Well I guess it’s as sure as it’s going to get so here is the scoop: We signed a contract to buy a place in Rincon!
A few weeks ago while I was sleeping Jack (Cassie’s Dad who recently passed) came to me in a dream. We were in Puerto Rico on a sunny day on top of a hill. It was on the west side of the island and I could see the ocean from where we were. I don’t remember all the details about it but a few things stood out.
- Jack was waiting for us in Puerto Rico or already had a place.
- The house reminded me of playground equipment for some reason.
- The place had an ocean view.
When I woke up I told Cassie about the dream. I had been waiting for Jack to visit me in my dreams and he finally did! I remember telling him something like: “Well if you already had a place in Puerto Rico why didn’t you tell us!!! This would have been so much easier!”
Fast forward a week…Maybe a week and a half. A Realitor calls me while I am at work. I met him in PR when I was down there last time and we looked at a property. He said that the sellers of the property wanted to extend an offer/price. They knocked $270,000 off of their inital asking price! Well I told him that I’d have to ask Cassie, but I am pretty sure we would make a deal.
Here are a few pictures of the place. I have some video to upload later on too. There is a main wood house, a small studio concrete guesthouse and 4 acres of land.
This place meets nearly all of Cassie and my criteria. It is a perfect compromise really. It has some land to move around/build on, it’s located in Rincon and it’s affordable. We really like Rincon because it will be an easier transition to move to, there is the possibility of making our own rental/vacation home business there, and there is a lot of great events and things going on. When I looked at this place before I didn’t take it too seriously because they were asking so much.
The house is a wood treated place which is good and bad. It’s good because we will have a place to stay while we are down there. It’s bad becasue we are planning to eventually take it down and put up a concrete house of our choosing. I like this though because it is more of a ‘pay as you go’ option. We don’t have to take out a major loan, we can design it how we want it and it has something we can use now.
Both of us are SUPER excited about it, and even more certain that it is the right decision. The down side is that we have a contract on the other place near Isabela. We are going to break the news to that realitor soon that we had something totally unexpected come up that will prevent us from purchasing that property. There isn’t much money on the line so it is something that Cassie and I are willing to let go and chalk up to the cost of the other place.
This place in Rincon is going to require a lot of work and improvements to make it what we want. That’s fine though. We are looking forward to the challenge (as we’ve done before with our rentals)! And in the mean time, we can enjoy the sunset over the ocean from our literal dream home in the tropics- which will make it all the more worthwhile.
Thats great. It looks like a nice spot. Safe for all kinds of animals. The sellers finaly realized what their house/land was realy worth and because of that they sold it. Nice job. Now I just hope that we can price our house properly so we can move closer to work. Any sugestions? Know anyone else looking for a house here? How did you search for a home here?
Goodie! This may be what you had wanted all along…it all works out! David is waiting until closer to the closing date to pry into the ownership so it isn’t sold in between his verifying it is free and clear and closing. He knows what he’s doing…let us and him know if you need help with anything! And of course you can stay here if you arrive a day early prior to closing (since you won’t have a bed). Jeff had to try to find a bed after signing papers so he’d have somewhere to sleep after he got the keys. Luckily the previous home owner was a jewel and drove in his truck to get one!
Congratulations Guys, may this be the best ride of your life! Be ready for the unexpected and be ready for island time.
Jeff,
Hmm…we haven’t ever sold a house, but we’ve bought 5 going on 6! I know that for us, we look for price number 1, because we are willing to do work to make it how we want it. Some people don’t want that. Because your place is so nice, I would shoot for people like that rather than the bargain hunters like us. I’ve heard that staging is important and removing as many personal items as possible like photos, pet stuff, and clothing from view. That makes it easier for the prospective buyer to imagine themselves living there. Also really talk up your selling points like off-grid living (solar panels unless you are taking them?), unique house shape, remodeled bathroom, outdoor living and sunroom area (not sure what you call that neat area in front of your house that is indoor/outdoor), open floor plan, mature fruit trees, secluded valley that is still near main road, and the unique features of San German like more sunny days than other areas, the historical downtown, etc.
Unfortunately PR doesn’t have an MLS so you have to try and put it out there on as many sites as possible. We liked clasificadosonline.com, homes.point2.com, and some realtors sites like J+M, Marti Realty, Island West Property, as well as the ads in coquirincon.com. We looked all over, basically. Also, craigslist just to cover all the bases.
Not sure of anyone else looking for a home yet, but our friends and family have been watching us with interest, so you never know! 🙂
Thanks Katrina for getting us in contact with David and being a liaison too! We might just take you up on your offer of a soft bed before we sign all the papers!
Great news, and when you eventually build in concrete you will have exactly what you want.
Best to you both, Wil
My realtor in Humacao told me that in PR anyone can get out of a real estate deal up until the last minute. And like you said you don’t have to build the concrete house right away, and you can stay in the wood house in the meantime. You guys know a thing or two about real estate investments! Finally your dream is starting to come true! Sounds like a great plan. Best of luck to you, I hope you can move soon! — Fran
Britton & Cassie
Wow…I just ran into your site this weekend and noticed your desire to move to Puerto Rico and already you are moving…….not sure how long this has been your plan but congratulations! Sounds like a great life adventure. I found your site searching for connections between Puerto Rico and Colorado ( I live in Colorado Springs)….I am in the process of expanding a business into Puerto Rico and looking for contacts here I can get ideas from. Would love to visit with you at some point. Maybe you could send me an email address or the best way to connect.
Thanks….George
Cassie, my husband and I will be coming to Puerto Rico for two weeks during September. I was in Rincon in March and stayed Beside the Point which I loved. It will be closed during our visit. Do you have any other suggestions on where to stay. I am hoping that I can convince my husband that this is the place we should move to.
Thank you, Suzy
Hi Suzy!
That is pretty awesome that you may move to Rincon! I have heard there are a lot of great places to stay. We have only stayed at the Coconut Palms during our honeymoon that I could give firsthand opinions. We liked it there, it is just a small guesthouse right on the beach. We also like hanging out at the Lazy Parrot’s pool, and it seems like a nice place to stay. We enjoy the sunsets and piratas at Villa Cofresi. I think I’ve heard good things about Pineapple Inn. Rincon of the Seas seems nice too. I would just read reviews on TripAdvisor and see what sounds like your style! Good luck, we look forward to hearing more from you (and maybe becoming neighbors). 🙂
Thanks for the info. I am leaning towards Coconut Palms. I have eaten at the Lazy Parrot and they have the most amazing Coconut Shrimp I have ever eaten. It does look like a nice place to stay, but want to be on the beach listening to the waves. We will be there in Puerto Rico the first two weeks of September, starting at the rain forest for several nites then working our way around the island on the south side. Let you know how it all works out
Interested in retiring in PR. How much is property. Two Bedroom will do.