Home Purchase Raquet Club - Mud Slides? Insurance? Safety?

brigitte wrote:There was a lot of damage especially in the village of San Juan that is for sure, the toad going up the hill was a mess..how many houses were lost or really badly damaged in the racquet club? That I do not remember.. The village was a bad mess in some areas-
Why wouldn't the insurance work if you have one?

That is one of the important questions to address with the insurance agent, with direct reference to the waterspouts (which everyone who's been here a while remembers).

Water spouts had nothing to do with the problem at the Raquet Club in 2007.

cypress wrote:Water spouts had nothing to do with the problem at the Raquet Club in 2007.

Okay, do tell what it was then.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/shmiller/sets/72157601993828026/

http://www.mexconnect.com/forums/Areas_C2/Jaliscos_Lake_Chapala_Region_F3/Landslide_in_San_Juan_Cosala_P111852/


http://archivo.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/448614.html

That bunch of photos you just posted would scare me into never considering buying property there.
Regardless of the cause, it was terrible destruction and I understand it was even worse in the town below.

espíritu del lago wrote:

cypress wrote:Water spouts had nothing to do with the problem at the Raquet Club in 2007.

Okay, do tell what it was then.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/shmiller/sets/72157601993828026/

http://www.mexconnect.com/forums/Areas_C2/Jaliscos_Lake_Chapala_Region_F3/Landslide_in_San_Juan_Cosala_P111852/


http://archivo.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/448614.html

Heavy rain for day. A debris jab in an arroyo or two that then broke.

Incredible photos. Did not know such a collection existed. How people got in there to get the pics is hard to believe. For those who do not believe the tornadic power of a water spot, here is living proof.

Thank you for these historic photos.

the papers said it was a tromba de agua.. so I would say it was a water spout.. That is what I remember a water spout ... of course with a major downpour the arroyos full up and debris cause problems so all of the above were the problem..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgeR4HYXcbA

No lives were lost, a young girl suffered an arm fracture. I'd be curious to know if any insured properties, if there were any, actually got reimbursed. 

When it comes to insurance companies in Mexico, the real question is which will pay.

I live there and have been researching it for years-definitely not a water spout. Heavy rain for days and debris jams in arroyos that broke. It could happen anywhere where houses are built below steep mountains with arroyos and where heavy rain can occur. Water spouts from lakes usually don't have that much water in them.

doc holiday wrote:Incredible photos.  Did not know such a collection existed.  How people got in there to get the pics is hard to believe.  For those who do not believe the tornadic power of a water spot, here is living proof.

Thank you for these historic photos.

It wasn't tornadic at all but gravity.

Great pictures; thanks for digging these up... These mountains are not very stable when saturated... We live in Rancho del Oro (west) and lost a perimeter wall during the deluge according to our neighbor... Suggest insurance ...

Yes, insurance is necessary.

cypress wrote:Water spouts had nothing to do with the problem at the Raquet Club in 2007.

Your right, it was a "CULEBRA"..............

Edit to add.....there were carpa found in the pools at the balneario and other standing waters, that normally don't wash down from the "cerros altos' during and after "heavy rains".

slainte39 wrote:

cypress wrote:Water spouts had nothing to do with the problem at the Raquet Club in 2007.

Your right, it was a "CULEBRA"..............

Edit to add.....there were carpa found in the pools at the balneario and other standing waters, that normally don't wash down from the "cerros altos' during and after "heavy rains".

WHAT? Fish aren't included in the heavenly gift of rain? I suspect it was all of the above: heavy, heavy rain plus that "other phenomenon" working together to wreak havoc on the richer and poorer alike.

The heavy rains usually produce cats and dogs.  The cats would be better served if it were cats and fish.

Some were reimbursed by insurance.

cypress wrote:Some were reimbursed by insurance.

You know that for a fact, cypress? They paid full damage? 

Please tell us which companies paid off on this? Which didn't?

Also. does this insurance have co-pay, deductible, and a loss limit?
Can Americans having a loos of a home on Mexico deduct that loss on US tax

doc holiday wrote:Also. does this insurance have co-pay, deductible, and a loss limit?
Can Americans having a loos of a home on Mexico deduct that loss on US tax

That is a moot point. The US/Mexico Tax Treaty says that Capital Gains are taxable only in the country in which the gain takes place. I had someone wanting me to a claim a loss in Canada against their US taxes when they were a resident of Canada and I politely pointed out that if gains were only taxable in Canada then the loss should stay in Canada. This is especially so in Canada where the gain or loss on your primary home is neither taxable nor an allowable capital loss. They ended up going to a US tax preparer. They of course reported a capital loss in Canada that was not claimable in Canada. Would they have reported a Gain? I think not after all it was the sale of a personal residence and not taxable in Canada, why report it to the US. I was not prepared to lie to the IRS.

So? What is my take? Are you Resident in US or Mexico? Would you report a capital gain on the sale of a Mexican house? I think you do as you want to. However remember that the IRS has a long arm. I am just not prepared to lie for you.

Vancouver Gas Prices Nearing $8 A Gallon — The Highest In North America

Sorry....I meant to post under new topic

Doc I presume you are talking about an imperial gallon which is 5 quarts, not a US gallon which is 4 quarts or 3.784 liters.

Now back to the topic.

Here is the article

Want to fill up in Vancouver, British Columbia? It’ll cost you — a lot.

Gas prices surged to $160.9 a liter Sunday morning — almost $8 a gallon in USD.

Former Liberal Member of Parliament Dan McTeague, who now heads the petroleum industry watchdog GasBuddy.com, told CBC News that Vancouver has the dubious honor of having the highest gas prices anywhere in North America, from Alaska to Mexico.

doc holiday. Do the math go to www.gasbuddy.com like you referred to. Gas Buddy says the average cost of gas in Vancouver is 160 cents per liter Canadian. Now in the US there are 3.784 liter per US gallon (not the Canadian imperial gallon)]

Now 160 cents times 3.784 liters = about $6.05 Canadian per US gallon and at the present exchange rate of 78 US cents per Canadian dollar that equates to a little more about $4.72 US per Canadian gallon

"I was a block away from two different arroyos.. one on each side.. and my house was untouched. "

The last big mudslide heavily damaged homes on streets running north-south.  If you were on a side street and not the corner house, you were reasonably safe.

CanuckBob wrote:The Racquet Club has some incredible views and very nice houses. In the current market you will get a far better bang for your buck there than you will in Ajijic or Chapala centro's. If staying home is your thing then it will be perfect otherwise driving to Ajijic is 25 minutes and 75 topes (speedbumps) each way which wears thin very quickly.

Good luck with your move.

Thank you! I enjoyed last nights storm; beautiful lightening bolts over the lake. I did look at some nicer developments in Ajijic/Chapala this week for comparison sake. One thing I did not like was the noise and the other, you still have to drive to go anywhere unless you are into mountain climbing :) My knees complain loudly when mountain climbing so I think I'll drive :) I'm smiling as I think about what I saw in terms of "watch out, that mountain is going to win!" I understand the Raquet Club has "water spouts" which makes it more vulnerable, but OMG. Take a look at where they are building those high-end homes in Chapala/Ajijic! If I choose my lot carefully I should avoid major catastrophe at the Raquet Club; if purchasing lake views in Ajijic and Chapala I would choose carefully as well! I've been to Ajijic and Chapala 3 times from the Raquet Club since Sunday, both with a lot of traffic (holiday weekend) and early morning. It has taken less than 15 minute each time. I know I will enjoy frequenting the markets and street fairs but I can't see myself doing that more than once a month. I also can't see myself appreciating the noise of the highway or the city/town. I enjoy peace and tranquility; add beautiful lake and mountain views and I think I've died and gone to heaven. My mom was just the opposite so I can appreciate that all of us do what is right for us.