Country Article / Postcards
Colonial Mansion for $165,000
Date: 11/19/2006I step off the plane and into brilliant Andean sunshine, with clear blue skies and fresh, clean air. The temperature feels perfect, 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Towering volcanoes look down from a distance, their snow-capped peaks gleaming in the early morning sun.
Nestled in a wide valley, high in the Peruvian Andes on the Pan American Highway, Arequipa is known as the Ciudad Blanca, the “white city”. This is due to the widespread use in its colonial buildings of sillar, a white volcanic stone found in the area.
The center of town is bustling with tourism, which brings some niceties along with it, such as a fair number of good restaurants and shops. The central plaza is well-kept and clean, with lush, neatly trimmed shrubs and tall trees, complemented by a sparkling fountain. Lively and busy, it gives the center of town a festive atmosphere. But the main square had too many North American tourists for me. If I wanted to live in this colonial city, I’d look for property a couple of blocks away, as few tourists stray that far before heading off to Machu Picchu.
The houses in general--including the colonial houses--appear to be of better quality than I see in much of colonial America. This is probably due to the use of stone rather than adobe for colonial construction, and the practice of building to withstand earthquakes in its modern construction. But as with any colonial city, some will fall in love with the charm, while others will find it too much of the Third World. For my taste (and remember, I live in a colonial city), the real estate is perhaps the best value I’ve seen this year.
Modern apartments in a new building start at about $40,000, and they tend to run small, but my absolute favorite property in the city was an old 6,650-square-foot white mansion five blocks from the square, built in 1917. I toured it with the owner, and fell in love with the 14-foot ceilings, eight-inch-thick wood on the banisters, the giant rooms, and old world charm. The owner is asking $165,000, and I think it’s fairly firm, given that the land alone is worth almost that.
All in all, I don’t think I’ve seen such a selection of nice homes for less than $150,000 anywhere on my beat.
My preferred realtor in Arequipa is Willy Rodriguez of Metropolis Inmobiliaria. I cross-checked some of his prices with the sellers and found the prices to be the same--a minor miracle in Latin America--so he gets my vote for honesty. And he and his brother Milton were a pleasure to work with. You can write to them at WillyMetropolis@hotmail.com , or stop by their office at Calle Moral 115, oficina #107.
Lee Harrison
Roving Latin America Editor, International Living
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