.S. or Canada at 1-760-481-7694, or in Cabo at 044-624-147-7541. You can listen to our 24/7 broadcast on http://www.livecabo.net for a mix of happy music, weather reports and local information.

© 2013 Carol S. Billups

Living in Los Cabos: Closing Costs… Sticker Shock

pretty sunset in Cabo San Lucas

We’ve been talking about the more affordable properties in Cabo, and there are tons of them. But there is something not so affordable about snapping one of them up: the closing costs. Here in Mexico the buyer is responsible for all closing costs, and they can’t be financed. On large properties it’s no big deal, but as purchase price goes down the closing cost as percentage of purchase price goes up. Why? The fixed costs such as bank fees, foreign affairs permit fee, and title search fees are significant. It is true that the 2% federal acquisition tax, municipal fees and others are on a sliding scale but those fixed costs add up. Although the Notario’s fee is also on a sliding scale they have a minimum fee. And, although the closing cost on an affordable home is indeed less than that for a luxury home it is a much higher percentage of purchase price. Since we can assume the buyer is on a budget it’s very important to take these expenses into consideration and factor them into the decision process.

As an illustration, I ran a closing cost estimate for three properties: a $50,000 home, a $500,000 home and a $5,000,000 home. Although the five million dollar home pays vastly more than the others ($131,835) that amount comes to just over 2% of the total purchase price. Nothing to worry about there. The $500,000 home pays $20,445 or about four percent. But the $50,000 home pays $8,305, which comes to almost seventeen percent of the purchase price!!! So now you see why you should sit down with your real estate agent BEFORE you get in the car and discuss your budgetary constraints and how they will affect the amount you can afford to invest. This is not a pleasant discussion and one that many agents are reluctant to initiate. But imagine the disappointment of having your offer accepted and then finding out you can’t afford to buy after all. Better to determine that at the outset.

There is very little that can be done, legally, to mitigate paying closing costs. Yes, there are some schemes out there but in the big picture legally and safely owning your home is of utmost importance. And to my knowledge very few of those schemes will yield the buyer clear title. When in doubt, it is a far better strategy to plan ahead and either lower your purchase budget or defer buying until you can pay to do it the right way.

Just my opinion….. what’s yours?

Carol Billups is Broker/Owner of Cabo Realty Pros. She has enjoyed working with both buyers and sellers for over eleven years and still thinks hers is the best job on earth. She is also the real estate columnist for Los Cabos Magazine. You can read more of her articles on the website blog http://www.caborealtypros.com. You can reach her from the U.S. or Canada at 1-760-481-7694, or in Cabo at 044-624-147-7541. You can listen to our 24/7 broadcast on http://www.livecabo.net for a mix of happy music, weather reports and local information.

© 2012 Carol S. Billups

Living in Los Cabos: Real Estate Rant

Living in Los Cabos: Real Estate Rant

As much as I hate to rant, I think what I have to say will help someone. Maybe a bunch of someones. So, if you’re trying to sell property anywhere in the world, this blog is for you.

One of the universal truths is that real estate agents and long term renters are natural enemies. If we are successful in selling the property they occupy they’ll have to go through the hassle of moving and face the possibility of paying higher rent. So they will do anything in their power to make sure that we are not successful. I’ll cite some examples, and no, I’m not making any of these up:
• Failing to flush the powder room toilet over a long period of time, making sure the house has a certain aroma (how DID they live with that?),
• Insisting they must be present during the showing and then telling the prospect fifteen things they hate about the house, the neighborhood, and even the town,
• Leaving clothes, food and other stuff all over the house so that the prospective buyer spends more time noticing the mess than the good features of the home,
• Conveniently locking themselves out just as we’re pulling up to the door,
• Leaving a large and unfriendly dog loose in the house during the time of our pre-arranged visit, and
• Refusing to allow a showing because it was less than the agreed upon 24 hour notice (and they were right, it was only 22 hours).

I’m not joking, all of the above and more have happened to me. And it gets worse. Last week I had a devil of a time trying to arrange to show properties to prospective buyers. I must have made twenty calls to get four properties to show. Why? The kind of home my clients were looking for is very commonly a long term rental. And to make matters worse the agents weren’t just asking the tenants to let us see the house, they were asking them to do the showing!

Let’s think about it… I’m in a rental house that presumably I like. The owner puts it up for sale. I get a call from the real estate agent representing my landlord and he/she asks if I can take off work on a Friday afternoon and go home to let the prospective buyers in. Does anyone actually think that’s going to happen?

Just as an aside: there are a number of reasons we don’t use a lockbox system here in Cabo. Our Operating Procedures call for the listing agent to attend all showings. Some of us have lock boxes of our own, which we will use for our own convenience (so we know where the keys are) but we generally won’t give the combination out to anyone we don’t know and trust. After all, it is our job to safeguard the client.

So back to renters sabotaging our sales effort…

Even the world’s greatest real estate agent can’t sell what they can’t show. The days of buying sight unseen are long gone in Cabo. If you want to sell your condo or house you’re going to have to take responsibility for making it available for your agent to show to prospects. It’s a simple as that. The easier it is for the agent to show, the more likely you’ll get more viewings and will get it sold more quickly. This is a small town. Even if the agent didn’t put “can be shown on 30 minute notice” in the MLS system, a nice house that is easy to get into gets a good reputation among other agents and will be shown more often than one that is difficult to schedule. And more showings equates to more and better offers.

Short term (vacation) rentals aren’t much better than long term renters. Because selling in a resort community generally takes longer than in non-resorts our listing agreement is for one year. Let’s say you’ve rented your home as a vacation property for 176 days. You’ve really listed it for six months, haven’t you?

So the bottom line is this: you must decide if you’re a renter or a seller. It is possible for you to get co-operative tenants and you might want to write a showing clause into your lease if you do. And set up a good line of communication between you and your agent so that if your tenant is sabotaging viewings you’ll know about it and be willing to take action. And last, be sure your agent understands that you expect them to attend all showings. That is, after all, their job.

OK, end of rant. Hopefully it will give some sellers out there food for thought. And action.

Thanks for letting me get this off my chest. I’ll have something positive to say next. I promise.

Carol Billups is Broker/Owner of Cabo Realty Pros. She has enjoyed working with both buyers and sellers for over eleven years and still thinks hers is the best job on earth. She is also the real estate columnist for Los Cabos Magazine. You can read more of her articles on the website blog http://www.caborealtypros.com. You can reach her from the U.S. or Canada at 1-760-481-7694, or in Cabo at 044-624-147-7541. You can listen to our 24/7 broadcast on http://www.livecabo.net for a mix of happy music, weather reports and local information.

© 2012 Carol S. Billups