San Juan del Sur Real Estate Podcast with Joao Mucciolo

Alberto Yardi founded PrimaEvo with the mission of helping people get fresh, organic food delivered directly to their homes. Here are his recommendations for staying as healthy as possible during a global pandemic. Today I’m joined by Alberto Yardi from PrimaEvo. We love his delicious goods, and every time we have a transaction, my clients get a basket of his wonderful organic products. He sat down with me to talk a little bit about his business, the importance of having a healthy diet, and ways to boost your immune system during these crazy times. Alberto Yardi  is also a life coach, personal trainer, yoga instructor, and longevity enthusiast. He founded PrimaEvo four years ago as a way to connect those who produce organic food with those who want to consume it. Small, local entrepreneurs are producing these organic meats, fruits, vegetables, and other products, and PrimaEvo is delivering them to homes all over Nicaragua. “Keeping up with low-intensity exercise is very important for your health.” With the pandemic that has been going on, Alberto has offered some suggestions for what you can do to remain calm, relaxed, and healthy during this crisis. First, try to reduce your levels of stress through breathing techniques, yoga, or exercise. Keeping up with the low-intensity exercise is very important for your health. Alberto’s nutritional recommendations include probiotic foods like yogurt and kombucha, fermented vegetables like sauerkraut (PrimaEvo’s includes immune-boosting ginger and turmeric), and dark leafy greens like kale, bok choy, and swiss chard.  A healthy gut biome is very important for your immune system, and these foods will help you create that. To learn more about PrimaEvo, you can get in touch with Alberto through his website or Instagram.  Thanks so much to Alberto for joining us to talk about the work he’s doing to help keep people healthy through this crisis. If you have any other questions for me, don’t hesitate to reach out via phone or email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

José Bolaños is a life coach and a dear friend of mine who helped me navigate through many transitions in my life. Given the trying nature of the times we live in currently, I thought now was a great time to sit him down for an interview and learn more about how he helps business leaders succeed. José specializes in helping leaders build their complexity capabilities—in other words, he helps leaders strengthen themselves and get past complex challenges. Follow along in the video above to see our full interview. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out via phone or email. I would be happy to help you.

Fight Club Gym is a great local business here in San Juan del Sur, and today the spotlight is on them. Today we’re showcasing a local San Juan del Sur business that was started by an expat from Hawaii. Justin Williams is the man behind Fight Club Gym, and we caught up with him recently to learn more about what brought him here to Nicaragua and what his gym offers to those who choose to call it home. Here’s an outline of our full discussion with timestamps so that you can skip around to the section(s) that interest you most: 0:55- What brought Justin Williams and his wife to Nicaragua to open this gym? 1:56- Justin’s experience as a business owner and expat living in Nicaragua 2:55- What has Justin’s experience been like working and investing in this country? 3:45- Learning more about the gym, the classes they offer, and the kind of clients they attract 5:50- Justin’s favorite thing to do in San Juan del Sur Thanks so much to Justin for taking the time out of his busy schedule to speak with us. If you’re looking for a place to work out and get in shape here in San Juan del Sur, look no further than Fight Club Gym. You can learn more about them here on their website, their Instagram, or their Facebook page. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out via phone or email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

From rich breads to tasty pork, here's what the San Juan del Sur farmers market has to offer. Today we’re exploring the farmers market in San Juan del Sur! Every week, local growers and a few expats come together in one space to sell organic, locally-sourced goods. At 1:44 in the video above, watch my interview (in Spanish) with Merlinda, whose fresh breads are a market staple! We enjoy her coconut bread at home all the time.  At 3:04 in the video, check out my interview with Mark, who showcases his delicious, slow-cooked pork at the market every Saturday. His hams are brined for a full week, and the pork shoulders are smoked fresh for 24 hours straight.  “San Juan del Sur’s local market has a rich variety of locally sourced foods and wares.” In addition to selling at the farmer’s market, Mark and his team also cater weddings and parties, including two events at the U.S. embassy in Managua. Merlinda and Mark are just two of the phenomenal vendors whose goods can be tried and purchased weekly at this beloved community outlet. The market is held every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Big Wave Dave’s.  If you want to hear more of my favorite picks from the market or if you’re interested in buying or selling, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m here to help. 

El Encanto del Sur and TreeCasa Resort are two places I’m proud to spotlight in today’s video. El Encanto del Sur is one of the premier eco-developments in all of Nicaragua, and tucked inside it is TreeCasa Resort, one of the most exclusive resorts in the entire country. Today I’m showcasing both places, and joining me are their two founders, Doug Jackson and Dhruv Gulati. Doug and Dhruv believed in Nicaragua enough to invest in it and get these wonderful projects started. They wanted to build a heterogenous, sustainable, active community, and as you’ll see, they hit a grand slam. The best part? El Encanto del Sur has plenty of lots, houses, and bungalows available, and TreeCasa Resort is open for reservations.  Cited below for your convenience are timestamps that will direct you to various points in the video. Feel free to watch it in its entirety or use these timestamps to browse specific points at your leisure:  0:38—Doug and Dhruv’s backstories  1:42—Why they chose Nicaragua  2:15—The vision behind El Encanto del Sur and TreeCasa Resort 3:22—What was it like to invest in Nicaragua as foreigners?  4:23—Future plans for El Encanto del Sur/current lots available and their price ranges 6:22—Future plans for TreeCasa Resort  7:59—Wrapping things up If you’d like to know more about El Encanto del Sur and TreeCasa Resort, you can visit elencantodelsur.com or www.treecasaresort.com. If you want more information in investment and financing opportunities to acquire lots and houses in El Encanto del Sur, please contact me directly.  As always, if you have any other real estate questions or are thinking of buying or selling a home soon, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d be happy to help you.

Today I’m sharing your 2019 market wrap-up and discussing the impact of tourism. In 2019, the Trinity Team sold 34 properties, representing 64 total sides (buyers and sellers). For the majority of those transactions, we represented both sides at the same time.  60% of our sales were finished products, whereas 40% were lots. When taking both houses and condos into consideration, the average price per square footage of our sales was $87. Looking separately at houses, the average price per square foot was $88; condos averaged $121.  Why the difference? Well, condos have common areas, walkways, elevators, and parking lots, which all count toward that price per square foot measurement.  Most of our properties were sold fully furnished and turn-key, in pristine (or near pristine) condition. The highest price for houses was $102 per square foot, while the lowest was $70 per square foot. For condos, the highest was $137 per square foot, while the lowest was $102.  The average price per square foot for lots was $3.78. On the high end, it was $11.58; on the lower end, it was $1.17. The highest lot was closest to the water (cliff-front with a phenomenal view), and the lower ones were in remote areas away from the water and with no notable view.  “From what I saw, prices remained constant throughout 2019.” At the end of the year, a lot of people talked about how prices are improving, but I don’t necessarily see it that way. Tourism in our area did increase from 2018, so I did note an increase in occupancy rates from our luxury short-term rental company Selva Pacifica.  At the start of 2019, Selva Pacifica saw an occupancy rate of less than 20%. By year’s end, we were seeing that at 60%. It’s worth noting that the market total for Airbnb in the area was only 20% in November and December; perhaps the large gap between Selva Pacifica’s and Airbnb’s occupancy can be explained by the quality of service or the effectiveness of our marketing.  Again, this improvement in tourism didn’t translate to an improvement in prices. In my opinion, prices remained constant throughout 2019. In certain areas, like Villas de Palermo, we even saw small spikes in prices, though this is likely because investors bought 10 or so properties very low and prices adjusted later on.  We saw mostly Nicaraguans buying in our market early on in 2019, but as the year progressed, foreigners were made up a larger portion of our buyers.  If you’d like more concrete information, please reach out to me via phone or email. I’d be happy to provide you with a more focused opinion on what happened in our market last year.

I have another fantastic home in San Juan Del Sur that I'm excited to show you today.  At the bottom of Pacific Marlin lies a wonderful property I’m excited to give you an exclusive preview of today. It has seven bedrooms, a movie theater, private pool, and it’s just steps away from the bay of San Juan Del Sur! On top of that, it features a gorgeous view of the bay itself. For $575,000, this home can be yours. To see a room-by-room walk-through, watch the video above.  If you’d like to know more about this property or are interested in purchasing, don’t hesitate to call or email me. I’d love to speak with you. Check out the listing: https://www.kwnicaragua.com/Detached-House-For-Sale-San-Juan-del-Sur-1082-760

I’m showing you the inside of this unique, 620-square-meter property in Pacific Marlin. Today we’re showcasing a beautiful property in Pacific Marlin with an amazing view of Nacascolo Bay that also boasts more than 600 square meters of construction, a lavish pool, and five bedrooms. An immersive tour of the property starts at 1:54 in the video above. As always, if you have any real estate-related questions, or you’re looking to buy or sell a home, please reach out to us by phone or email. The Trinity Real Estate team is happy to help you make your real estate dreams a reality.  Check out the listing link: http://www.kwnicaragua.com/1082-1012

Laura Taylor-Johnson joins me today to share her take on the San Juan del Sur rental market. How’s the rental market in San Juan del Sur? To answer that question, I’ve invited Laura Taylor-Johnson, the head of Selva Pacifica, to join me for today’s video.  Originally from Canada, Laura has been coming down to Nicaragua for 12 years—the last 10 of them to build her thriving luxury rental business. Additionally, she was recently named the top Airbnb host in the country by Airbnb, Inc., and she’s currently working with them to increase the visibility of Nicaragua to potential travelers.  What does Selva Pacifica do? When Laura started collecting homes for rent 10 years ago, she realized there was no dedicated concierge service in the area. That’s how Selva Pacifica was born, and they assist property owners with their rentals. As indicated above, they work specifically with higher-end homes in amazing locations. Not only do they work with the owners to ensure they get the best guests, but they work with the travelers to ensure they get the best houses. “What will differentiate you is the quality of your home.” On top of that, they handle all the advertising and marketing for their properties, and they have a team dedicated to showing guests the best side of San Juan del Sur. When guests leave, they follow up with them so owners have plenty of five-star reviews to help the exposure and profitability of their investments. They currently have 506 five-star reviews under their belt.  Laura says that the rental market started slowly at the beginning of last year, but after that, we saw a progressive increase in tourists and home rentals. Last quarter, occupancy averaged over 60% in most of Selva Pacifica’s homes. A lot of their homes not only covered their costs, but they made a nice profit heading into 2020.  If you’re thinking about buying a luxury rental (or you already own one that hasn’t been very successful), Laura’s first piece of advice is to reach out to a professional to help you. Starting off in a saturated market like San Juan del Sur won’t be easy if you don’t have a professional by your side. If you contact Selva Pacifica, they’ll visit your home and discuss your goals with you.  With so many rental homes in the market, she also advises differentiating your home. Every rental in San Juan del Sur has a view; that won’t differentiate you in this market. What will differentiate you is the quality of your home. You need to make sure it’s well-maintained and evokes your personal style. If you have a nice house with a view but don’t put any love and care into it, you won’t see a return on your investment.  If you have any questions for Laura, you can email her at selvapacifica@icloud.com. If you’d like to know more about Selva Pacifica, feel free to visit their website selvapacifica.com.  As always, if you have any real estate questions, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I’d love to help you.  

The most impressive thing about this exclusive San Juan del Sur home isn’t the home itself. It’s the view. Today we’re showing you one of our exclusive properties here in San Juan del Sur. Although this is a gorgeous four bedroom, four bathroom, nearly-500 sq. meter property, the most impressive thing about it is its breathtaking view of San Juan del Sur. To see a firsthand tour of this gorgeous property, watch our latest video.  

In light of the holiday season, we want to share what we’re thankful for. Christmas is here, which means now is the time for gratitude. Here at Trinity Real Estate, we’re very grateful. 2019 was a difficult year in Nicaragua, but we have many blessings for which we’re grateful. First, we added three great people to our team: Nancy, Gary, and Daphnee. We want to give a special thanks to them for joining us. We’re also grateful for all the families and investors who let us serve them.  “Here at Trinity Real Estate, we’re very grateful.” On a personal note, I’m grateful for my family. Every time I come home, they’re waiting for me with their arms open, ready to support me.  I’m also grateful we fulfilled our promise of donating 10% of our sales volume to various institutions who need our help. For example, we were able to donate an important sum to San Juan del Sur Day School so they could award scholarships to kids in San Juan del Sur and help them get a better education. We also helped a young professional earn their master’s degree. Additionally, we were able to help the Catholic Church, which is very important to us.  Lastly, I want to thank you for your support. If you have any real estate questions or there’s anything my team and I can help you with, don’t hesitate to give us a call. From our family to yours, Feliz Navidad!

If you’re looking to buy or rent a luxury home, I know just the place: Malibu in Pacific Marlin. Today I’m spotlighting the exclusive Malibu properties in Pacific Marlin in San Juan del Sur. Joining me is the properties’ developer, Lance Rader of Malibu Developments. Lance relocated to Nicaragua about 10 years ago, and his main business is building social housing in Managua. According to him, the Malibu development originally started as a vacation home for himself. He looked at several different locations along the Pacific Coast before choosing San Juan del Sur to start building. “I was looking for a place to build a modern home to the standards that I’m used to building and US standards,” he says. “That’s how Malibu came about. I found a fantastic tract of land overlooking the ocean—about 30 stories up—and that’s where Malibu is now.” “Every house comes fully furnished with top-of-the-line appliances and every item renters need.” There are three different products inside Malibu: Single-family homes between 3,000 and 4,000 square feet featuring three and four bedrooms with infinity pools overlooking the ocean A 3-bedroom/3-bath duplex—also with an infinity pool overlooking the ocean 3-bedroom/3-bathroom townhomes about 2,000 square feet with a valley view and community pool Malibu also offers a great rental management program which most of the property owners put their homes through. They have on-site management and staff to take care of the properties, and they advertise heavily for them—their occupancy rate is as high as 80%, depending on the time of year. Every house comes fully furnished with top-of-the-line appliances and every item renters need. Their furniture is of the high-end, contemporary style, and they both build it locally and import it from the US.  What’s Lance’s favorite part of San Juan del Sur? The same reasons he picked this spot to build in the first place: the beaches, weather, and fantastic nightlife.  If you’d like to know more about these properties or you have any other real estate needs, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to speak with you. Check out our featured listings in Malibu: Duplex House in Malibu: 3 bed, 3 bath Townhouse in Malibu: 3 bed, 3 bath Exclusive Residence in Malibu: 4 bed, 4 bath Luxury House in Malibu: 4 bed, 4 bath

Today I’m interviewing the founder and principal of San Juan del Sur Day School to show you why it’s such a great place to send your children. Today I’m interviewing Julie Speier, the founder and principal of the San Juan del Sur Day School. Why? Because every time I tell someone I moved San Juan del Sur, they ask what I do about schooling for my children. This school has allowed us to live here and know our kids are receiving a great education. If you want additional information about the school, you can visit their website here. Cited below for your convenience are timestamps that will direct you to various points in the video. Feel free to watch the full message or use these timestamps to browse specific topics at your leisure:  0:00: Introduction to today’s topic 0:35: Introducing Julie Spire, founder and principal of San Juan del Sur Day School 0:55: How the school got its start 2:05: Statistics about the students at the school 3:00: About the teachers 3:40: The teaching philosophy at the school 5:25: The future for San Juan del Sur Day School 6:05: Wrapping up today’s topic We love sending our children to the San Juan del Sur Day School, and I hope you learned a little more about it today. If you have any questions about real estate, please give me a call or send me an email. I would love to help you.

Today, I’m joined by a special guest, Veronica—my wife—to share 10 reasons why we love to live in San Juan del Sur. My wife, Veronica, and I love living in San Juan del Sur. Here are the top 10 reasons why we do and why you might as well: Family time. San Juan del Sur is a small town that’s very inviting for families, and the beach isn’t far away. Wellness. If you’re into healthy living, you’ll love San Juan del Sur—there are plenty of opportunities to do yoga, and fresh, healthy fruits and superfoods are readily available. Surfing. We are blessed to live near so many great beaches like El Remanso, Hermosa, Yankee, Maderas, and more. There’s great wind and surf almost all year-round. Schools. The kids can attend San Juan del Sur Day School, which is a great place for them to be themselves, get in tune with nature, and learn and have fun at the same time. “With the ocean on one side and beautiful trees on the other, San Juan is a great place to soak in the environment.” Beach time. The beach is pretty much in our backyard. Playa El Majahual is our favorite—there’s a lot of room for the kids to play and there aren’t usually many people around. Meeting new people. We love meeting new people who travel to San Juan for vacation or who live nearby. They always have a story to tell. Small town treats. There’s little to no traffic or stoplights, and there are plenty of delicious foods made by the local people like coconut bread, picos, juices, and other organic treats. Affordability. It’s very cheap to live in Nicaragua, and San Juan is even cheaper. Enjoying the view. We like to stay home sometimes, and there’s no better place to do that than in an affordable home with a fantastic view. Immersion in nature. With the ocean on one side and beautiful trees on the other, San Juan is a great place to soak in the environment. Monkeys and other animals can be seen frequently, and at night, the stars aren’t dimmed by city lights. As you can see, there are plenty of reasons to enjoy life in San Juan del Sur. If you have any questions for us, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’d be glad to share any information with you that we can.  

Although our country is going through some tough times, our real estate market remains quite active. Here are some of the latest trends. Nicaragua is going through some tough, uncertain times right now, but it doesn’t mean that our real estate market has been inactive. On the contrary, it’s been quite active. Some sellers who have been willing to reduce their prices have been able to sell their properties. We’re definitely in a buyer’s market, but there aren’t a ton of buyers out there, so sometimes a price reduction is necessary to get a possible deal done. We are seeing a mix of lot, house, and condo purchases. None of these are more popular than the others. As long as the prices are in accordance to the level of risk the investor who purchases the real estate is taking, the chance of selling increases. “We’re seeing a mix of lot, house, and condo purchases.” The rental market has been pretty active as well. Most investors have had to lower their rents in order to increase occupancy and cover costs, while some have been able to see positive cash flow numbers. If you have any questions for me about the real estate market or real estate in general, don’t hesitate to reach out and give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.