Thank you all for the wealth of information!! I got in touch with an agent today (in the BVG kiosk in La Isla Mall) who will show me a unit in BVG while we are here. The wife really wants beachfront, but I want the boat dock at pok ta tok (not sure how its spelled) We ended up eating lunch in La Parilla, in Las Islas Mall. Great food, and I could see the docks on the nichupte lagoon. Really nice. Hope to be part of the Cancun community in the near future!!! Cheers !!! Jann
You may want to tell your wife a bit about being 'oceanfront'... During both of the major Hurricanes to hit Cancun, Gilbert in 1988 and Wilma in 2005, a number of oceanfront hotels were decimated and at least one had to be completely rebuilt. Back in 2005 when Wilma hit Cancun, furniture from the then existing towers at BVG ended up in the lagoon, blown right through by the winds. Also, as I'm sure Steve will confirm, the monthly fees at BVG and Porto Fino are quite steep and based on square footage. Just things to think about...
So true about Wilma. Though some buildings were only hit hardest on the ocean front side, some suffered both ocean and lagoon front as well. It was really a rough scene for some months after Wilma. Especially the first week.
Good to know. I hope all that damage was covered by insurance. I think the hurricane issue might be the winning argument against oceanfront...
actually the HOA fees at BVG and Portofino are quite reasonable if you are comparing it to what you would pay for a similar facility in Florida. Also hurricanes are not an issue because the building has insurance through the HOA, so the building is 100% covered. You have to buy content insurance but that is only around $500 per year. We just received a copy of our buildings policy, and the cost to the condo is $300,000 per year or a little over $2000 per unit. But this is included in the HOA fees. On a 2 bedroom 2 bath unit the hoa fees are around $500 per month. In a similar building in Florida you will pay around 1.3 million for the property, over $20,000 a year in property tax and around $1600 a month HOAS fees. In BVG/Portofino figure around $430,000 for a unit, $900a year property tax, and $500 a month HOA fees. Also the person in the BVG kiosk has nothing to do with BVG or Portofino any longer. They work for the developer and these building have been long sold out. Was the person you spoke to at BVG Kiosk Elisa? here would be a similar property in Florida with similar amenities http://www.minto.com/florida/Fort-lauderdale-new-homes/Villas-By-The-Sea/Move-In-Ready~91.html If you are looking for an agent let me know, I can give you the names of a couple who would have most of the listings in these buildings. Remember there is no MLS in Cancun so in order to see everything for sale sometimes it takes multiple agents.
