Earlier this week, I returned to Guadalajara, Mexico…
I have a base here, in a sleepy, low-rise residential neighborhood. My wife designed and built a home for us in the city. Her parents grew up here and they moved back in recent years. So this is a lifestyle play for us.
My neighborhood and central Guadalajara are lovely places to spent time—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 I want and need is close at hand. Either a pleasant stroll or a short $3 Uber away.
Last night I ate in one of my favorite restaurants here, Bruna. The food as always was spectacular. The highlight, though, was the giant flowering tree out front raining petals like snow onto cars and the street. Magical…
Bruna is littered with creative nooks, terraces and artworks. From one of the terraces, sculptures look out to the street below. As far as I’m concerned Mexico has the most vibrant, eclectic and creative food scene on earth. And nowhere do you see this more than in a big, vibrant city like Guadalajara.
The giant flowering tree outside Bruna, my favorite restaurant in Guadalajara.
My neighborhood here 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…
The city is growing at a dizzying pace.
Guadalajara is increasingly prosperous due in part to the “near-shoring” and “friend-shoring” trends. Companies are moving out of China and into closer and friendlier countries like Mexico. And major economic centers like Guadalajara are benefiting…
High-rises in Andares, Guadalajara. What was once the grounds of the university where my wife studied is now a thriving luxury shopping, commercial and residential district.
The traffic in Guadalajara can be a killer, but this is a perfect time to visit.
Semana Santa, or Holy Week, is a big deal in Latin America. Major cities like Guadalajara empty out as people travel home to towns and villages to celebrate with their families.
I’ll be using Guadalajara as a base for the next few weeks as I scout the surrounding region and coastal Oaxaca.
Tomorrow I head to the picturesque town of Mazamitla for some R&R and to check out the real estate scene there. Located about 80 miles south of Guadalajara in the Sierra del Tigre mountain range, Mazamitla boasts a cool climate. Chalet-like cabins dot the town and surrounding forested hills.
This town is a Pueblo Mágico (Magical Town). It’s a way of saying the place is special…culturally rich…beautiful. There are less than 200 of these towns in all of Mexico. I’m excited to see what I uncover and I’ll be sending you some thoughts in the coming days.
In the following weeks, I’ll be scouting the towns of Chapala and Ajijic—located on the shores of Lake Chapala, Mexico’s largest freshwater lake—and the beach towns of Puerto Escondido and Huatulco.
Then it’s back to Europe…
The town of Mazamitla is known for its picturesque cobblestone streets, traditional houses, and fresh mountain air.
Already, my team and I are deep in discussions about where to scout there. Certain destinations are locked in…Ireland, Portugal, Montenegro, Italy.
One that’s reappeared on our radar, and that I wanted to highlight today, is Turkey’s Turquoise Coast.
The Turquoise Coast, also called the Turkish Riviera, is a 620-mile stretch of Mediterranean coast known for its red cliffs, luminous waters, whitewashed fishing villages, and remarkable ancient ruins that sit just back from its sandy beaches.
This is one of the world’s most dramatic and breathtaking coastlines…
At the height of summer Oludeniz on Turkey’s Turquoise Riviera is a famous spot for yachts and a big draw for travelers.
For many years now, this coast has been touted as “the next big hot spot.” But it’s never fully materialized, in part due to an ongoing inflationary crisis in Turkey. (Inflation in Turkey is currently running at 67%.)
But recently, big things have been happening here…
In recent months, Euromonitor International released its report the Top 100 City Destinations Index 2023, which lists the top 10 cities around the world for international arrivals.
To the surprise of many, two of the four most-visited cities in the world are in Turkey. The first is its commercial hub, Istanbul. The second is Antalya at one end of the Turquoise Coast. Visitor numbers to Turkey spiked by more than 10% in 2023.
Two factors are at play here—Brexit and Ukraine. Turkey has long been a favored destination of British tourists, and more are coming since the country’s exit from the European Union, which has made the process of traveling to Europe less convenient.
It’s a similar story with Russian visitors. They’re coming in big numbers too, since many countries now bar Russian visitors over the Ukraine war.
Could events like these finally see the Turquoise Coast hit a new level?
It’s been several years since my scouts last visited, and we’re now looking into returning…
During our last scouting trip, a member of my team spent time in the town of Kalkan. My team has been looking into how the market has changed there, to get a feel for what’s happening along this coast.
The Turkish Riviera on Turkey’s southern coast encompasses 620 miles of Mediterranean coastline.
Kalkan is a fishing village turned resort town, with winding backstreets and an abundance of small bars and restaurants.
As towns on this coast go, Kalkan is upmarket. The hotels are small and boutique, and the topography of the land surrounding the bay means than there are few places left to build. This gives buyers here some protection. The town can’t expand much more. And you can have a sea view with little chance of a high-rise hotel going up in front of you.
The popular resort town of Kalkan is set in a majestic bay.
In fact, from anywhere in town you’re only a five- or 10-minute walk from the water, but there is limited pebble beaches here. You’ll mostly find small platforms from where you can swim, go canoeing or scuba diving.
But just outside of town, you’ll find some of the best sandy beaches in Turkey, including Kaputas Beach, just an eight-minute drive away as well as the famed Patara Beach 20 minutes in the opposite direction.
Patara is a huge unspoiled beach that stretches for 11 miles, and is protected by a national park. You’ll see turtles hatching here from May to October. But the real jewel is the ancient ruins just a few minutes back from the sand…
It’s the remnants of a city that was once the capital of the Lycian civilization, later ruled by the Romans and Byzantines.
The Roman amphitheatre in Patara, just 20 minutes outside Kalkan.
The last time my scout visited Kalkan, he found two-bed condos in communities with shared pools for around $175,000 and three-bed villas with private pools and sea views for around $400,000.
Looking at listings today, it seems prices have moved up somewhat, though not massively…
My team found a listing for a one-bed in the Patara Prince gated community in Kalkan for around $160,000. (I say “around” because the prices here are typically quoted in British pounds, given that many of the second-home buyers are from the U.K. I’ve converted to dollars here.)
The condo is small, just 540 square feet, but it comes with access to a private beach and the communal pool overlooking the stunning coast. Listing here.
The communal pool offers views out over the bay and the town of Kalkan.
My team also came across this fully furnished two-bed in the town center listed for around $192,500. It’s in a complex with five swimming pools and has a small, private roof terrace with views out over the town.
This condo is centrally located and in a community with five pools.
My team sent also sent me this stone cottage for around $370,000. It’s back from the coast outside of town and hardly spacious. But its elevated position offers breathtaking sea views and it has a small private pool.
As well as tons of character, this cottage offers stunning views of the coastline from its elevated position.
Another town we scouted on our last trip to this coast was Kaş …
About 30 minutes’ drive east of Kalkan, Kaş ticks most people’s boxes. Situated on a lush peninsula and surrounded by imposing mountains, it’s sunny and warm most days even in the winter months. Its Greek-style houses and cobbled streets make for a pleasant stroll.
From its attractive harbor you can take fishing or scuba tours, or a cheap ferry to Meis Island. And there are numerous terrace restaurants with sea views where you can dine on traditional favorites like Adana kebab, a plate of grilled meat and vegetables served on flatbread…or street food like Balık ekmek, a fish sandwich that’s a staple in coastal Turkey.
When my scout was last here, he found a two-bed, one-bath condo for just under $150,000 and a villa for around $400,000. Looking at listings now, prices have moved up here…
My researchers dug out a two-bed, two-bath condo with views out over the bay listing for around $250,000. Below is a photo from the listing, which you can access on Turkey’s most popular real estate listing website, Sahibinden. (Note that if you’re accessing it outside of Turkey you may need to register an account).
This two-bed has stunning views from its small terrace.
My researchers also found this four-bed, one-bath listing for around $475,000…
This condo is on the water in a community with a swimming pool.
I’m going to keep digging into what’s happening on the Turquoise Coast…
There are a number of other coastal towns on our radar here, like the small town of Side to the east of Antalya, which has seen a spike in visitors recently.
Then there’s the Bodrum Peninsula, home to lust resorts like the famed Maçakizi hotel that has lured the likes of Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell to this part of the world…
If you’ve visited the Turquoise Coast, or there’s somewhere you’d like us to scout there, let me know here.
Ronan McMahon, Overseas Real Estate Expert
P.S. The Turquoise Coast has the best of that Greek island aesthetic without the price tag. You would pay at least three times on Greece’s most hip islands for similar properties.
There’s another place we can buy that Greek aesthetic for a song—that’s the Albanian Riviera.
My scout was there a few years and found a perfect storm of opportunity. Empty beaches. Lush hills. A coastline of rocky coves. All going super cheap and within a 2.5 hour flight time of Europe’s wealthy capitals and second cities. But we need to make sure of Albania’s ability to reach its full potential. We’re planning to return…
These days you won’t find many Mediterranean beaches with olive groves and farmland running down to the sea. Here’s one on the Albanian Riviera…
