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Home Constrcution Orders, Just Starting to Come In!

It's been a busy Fall so far and now that we're headed into the new season (CR summer) our big news is Building, Building and more Building.

Valle de Luz is fully permitted and ready for construction and more infrastructure. The rainy season took it's normal toll on this project but our road crew is headed back into the property now that the summer is almost here.
VDL property owners should have received notice by now to have their corporations opened and prepare for title transfer. Monterra is transferring another 220 titles - just in VDL!

2012 will see the formation of Monterra's new building company which already has 10 homes to start early 2012. We will be posting progression photo's as these homes raise.

According to Costa Rica's development and permitting office, as of fall 2011 Monterra is now the largest owner of titled and permitted properties in the entire peninsula, and we're in the top 5 for the entire country. The Monterra team has worked very hard to achieve this as we've witnessed other developers stall as they try to build without these complicated permits. There are no shortcuts in this country! And we're happy for that.

With our upgrades to the Hotel Costa Coral and our union with powerhouse 'ACI' - Monterra has built new relationships with billion dollar marketing companies such as Groupon and Living Social who are populating the Hotel Costa Coral and driving
interest to our area. This has translated to more property sales and home building enthusiasm. OCR in Canada, will likely focus more on client administration for Monterra allowing these big
companies to handle marketing for us in this new age of promotion. OCR seminars will continue but with focus on home building education with little emphasis on property sales. Our marketing partners will take over in this area.

2012 and 2013 Monterra will be focusing 90% of it's efforts on construction and not land development. This coincides with our business plan for 2012 which put most of our emphasis on home and condo construction. Also this keeps our (the) property
market from inventory saturation allowing land pricing to climb closer to Chicago Title appraisal values, benefiting all. We still have many properties available but the prices will be climbing more dramatically over the next 2 years - and many will be sold with a building contract in place.

This is great time to be involved with our company. If you're considering building then please contact OCR (ask for a 'Architectural Agreement') before the holidays - we're limiting our home numbers in 2012, and already have commitments for 2013.

Monterra Developers,

We will update our BLOG shortly. We have lots to share with you!

Meet Michael!

Many of you have already met Michael as he's been employed by Monterra Developers for more then a year. As we're rapidly moving into home building this year Michael has been busy sharing his home ideas and meeting with customers who are ready to get building. He's also been busy interviewing / hiring our building crews consisting of trade and labor - with their first project being the Monterra warehouse in VDL.
For the past year Michael, who now lives in Playa Tambor, has been researching and assembling a comprehensive quoting sheet of every type of material needed to build and finish a home in Costa Rica. After a year of negotiating and pre-purchasing materials Monterra's exclusive pricing from these suppliers will make our luxury homes very competitive (quality & price) against any builder in Costa Rica.

More info will be coming soon on the Monterra building process and how to get started.

Michael Pechbrenner:

- More than 30 years' experience in construction building.
- Second generation. Credited with projects in; Northern Alberta, British
Columbia, GTA, and 8 years in Florida.
- Florida; Home construction from 6,000 - 18,000 Sq. Ft.
Disney World, Busch Gardens, world famous Hammock Beach Resort (Hard-scape finishes) and many other hospitality, resort and residence construction and finishes.
- Heavily experienced with structural engineering for; Bearing, Uplift, and seismic.
- Engineering, architectural, and construction management skills to complete projects expeditiously with superior results.
- Working with architect for custom home designs to optimize terrain usage, views, functional, with beautification, natural materials, and eco friendly finishes.
- Current in technological improvements and automation for energy savings, security, communication, to simplify life's demands and comfort.
- Experience includes residential construction, commercial construction, government projects, road and parking lot construction, theme parks, city park construction with full understanding of blue print reading which include; elevations, cross sections, inverts, structural, mechanicals,
electrical, finishes, call outs, and sectionals.
- Full experience with project management, project scheduling, project estimating/budgeting.
- Full understanding of North American building codes and engineering. Currently applying skills in Costa Rica for 4 years.

New Tower Now Installed!

As promised 'ICE', Costa Rica's telecommunication company, just installed a new tower down the road from our Valle de Luz entrance. That tower now provides 4G cell phone technology (not 3G) and wireless high speed internet to Monterra's VDL projects including Pacific Blue - right to the beach!

Monterra's New Warehouse.

As planned Monterra Developers are moving quickly into becoming an organized building company. New staff have recently joined our group including an in-house architect (Costa Rican) and our Canadian home builder who comes with 25 years experience building to North American standards. Our construction team is being formed by top trades people in Costa Rica and new home designs are being created weekly! We currently have 9 client homes to build in VDL and RDS which will begin after our warehouse is completed.

Our new warehouse is designed for 10,000 square feet and will be located on VDL next to our nursery (vivero). It's needed for equipment, building materials, tools and security. Once completed it will become the main building and lock-down centre for all Monterra phases. It's vital for the building process and is the final stage before construction begins. We are very excited to be at this stage!

Why is the Southern Nicoya Pennisula so Popular?

We're back in the high season again (Nov. to May) and many more people are showing-up this year to see how beautiful this area is. The word is getting out that Playa Tambor is more accessible than ever and offers true Costa Rican nature, culture and bio-diversity. Costa Rica has determined that this entire area (Southern Peninsula) should be protected from over-development to maintain it's forests and coastlines. Over-development has occurred in some other famous beach towns which has not only hurt those area's ecology but also Real Estate values too!

Daily the ferries/ airplanes are arriving full of people coming to work, play and maybe even live in this area. Even the Cruise Ships, which dock across the bay from the peninsula, are offering passengers excursions to our area for the first time. People are coming to see what we've known for years - but without the threat of high population as the inevitable Real-Estate boom happens.

Monterra Purchases New Development.

Located in one of Tambor's most beautiful areas (known as Tango Mar) is a spectacular property which was has been under the development process for the past 3 years. During this time the previous owner/developer had acquired the necessary development permits to begin infrastructure and building. However due to economic reasons they needed to sell.

Recently Monterra was able to purchase this property at far below the appraised value and will pass those savings on to property purchasers. These are the lowest land prices we've seen in 5 years for a development of this quality. Monterra will only sell 1 per person - we are looking for people who want to start construction either immediately or within a few years and not buyers who want to purchase and flip these lots. Although this is a excellent investment it's also a great opportunity to own a piece a paradise in Costa Rica and build a winter getaway or permanent home.

The development allows for 80 building properties - building can begin immediately. There are already many homes built in the area and the 5 star 'Tango Mar' resort is located just down the road. Other then all the activities the Playa Tambor area offers, from this project you can walk to one of nicest beaches in country or Golf just a few minutes from home.

The project is named 'Pacific Blue' and is Monterra's 4th development site in the Playa Tambor area.
http://www.pacificblueproject.com/
Sales: 1 (877) 313-3336

RDS Roadwork Continues!

This past season Costa Rica property developers have had their roads tested by heavy rains - the heaviest rainy season in decades. Monterra road builders have continued working thorough this entire season as it's the best way to identify areas that need improvement. After a recent inspection we see that our water management systems have performed as they were engineered too and our roads are dry and solid. Electrical plans have now been approved by government and we will begin its distribution by Nov. 29th 2010.

Why is this home unique? Designed for Monterra's Rios del Sol.

A Canadian client together with our CR Architect 'Leon de Leon' have come up with this unique mountain home design that will be built in Phase 1. This home is actually a duplex maximizing its investment function both as a private family retreat and dual rental income potential. Even when the owner is using the home it can still be rented - Great Idea! And a beautiful home too.

What the 'Heck' is happing to Rios del Sol Phase 2 and 3?

This is a popular question these days as we have not written much about these 2 projects for a while.

The RDS phases 2,3 are definitely taking more time then planned but they are well worth the wait, keeping in mind that these river and forested areas are as beautiful as they are protected. It takes a dedicated developer to make certain that they are planned just right and have the ability to build in these regions. It also takes government permissions and with this we have delays - normal for Costa Rica, frustrating for those who are waiting to build.

GOOD NEWS! These lots will be some of the last of their kind in Costa Rica and after this final title process any 5000Sq2m + size properties will be hard to find anywhere! CR's development future is small lots - so for those lucky few who own acre properties, hold on to them! Once the final plans have been approved we will be writing more about Rio's del Sol Phases 2 and 3.

Costa Rica's Lifestyle.

A question we hear regularly is "what's it like to live in Costa Rica"?

Playa Tambor was definitely on the itinerary but other locations including: San Jose, Escazu, Santa Ana, Salitral, Arenal, La Fortuna, Jaco, Puntarenas, Mal Pais and Montezuma were also visited.
Being in popular media circles Sandra'a hears a lot about CR and essentially wanted to see first hand what Costa Rica has to offer to women and families. This was Sandra's first time in Costa Rica and we're looking forward to her fresh point's of view on our unique country.

Rain, Rain and more Rain!

The mountains are green and the waterfall's are flowing - the Tambor area is vibrant and fresh with all this rain.

We're experiencing an unseasonal amount of rain in Costa Rica now. Normally this season is much dryer and we wouldn't really expect any heavy rain until late Sept. or Oct.
As we're continuing to cut roads and develop infrastructure the abundant water is putting every cut to the test. It's slows us down for road construction but also allows us to see trouble areas as we're working. Work continues in VDL Phase 1.

The Results Are In!

In October 2009 Monterra Developers met with Latinamerica Title Co., exclusive representative of CHICAGO TITLE and one of the most a acclaimed title insurance/appraisal companies in the world.

Our primary goal was for them to initiate a 5 year historical assessment on Costa Rica Real Estate which would include competitors and comparable projects located throughout the country. This information (never been done in CR) would be extremely valuable for any company in our business as it would help to give clear insight to the realities of these RE markets.

Why Follow Our BLOG?

At the top right of this page is a place to enter you email address and then 'SUBSCRIBE'. No other personal info is required, just your email and that's never shared with anyone or used for anything else.

Every time we create a new post an email is sent to you - that happens about 3 times per month. Every once in a while we post a skill testing question about Costa Rica and if you answer correctly we ship out a Monterra Developer's shirt & hat to the winner.

We like to keep everyone visiting our BLOG informed with the latest info as it happens. Our next skill testing question is Coming Very Soon!

Thank you,
Monterra Developers,

Our last question was: What is the only true way to tell the difference between a male and female Scarlett Macaw? HINT - not the eye color.

The Barcelo Resort located in Playa Tambor has one of the world's most successful Scarlet Macaw breeding programs. It's for this reason that the Tambor area has the largest population of Macaws in Costa Rica.

(This photo was taken on April 5th, 2010 in Playa Tambor)

Monterra's 'Rios del Sol' road construction progress.

RDS's Phase 1 road construction is going as planned. The process is quite extensive with our current focus being on mitigation (protection of soil) and terracing. Most of the water registers are now installed with large underground pipes and drainage systems.

In this image you can see our use of rock and concrete that surface areas with steep inclines. This is an important process and is only found in quality mountain developments in Costa Rica - this process is necessary for safe traction and proper drainage.

Shortly we will be starting the electrical service.

They even made time for Surfing!

This week Monterra's West Coast sales team made their quarterly visit to the developments.

It was a face-paced, whirl-wind trip that included visits to Costa Rica's National Registry and the Ministry offices to gather further information about Costa Rica's development processes.

The trip was not all business though and our sales team also spent some well deserved time on Isla Tortuga and found some cool waves just off the famous surfing beach of Santa Teresa.

Thanks for the great trip girls!!

Monterra's Details! The biggest difference in Quality, Value and Appreciation.

This is one of Valle de Luz's wells that will be supplying homes and the commercial area of the project. Please notice the attention to detail that we put into a simple well house.
These details are important for the overall value of the project and is an early demonstration of VDL's quality.

Valle de Luz Progress.

Costa Rica's New HWY is now Open! Driving time to our properties is now much, much faster.

The new Costa Rica highway from San Jose to Caldera on the central Pacific Coast opened, after 34 years of planning. This 77 kilometer highway cuts the time for the trip from San Jose to Caldera from 90 minutes to 45 minutes, a major time saver. Various sections are two lane, three lane and four lane, with shoulder lanes. This opening is long awaited good news for the area. We’ve driven on some sections of the new road and the positive difference is amazing! Excellent driving conditions and offering great views of the Costa Rican countryside.

Entrance for 'Valle de Luz' Palms have been planted! Roads have Begun.

Jan. 27th - Monterra's Valle de Luz's entrance photos.