IL Postcard

Recon Mission to Fortaleza

Date: 03/15/2008

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Read more about retiring overseas in International Living Postcards—Sunday Edition

I hope you’ve been paying as much attention as I have to the beach reports coming out of northeastern Brazil, courtesy of the scouting mission we sent there.

Laura Sheridan is the managing editor of International Living magazine, and Eimear O'Driscoll is our director of product development. We sent them to Fortaleza, the center of what we’ve pegged as the next Atlantic beach boom in Latin America.

Laura and Eimear are both Irish women…we hope that gives them an edge. I suspect that, even with the shrinking dollar, large male Americans shopping for real estate abroad often acquire invisible signs reading, “I Have Money…Please Take It From Me,” when they get off the plane.

The reports so far are fascinating. Laura tells me that, with 3.5 million people, Fortaleza itself is a perfect commercial and transportation center, but the western beach towns have the atmosphere and prices people want.

“The first town we encountered, just a 30-minute drive west of Fortaleza, was Cumbuco,” says Laura. “Most of the expats here are from Sweden, Norway, Portugal, Spain, and Italy, and have come for the cheap lots and the kite surfing. Cumbuco has a bohemian feel about it and there are lots of barracas (beach restaurants) being bought up by expats.

“Beach lots…true beach lots…cost from $220 to $330 per square meter here, and the beaches are white sand, quiet, and beautiful. We also met a local builder who has a project one block off the beach. This project, called Vila Cumbuco, will have 22 units, ranging from $77,000 for a 480-square-foot apartment to $118,000 for a 750-square foot apartment.

“This builder recently completed a beach condo project here. All but one condo sold pre-construction. With an ocean view, this 127-square-meter condo is selling for $187,550.”

But, Laura says, although prices in Cumbuco are lower that Fortaleza, they’re already starting to rise, and many expats are moving on to the next town of Taiba, 40 kilometers farther down the road.

“Taiba is the next up and coming hotspot in this area,” says Laura. “The town itself is bigger than Cumbuco and has more infrastructure. Beachfront land here runs about $90 per square meter, with lots averaging from 450 square meters to 600 square meters. You can buy land just a block or two from the beach, starting at about $70 per square meter.

Laura found two hot projects in Taiba…we’ll tell you more about them in a couple of days.

Laura also reports that buyers need to be careful when developers talk about “the license.”

“Check this with an attorney,” says Laura. “Once a developer buys land here, he has to hire an architect, propose his planned project, and then apply for his license. The whole process takes about a year before he can start to build.”

Tomorrow, Eimear takes us east of Fortaleza…and tells us about the place she wants to put her own money.

Dan Prescher
Publisher, International Living

Editor's choice: St. Patrick's Weekend Sale: 20% off select items in the IL Bookstore.