Chile Forum

I have some fairly reliable intelligence on that Esso station and former oil repository next to it from a major developer, and have some family that owns an apartment across the street. One that Esso station is really profitable from what I have seen. Don't think that place is going anywhere soon. Likely it is worth more than those buildings around it.

The land that the oil repository use to sit on can not be touched I believe it is for 10 years. Even after that, it would cost a fortune to build on because it is toxic soil. The soil has to be removed and specially handled, making it massively expensive in the 100 to a 1000 times or more cost wise to build on than any other land around it, before you even lay your first cup of concrete. Thus, why you see them essentially building in to the sides of the hill all the way around it, but not on such an obvious prime piece of property. It seems like an obvious no brainier, but it has its serious issues. So you can see why the Esso station is the only thing that can be there because it is a gas station and it is the only thing it can be zoned for that area.

Our family has preserved their great view of the coast for the next ten years at least, if not forever.

Funny, one of the most valuable pieces of real estate in Chile is basically a toxic dump.

Today's El Mercurio (Valpo) reported that a group of companies has agreed to fund the 'toxic' clean-up effort with work to commence after September 18.

Interesting. Will have to watch that one.

One really spooky things I seen when spending time at the last building on the street is that when the navy does their anti-aircraft training, the tracers would start drifting almost parallel to the beach. I was sure one time that a round was going to come through the patio window. I would hate to be the guys with an apartment a little more in the line of fire.

The next thing to be developed will be that navy base. They could likely fund the military for a year with value of that land.

Well, now let's wait and see what really gets done. Sometimes in Chile these announcements get made, and years later everyone is still "planning". I am sure sooner or later it will get done.

I can speak from experience with 14 units, in the US in two different states. Generally to enter the rental business one needs a prospectus just as with any business plan. What I didn't see in this thread was a realistic payoff time. People are all thinking in terms of a home mortgage with payout times of 15 20 and 30 years! To make a go of it in this business the payout time is 12 years (or less). After the first unit is paid off the payout for the next unit is a mere 5.5 years. It snowballs from there and you are ready to retire in about 23 years with 10-15 units. All the rest of the discussion is sort of irrelevant. First unit MUST pay off in 12 years or it's just another home mortgage.
I have seen lots of people attempt to enter the rental market and their prospectus has a 15 year (or more) payoff time. These ventures seldom generate more than one extra building in a lifetime and a lot of headaches! At the age of 65 I don't want to be under a house fixing things.
I started to generate lots more money when I had 5 or 6 units free and clear, so I quit my day job!
So, use the 12 year time frame and build a unit that is cheap enough to pay off in 12 years or less, even if you have to help it with your salary. Don't change your life-style. All my units are better than the house I live in today.
Tenanants? Go for the high end market. Location, location, location... beautiful buildings/units. Rich tennants can pay the extra 10% and not even notice. You will keep it full if your unit is the best one in town! Downtown, close to where the big salaries are. If they call and say they have a little problem fix it instantly. Make them happy. Welfare tenants? forget it, you can't raise the rent by $3 and they start squealing and suddenly your unit becomes "damage prone..." Get some tools, learn how to paint. Wear a beeper. It's a business.
Don't buy someone else's building, build your own. Make a little survey to determine where the high-end market is. Where do all the fat cats want to live? (close to work). What amenities are they willing to pay for?
Whether this will work in Chile I don't know, but I'm sure some of the old timers here can share their experiences. I suspect it will be the same.
Matter of fact I've done well enough, I retired, and as soon as I sell this last unit I'm moving to Chile!

So we've continued looking around at properties and are decided to buy a flat here in Las Condes.


We've been looking at some new as well as some used apartments. So far the used ones have been somewhat similar in price, especially after all the fees are paid out for the purchase, to new apartments. We're still looking at used 2 bdrms in the area but have our eyes on a new Bersa building right next to Parq Arauco Shopping. It's more expensive but we are bullying them for more descuentos and our line of thought is its location and "lujo" designs will make it easier to rent in the future. We don't plan on living in a 2bdrm forever and want what we buy now to be able to convert into a rental unit for us in a few years.

We live in a Bersa now in a nice area and its deptos are rented out almost immediately always. Its nice but not as nice as the one we're looking at getting. Its still under construction, too, so we're able to do the pie in cuotas, which is nice since we are paying for a wedding too and I don't have to empty the piggybank all at once. It's done just after we're married in Enero 2011.

So far, our observations with used deptos in Las Condes is the following: unless you move to the less "top" areas of the barrio the prices just don't seem to be worth it - - if you can buy new, from a good constructor, it seems you're better off then going with the older buildings. Of course, "old" in Las Condes is like 5 years, 10 is ancient. It seems absurd to me, having lived in century old houses in the states, but its the mentality here. Though we've seen some decent deals used that I thought could easily be fixed up and made nice inside, the hallways/grounds of the used buildings were generally dirty and poor condition.

We're still looking of course. I still have my eye on a 2bdrm that is small and close to the street (A quiet street) that is a good deal less than the market prices nearby. I think it would be a great rental unit that you could pay off in 10 years if you keep it rented and throw in a bit of your own cash on top of it. We'll have to see.

Petroleras alistan venta de predio en Las Salinas
http://www.mercuriovalpo.cl/prontus4_no ... 94125.html