MARKET MOVERS

[Hugo Moguel]

So, ready to start? So, the purpose of this is to start discussing markets, combining ideas, comparing ideas, right? And get the right information out, you know?

 

What are the current values? What is the level of activity compared to what we have seen in the years past, right? So, the two areas that we’re talking about today are Vista Del Mar and Lord’s Bank, two suburbs of Belize City, right?

 

Two growing, like vastly, I don’t know if the right term would be vastly growing, but I mean, quickly expanding communities, right? The last time the census was was the fastest growing community in Belize, probably still is. And Belize City is really what’s feeding that traffic, right?

 

All the goods, commerce, services, all the jobs in Belize City. But the issue with Belize City is that the cost of land development is so high, that, and the supply is so low, right? That the prices are somewhat unattainable by most.

 

So, we have a situation where Vista Del Mar, Ladyville, Lord’s Bank, all these communities have seen an influx of buyers, of investors.

 

[Azain Medina]

The average Belizean, I would have said, the average Belizean, they focus more outside because they more meet their price point.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Correct. Exactly right. So, you’re getting, you have offerings that are more attainable, right?

 

And there are prices that quite frankly, you used to see in Belama, in certain neighborhoods in Belize City, maybe 20, 15, 20 years ago, right?

 

[Azain Medina]

I just made a joke on, I remember when the start off the Vista, King’s Park, that was 60, 65,000. So, 12 years ago. I remember they say listings for that low.

 

I remember Belama, that was 30, 35. Exactly. How long ago?

 

12 years ago. 12? Just 12?

 

35? Yes. Which phase?

 

That would have been phase three. Because I remember we had a couple lots where there were 50,000, sub 50, but around there we never made a sale. What’s really happened now?

 

[Hugo Moguel]

No, I sold one probably 15 years ago. We got it for 30,000 and the young lady that bought it ended up selling it five years after that for 68,000. And this was in phase two.

 

And that was a 50 by 75 foot lot, right? Standard size lot, nothing really special, one not away from the corner. How much?

 

68? 68,000. That was her return in five years, right?

 

So, that was pretty good. And she reinvested, right? So, that’s really what is driving that traffic northward, north of Belize right?

 

There are also some opportunities west, right? Mile 8 and those neighborhoods. But I think the amount of opportunities, the shopping, the services, right?

 

That are being offered right now through that Ladyville strip, right? Is what makes that area more compelling to most buyers. For families as well too, man.

 

Again, just for convenience.

 

[Azain Medina]

100%.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

So, you’re still seeing the traffic missing things are schools, private schools. You imagine if a private school would go into that area, private high school, college, that’s it. And that would even help the city with some of its traffic issues, right?

 

So, there are a lot of opportunities right now in these areas. Let’s talk about values. So, Vista Del Mar, correct me if I’m wrong.

 

It was like what, 2015, 2013 when we were selling lots in there. Average price was about 30,000, 35,000.

 

[Azain Medina]

Less, because around that time, weren’t we the sole representative of the development still? And that means we had lots still in a phase three at 15,000 plus GST. Yeah, but those were the The end lots, right? The end lots, exactly.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

But on the markets, you didn’t have proper roads, you didn’t have all of this. So, the average price, most of the lots were about 30,000, 35,000. We had some that we sold for 20,000, 25,000 as well.

 

And then, obviously, the bank had to foreclose. And then you saw a big drop in prices and everything else got picked up. Then you started seeing the prices start to creep up a little bit.

 

And then the 2016 hurricane scared off a few buyers. They were concerned about the area, about water. And so there was a slowdown.

 

But right around 2017, 2018, we just started seeing it pick up again. And you saw a little jump. And I think we got to like 45, 50.

 

And then COVID hit. Another little slowdown. But right after COVID, along with hilltops and some other properties that we had that would sit on the market for a while, all of that started getting picked up in 2021.

 

So, fast forward to today. And you’re lucky if you find a lot for 60,000 Belize.

 

[Azain Medina]

Asking price right now is around 65 for Phase 1. 65 for Phase 1. Correct.

 

So, that would be the average asking right now in that era. Standard 50 by 100.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

And we were still asking, I think, 35,000 for Phase 1, what, like two years ago?

 

[Azain Medina]

Not two years. Just pre-COVID, we sold off the last… At a certain point, we had along the concreted street, that’s Rainbow Runner, right?

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Yeah.

 

[Azain Medina]

So, we had about four lots there. And we sold those lots between 30 to 35, I believe. This was pre-COVID.

 

Just pre-COVID.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Yeah, like 2019, something like that.

 

[Azain Medina]

And then we had a couple other just two streets parallel from it, and it sold around that same price too. So, from then to now, double the investment, pretty much. Double.

 

Yeah. Then till now being four years. Yep.

 

Again, I could attest to it. 12 years at Vista, I haven’t seen… I’ve seen properties fluctuate in price, but due to major pandemic, for example.

 

But other than that, everything is only going up. There will be times where, again, things just plateaus, just balances off, but eventually goes up back again.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Exactly. So, we don’t see that there will be a slowdown in any sense for lots within that price range, or even below. And now you have Lords Bank, that we still have a few lots within that range.

 

And if you drive up a little bit more, Los Lagos, Burl Boom. If you want space, I mean, you could get good value in Burl Boom. I mean, we’ve seen…

 

We just can’t understand. And the roads now, the level of investment that has gone in over the past few years in our highway system, we have a brand new bridge, Aloha Bridge. You have John Smith Road.

 

You have all these things coming into place that are just adding value and convenience, security, safety to that area. So, yeah, don’t get left behind. I mean, do the math on that.

 

You double the value in four years.

 

[Azain Medina]

Yep. Everybody, again, most buyers I deal with, and it’s unfortunate, still in the past. So, everybody think prices right now are pre-COVID prices, which isn’t the case at all.

 

Exactly right. So, people who have the opportunity are missing the opportunity because they believe prices are lower, right? But again, they’ll miss the opportunity.

 

Give it a couple of months, the same properties they were looking at will sell. They’ll come back, ask if it’s still available and no longer available. And a lot of investors as well, too, are realizing it.

 

So, especially in Belize City, but as you said, everybody’s still focusing, well, now focusing Ladyville as well, too. So, a lot of the investors are grabbing up pieces in Ladyville for the future. 10, 15, 20 years down the road, people are making those plays.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, for sure. And the thing is, you mentioned investors, right?

 

So, what we’ve been seeing as well is that, especially after COVID, there was a mad traffic that came down, but it was mostly centered around the tourist-driven areas, right? San Pedro, Vergris Key, Keycock, Plasencia. And then about 2022, I think our market started stabilizing and we started, our market being the mainland, right?

 

So, you’re talking about Cayo, you’re talking about Sand Creek, you’re talking about Belize District, too, right? The old Northern Highway, Corozal, all these places now people, investors, starting looking at value. They’re like, well, I don’t necessarily want to be on an island.

 

I don’t necessarily need to be on a beach, right? I need something inland. And so, when that happened, people started looking at places outside of the tourist-driven areas.

 

And that’s where we fall, because Belize City, while we have a decent amount of tourism, it’s not really a tourism-driven area. It’s driven by commerce, by services, right? And so is Lord’s Bank, and the population, and Ladyville.

 

I mean, there’s production there as well. There’s the airport, international airport. So, there are a lot of facilities, a lot of, there’s a strong economic base in those areas.

 

And so now people are looking at the value there. Politics, the cost of living, right? Inflation, all these things have driven a lot of folks from the US, especially Belizean Americans, right?

 

To come back home, or to come to Belize. Basically, I’m not thinking about retiring here anymore. I won’t be able to afford it.

 

I need to find a new place, a plan B, right? And Lord’s Bank, Vista Del Mar, we’ve certainly have seen that, right? We’ve seen people that bought maybe 10 years ago also sell and buy other things too, right?

 

So, it’s an interesting thing, what’s going on in these areas. And population, again, drives other things, drives commerce, drives businesses. People will need to provide certain services, right?

 

There’ll be opportunities for new businesses or current businesses to add a new location in those zones, right? So, it’s an exciting time for these areas. And if anybody is serious about investing, what we’re saying is that you can come in rather small for less than the price of a vehicle, right?

 

You can invest.

 

[Azain Medina]

Everybody wanted Tacoma, but you could buy two-piece in a Ladyville for the Tacoma.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

I mean, when last to see a Tacoma for 35,000.

 

[Azain Medina]

Exactly, as simple as that. But people these days, man, they just want flex rather than invest. But the true flex is investing.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Exactly.

 

[Azain Medina]

The money will stretch, man, much better.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

And then what’s your holding cost for these type of lots?

 

[Azain Medina]

Man, cheap, especially in Ladyville. You’re looking at annual property taxes, sub 50 billion dollars. A year.

 

A year. A year, exactly. While a vehicle.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Yeah. So, we don’t want to beat up our auto dealers neither, but you need a vehicle to move around, right? But you don’t need four, you don’t need two, and you don’t need the fanciest thing, right?

 

So, when you’re at this age, we just talked about prices doubling over the last five years, right? Even if they go up 50%, that’s a huge increase. And that’s where you start.

 

You start small. You start small. You wait a few years, the price is right, you buy right, you can flip it.

 

You make that profit, you put it right back into what the next thing is. And we’ve been doing this for, well, now over 20 years, as in you’re 12 years, right? Going to 12.

 

So, this is what combined 32 years just between us and what we’ve seen in this area. I mean, this is gonna continue. This is the city, this is the area, this is the hub.

 

And so, you’re gonna see more and more opportunities start to come by. So, you have to be strategic. You can’t just…

 

Land is not like beans, right? It’s not a commodity. So, you have to be strategic about it and get the right guidance.

 

[Azain Medina]

A lot of people are discouraged and intimidated with the prices today, especially in Belize city, but they don’t have to be. They’re looking at, again, the prettiest lot, the expensive lot being what? Right now, north side, you’re looking north of 200,000.

 

If you invest in a $200,000 lot, right now, it’s gonna take, what? 10, 15, 20 years for that to double. While investing in Ladyville, again, in five years, we saw a double happen.

 

So, investing in lower properties could actually create a better return. So, don’t get intimidated by the big prices here. And again, don’t chase after the fancy, the nicest lots.

 

That’s for a different bracket.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

That’s for a different bracket.

 

[Azain Medina]

For investors, people who want the cash.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

And for a different purpose. If you’re planning to flip or speculate, then this is the play. This is where you go.

 

People will need somewhere to live. The cost of construction, you mentioned a little while ago, that inflation, right? All these other things that have gone up, that people are still living in the past and looking at past values for land.

 

What we see also is that they’re still looking at the past values of construction. True. Right?

 

So, right when COVID hit, prices, I mean, the prices on materials, right? Skyrocketed. They went up to like by 35, 45% for materials.

 

They have since stabilized. They’re not going up every day like they used to. But they haven’t come down either, right?

 

I mean, a few things maybe here or there, but overall, the value of construction has gone up by 45%, you could estimate, right? Over what it was back in 2020, 2019, right?

 

[Azain Medina]

The average right now to build between 200 to 225 Belize and reaching 250.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Well, no, we see more than that. No, we’re getting quotes at 250, 275. And if you’re talking about a square foot, Belize has a square foot.

 

And if you’re talking about the areas in Plasencia, Bergueski.

 

[Azain Medina]

Oh, much higher. Much higher.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

So, part of that too is the cost of labor. So, now labor has matched almost the same amount of materials where before it was maybe a third of the cost of total construction. Now, it’s half.

 

[Azain Medina]

Skilled laborers, especially because the tourist areas are sucking the labor as well too.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Well, a lot of them are heading to the States too. So, it’s something that buyers need to seriously consider because if you ever want to own a home, if you ever want to invest in a commercial building, the cost won’t come down. It’s not going to come down.

 

It’s only going to go up, right? And so, we see demand for homes being very high. We see that we’re not seeing as many sales because the buyers are still hopeful that there will be some miracle offering that’s going to come from somewhere, right?

 

And that’s just not the case. Now, we’re always looking for opportunities for buyers, but the reality is that if you hadn’t invested in a home or built a home by the middle of 2020, then your cost, you could have saved 45% basically. Easy.

 

And you could do the 45% on the cost of a home. That’s some serious math. Those are some serious numbers, right?

 

[Azain Medina]

So, all our past buyers and investors listening, congratulations on buying property pre-COVID. Honestly, your network is now up. That’s a fact.

 

Be conservative, use 35% or be more realistic and go to 45%.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

It’s a big up.

 

[Azain Medina]

That’s a huge up. Yeah, no, definitely. Again, it’s always in hindsight.

 

Again, present, everybody still thinks past value, which shouldn’t be missing out on today’s value, you’ll miss out on tomorrow’s value, right? Yeah. I guess most people aren’t paying attention to the industry.

 

And again, the average person in Belize is involved in real estate somehow. You work in a building, you live in a home, your kids will need to live somewhere in the future, your parents live somewhere. You need real estate and just to know the knowledge of real estate.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

You live and work in real estate, but also you were saying that many don’t pay attention to the real estate market.

 

[Azain Medina]

And that’s actually something that needs to be fixed because the ones who aren’t paying attention are the ones who are losing out. They’re being left behind. Yes, the businessmen, the investors, those are the ones focusing on it.

 

And they’re the ones purchasing as well too. And the more they purchase, simple supply and demand, the prices will go up.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

And don’t forget the ladies, the ladies working, you got to get your own. I still remember when we got teachers, when we got teachers that came in to buy some of these lots in Vista Del Mar, right? And they got the little loan.

 

That was a great credit union. Of course, they could sell that right now, pay it off or just hold and, hey, I got my spot, now I could build my home. Once they pay that off, then it’s to get a loan for their home, right?

 

So that’s how you have to do it. But again, guidance is important. We’re here to help.

 

I could tell you again, back to most folks and how they see the market, right? This area is not being driven by foreign buyers. This is all local market.

 

And when I started out 20 years ago, I remember, I think I sold a house just off of Coney Drive. And I’m trying to remember the exact figure, but I think we were asking $145,000. I may have sold for $125,000.

 

Damn, a house, three bed, two bath, bungalow, right? Just off maybe one or two lots off of Coney Drive. No, the lot alone, just the land, just the lot would be worth how much?

 

[Azain Medina]

Asking right now, and that’s because I just saw a listing yesterday, $245,000 just for the land. Oh my gosh. $245,000.

 

Yeah, that’s even crazy for what I thought. I thought you were going to say maybe $200,000. No, everything, you can’t find lots in that neighborhood.

 

Kingspark right now, the asking is between $200,000 to $225,000 creeping up, and that’s asking. Going more north, you’re looking at $225,000 to $275,000 now. So Botanical Bay is now at that $225,000, for example.

 

But right there, University Heights, Coral Grove, it’s reaching that $250,000, especially University Heights. University Heights is a good example. Back in the day when it just started, what were they asking?

 

$35,000 per lot. And now you can’t reach that. You can’t find a lot for sale in University Heights, and if it comes up, our seller could easily ask $275,000, and he will get offers.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

So the first property I ever saw in Belize was a lot in University Heights. It was a canal front lot, and that went for $60,000. Now, canal front would be what?

 

$350,000?

 

[Azain Medina]

Arguably, it could be $350,000. The right buyer who needs it, that water access, that’s the value right there. You can’t find that much in the city.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Exactly, because it has direct access to the sea. So then a lot that’s 75 feet by 100 feet, $300,000, $350,000. 20 years ago, it was $60,000.

 

That’s crazy. Just to recap, Lords Bank, Vista Del Mar. Lords Bank is where Vista Del Mar was four years ago, five years ago?

 

[Azain Medina]

I would say about that, five years.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

And we’ve seen in the last five years, values in these areas, or in Vista Del Mar in particular, double. So that’s 100% jump over five years. And great ROI.

 

Right? So all those buyers that we had 10 years ago, the values that they now hold in those properties, it’s amazing. It’s immense.

 

[Azain Medina]

I’m happy to say all of our clients, again, they made great purchases just because they purchased. It’s as simple as that. And I’d like to tell people as well, too, don’t be afraid to make an offer.

 

An offer at the end of the day, again, nothing beats a try. I’ve seen offers get accepted that I wouldn’t have thought would have gotten accepted.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

That’s the next thing. That’s a very good point. We’ve seen situations where you see a property on the market, you see it on our website, vistabelize.com.

 

You see it, you can search, and you might like something about it. Contact us or reach out to a Vista agent and just talk to them. We’ve seen this year, especially some amazing deals where you just had sellers say, hey, I just want to move on.

 

I’m done or I need the cash for whatever reason. And some buyers have gotten some incredible opportunities.

 

[Azain Medina]

Incredible investments.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Definitely.

 

[Azain Medina]

And we still have opportunities available as well, too. And just some alpha for those listening, if you search our website and you just have to take the time and go back, we do have great opportunities sitting there, but we are getting more listings. So those opportunities are being hidden.

 

You just need to take your time, do the search, just look at it. We have great properties that, man, I can’t believe are still on the market, to be honest, especially Belmopan properties.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

Exactly. Belmopan, keep your eyes on Belmopan. I mean, that’s another place that we need to dive into and look at more closely and discuss.

 

[Azain Medina]

It’s a young capital, and again, developing greatly. The infrastructure there, by far, superb. And man, I think that’s the next place.

 

[Hugo Moguel]

It’s a huge working population. The government is there. A lot of big industries in and around the place.

 

Most of the embassies are established there. And it’s a huge hub. I mean, Spanish Locote is a huge economic engine.

 

You have San Ignacio, Santa Elena, Plasencia, Hopkins, Belize City, and who’s at the center of it all? Belmopan. So we’ll discuss that in our next session.

 

And if anybody wants to know about any other markets, yeah, put it in the message. Shoot us a message or comment. And let’s see how we could put that together.

 

Thanks, Ezean.

 

[Azain Medina]

Thank you too, Hugo.