In commencing the project in 2009, few gave the project even the slimmest of chances, this in substantial measure because of its ambitious plan of total self-sufficiency and the developers’ commitment to environmental quality. Even the government, wholly-unaccustomed to this unique form of development, especially in a small fishing village like San Felipe, micro-inspected every inch of progress assuring themselves that “these gringos weren’t trying to pull a fast one” until one day, more than 2-years later, the developers had so-convinced the government officials, through both “word and deed”, that the project was “real” that they allowed Phase 1 to break ground with permitting running concurrently with the movement of dirt.

Progress was understandably slow in the early times with the R-MAC team having to prove and re-prove every developmental step along the way, clearing one municipal hurdle after another, one environmental roadblock at a time until the government finally acknowledged, again based wholly-upon the team’s by-then well-established track record of performance, that this was no “fly-by-night operation” as were so many they had seen come and go before. Infrastructure was going in; roads were being built; lots were being cut and demarcated; a well-appointed clubhouse and 12 guest casítas were breaking ground right along with a beach-side swimming pool and restaurant, all beginning to rise from where once there was only desert; and the town was prospering. Men were working in myriad trades. Salaries were being paid. Food was going onto the families’ dinner tables; and with every procedural hurdle cleared, the once understandably-suspicious and cautious Mexican officials came to know the integrity of this development team as the reality of their vision began to emerge.

Despite being purchased via direct Mexican ownership and thus avoiding the numerous pitfalls attendant to property that was formerly Ejido land, every inch of Rancho Costa Verde, some 1200 initial acres in size, was still in the “Restricted Zone” and also within a “Significant Environmental Zone” requiring careful, deliberate and balanced planning in order to appease the Environmental Impact Study guidelines. Assuring that nature was left intact while still providing for the financial feasibility of the project was of paramount importance to both parties. And after the environmental hurdles were finally cleared, cul-de-sac streets designed to minimize traffic for the residents, nature trails incorporated to make the walk from each home to the beach as safe as it was enjoyable, less than 350 parcels remained in Phase 1, each with an average lot size of 10,000 square feet or just under a quarter of an acre. That meant that just 11% of the property was dedicated to home construction with the remaining 89% of the gently-sloping landscape was preserved for environmental open space running 2-1/2 miles from the San Felipe Mountains down to the sand of the Sea of Cortes.

For a qualified perspective, the City of Los Angeles approves an average residential density of about 38.9% which means that, on aggregate average, just over 60% of a developer’s project is deeded away to the city for streets, drainage and other public necessities both current and future (widening of streets at some future date) and requisite “open space” for “the enjoyment of the community”. That leaves the developers with just under 40% of their original land upon which to build homes and make a profit. In stark contrast, the Rancho Costa Verde team was left with just 11% on which to build homes and make their profit which, to be absolutely honest, could have been significantly more except for R-MAC’s design which mandated that even the most distant of homesites would, by virtue of engineering and design, have a natural and unobstructed view of the ocean made possible by the approximate 4% slope and the creative canting of the lots at a 30-degree angle to the fall line of the slope. In short and in keeping with their forward-thinking development, property owners at Rancho Costa Verde were offered a truly unique development which sold out Phase 1 completely before it was even completed. Today, the remainder of the project in Phases 2, 3 and 4, have less than 100 remaining parcels to be sold. The 5th is just now opening with the final phases 6 and 7 expected to complete in 2024.

The predominate, quintessentially Rancho Costa Verde feature that sets the this beachfront community apart is not the magnificent sunrises over the Sea of Cortez, or the breathtaking sunsets behind the majestic San Pedro de Matír mountain range although they are a close second and third. What sets Rancho Costa Verde apart is the fact that here, you OWN the property your home sits on. It’s yours. Forever. It’s not a lease. It’s not a timeshare. It’s yours, deeded to you free and clear just like your home in the states; and this is virtually unheard of in most of coastal Mexico and certainly in Baja. Why? Cost. The price of the Rancho Costa Verde environmental impact reports alone exceed a half million dollars for each phase; and with the cost of other documentation exceeding  more than $400k, that brings the the total administrative cost of legally sub-dividing each of Rancho Costa Verde’s phases to just about  $1,000,000 per…and we have 3 phases completed, two more in the approval process and two more in development; but it’s the only way Rancho Costa Verde developers can provide clear property title to our investors, their children, their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

And finally, what needs to be of special note her is the fact that Rancho Costa Verde is decidedly not for everyone. Young adults as an example would find the wholesale lack of late-night entertainment with rock, pop and funk blaring into the wee hours of the morning less than suitable to their vacation or residential tastes. For that, residents and visitors to Rancho Costa Verde need to drive about 30-minutes back to the town of San Felipe where the nightlife really takes center stage; especially for the 4-weeks of the year when the famed Mexico 1000, Baja 500 and Baja 250 are in town…or the other 35-weekends when various international festivals are in full-swing. No, Rancho Costa Verde residents and their guests chose the peace and quiet of the Mexican coastline for it’s tranquility; for its ink-black nights and the billions of stars that come out to play; for the miles of secure nature trails and it’s acres of off-roading playground; for the  immediacy of its secluded, warm waters where any manner of water sports are available literally right at their back door; and for it’s 30-minute proximity to the shops and stores in San Felipe with its nightlife, traditional street food and fine restaurants that include the world-famous Alfredos and El Padrón.

So to whom is Rancho Costa Verde suited? First, from a pure investment-play perspective, with Madrid-based Inveravante, a multi-national, well-diversified corporation with real estate interests stretching from Bucharest to Brazil and Morocco to Mexico now making plans for MarinAzul Golf and Resort just outside of San Felipe, anyone with investment capital. With plans centered on the existing albeit under-used “international” airport capable of servicing both commercial and private jet traffic, Inveravante’s 5-year plan includes a large marina with attendant yacht club with reciprocal rights to US and foreign yacht clubs, an 18 & 27- hole, Seve Ballesteros-designed golf course, multi-location nature parks and commercial town squares, semi- and fully-detached, single- and multi-family residential communities and enclaves of terraced villas, tennis and golf social clubs, all designed to take full-advantage of the dearth in the current availability of luxury-living in the area; and they secured the rights just before Grupo Gran Coral,  Banco de Valencia and Bancaja made their bids. Given all this, the investment potential becomes truly self-evident.

But the true target for Rancho Costa Verde is the passive investor, the retiree, the one seeking the affordability of a second home on Baja’s coastline for the family getaway or someone who wants to use the home as a vcacation home and realize significant revenue using it as an Air B&B when not occupied; someone who…

1) wants to put their money to work for them with very low risk but good appreciation who’s…

2) tired of seeing their money return less than a single percent of interest at their bank and who…

3) would like a vacation property within driving distance of the southern United States that provides…

4) affordable beachfront or beachside property upon which he or she can have their vacation home affordably custom-built and know that they own property that is…

5) close enough to a town for the conveniences of medical care, groceries, shopping and recreational opportunities but…

6)  far enough removed from the world that their days are theirs to enjoy in the quiet solitude of the Sea of Cortez that lay at their doorstep and who…

7) can call the nights truly their own under a canopy of stars that have long-disappeared from their city-view back home…

8) all within a guard-gated, master-planned community where Rancho Costa Verde owners enjoy the security of a 24-hour watch over their property. That is Rancho Costa Verde’s true, target market.