A couple of weeks ago while we were walking through Parque Calderon with Charlie and Elsie we saw a professional film crew. I asked one of the camera men what they were filming - turns out that they are doing another House Hunters International episode in Cuenca. Through 2104 there have been a total of 14 House Hunters International episodes filmed in Ecuador covering Esmeraldas, Manta, Cotacachi, Puerto Cayo (3), Quito(3), Salinas(2), and Cuenca(2). I am not sure when the new episode(s) will air in 2015, but I hope to watch them.
I am always a little interested in understanding the housing prices and options in the cities and countries we visit. With a couple of weeks of quiet time and a little inspiration from bumping into the House Hunters crew, I decide to check out some local properties. I'm accompanied by William and our friend Evelyn, who has lived in Cuenca for over a year.
The first condo is new construction 5 blocks west of the El Centro district. The new light rail tram will stop less than a block from the building, which will give the option of either walking into El Centro (30 minutes to Parque Calderon) or jumping on the tram (probably 10-15 minutes to the stop closest to Parque Calderon). We walk through a two bedroom unit on the third floor and then proceed to the penthouse on the fourth floor. The penthouse also is two bedrooms but it comes complete with two large terraces and the elevator stopping directly in the unit. The building is nice, but it is in an area of large condo complexes and the pricing seems high.
I am always a little interested in understanding the housing prices and options in the cities and countries we visit. With a couple of weeks of quiet time and a little inspiration from bumping into the House Hunters crew, I decide to check out some local properties. I'm accompanied by William and our friend Evelyn, who has lived in Cuenca for over a year.
The first condo is new construction 5 blocks west of the El Centro district. The new light rail tram will stop less than a block from the building, which will give the option of either walking into El Centro (30 minutes to Parque Calderon) or jumping on the tram (probably 10-15 minutes to the stop closest to Parque Calderon). We walk through a two bedroom unit on the third floor and then proceed to the penthouse on the fourth floor. The penthouse also is two bedrooms but it comes complete with two large terraces and the elevator stopping directly in the unit. The building is nice, but it is in an area of large condo complexes and the pricing seems high.
The second condo we see is in El Centro and actually is two condo's side-by-side in an older building one block to Parque Calderon. They are changing the top (fifth) floor from offices to condo's. The remodeling of the two units is near completion, but still has the option of punching an opening between the units if someone bought both. However, they are small and have been designed with an upstairs loft bedroom, but there is only one bathroom and it is on the main floor.
The third condo building we see doesn't have any units available for sale - all are under contract. It is located in El Centro with one entrance on Calle Larga and another on the street facing Rio Tomebamba. It is about four blocks to Parque Calderon. The building is under construction and the first of the 26 units will start to be delivered in April or May. We walk through the site with Juan, one of the principles of the construction firm. We even crawl from one unit to the next by going over the roofs and roof top terraces. OSHA would cringe. Juan is very knowledgable and enthusiastic about the properties they have developed and this one (their fifth) in particular. We ask about the pricing of the units, and his response indicates they are less than the first condo's we saw. We also generally discuss Juan's next project, which is located a few blocks away. They are awaiting approval from the city building committee before he can discuss the plan and pricing in detail. Juan will let us know the details once they have approval.
The third condo building we see doesn't have any units available for sale - all are under contract. It is located in El Centro with one entrance on Calle Larga and another on the street facing Rio Tomebamba. It is about four blocks to Parque Calderon. The building is under construction and the first of the 26 units will start to be delivered in April or May. We walk through the site with Juan, one of the principles of the construction firm. We even crawl from one unit to the next by going over the roofs and roof top terraces. OSHA would cringe. Juan is very knowledgable and enthusiastic about the properties they have developed and this one (their fifth) in particular. We ask about the pricing of the units, and his response indicates they are less than the first condo's we saw. We also generally discuss Juan's next project, which is located a few blocks away. They are awaiting approval from the city building committee before he can discuss the plan and pricing in detail. Juan will let us know the details once they have approval.
All-in-all we have fun and are entertained by our own version of House Hunters International.
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