IL Postcard

Ecuador’s Best Coastal Buys

Date: 03/27/2008

Friday, March 28, 2008
Cuenca, Ecuador

Learn more about Ecuador in International Living Postcards—your daily escape

Salinas, Ecuador’s largest coastal resort, offers one of the country’s best real estate investment markets with annual appreciation running at 40%. Located at Ecuador’s western-most point, Salinas is sometimes called the “Little Miami Beach” because of the phalanx of white mid- and high-rise condominiums built around a crescent bay.

Although the town has a permanent population of less than 40,000, the number swells to more than 100,000 on holidays when condos, rentals, and hotel rooms are filled to capacity.

In fact, for investors and second-home buyers, Ecuador’s southern coast has some of the most accessible locations. The resort towns of Playas and Salinas on the Santa Elena Peninsula are only a two-hour drive from the Guayaquil International Airport.

Two Salinas properties that caught my attention are in new condominium projects. The first is a three-bedroom, two-bath apartment with 360-degree views of the town and the ocean. Asking price: $86,000. The second, nearing completion in Salinas’ tallest building, is a four-bedroom, three-bath, 1,600-square-foot unit on the 11th floor. The apartment has an open ocean-front terrace. Asking price: $175,000. For details about both properties contact Mike Sager.

If life among high-rise condos, hotels, casinos, and night clubs doesn’t appeal to you, consider Punta Blanca, just north of Salinas on the Ruta del Sol highway. This quiet community of single-family beach houses and two- and three-story condos, all within an easy walk of the beach, is perfect for beach walkers and hammock dwellers. An example of local offerings is a 1,076-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-bath duplex villa, 200 yards from the beach. Asking price: $48,000.

Ayangue is where you’ll find one of Ecuador’s most beautiful beaches. Located a few miles north of Punta Blanca, the area is virtually unknown to tourists. The beach is protected by cliffs to the south, and you’ll find gentle surf in the north. Although relatively few properties change hands in this small village, those that do are reasonably priced. In January, a 1,400-square-foot house with three bedrooms and two bathrooms, situated on a quarter-acre cliff-top, sold for $66,000. The house, with stunning views in all directions, needed a new roof, but was otherwise in good condition.

About 30 miles up the coast you’ll find the town of Olón, a relaxed community of vacation homes built along a broad, sandy beach. The town is separated by a cliff from the famous surfer town of Montanita, where you’ll find restaurants, night life, and an international youth culture.

During the past year, several foreigners have purchased property in the hills behind Olón. Covered in tropical rainforest, the area is considered Ecuador’s best bird-watching countryside and many of the recent purchases offer spectacular views of the ocean and nearby cliffs. One property here that might appeal to the eco-minded entrepreneur is 370 acres of hilly rainforest a third of a mile from the ocean. Thickly vegetated, the property offers hill-top ocean views in several locations. Asking price: $1.5 million (the owner will consider subdividing the property). For more information, contact David Workman.

Ecuador does not have the massive, multimillion-dollar coastal developments that you’ll find in Panama and Costa Rica. Those of us who live here hope it never does. On the other hand, a number of nice small- and medium-sized developments are under construction or on the drawing board that will have an appeal for adventurous investors and potential expats.

David Morrill
For International Living

Editor’s note: Ecuador’s coastline is largely undiscovered…but that may all change. This area is on the verge of breaking out onto the world prosperity stage this year. As well as being an ideal country to invest and set up a second home, it is also a perfect place to live. In Ecuador: The Owner’s Manual, David explains why, and gives you insider information on the most beautiful, undiscovered areas, and the hottest real estate bargains on the market. Plus, the Owner’s Manual includes David’s report about the best deals along Ecuador’s coast, South America’s Last Coastal Frontier. Yours free with Ecuador: The Owner’s Manual.