Playa del Carmen Real Estate Fixer Upper part 5 (choosing suppliers)

We have been working in the Playa del Carmen real estate region for several years.  So we have a very good feeling on which neighborhoods are developed, which real estate regions are up and coming, and which areas are losing appeal.  One secret of a good investor is having the time to be able to walk the streets, see the movement, smell the growth.  You can then have some fun trying to find a gem in the rough, an old overlooked neighborhood, or an overlooked property.  These can be found in all regions of the Mexico real estate markets.  You should have a good team on site to help with the project.  You will need to choose good suppliers of labor and of raw materials.  And in my particular project here in the Playa del carmen real estate region, we chose a Mexican colonial style of building which required items such as iron fences and windows, losetas, talaveras and other beautiful items to give the structure a feeling of old Colonia Coyoacan from Mexico City.  This is one of Mexico City’s oldest and most beautiful neighborhoods with  centuries of colonial history influence compared to the Playa del Carmen real estate region which has more Caribbean and Mayan flares incorporated into its’ structures.

 

In previous blogs about Fixer Upper in the TOP Mexico Real Estate blog,  we spoke about choosing your team to help administer a real estate fixer upper project.  In that previous post, I mentioned that although you may have much experience in doing projects, it is always advisable to hire an experienced point man, Architect down here in Mexico.  Especially if it is your first time around.  The concept and advise is the same as what I preach to new non-Mexican buyers here in our Mexico real estate market.  There are many items that need to be addressed during a real estate transaction which might be overlooked, or we might not even be aware of the existence of such risks.   An architect will understand the importance of choosing the right type of wood for the humidity factor which effects the Playa del Carmen region during the rainy season where as my wife and I might have chosen a popular light colored pine to match the interior furniture.  So, interview and find an architect that has many years of experience, an architect that has many testimonials, and one with credentials and finished samples that demonstrate his abilities.  The exact same when choosing your Mexico Real estate agent.   The first step is very important, so hire intelligently, as you are hiring someone to help administer your risks which increases the probabilities of higher returns or for a smoother real estate acquisition process.

The following step was to choose the style of property and the architectural design that appealed to both my wife and I.  After giving the nod on the master plan, we broke up our project into several phases.

The first phase or sub-project was creating stairs on a independent building in the back side of the lot.   So our particular focused around creating an appealing stairway within a reduced amount of area.  We had thought of an iron spiral stairwell, but it did not have the sturdiness we felt necessary.  So the architect studied closely the tight area, and came up with a new idea which we had not contemplated which was a combination of cement structure, iron rails, and talavera.  All of which is combined beautifully with a bohemian type of feel which seemed would combine nicely with the wooden hacienda style 8 paneled window doors and wooden windows.   There already existed a small lip on the previous structure so the architect took advantage of this accessory and placed wooden beams below giving the visual affect that the beams were actually supporting the walk way.

The wooden beams would have a loseta placed on top of the beams in order to support that walk above.  We poured cement on top of the beams and loseta and then placed the location for the iron guard rails.

In traditional spanish designs, talavera is very common accessory that brings much life and color to the structures.  So we included a traditional conservative white blue combination.  Given the budget, the details were held to a minimum and our plans are to give the structure hints and reminders of accessories to an old existing cement and block building.  These are simple additions that as can be seen in the photos, change the appearance completely from a cookie cutter box design, to a building that is beginning to have character.

We had to find suppliers for cantera, for wood beams, for losetas, talavera, and iron gate.  Many homes are built with basic material supplies such as cement block, cement beams, and iron rods.  We wanted to use old traditional raw materials whose suppliers or the fabrication of such materials are not here in Quintana Roo but from the interior states of Mexico.  Places such as San Luis Potosi, Tlaxcala, Puebla, Jalisco are areas known for the manufacturing of art handcrafts and special items.  Here in Playa del Carmen, we found a great distributor who ships down materials on a monthly basis from Cholulua, Puebla.   This is located just outside of Puebla Puebla which is famous nationwide for several items such as talavera, (which I will write further about in another post) and their hand woven cloths for blankets, table cloths or materials.   We compared the original materials such as losetas and roof tiling to newer materials which used synthetic materials.  There are many pluses to having some of the newer materials, but after comparing the cost differences, the look of the material and the extra life that one option held over the other, we ended up choosing the old traditional materials in regards to the losetas and talavera.

Choosing a supplier for the wood beams also required close analysis.  Many people forget the extreme temperatures that wood is confronted with high temperatures during the summer and the high humidity that exists during the rainy season.  On doors and windows, one half of the wood may be exposed to extremely cold temperatures of an air conditioned room, but on the other side be exposed to the sun and high temperatures of the outdoor environment.

  So in the last few months of working on my Playa del Carmen real estate fixer upper, I have been  reminded of the importance of surrounding yourself with an experienced team.  Don’t let your pride get in the way of choosing a team leader and in my case, the team leader was an architect from Mexico City.  I let his 30 plus years of experience guide my wife and I in choosing an architectural design that was typical, functional, and … pleasant to the eye.  With the style defined, I then had the fun of looking for raw materials and their suppliers here in Playa del Carmen.  Now in the posts to come, I will try to go into further details on the materials and show some examples of how we applied them to our work in process.  Until then, if some of you have been dreaming of owning Playa del Carmen real estate, or any Mexico real estate and want to have an adventure of restoring or fixing up an old structure,  feel free to contact us.  Several of us on TOP Mexico real estate network have much experience in these projects and will love to share our frustrations and joys during these adventures.

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. In the summer of 2009, he received the first federally applied Mexico Real Estate Degree and Mexico Professional Real Estate LicenseS.E.P. #5978657. He is the current president of TOPmexicorealestate, you can contact him at (512) 879-6546 or through the company’s web site www.TOPmexicorealestate.com NETWORK

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