Salinas, Ecuador: An Income-Producing Finca (Working Farm) for Sale
As of Nov. 7, 2011, this property is still available.
A rare opportunity is available to own a 25-hectare (62.5 acre) finca in Salinas at a cost well below market value. The Ecuadorian owner says sell it fast, so the price reflects his desire to find a new owner for the finca as soon as possible.
Established fields could produce bumper crops of Hawaiian papayas, Hawaiian pineapples, sweet corn, beans, melons and watermelons and granadilla, a local fruit.
The new owner will have a ready-made market since the current owner is now running a wholesale produce export business. He has excellent contacts with SuperMaxi, a large grocery chain throughout Ecuador. The farm has not been operated for about a year and a half, although the property was leased last year to an agricultural engineer who raised chia seeds, a new and up-coming crop. There is also a large citrus orchard of about 400 two or three year old trees.
Buildings on this Salinas finca include a well-made brick caretaker's house with 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, kitchen and living area. Separate entrances house a workers' bunkroom and 2 storage rooms. This building has wooden ceilings and tiled floors.
Pump room with water filtration system.
Other buildings on the property include a cement block building that was once used as a school, a cold room in the packing facility and pump house with water filtering system.
There are several sources of abundant water on the land. A huge lined water reservoir holds plenty of extra irrigation water, plus there are additional irrigation lines throughout the property. Water can be pumped from the nearby Chota River that borders the estate. Potable water also comes from the top of a nearby mountain.
The entire 25-hectare estate with large home, numerous buildings, reservoir, sophisticated irrigation system, water filtration system, and a current owner who will advise which crops to grow and will market them with a major grocery chain has recently had its price lowered from $270,000 to $250,000.
The price of the property barely covers the value of bare land in the area, which is $8000 to $10,000 per hectare. This property comes fully developed, with irrigation lines and all buildings, including a primary home with swimming pool. The house has not been lived in for a couple of years so it needs some TLC, but it will not take much to bring it up to standards.
In addition, there are two electrical transformers on the property, and telephone, Direct tv, and internet are readily available. You won't find anything comparable for sale in Ecuador at this low price.
If you are seeking a property with everything you need already in place, almost ready to move into and ready for the next planting season, this Salinas finca is it.
A short 30-minute drive from Ibarra on the very well maintained Pan American highway will bring you to the edge of this hilltop property. From the road you can see the lovely two-story main house of the estate. It is about ten years old and is constructed of brick faced with white plaster.
The entrance to the house is up wide steps to a foyer that leads to the second story to the left and straight ahead into a large living/dining room made for entertaining.
The living room has tall, beamed vaulted ceilings and a bar with a thick wooden counter.
The big U-shaped kitchen is efficiently designed with a bar, curved windows that let in lots of light and great views and a breakfast room that overlooks the deck and pool area. Three bedrooms and two baths are downstairs. One could be the master suite with its own large bathroom, but another larger master suite is upstairs.
This suite has a tiled covered balcony.
There is also a walk-in closet, separate toilet stall and bathroom with tub.
I was thrilled to find a wonderful swimming pool and outdoor Jacuzzi behind the house.
Between the pool and the house is a huge tiled deck with a covered barbeque. There's a small soccer field near the pool. I can imagine all-day entertainment here with friends, family, kids and dogs. There's even a little waterfall that feeds a rock-lined stream and cascades into a small grotto.
You can gaze far away into the distant mountains and valleys. The property itself drops away to the river on one side, high cliffs on the other side and valley views all around. Several little villages can be seen from the hilltop lookout.
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