In this week’s Your Overseas Dream Home Digest…
- Boots on the Ground in One of the “Best Places to Travel in 2025”
- A Home in California or a Castle in France…Which is Cheaper?
- Own Near the Beach in the English-Speaking Caribbean from $119,000
- Your Questions Answered on Portugal’s Silver Coast and the Caribbean island of Roatan
A few weeks ago, National Geographic named this Mexican city one of the 25 best places in the world to travel to in 2025.
Many were surprised, even shocked, by this city’s inclusion on the list. It’s far from the first place most people think of when it comes to tourist destinations in Mexico.
I didn’t surprise me, though. After all, I already own a home here.
The city? Guadalajara…
Located in western Mexico, Guadalajara is known for tequila and mariachi music…and it’s a city on the rise.
This week, I returned to my base in Guadalajara. I’ll be staying here for a little while before heading back out on the road…
My home is in a sleepy, low-rise residential neighborhood. In the past few years, my wife designed and built a home for us in the city. Her parents grew up here and they’ve recently returned. So this is a lifestyle play for us.
This neighborhood is a lovely place to spend time. It’s walkable and convenient. All around there are tree-lined streets…great restaurants…shopping malls…gyms…
It’s quaint, small-town Mexico and busy metropolis all at the same time. Everything you need is close at hand.
When I was here last year, I did a short video tour of my neighborhood and shared it with members of my Real Estate Trend Alert group. Check it out below… (If you’re not yet a member, and want to be first to get all my boots-on-the ground updates, you can join RETA here.)
Come with me on a walking tour of my residential neighborhood in Guadalajara. Click to view.
The area where I lived was once considered part of the outer suburbs of Guadalajara. But in recent decades, it has become very central as the city has spread out.
Nearby you’ll find scores of high-rise condo developments and office blocks. Every year, more are built…sprouting up from leafy residential streets.
The city is growing at a dizzying pace.
Guadalajara is emerging as an industrial and tech powerhouse. Major Western corporations have been flocking here to take advantage of its skilled labor force and proximity to the U.S. market.
This is all part of an economic trend right now called “near shoring,” where investment is shifting away from economies like China and pouring into places like Mexico that are closer and friendlier to the U.S. and the West.
Amazon, HP, Dell, Intel, Oracle, Toshiba, Microsoft, and countless other household names have opened facilities in the city. As these corporate giants have moved in, Guadalajara has become increasingly prosperous.
The younger, more affluent workforce is changing the character of the city, giving it a modern, cosmopolitan vibe. This, in turn, is attracting more expats and more tourists (which is why it’s on National Geographic’s travel list for 2025).
This is what economists call a “virtuous circle.” And amid this boom, property prices are rising in Guadalajara.
This “near shoring” trend is a big deal and it’s having an impact far beyond Mexico, in places like Panama, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic…
You’ll be hearing more from me about this trend, and the incredible opportunities it’s creating, in the weeks ahead. Today, let’s recap the past week in Your Overseas Dream Home…
A Home in California or a Castle in France…Which is Cheaper?
The median price for a home in California in the third quarter of this year was a whopping $790,742, according to the latest Zillow Home Value Index.
What does that kind of money buy you overseas?
Well, you could get a genuine French castle like this one…
This castle is currently on the market in France’s Loire Valley…read more about it here.
Located in the famed Loire Valley (often referred to as “The Valley of the Kings”), this castle is the stuff of fairy tales. But it could be yours for €546,000 ($576,200)…that’s over $200,000 less than the median home in California right now.
And this is not an anomaly…
France is stuffed full of castles, 45,000 of them according to one study. Many of them have been modernized and turned into stunning family homes. And you’ll find a lot of them on the market for less that the cost of a relatively ordinary house in the U.S.
This week, my team dug into the world of French castles for sale and found plenty of options, including another on the market for just $438,000.
Get all the details in our full article here.
Own Near the Beach in the English-Speaking Caribbean From $119,000
In the early 1900s, the British Empire had extended its reach to most continents around the world, including the Caribbean.
Islands like the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamacia, and Grenada were all controlled by the British.
One of the results of this is that English is widely spoken across the Caribbean today. Many islands have it as their official language in fact, which can be a benefit if you’re looking for a beach home overseas and want to assimilate easily into the local culture…
Belize is just one of several locations in the Caribbean where English is spoken and where you don’t need to be wealthy to own a home.
While speaking a different language can bring a whole host of new experiences if you’re living overseas, if you’re not super comfortable learning a new language, speaking in your native tongue can be a big bonus.
Of course, many islands in the Caribbean have a reputation for being hideaways for the rich and famous with luxury boutiques, high-end restaurants, exclusive communities…and eye-watering real estate prices.
But it is possible to find affordable properties in the Caribbean…and on islands where English is spoken.
This week, my team were digging into beach homes on English-speaking Caribbean islands and they found…
- A colorful property consists of two cottages connected by an elevated deck and only a five-minute drive from the beach for $119,000.
- A sea-view condo nestled within a luxury resort with a private beach and four swimming pools for $199,337.
- A stunning two-bed, two-bath condo with unobstructed sea views on the U.S. Virgins Islands for $388,000.
You’ll find all these listings and more in the full article here.
Your Questions Answered
Have a comment or some feedback for me or my team? A question about owning overseas? A destination you’d like us to scout. Share it here. I’d love to hear from you. Here’s some questions I’ve gotten from readers recently…
Nancy L. asks: Hi Ronan, what do you think of the area around Praia D’El Rey? I know you purchased on the beach there, but what else is there and affordable? It’s a place I want to scout next year.
And a question about transportation. Am I going to need a car to get to these areas? Or is there good public transportation?
Ronan says: Hi Nancy, thanks for your question. I love spending time in Praia D’El Rey, which sits on Portugal’s Silver Coast (Costa de Prata). This coastline stretches for about 155 miles from the coast north of Lisbon to the mouth of the Douro River at Porto.
The beaches here are long, wild, and sandy—ideal for walkers. The world’s surfers gather here to ride waves the size of a multi-story buildings. And you’ll also find amazing fishing, hiking, and paddleboarding right on your doorstep, alongside world-class golf courses.
My home in the Praia D’El Rey Beach and Golf Resort sits right up on the coast…a minute’s stroll from the sand. I have panoramic ocean views from my large terrace and I’ve a world class golf course on my doorstep.
Praia D’El Rey sits right up on a stunning stretch of Atlantic beach.
As Lisbon and the Algarve have become more and more popular, a growing cohort of vacationers, long-term renters, and second home owners have been looking for quieter, more secluded escapes in Portugal. This has led to a spike in demand for rentals and resales on the Silver Coast. My condo in the golf and beach community of Praia D’El Rey cost me €300,000. Last year, a local real estate agent wanted to list it for €450,000.
Here’s a few sample listings to give you an idea of what’s on the market in Praia D’El Rey right now… (These aren’t recommendations and I haven’t visited these properties or done any due diligence on them.)
Right now, this two-bed condo in Praia D’El Rey is listed for €380,000. It has 1,500 square feet of living space and although it doesn’t have sea views it does have two terraces, one of which gives direct access to the swimming pool.
If you don’t need to be right on the beach, you can pick up a nice three-bed, top-floor condo in the Aldeia da Lusitana development in the heart of Praia del Rey for €275,000 ($307,850). You have views of the communal gardens and the sea.
If you have a little more in your budget, this two-bed, two-bath townhouse is listed for €350,000 ($390,350) right now. Located in the gated condominium of Vila dos Príncipes, it’s a five-minute walk to the Praia D’El Rey golf course. This one doesn’t have sea views but you are in the center of town.
On transportation, if you’re scouting the area for a few weeks, I’d suggest hiring a car. It means you’ll be able to get around quicker than if you used public transport. There is a train service that will take you up and down this coastline and a local bus system, but having a car will give you the freedom to go wherever you want, when you want.
Patrick E. asks: What do you think of Roatan, Honduras?
Ronan says: Hi Patrick. Roatan is a place I’ve been to many times, but my last visit was in 2013. It’s definitely on my list of places I want to return to…
Part of Honduras, Roatan is in the western Caribbean and boasts stunning beaches and a near-perfect tropical climate (temperatures range from 77 F to 90 F throughout the year). This makes it a popular destination with tourists and snowbirds from North America.
It’s also home to the largest barrier reef in the Northern Hemisphere, so it attracts snorkeling and diving enthusiasts from across the world. And it’s easy to get to, with direct flight connections to cities across the U.S. and Canada including Houston, Miami, Dallas-Fort Worth, Atlanta, Denver, and Toronto.
Roatan is quintessential Caribbean with its soft-white sand beaches and glimmering turquoise waters…and you’ll find homes here for under $200,000.
I first scouted the island in 2006. Since then, I’ve kept it firmly on my radar…
Roatán is definitely affordable Caribbean… I recently wrote about the island’s real estate scene right here in Your Overseas Dream Home. You can read all about it here.
We’re long overdue for a scouting trip to Roatan. It’s something I plan to add to our itinerary.
Ronan McMahon, Founder, Overseas Dream Home & Real Estate Trend Alert
P.S. Have another destination you’d like us to scout? Tell me about it here…
