Urban Land Institute SE Florida and Builders’ Association of Puerto Rico Join Forces

June 2016 – The Urban Land Institute (ULI) and the Builders’ Association of Puerto Rico (ACPR) met to discuss their new alliance for the South East Florida and Caribbean Region during the annual ULI Conference in Aventura, Florida.

“We are very excited to have the ACPR become part of our group. “Members of The Builders’ Association of Puerto Rico (ACPR) have for years taken leadership roles in both local and national committees”, expressed Julie Medley, Executive Director of The Urban Land Institute – SE Florida/Caribbean.

The ACPR has been Puerto Rico’s preeminent real estate organization for developers, investors and builders since 1951. The president of the Builders’ Association of Puerto Rico, Arch. Ricardo Alvarez Díaz, sees great opportunities in Puerto Rico today and is enthusiastic about this new alliance.   “The ULI is such an important organization in our industry and we are very enthusiastic about its incredible vision and resources,” expressed Arch. Alvarez Díaz.

“We are very committed to helping our members on both sides of the “pond” learn and be able to seize these opportunities, and it was for these reasons that we created the Florida Liaison Committee,” expressed Adam Greenfader, chairperson of the committee.

The ULI will be holding its Latin America Conference on October 5-7, 2016 for those interested in development in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean-LATAM region as whole. It will host top leaders and decision makers from hundreds of its ULI members and non-members who are active in the land use and real estate industry in South America, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Puerto Rico.

Please contact Adam Greenfader managing partner at AG&T for more information at 305.363.8833.

Luxury Senior Living Development in San Juan

 

seniors-walking-on-path

 

 

5 minutes from San Juan International Airport and
major hospitals

6.5 acre site with additional 25 acre natural reserve

129 Apartments: Studio Suites, 1 and 2 Bedroom Suites

Great revenue potential

Lucrative Tax Benefits

Development and management team in place

Seeking JV partner

Adam Greenfader Named Chairman Florida Puerto Rico Builders Association

Adam Greenfader

 
  San Juan, Puerto Rico Adam Greenfader was recently named Chairman of the Florida Liaison Committee of the Puerto Rico Builders Association (PR Builders Association). For over sixty years, the PR Builders Association has been the island’s leading professional construction and development group. The PR Builders is responsible for government lobbying and networking. The Builders Association consists of high-level professionals in the residential, hospitality, industrial and commercial sectors.

“We are honored to have Adam Greenfader chair this new committee. Mr. Greenfader has been part of our organization for many years, is a tested professional in both markets and has a wealth of knowledge that will be a great asset,” exclaims Arch. Ricardo Álvarez-Díaz, president of the Builders of Puerto Rico.

The Mission of the Florida Liaison Committee is to be a bridge between Florida and Puerto Rico. The goal is to support  builders, bankers, investors and other professionals. The committee aims to facilitate access to services, information, and key contacts. “Our goal is that the PR Builders Association is seen as a first and most important stop for anyone that wants to expand to either market,” says Adam Greenfader. In the last couple of years, with the passing of laws 20 and 22, Puerto Rico has seen a significant increase of interest from companies and individuals from the US mainland. There are also great opportunities for Puerto Rican companies that want to export their services and products, and use Florida as a first stepping-stone. The Florida Liaison team is in the process of developing key stakeholders relationships and organizing its events for 2016 in both Florida and Puerto Rico. If either you or your company is interested in participating, you may contact Mr. Adam Greenfader at adamgreenfader@gmail.com or call the Builders Association at 787.751.1471. Learn more about the Puerto Rico Builders association here.   
  San Juan, Puerto Rico Por más de sesenta años, la Asociación de Constructores ha sido el principal grupo profesional de construcción y desarrollo. Esta organización ha sido responsable de promover el intercambio de información entre desarrolladores, inversionistas, miembros asociados y profesionales, en el desarrollo y la construcción de Puerto Rico. La Asociación de Constructores consiste en profesionales de alto nivel en el sector residencial, hotelero, industrial y comercial.

“Nos sentimos honrados de tener a Adam Greenfader dirigiendo este comité. El Sr. Greenfader ha sido parte de nuestra organización por muchos años, y es un profesional con gran conocimiento de ambos mercados”, indica el Arq. Ricardo Álvarez-Díaz, presidente de la Asociación de Constructores de Hogares.

La misión del Comité de Enlace de la Florida es la de ser un puente entre la Florida y Puerto Rico, apoyando y anudando lazos y relaciones entre constructores, banqueros, inversionistas y otros profesionales en ambos países. El objetivo del comité es facilitar el acceso a servicios, información y contactos claves. “Nuestra meta es que la Asociación de Constructores de Puerto Rico sea vista como el primer y más importante paso para la persona y/o empresa que desee expandir su negocio a cualquiera de estos mercados”, explica Adam Greenfader. Durante los últimos años, Puerto Rico ha visto un aumento significativo en el interés de empresas e individuos del continente de los Estados Unidos con la implementación de las leyes 20 y 22. Existen además, grandes oportunidades para empresas puertorriqueñas que deseen exportar sus servicios y productos. Éstos ven a la Florida como un buen primer paso. El equipo del Comité de Enlace de la Florida está en proceso de desarrollar relaciones profesionales y organizar sus eventos para el 2016 en Florida y Puerto Rico. De estar interesado en ser parte del comité, puede contactar al Sr. Greenfader por correo electrónico adamgreenfader@gmail.com o llamar a la Asociación de Constructores al 787.751.1471.

Home Prices in Dorado, Puerto Rico, Are Still Golden

Puerto Rico Homes

 

BY ANDREA LÓPEZ CRUZADO AT MANSION GLOBAL

With more storms forecast for Puerto Rico’s tumultuous economy, one spot on the island is still sunny. Dorado has seen a 15% increase in the median asking price of its properties from 2013 through February 2016.

In fact, this luxury destination on the northern coast of the U.S. commonwealth is the only city in Puerto Rico (of the island’s 13 largest) where asking prices have increased in the last three years, according to an analysis by Point2 Homes, a real estate search portal.

Point2 Homes analyzed price activity in cities with a population of over 13,000, including San Juan, Carolina, Ponce and Fajardo. In all but Dorado, prices went down from 2013 through 2016. Ponce suffered the biggest dip, at 35%; Guaynabo, another northern location popular with high-end buyers, saw the smallest drop, at 3%.

Puerto Rico is grappling with a 10-year recession and $70 billion in debt that is crippling growth. According to the Pew Hispanic Center, more Puerto Ricans are moving to the U.S. mainland than in any period since the Great Migration after World War II.

Still, the luxury real estate market continues to flourish.

Last year, Christie’s International Real Estate identified Puerto Rico as one of seven key real estate markets for “investment, exclusivity and getaways.” Sales of $1 million-plus properties— which represent 10% of the market—grew by 105% from 2013 to 2014, according to their 2015 “Luxury Defined” report.

The company attributes Puerto Rico’s flourishing prime property market to its status as a tax haven. Four years ago, significant property and corporate income tax exemptions were enacted to attract new residents.

“Residence in Puerto Rico means a shield from most federal income taxes, and prominent investors have been catching on rapidly since the law was passed in 2012,” the report noted.

For Leticia Brunet González of Trillion Realty Group, a San Juan-based Christie’s affiliate, Dorado owes its fortunes to the lifestyle it offers: beach, golf and tennis facilities, restaurants and spas, as well as security.“Those buying there are buying a lifestyle,” she said.

An early believer in Dorado was U.S. businessman and conservationist Laurance Rockefeller, who in the late 1950s built a hotel here that quickly became popular with A-listers including Joe DiMaggio, Ava Gardner, Gerald Ford and John F. Kennedy. Today, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve sits on the former Rockefeller estate. The hotel includes three 18-hole golf courses and the historic Rockefeller Nature Trail, an open-air sanctuary.

According to Brunet González, Dorado attracts a mix of families and business people. Foreign buyers come mostly from the U.S. and include several tech entrepreneurs said to be taking advantage of the affordable luxury prices (and tax incentives). While asking prices in Dorado went up in the last three years, they are still 13% lower than in 2010, according to Point2 Homes’ data. Luxury properties are available for as little as $2 million.

 

House Hunting In Puerto Rico

 

bg4

 

New York times, March 16, 2016.

By ROXANA POPESCU

 

MARKET OVERVIEW

Real estate agents in Puerto Rico said the island’s economic crisis has led people to move away, creating bargains for buyers willing to make compromises on location. For prime properties near the water, however, where demand is enhanced by tax incentives created for wealthy foreign buyers, prices are stable or even rising.

The fact that many professionals are leaving the island looking for better jobs in the U.S. and some of the local wealthiest people have been impacted negatively by losses in local investments in bonds creates some interesting opportunities to purchase luxury properties.

Prices across the island have fallen by as much as 50 percent for the nonluxury market, as well as for high-end properties that are not on the beach.

“In actuality, it is the best time to buy here”, quotes a local broker.

Beachfront luxury homes have been spared from the fall, agents said. The supply of top-quality properties is limited, but demand is strong because of the tax incentives initiated in 2012. A law named Act 22, designed to entice investors and high-net-worth individuals to move to Puerto Rico, with incentives including tax exemptions, has resulted in almost 600 people moving to the island since 2012, said José Joaquín Villamil, an economist and chairman and chief executive of Estudios Técnicos, an economic consulting firm in San Juan, citing government figures.

“The real estate market is in shock,” Mr. Villamil said. “Obviously, one would expect it. What’s kept the high end of the market going is the Law 22.”

Prices of luxury homes near the water have remained stable, or in some cases increased, since 2012. Prices per square foot range from $400 to $600, and with few exceptions, properties tend to close at about 15 percent below asking, she said.

WHO BUYS IN PUERTO RICO

Most luxury home buyers come from the United States mainland, agents said.

BUYING BASICS

United States citizens can buy property without restriction in Puerto Rico, which is a United States commonwealth. Transactions are handled by notaries, who are also licensed lawyers in Puerto Rico. That notary is typically chosen by the buyer, and the seller pays a notarial tariff.

Puerto Rico’s closing fees, including a stamp duty and the notarial tariff, are on a sliding scale. As an example, for a $1 million home costs would total around $10,600. Of that, the buyer would pay around $6,000.

 

Trump Golf Course Sold in Puerto Rico

coco-beach golf

 

Reuters – Reporting by Hilary Russ; Editing by David Gregorio 

Trump International Golf Course in Puerto Rico was sold to OHorizons Global LLC for $2 million cash and the assumption of contracts, bankruptcy filings showed.

Officially called the Coco Beach Golf & Country Club S.E., the Rio Grande property is one of 17 Trump-branded golf resorts managed by The Trump Organization worldwide.

But Trump himself is neither the owner nor developer of the club, Eric Trump, Donald Trump’s son and executive vice president of The Trump Organization, said in a statement.

The golf club’s developer and owner, construction company Empresas Diaz, licensed the Trump name for the club and has been in default for many months on its obligations to Trump, due to its “financial constraints and a difficult business climate in Puerto Rico,” he said.

The Puerto Rico golf club’s bankruptcy filing listed $9.2 million of assets, including two 18-hole golf courses, a club house, and reserve funds, and $78 million of liabilities.

The Puerto Rico Tourist, Educational, Medical and Environmental Control Facilities Financing Authority issued $26.4 million of tourism revenue bonds in 2011 on behalf of the club, according to securities filings.

 

For information about other golf courses and residential projects for sale in the Caribbean Adam Greenfader. 

Puerto Rico: Island of Opportunities Video

Check out this Video on Puerto Rico.  Don’t miss the opportunity. Invest in your future. Puerto Rico has a privileged location and is the Gateway to the Americas. Ideal for trade and access to federal programs. The island has an educated bilingual workforce and key business sectors such as: manufacturing, services, technology, research & development, banking, financial, etc. It offers incentives and tax credit to those interested in establishing or doing business in Puerto Rico.