Beachfront Condos, Starting From the Ground, Up
This past week marked another milestone for the Bala Beach Resort in Maria Chiquita, Panama as heavy equipment began operations to install primary infrastructure on site. Before any individual buildings can be constructed initial water and electric channels must be completed. The access road is already in place and fully functional since June, allowing for trucks and bulldozers to enter onto the beachfront and start with the new task at hand.
A new full time construction workforce will be a common sight alongside this small section of Panama’s Caribbean coast, joining the team who had already been regularly cleaning and maintaining the sandy beach. New changes are already evident as small sections of land are being cleared in order to prepare for the storage of the construction materials. The heavy machinery is beginning to open up pathways which will allow for the drilling of freshwater wells to provide clean drinking water for the resort. Other operators and equipment are starting to mark and dig out new spaces to put in electric and natural gas lines.
The dramatic change in the landscape of this small Caribbean fishing village is just now beginning to take form. After making many trips to the Bala Beach site without seeing any heavy work being done, it was hard to imagine how this raw piece of land would be transformed into the foundation for a large residential development composed of an orchestra of multiple concrete structures. But now with just a little bit of deisel powered action taking place, Bala Beach is taking its first steps toward its final goal.
It is an exciting time to be in Panama and especially exciting if you are in any way following or involved with the progress at Bala Beach. Development and opportunity are on the horizon, and the coming months will start this project on its way to becoming a reality. Almost all of the work still remains ahead of us, but from these first days forward, it will be easier and easier to imagine a new life in Maria Chiquita and at Bala Beach.
To see more visit www.balabeach.com
Panama & Caribbean Investment: #4 $1 Billion invested in Panama’s Caribbean Coast
There was a very intriguing article translated by Panama Guide’s Don Winner about the $1 billion dollar investment over the next 5 years being injected along Colon’s Caribbean coast. Developers, tour operators, restaurants, and other enterprises are among the list of businesses investing money into the Caribbean coastline.
($1Billion investment going to Panama’s Caribbean coast)
This surge of capital being poured into the coastline stretching from Maria Chiquita to Isla Grande stems from the government’s efforts to spice up the once sleepy Caribbean getaway. The Panamanian government has enacted two major initiatives that are attracting both Panamanian and foreigners alike.
One of the main components fueling this is the new Panama - Colon Highway. This highway is going to uncover this whole area to weekenders and tourists. Currently, the drive is more than an hour and a half and is extremely frustrating for commuters. However, with the completion of the next highway coming in less than 9 months (April 2009), this commute is going to be dramatically reduced to 45 minutes.
The second part of the government initiative is to reclassify the entire region from Maria Chiquita to Isla Grande as a tourist zone. As a result, investors, developers, and entrepreneurs have been given the proper financial incentives in the form of tax breaks and other measures to encourage the commitment of their capital.
The combination of a much reduced commute and rezoning has resulted in approximately $1 billion dollars being poured into the area. There are residential developers from Spain, Holland, and other countries building at least 4 new developments that will have the capacity to host more than 20,000 residents and tourists annually, which is 5 times the current capacity.
(Beachfront cafes and resturants)
What does this mean for Bala Beach?
In addition to the millions of dollars we are spending to develop our tropical beachfront community, the area is seeing hundreds of millions more in other residential, commercial, and entertainment ventures. In Bala Beach, you have the opportunity to invest in a place that is on the cusp, with the combination of infrastructure and financial fundamentals to create something unique.
In addition to the $1 billion dollars of initial investment, the second wave of investment is coming down the road. These later changes will be in the form of commercial strips, beachfront restaurants and cafes, tour companies and sailing expeditions, and other secondary entrepreneurs who will round out the community.
(Sailing expeditions)
Bala Beach and the incoming investment around it, is not a “someday it will happen” pipedream that never comes to fruition. On the contrary, the construction of the highway has commenced and the rezoning has already taken place, making this investment not a matter of “if,” but “when?”
Panama & Caribbean Investment: #3 the closest beachfront community in all of Panama
Bala Beach is located less the 45 minutes from Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport establishing Bala Beach as the closest beachfront community that Panama real estate has to offer.
(Tocumen International Airport)
What does this mean for the Panama Investor or a person just looking to live or retire in Panama?
Well first off, Panama’s fastest growing and most sustainable sector of the economy is tourism. Every year hundred of thousands of tourists make Panama their vacation destination and this number is increasing rapidly. A solid number of these tourists are searching for a tropical place to stay that is located close enough to the Panama City, so that they can drop into the city and see the sights and then bounce back to their beachfront rental. Thus, Bala Beach is best suited to satisfy this desire because of its 45 minute proximity to Panama City.
Panama is consistently ranked internationally as the best and cheapest place to retire in the world because it offers residents such a great value. With 13,000 baby boomers from the US retiring daily and even more internationally, this demographic is sizeable and will continue to grow. Similar to the vacationers, retirees are seeking a place that is out of the traffic congested streets of Panama City for a more laidback lifestyle. However, retirees want to be close to Panama City to conveniently drop into the city a couple times a week or month. They do not want to drive 2 plus hours or pay the high prices to fly there.
(Tropical living at Bala Beach)
Furthermore, retirees want to be located close to the Panama’s best medical facilities, most specifically the John Hopkins center in Punta Pacific. John Hopkins medical center is one of the biggest, if not the top selling point that retiring in Panama has to offer. Once again, being 2 plus hours or an expensive flight away is not ideal or desirable for timely medical services.
(Bala Beach is the closest beachfront community to John Hopkins medical center)
Before investing you must understand some of the deciding factors for people you are going to rent out or sell to. As I have explained above, being the closest beachfront community in all of Panama, Bala Beach is able to satisfy the location desires of both vacationers and retirees in Panama.
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