Despite the 500+ new units that have been built and have come to market this year in the Romantic Zone South of the Rio Cuale in Puerto Vallarta, we have seen a noticeable increase in prices and price per square meter this year over the one year ago.
This year versus last.
The average price of a generic condominium in Puerto Vallarta at this time last year was almost $310,000 vs $248,000 – virtually a 25% increase overall. At the same time, we have seen the average price per square meter (10.76 square feet) that people have been willing to pay also move upwards from an overall average of about $2,300 per square meter to close to $3,000 as well. This in part has been due to the fact that a lot of the new inventory that has been added to the market is in the smaller studio/1-bedroom category allowing developers to charge market price points while getting a higher price per square meter.
The absorption rate (the rate at which the market will absorb all the existing units in the marketplace at current sales velocity) has also once again started to drop back down after peaking in March at 17.3 months now declining to 15.5 months.
The total number of condominium units sold for the first 6 months of this year versus the same to 2017 is almost exactly the same at 430 vs 429 respectively.
We have also seen about the same trend in homes as well – average sale price from $445,000 last year to $654,000 same time this year and an absorption rate drop to 24 months from 29 months this time last year. The big difference is that for the first 6 months of this year there have been 152 home sales versus 110 last years – that represents a 38% increase in sales activity in the sale of single-family dwellings in the overall market!
Future expectations
We are – and have been – enjoying overall a very solid and healthy real estate market in the Puerto Vallarta area. Activity is being driven by both American, Canadian and Mexican buyers at almost an equal rate with the Canadians lagging somewhat due to their currency value recently. So given where we have come from and where we are now, we at Coldwell Banker La Costa see things continuing to maintain and improve. We will see a leveling off of the offerings in the South Side of PV as there are now only 3 or 4 new projects on the drawing board for that area so we expect to see those prices continue to increase modestly for condos. The homes in that area and South tend to be a little pricier and so we believe that a lot of the $1M+ properties still available will likely start to get snapped up over the following 6 months.
Inventory in Marina Vallarta has become very thin but with 3 new exciting projects recently announced we see those developments selling out well and at solid prices which is adding to new and exciting retail and restaurant activity for that area we have not seen for a very long time.
In Nuevo Vallarta, most of the action has been in the ‘el Tigre’ residential area and sales and prices are strong due to the amenity package available. While the beachfront in Nuevo Vallarta has been virtually developed the area of amazing beachfront condominium activity is in Flamingos Vallarta, adjacent to Nuevo. The two major developments of note are the beautiful Aria Ocean Project and amazing Bellarena Elite Residences currently both currently under construction and selling well at pre-construction discounts.
Our office in Rincon de Guayabitos is doing very well with a predominance of homes selling versus a limited overall supply of condominiums in the area ranging from San Francisco (San Pancho) up to San Blas. This coastline is absolutely gorgeous and is starting to attract some very significant investments anchored by La Mandarina (One and Only + Rosewood Hotels) and the 2,500 unit Costa Canuva Development (Fairmont).
What’s new at Coldwell Banker La Costa Realty
Now with 53 active agents in our firm and growing, we are currently undergoing a major renovation of two of our offices – our ‘downtown’ office on Olas Altas and our Punta de Mita office to be located on Calle Anclote. We have also recently launched a Vacation Rental Division which will be based in our Olas Altas office.
Thinking of selling?
Our office sells an average of 20 properties a month, we belong to a network in Mexico of 85 different Coldwell Banker offices throughout the country and over 3,300 offices worldwide. We would love to talk to you about how we can help you get your property sold!
