is buying a rental property / airbnb in Cartagena Colombia a good investment?

[@Beaver4422]

🤔So far, doing Decentralized Finance has been the finest choice I've made that has changed my life👌💯. Another option I want to investigate is Airbnb, but I know that seasonality also has a significant impact and I don't want to make the wrong choice.

[@borjastickk]

DeFi has done a lot for many people. It will eventually fade out the conventional financial paradigm. My friend earns more than 40k each month solely by providing liquidity and stakes. And, Airbnb is a flexible source of income too. You should try it out, there nothing to lose.

[@Meme4everm]

This is practically the reason why I wasn't affected by the FTX saga and the market crash. It's something I've been meaning to do for a long time but I couldn't. It took me ages to find an analyst until I found Debra Pace. She's such a God sent I must say.🙏🙏

[@Ericricch]

@@Meme4everm I'm glad I bumped into this. I'm new to this but I'd love to give it a try, it sounds like a wonderful opportunity. Please I'd like to work with this Debra. What are her procedures and requirements?

[@Meme4everm]

@@Ericricch She will break things down for you better... That's her Telegam-user below 👇

[@Meme4everm]

"Debra_Pace" ✔✔

[@thomashilmersen711]

I owned an apartment in Cartagena from 2009 to 2016, right in front of the ocean, and another one in the top area of Medellin. I rented out both on Airbnb, and the yield was only about 5%, after all costs except taxes were paid. The yield was about the same as on bank deposits in Colombia. I sold it for almost the same price as I bought it for, 7 years later, while at the same time the peso lost one third of its value AND I had to pay a 10% capital gains tax on the small gain I had. During this time, apartment prices in Miami increased a lot, so the US investment would have been much better. Also...1) It is illegal to rent out on short term in Colombia, unless you register as a hotel - which means a lot more record keeping, as well as taxes on the rental income. 2) The administration fees start low and shoot up. In my case, it went from 150 000 pesos to 350 000 pesos, and there were also lots of extraordinary admin expenses. 3) In October, November and the first half of December, it is hard to rent out Cartagena apartments, since this is the rainy season. Dec 15 to Jan 15 is the big rental season. 4) Apartments in Colombia, and particularly in front of the ocean, deteriorate really fast. This is one reason why they tend to lose value over time, at least adjusted for the peso devaluation. 5) If you rent out short term, you can count on guests leaving the air condition on 24/7 and that is crazy expensive in Cartagena. My electricity bill was $150-200 a month, but that was a 1BR apartment and not in the most expensive area. Count on $300 or more these days, in the Bocagrande area. So you see, when all things are considered, it ends up being a shitty investment.

[@FreddyPoveda]

Thanks for sharing Thomas. The idea of investing elsewhere and just pay an expensive hotel when you come is probably a Good idea in most cases. As I said on the video it all depends on where you are on your life stage.

[@thomashilmersen711]

@@FreddyPoveda Keep in mind, too, that owning something in an ultra-inefficient country like Colombia makes the experience of being there a lot different than if you are just renting. Now, instead of enjoying the place, you spend all day in lines, sweating and trying to get things done. Then some bureaucrat makes a mistake, and you have to go back again the next day. Forget about hotels, too. Just rent an Airbnb. If you rent for a month, you can get great deals.

[@Prizelife]

Your words and insight is extremely helpful as I am in the process now of buying a house in BOCA GRANDE condo new construction. I been making deposits and signed a contract but with all that is going on with bad media and crime I am thinking about pulling out. Especially from your read it has me leaning to invest elsewhere.

[@thomashilmersen711]

@@Prizelife Yes, it probably is not the best of investments, although personally I love Cartagena. A specific problem with Bocagrande is that the whole area is actually below the surface of the ocean and actually gradually sinking. A lot of the areas with an explosion in the number of apartments are also suffering from infrastructure problems. Where I lived, in El Cabrero, both the electricity and wifi worked perfectly, until a lot of new apartment buildings popped up. Then the electric boxes often became overloaded and started burning (no kidding!), so electricity would be out for many hours. Same thing happened with the wifi, which went from fast to extreeeemely slow. Bocagrande is also "estrato 6", and as you may know in Colombia they use the utilities bills as a way to tax people. The higher the estrato (6 is the highest), the more your utilities cost. With the lack of tax revenues and extra expenses during Covid, you can count on the local governments trying to "tax the rich" by increasing the utlitiy bills even more for estrato 5 and 6.

[@igygy507]

Hi Thomas, if I may ask, what was your occupancy rate in your Cartagena property?

[@S-K69]

As someone from New York I can say that the beer alone would have cost $8-$15 here

[@romegq]

Love the video. Seen a video for some new construction on the other side of the bay for $30k starting...nice to have a building in bocagrande to compare it to.

[@jeanniepeters5341]

Great info, thanks. Please don't stop with the videos.

[@davelin5501]

Hi Freddy, I was searching online about Airbnb investment in Cartagena and saw your vids. I will be taking a trip later this month at the end of September to Cartagena to check it out in person. I wonder if you have any other tips? If you are on the area, I would love to buy you a beer.

[@mashtea818]

@dave Lin I would love to talk if you have a moment. I am here now and have been doing research. Love this idea of Cartagena.

[@playacartagena]

What do you think of the Amafli project in Bocagrande?

[@GuitarGolfingPOPS]

Great job sir..we’re thinking of buying an investment rental property in Cartagena. My wife is from Santa Marta..how about buying there? Thoughts on Santa Marta?

[@dionisiotato4730]

Excelente video Freddy Muchas Gracias! Que opinas de invertir en W.VA? 🙏

[@JavedKhan-ox5qe]

Feddy CARTAGENA SOUND GOOD AND CHEAP BUT when property will be ready any way very very good video Thanks TJK

[@plopzzzzzz]

Buy XRP and Silver will be massive returns like in 1934 buying a large house in Berlin for 75 Oz of silver.

[@matthewpsan]

How do i get more info on this developement? Have the broke ground?

[@gustavo78]

Muy buen video Freddy, como Colombiano en USA mi estrategia no es tanto el cash flow o la rentabilidad porque sabemos que aca en USA es mucho mas alta, sino mas bien construir el patrimonio en Colombia ahora que gano en dolares para poder pagar las propiedades rapido y pues poder devolverme para el pueblo con ingreso pasivo. Su pregunta al final del video acerca de comprar aca versus en Colombia es la que me he estado haciendo hace meses, pero como solo pienso quedarme aca unos 5 o 7 años mas (ya llevo 21) entonces veo que es mejor empezar a establecer las cosas alla y eso estoy haciendo en Sabaneta. Aunque el sueño si es una de estas propiedades a la orilla del mar. Ponga mas videos asi de propiedad raiz. Gracias.

[@FreddyPoveda]

De acuerdo. Es importante tener activos en el pais de donde venimos. "Home" al fin y al cabo. Seria una razon tambien para hacer esta inversion. Saludos.

[@anthonyluke79]

I’m investing on a new build pre construction. What choices in financing do I have after the turnover once the building is built? I live in the states, and was wondering if you know of any banks in the US that I can use instead of a local colombian bank? Also are credit checks and personal banking info needed during the process of purchasing real estate?

[@karlopeternel7685]

Cartagena has the best girls in the world, for me Cartagena, but renting when going, not buying my own

[@LocoColombiano35]

Excellent video what did you end up doing? I want to invest in Cartagena

[@famousaf.]

Do you know if it’s only Cash deals in Cartagena or could you receive a mortgage loan?

[@santiagos2901]

Everything I've seen has been cash...

[@broadcastdave]

You can receive a mortgage loan if you have permanent resident status. Expect to pay 10 to 14% interest

[@mashtea818]

Hello Freddy I would love to talk. I am in Cartagena now. I would love to talk to you.

[@andersbrixserup7718]

I am sorry, from an investment point of view, I am unable to take this video seriously in regards to the Miami/Cartagena comparison. 1. Why are the comparisons made with Miami and New York? Some of the most expensive places in the world. As an international investor I have a million investment locations. Moreover, Freddy just picked two completely random properties for comparison. There is nothing to say that these examples are representative for each market. Exploring the option in Ohio would have been more interesting and relevant from an Airbnb/investment point of view. (if that is the goal of the video) 2. The reason for using Miami as a comparison is very poor. You talk about buying a property as an investment possibility. Yet, you assume that if people want to buy a property in Miami, they must like the Latin flavour. That is not how investors think. Investors go after the best returns 3. How can a house be 600 years old if the New World wasn't discovered until 530 years ago? 4. No mentioning of the weak legal protection by the Colombian judicial system in case of any problems arising 5. No mentioning of the heavy taxes and fees in bringing money in and out of the country 6. No mentioning of the worrysome crime rates of the Colombian Caribbean cities 7. No mentioning of how a poor performance by the Colombian pesos can erode any gains quickly 8. No discussion of the future of each area. The risk of seeing a decline in prices, or external problems affecting the market value (violence or civil war fx) is much bigger in Cartegena. Miami, on the other hand, you can be pretty sure won't lose a lot of value all of a sudden. In sum, a professional investor gains absolutely nothing from this video. All it tells us is that the entry levels are lower in Colombia than Miami. Which isn't exactly a newsflash. This is true for 98% of all locations around the world. This is not to say that it is necessarily a bad idea to buy a property in Cartegena, but people should be aware that it is a much more risky investment

[@FreddyPoveda]

Miami is there as a cost of opportunity. If you are an American investor, Cartagena is an alternative investment far from home. If that is the case, it was important to compare it with an option at home. That is why I discussed Miami ( an all year hot weather city by the ocean in the US). - Cartagena founded around the year 1500 so 400 years old homes would be more accurate. You are correct. The point was I was not going to compare the old city on the video. - Yes, Cartagena could be a riskier investment for all the reasons you mentioned but plenty of private equity firms (like the related companies from New York) already have built there and it is what it is : an alternative investment. For the smaller investor it presents a real opportunity because of the lower cost to acquire. There is plenty of Americans opened to explore options that have or are considering retiring in places like Cartage. Maybe they can benefit from the video. I appreciate your comments.

[@stepy5855]

Your response is hella condescending for no reason. There is clearly a personal benefit to these investments, which is for personal use when property is vacant, as he stated in the video. You should listen next time. There is a clear comparison between Miami and Cartagena because of the geographical layout of the two cities, you'd know this if you visited both markets. Climate is pretty much equal year round so the two cities are greatly comparable. You said Miami wouldn't lose a lot of value all of a sudden, didn't Miami condo values decrease about 30% on average this year after the Surfside collapse? Could more analysis have been done surrounding the countries, sure. But I doubt most people will be able to describe the economics behind the fluctuation behind the Colombian Peso or the politics within Colombia. Anyways... As someone who recently visited Cartagena and lives in Miami, I found this video extremely useful. You'd be better off putting 20% down and working with a bank to buy these properties versus buying outright with cash. I'm interesting in hearing more about working with Colombian banks to secure financing. I'm also a believer in buying midwest properties that cash flow, specifically 4plexs if possible. US market is hot though. Thanks for sharing this video Freddy