There is a place on the central Pacific coast that is just minutes from world class beaches that many expats and Costa Ricans alike love to call home.  The name of the place is Villas Xihu, (pronounced Zee-Hoo) a unique upscale community in the seaside fishing town of Esterillos Oeste, just a fifteen minute drive South of Jaco.  Villas Xihu is unique in that in spite of the bad economy and lower real estate prices, people are still buying and building in this lovely area of tropical beauty and great beaches.  The reasons are many, but the main reason is simple, the community itself.  There are a growing number of people who appreciate living in a place where neighbors are friendly, know each other’s names, and generally look after one another, gringos and Ticos alike.  Another part of the charm is the quality of the many fine homes located in the neighborhood, many with pools and beautiful tropical gardens on ample lots.  There are also different homes to suit almost any budget, some starting as low as $159k  (recently sold), all the way to several homes over $500k with lots starting as low as the mid 20′s, most lots valued at about $60 per m2, or about $60k for 1000m2 (about a quarter acre).  Some lots have small ocean views, most are just cool and jungly, some with streams, some with mountain views, some are just nice open building lots. Some properties are even large enough for horses.  There is a nice mix of options to suit any taste.

Currently in Villas Xihu there are some great opportunities to own homes that would have sold for twice the price a few years back, and every so often a real “fire sale” deal comes along.  No matter what the price point, there is real value in Xihu properties, especially with the high quality of the homes.  There have been many recent new home starts, and people always seem to be making one improvement or another on their existing homes, whether it be a rancho or adding a pool.  As many developments seem to be stagnating and some have completely stopped construction, Villas Xihu continues to attract a growing number of buyers.  Most have been drawn to the fact that these homes and lots are owned with fee simple title, not a condo or coop.  Also, there are good services like municipal water, cable TV, high speed internet, phone lines, etc.

Xihu is a place people always love to come back to and call home, a place where it is common to see toucans and macaws, as well as monkeys playing in the trees in your backyard.

Another great aspect of the Villas Xihu community is the convenience.  The community is tucked back off the Costanera (coastal highway) in Esterillos, a short drive South of Jaco, a bustling beach town with plenty of restaurants and nightlife, and large American style grocery stores, banks, etc.  Villas Xihu is central to two of Costa Rica’s best sport fishing marinas, Quepos, and Los Suenos, and there are options to go fishing locally on a panga boat and catch Red Snapper, and Roosterfish among others.  There is also plenty of fishing right off the beach, in the river mouths, estuaries, and off the rocks, all just five minutes from home.  Surfers love it here too with more and more active surfing families coming to enjoy the best kept surfing secret, the miles of empty beach break that ranges from long peeling river mouth breaks to hollow dumping barrels in Bejuco and Centro.  Esterillos Oeste has some great long boarding waves, sometimes breaking for hundreds of meters under the right conditions of swell angle and size.  If the surf gets to big, it is only an hour to some killer sheltered point breaks like Corralillo or the long river mouth break at Barranca.  It is also just an hour and a half drive to Dominical now that the new road is completed to the South, making it a viable day trip.

Villas Xihu is walking distance to Esterillos Oeste Beach, where you will find the school, soccer field, churches, several restaurants, surf shops, supermarket, butcher shop, and several beach bars, some with dancing and karaoke on weekends.

Anyone looking for a great place to live on the central pacific coast at a great price needs to check this place out.

For more info on the Villas Xihu community and other properties in the area, contact Erik Engstrom using the form below, call: 8 899-3652 or  View Real Estate Listings on the Sun Belt Properties, CR website.

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This elegant villa is a one owner home with a pool in one of the nicest communities on the coast.
So convenient, so close to all the area beaches, and so peaceful, private and tranquil, this is a true tropical garden oasis. This gracious home affords plenty of room for family and friends to relax and spread out from the roof deck to the poolside hammocks, or relax in the ample open layout interior and open up the windows and double sliding doors to bring the indoors and outdoor living spaces together. This home has 4/5 bedrooms and would make a great Bed and Breakfast or vacation rental. It is a great location to enjoy all the best of the central pacific coast as this development is right off the costanera.
The 332m2 home is fully fenced and gated and has the amenities you would expect, such as a/c and ceiling fans throughout, ceramic throughout, custom woodwork, three custom baths with bathtubs, cable TV, high speed internet, as well as phone line, 2 indoor garages plus enclosed outdoor parking area for four or more cars.

Buy this home direct from the owner and save. Just $375,000 for one of the nicest homes in the area, real quality, real value. Title is clear, fee simple, not a condominium. Buy and enjoy your dream home in paradise, it is that easy.
Go to the full details HERE.

Click below to start the photo slideshow.

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Author: Health Check Costa Rica

AM Costa Rica biting the hands that feeds them

I find it hard to fathom how a high volume readership publication like AM Costa Rica could be so irresponsible reporting on the world terrorism situation and its possible effect on Costa Rica; See “World terrorism Fears Likely to Reverberate here” What are you guys trying to do anyway? Needlessly scare everybody? Create reasons to keep people away from Costa Rica? Put a further hurt on Costa Rican tourism. How in your view is a high alert in Europe a reason for people to stay away from Costa Rica? Have you heard of the Atlantic Ocean? Just how high do you think Costa Rica is on the terrorism hit list? I am guessing right up there with Antarctica. God save us from these simpering alarmist types willing to print anything for a little play.

AM Costa Rica asserts “Although the message concerns just Europe, the warning is likely to cause U.S. and Canadian tourists to think twice before leaving home.” Exactly how do you make that counter intuitive leap of logic? OK Europe is bad so we certainly won’t consider the most peaceful country in the world with the Atlantic Ocean between us and the threat as an alternative. We will just sit home and tremble in our boots. This does not sound like any American or Canadian I know. Sure they might reconsider their destinations but they aren’t cowards. This story should be about what a great alternative Costa Rica is to Europe right now. Whose side are you on anyway?

Another thing, unlike the AM Costa Rica Staff most people are aware that Costa Rica is not in Mexico or even close to Mexico. Mexican bandits would have to pass through four countries to get here. Even though its people are considered Latin Americans, they don’t all look or act alike. There are four countries separating us from Mexico for goodness sakes. Our amateurish friends at AM Costa Rica have managed to lump Mexican drug cartel criminals and Costa Ricans together with a casual and racist dash of the pencil. As far as those 212 tourists they are looking for, well they are not in Costa Rica you morons.

As far as the dollar, Colon exchange rate is concerned will someone over there please get an internet connection or watch an actual newscast? The US dollar has taken a beating everywhere in the world going on two years now. How in the heck does this distinguish Costa Rica as a less desirable travel destination? In fact the dollar has held out longer and higher here than practically anywhere in the world meaning that over time and on the average it remains one of the staunchest defenders of the exchange rate in the world. Read a book for goodness sakes.

OK now the tourist tax. Have you ever heard of balanced reporting? Don’t you think that it is in everyone’s interest to know that the tourist tax was a replacement for the 3% hotel tax and actually turns out to be a progressive rather than regressive tax move in that the burden is not only on hotel goers but now everyone who enjoys Costa Rica pays a small share? And just so everyone knows it is 15 bucks and is being billed to the airlines. Last I Checked spirit Air was still serving up tickets from Fort Lauderdale for a little over 200 bucks. Get my drift? It’s still a third world country and you wish people to make other plans, perhaps to France or Mexico over 15 bucks.

Lastly let’s explore the rainy season in Costa Rica. Is this something new? Is this actually news? Yes every year we get torrential rains in Costa Rica but somehow this is something new to the AM Costa Rica staff of doomsayers. Every year we have torrential rains every year THE ROADS TAKE A BEATING. The only thing different now is that after the rainy season the Government picks up and repairs the damaged roads, whereas in administrations past they were left to rot for several years, deeply affecting the tourism industries. As far as Guanacaste is concerned the roads are greatly improved, the best they have been in my 7 years in the country having in the last year undergone major upgrades, line painting and reflector installation. Obviously this information does not fit in with the gloomy picture painted by some cub reporter looking for a headline but woefully short of facts or insight. Here’s another newsflash for you Einstein’s. The rainy season always ends. In fact it regularly ends like clockwork for as long as recorded history. In case you have not been following it this is one of the reasons why the Gold Coast beaches enjoy such a robust tourism season.

This article is written for the worst reason, to grab attention through fear mongering. It highlights several troubling issues in the world far away from Costa Rica and tries to make it a Costa Rica story. It hurts tourism, Costa Rica’s number one industry. AM Costa Rica has great power because of a large readership but they lack the responsibility required of such power. Their journalistic integrity takes a backseat to the worst form of sensationalism and of course ad sales. You are biting the hands that feed you with such shoddy journalism. Shame on you AM Costa Rica!

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/journalism-articles/managing-terror-alarmists-am-costa-rica-biting-the-hands-that-feed-them-3453644.html

About the Author

Health Check Costa Rica is a medical tourism facilitator site helping patients find the right doctors and hospitals for their procedure. Health Check only works with accredited institutions and offers door to door concierge style services with custom itinerararies in Costa Rica. It is our pleasure to serve.