Pedasi Real Estate Report


News from Panama / Tuesday, August 28th, 2012

Pedasi is one of the most quaint fishing villages in the world.  Life slows down real quick as you come to town and it is the way life should be here. My friend Tedd Tennis reports from Pedasi that they have had a good year, albeit that the million dollar luxury home market is off like it is all over the world.  That said, there is still a brisk business in more affordable second homes and retirement homes available now that did not exist before.   Here is his report.  I work with a few other agents in other places and Tedd is a guy I count on for honesty and integrity when referring clients to him in Pedasi.  If you contact him, tell him that you read about the report in The Panama Perspective.  He will take extra good care of you for sure.

Pedasi Real Estate Report, August 6th, 2012

Slow and steady has been the sales climate this year in the Pedasi, Panama real estate market.  Active real estate agents in Pedasi have reported tangibly more visitors than the years prior, but this has not necessarily translated in to more sales.

Some buyers are coming down expecting great bargains and end up disappointed by the fact that prices have remained relatively unchanged,  but retirees and expats looking to escape a changing financial climate in their home countries have been pleased with what they have seen, which led to consistent sales for the region.

What’s New In Pedasi?

In general Pedasi news, our new hospital is over half-finished at the entrance of town and should be open by early next year.  Built on five acres of land, the 23 room hospital will feature a 24-hour emergency room which is a huge welcome to those of us who live here year-round.  There is also a new commercial center being built on the main street that will house a large supermarket, a hardware store, and eight other retail shops.

The road to Playa El Toro and La Garita beaches is currently being paved with completion scheduled for this November, which makes the developers of both Andromeda Ocean Estates and Costa Pedasi (both of whom happen to be located on this street) very happy.  The road to Los Destiladeros, home to several high-end hotels and developments, has also been completely paved and now workers are finishing the replacement of the road’s three bridges. What used to be a 20 minute drive now takes about 5 minutes!

The Development Landscape in Pedasi

The Dekel group, which is developing Andromeda Ocean Estates, among other projects, has signed an agreement with Cocige, a large construction company that has built several high-rises and shopping malls in Panama City.  Cocige has committed to moving a considerable amount of manpower and materials to Pedasi in order to take over construction of both infrastructure and homes in Dekel’s various projects.  This could be a game-changer for the development, which has struggled to get home construction going to keep up with sales.

Cocige is already building warehouses onsite to store materials and we know of at least two existing lot owners who have been given reasonable quotes by Cocige to build homes.  Construction of homes and further infrastructure is set to begin at the end of the year (the start of the dry season) and we are excited for both the developer and for Pedasi in general. Actual, physical progress is a good thing.

The Dekel Group has also purchased 6 hectares of beachfront land at Playa Venao and has announced pre-sales of Blue, a new development which will feature three 3-story condo buildings with 20 units each and sixty bungalows with a hotel, community pools and a restaurant/common areas on the beach.  Prices start at around $140,000 and the developer reports that roughly half of the units have already been sold (unverified).  Cocige will also be the builder for this new project, slated for delivery by 2014.

As for Costa Pedasi, they continue to add beautiful new homes to their growing beachfront community.  A total of twelve homes have now been completed with more under construction.  The entrance road has a brand new surface and a beach club with the restaurant and massive swimming pool also slated to be completed this coming dry season (January).

As for other projects, Bellamar is a planned three-story condominium to be built on roughly ¾ acres of land inside the Andromeda Ocean Estates development.  This is going to be a high-end project with all the bells and whistles, being developed by a nice couple from Missouri who have done similar projects in the US.  Pre-sales have begun and 3 of the 18 units are currently under contract.

One our our favorite projects along the beach, Lomas de Playa Venao has finished its second home overlooking the beach at the world famous surf break, Playa Venao. Power has now been fully installed in the project and the first owners are living there full time, which again, is great tangible progress to take note of.

Update on land sales

Large land purchases have been occurring recently in the area.  In addition to the Dekel Group’s purchase of six hectares at Playa Venao, a group of investors lead by the Prince of Lichtenstein has purchased over a hundred hectares on the beach in Puerto Escondido, 15 minutes from Pedasi in the Los Destiladeros area.

Wildlands, the development group behind the well-known Azueros project in the same area is under new management and plans to begin lot sales shortly.  This should breathe new life into what is arguably Pedasi’s most beautiful neighborhood, with large homes designed by the French architect Gilles St. Gilles.  In another great coup for the neighborhood, the South African resort management company “Mantis” has taken over management of Pedasi’s most exclusive hotel, Villa Camilla.

On a smaller scale, several small developments of 10 to 40 home lots have sprung up in the center of town and lot sales are steady, attracting both foreign and local buyers.  Price points start at $25/square meter ($25,000 for a ¼ acre) and go up to double that.  These communities feature titled lots, mature trees and nice green areas.  They are attracting a lot of folks for whom the ‘$100,000+’ price tag of lots in the beachfront developments is out of their comfort zone.

A little bit about home sales

An American investor is building spec homes in Pedasi and has sold two recently for $130,000.  He has three more currently under construction and has acquired enough land to continue building many more.  These homes are 2 to 3 bedrooms, roughly 1100 sqft enclosed with another 400sqft of covered terrace.  Built in a local style with block and stucco walls, hand-fired clay tile floors and roof and lots of exposed wood, these Pedasi Homes for Sale are going to appeal to a lot of buyers.  I expect to see other developers follow suit soon and to be able to offer clients very attractive homes at affordable prices.

There is still a big lack of beach homes and homes with ocean views available in the area but hopefully those will be coming along as well, both inside and outside of the gated communities.  A beautiful 2 bedroom/2 bath home by Gilles St. Gilles was recently purchased as a resale for $315,000 in the Azueros community in Los Destiladeros.

Opportunities in Pedasi

Panama Equity has just listed two prime lots in Costa Pedasi available for resale.  One is an ocean front lot of 1,385sqm (1/3 acre) for $285,000.  The other is a second-line lot of 1,467sqm for $124,700.  Both prices are negotiable and are already discounted 20% OFF of developer pricing.

We also have a 1.3 hectare (3.3 acre) ocean view piece of land about five minutes from Playa Venao that is just steps to a great beach.  This unique property is priced at $200,000 and the per meter price on this land is WAY less than other land in the area and the owner will sell half the land for $120,000.  Several nice homes, a boat ramp and new pizza parlor are within proximity to this great piece of land.  Power and water are already installed and the land is ready for building.

In Pedasi we have a fenced 2,000sqm (1/2 acre) lot on the main street just outside of town for only $50,000.  This would be perfect for a business or large home.  We also have several houses in the $120-$140k price range beautiful home lots starting at $25,000.

Thanks for reading!  We are always available to answer any questions you may have about the real estate market in Pedasi.  If you are in the area, please stop by our office on Main Street, downtown Pedasi!

Click on this picture for a story I wrote last year published in Panama 9 80 magazine starting on page 49