Monday, August 02, 2010
Dear Reader,
If you’ve been following these dispatches, you’ll know that I’m bullish on the real estate market in the city of Fortaleza, on Brazil’s northeast coast. Brazil is booming…and this area has outperformed the rest of Brazil for each of the last 15 years. Soccer’s World Cup is coming here in 2014. Close on $6 billion will be spent on infrastructure and tourist amenities in the run up to 2014.
What you might not know is that some of the best beach towns in Latin America are within an hour’s drive of downtown Fortaleza. Some of these towns will see an infrastructure upgrade as part of the build-up to 2014.
Praia das Fontes is one such beach town. Here, $66,000 buys you an ocean view condo on a small cliff overlooking the beach. As part of the build-up to 2014, Praia das Fontes will get an upgrade. A new highway already under construction will reduce drive time to Fortaleza’s international airport to 45 minutes.
The beach towns and villages I am talking about are less than an hour from here
Hundreds of miles of dazzling, white-sand beaches surround Fortaleza. The clear, tropical ocean waters maintain a year-round temperature of 80?F. Even in the rainiest month of the year (April), sunny days are frequent and rain rarely gets in the way of daily activities. Though just south of the equator, a constant breeze keeps temperatures comfortable.
The most direct route to travel along this coast is to drive on the beach itself. The beach is only interrupted by small rivers meeting the ocean. Here, locals are on hand to pull you across in makeshift ferries. Little fishing villages and towns dot this coast. Back from the beach, their cobblestone streets radiate out from central squares.
Before tourists arrived, the beach was the road, and fishing the main commerce. Villages and towns grew up right on the beach. Village houses backed onto the beach. They are so spoiled with beach they didn’t even bother to point their houses in the direction of the ocean. Kids spend long days playing soccer and volleyball. There is no competition for court time. They have more beach than they could ever use.
Today, tourists are here. Their focus, too, is the beach. With them come more restaurants, kite surfing and beach buggy tours. These are not tourist towns that shut down when the tourists go home, however. These are working fishing villages where people who want to visit are welcomed. The balance hasn’t flipped towards the visitors.
Amazingly, many of the villages and towns I’m talking about are less than a one-hour drive from Fortaleza’s boardwalk (and international airport) and the conveniences that go with a city of 3 million people. If you feel like Chinese food, you most likely won’t get it in your beach town… but you know you can pop downtown for your fix and then retreat to the beach. It’s comforting to have the conveniences of a major city easily accessible yet still be away from the hustle and bustle…
Praia das Fontes is my favorite beach town to the east of Fortaleza.
Heading east at Praia das Fontes (Fountains Beach). A beach buggy is the most convenient mode of transport
To the east of Fortaleza, the beach and coastline is like nothing I have seen anywhere else. Red and white cliffs rise from flat beaches. This unique and beautiful stretch of coast has been a favorite with Brazilian tourists for many years, yet it remains undiscovered by North Americans. Fresh water gushes from streams that fall from the cliff (perfect for a shower after a dip in the warm waters of the south Atlantic). The beachside bars grill fish taken straight from the boat. In the evening, the fishermen’s little jangadas come home fat with their catch.
A busy day at the office a couple of minutes from Fountains Beach
The municipality of Beberibe (which includes Praia das Fontes) attracts 800,000 Brazilian tourists annually. This area is packed during the major Brazilian holidays—Christmas, New Year, Carnival, and Easter.
This area is benefiting from the investment in the lead up to 2014. A new highway is under construction that will reduce drive time to the airport to 45 minutes. Dirt roads in the beach town and the road that connects real estate projects along the beach are in the process of being surfaced and finished. A championship golf course has opened close by. Work is set to begin on a second course in the area.
Perched on a small cliff over the beach, you’ll find a project called The Fountains. Each unit will have sea views. The Fountains has direct access to the beach. Construction is well advanced. Condos here start at $66,000. Developer Mike Colwill is standing by to send you a full information pack.
Ronan McMahon
P.S. Only a limited number of units remain in this project—and only one at $66,000. Contact Mike today to get all the details.
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