Beachfront and Old Colonials for Less Than $100,000
Date: 04/23/2006
I often wish I could find an old Spanish colonial city that was also near the beach, which would satisfy two of my personal property cravings with a single purchase. Now I’ve found it.
Monday, April 24, 2006
La Serena, Chile
I love old Spanish colonial cities, and I love being near the beach, too. La Serena in Chile offers both.
La Serena has long been popular with Chileans looking for a getaway to the seashore. The four-mile beach is wide and sandy, with a respectable gathering of restaurants, hotels, and apartments along its length.
The old, faithfully preserved Spanish colonial architecture of the city includes clean, clay tile streets and sidewalks that are neatly laid out and well-maintained. You won't find much of the "grittiness" common to many colonial cities in South America here, and even the modern buildings in the centro historico are constructed in the original style.
Though it maintains its colonial appearance, La Serena's infrastructure is up to date, with pure tap water, good phone service, and high-speed Internet, as well as a nearby convenient airport.
The properties for sale in La Serena were more reasonable than I expected for a town of this caliber:
* A six-bedroom Spanish Colonia house that needs work in a good neighborhood: $65,000.
* A newly restored colonial with two small inner courtyards: $150,000.
* A newly refurbished colonial-style building on the square has been converted into condos, with one condo remaining. It's a small one-bedroom, but overlooks a 16th-century churchyard and stone church (pictured above): $90,500.
* On the beach, I found a three-bedroom, two-bath beachfront apartment with maid's quarters: $97,300.
A good real estate agency in La Serena is Alicia Morgan Propiedades, e-mail: aliciamorganpropiedades@entelchile.net.
Alejandrina Cortes can tell you more about the beachfront apartment, tel. + 56 51-225-755.
If you're going to look at real estate here, but don't speak any Spanish, I recommend you hire a guide/translator. I met a great one at a restaurant, named Bill Araya. His English is perfect, after many years in Canada, and he'll be glad to show you around or accompany you on a real estate excursion. His e-mail--believe it or not--is GringoChaser@hotmail.com. Also, you can call his cell phone at + 56 9-634-0441.
Fellow Postcards readers Gary and Bonnie Paulsson can set up personal tours to show you any area of Chile you want, as well as helping with practical matters: http://www.chile-yen.com
Lee Harrison
Roving Latin America Editor, International Living
P.S. There's even more to the La Serena area than the beach and colonial historic center. La Serena sits at the end of the Elqui Valley, which extends back into the Andes and contains miles of vineyards, lakes, and rivers. I also enjoyed the neighboring town of Coquimbo, with its famous Barrio Inglés (English neighborhood) boasting a whole zone of pubs and restaurants.
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