Thomas L. Lloyd, mazatlan Broker By Thomas L. Lloyd
2012-07-31

When people look at Playa del Carmen real estate now, it might be hard to imagine that only 30 years ago, this was tiny fishing village that consisted of a few huts on the beach.   A brief look of the history of real estate in this town will show an amazing story that points to a promising future.

  

In the beginning …

About half a decade before the Bank of Mexico decided to tap into the huge tourism potential of an entirely abandoned beachfront on the north-east tip of the Yucatan Peninsula (now known as Cancun,) a few displaced fishermen established a small village on the sight of the ancient Mayan crossing point to Cozumel, which they named Playa del Carmen.   This little fishing village was quietly forgotten until, in the 1960s, Cancun was created out of scratch just an hour north.

  

The ferry to Cozumel

As tourism to Cancun grew over the next decade or two, visitors began to take interest in nearby attractions, like the coral reef or the pyramids in Tulum.   Playa del Carmen was a natural stopping point on the trip to Tulum (about half way) and it was the site of the ferry dock to Cozumel, where many visitors enjoyed diving tours and visiting smaller pyramid sites.   As tourism grew, Playa del Carmen became a fairly well-known stopping point, although few visitors spent more time there than a lunch break or the wait for the next ferry; even fewer would have imaged buying a home.

  

Tourism grows

Then, towards the end of the 80s and early 90s, something changed; instead just a stopover on the way to other places, people started heading to Playa del Carmen as a destination in itself.   As a “stopover” it started attracting little shops, restaurants and cafes, and soon these, together with some amazing beaches, were seen as worthwhile in themselves.

  

Beachfront real estate paradise

Visitors very quickly began liking the idea of owning a home or a condo near Fifth Avenue (the street where the shops were - and are - located.)   A decade later, demand was growing at such a rate that Playa became the fastest growing community in Latin America.

  

Playa del Carmen now offers a large variety of properties at accessible prices; the market has proven resilient during the international crises and tourism continues to go strong.   For both lifestyle and investment, Playa del Carmen promises to continue to be one of the most attractive beachfront options.

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Region:  Mazatlan real estate Thomas Lloyd graduated from Purdue University Krannert School of Management with a degree in Management/Financial Option Investments. He has been living, investing, and working professionally in Mexico for over 15 years. A Mexican Certified Realtor he is the current president of TOPmexicorealestate, you can contact him at (512) 879-6546.

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