More Fabulous $300 Dollar Home Rentals in Cuenca Ecuador

Have you read or been told that renting in the $250 to $350 dollar price range in Cuenca is going to be a hovel? As most of our readers know the home we rent is $250 per month. If you have not seen the home we rent then please do by clicking here.  And here is another video tour of a fabulous rental in the upper-end of the local priced rental market. This one has already been rented.  Stay tuned to this blog for updates and specials. Enjoy the video tour of this apartment, located in a secure building, in a great location!

                

3 Day Rent Specials with $300 Dollar Cuenca Rentals!!

                        ***Special, next 3 days only***
  If you want a nice, new home act now and contact us asap!!  Special ends in three days, on Friday, May 24th.


              #1  NEW Town-home $230

Fee Reduced $100 for the next three days

RENTED 

This town home is approx. 1200 sq. feet and is in secure private gated community with a guard/caretaker.  Maintenance fee is an additional $25 per month and you don't have to cut the grass!!  This home consists of 3 small bedrooms with built in closets and 2-1/2 baths. There is a covered laundry area, and Living/dining combo. Floors are simulated hardwood and ceramic tile. Baths have ceramic and kitchen has granite counter tops. There is also an outside storage area. There's a small green space in the back and small green space in the front.  

Not on river, and does not have any views but if you want a brand new secure townhouse/apt. at a nice price here's your chance.

This town home is off of Ordenez Lasso up the hill a little ways, 2 blocks on unpaved road to bus-line. 10 minute bus to Supermaxi and 20-minutes to the center.

Here is the video tour of this $230 home! Photos are below the video. 

                       

#2  New Town Home $250 
Fee Reduced $100 for the next 3 days

This town home is just like the one above except it has ceramic tiles throughout and there is no green space in the back but an extra bonus room. This town home comes equipped with a guard/caretaker in a private gated community. Maintenance additional $25 per month.

This home consists of 3 small bedrooms with built in closets and 2-1/2 baths. There is a covered laundry area, and Living/dining combo. Floors are ceramic tile. Baths have ceramic and kitchen has granite counter tops. There is also an outside storage area. There's a small green space in the front (not fenced)  Small bonus room off the covered laundry area, plus curtains on all the windows.

This town home is off of Ordenez Lasso up the hill a little ways, 2 blocks on unpaved road to bus-line. 10 minute bus to Supermaxi and 20-minutes to the center...Here is the video tour of this town home. Photos are below the video.

                   

#3  NEW Villa $300
Regular Fee Applies


This Rental is No Longer Available

This villa has NEVER been lived in. Brand new construction.  Approx. 1600 sq. feet.  This home comes with a brand new 6 burner stove-top. There is an opening for an oven which is not included. Three levels.

From Avenida Las Americas its up the hill behind Supermaxi about a mile or so. About 3 blocks from the bus line. There are two small incline hills to the bus line and some of it is unpaved.  Brand new mall going in about two blocks from the house.  

10 minute bus ride to Supermaxi and 20 minute to the center. This villa consists of 3 bedrooms, plus bonus room with bath, so it has 4 bathrooms. The home is bright and airy. The views from this home are incredible!! No house on either side of you--just two lots. All the homes in the area are brand new.

 

Why is this special only three days?  
The last special we had, the houses all rented in one week.  
This time, we will not be available after the three days.
So please don't contact us about these rentals after Friday may 24th.

Best Rental Prices in Cuenca Ecuador! $300 Dollar Cuenca Rentals!!

LOW, LOW, LOW Priced Rentals - ONE Week Special -

                               Available to our subscribers!  

ACT FAST!

 This Special lasts from April 11 through April 18 contact us!

This post will be deleted at the end of the day on April 18th, so if you want one of these rentals act now!

Fee Reduced $100 This Week Only 
on These Three Rentals Only

Get These Beautiful Apartments While They Last.... 

 

“Rental 1”   Price $250

RENTED!

This is about 1,400 sq ft, 3/2, 2nd floor new apartment  It has an open floor plan with lots of windows which makes it bright and airy. Beautiful ceramic tile in the LDK area. Luandry area is on the same floor and is completely covered.  This apartment has light fixtures throughout. Master bedroom has a nice vanity area.  The apartment is located on bus lines and is 6 blocks from Monay Mall!  Great neighborhood. The apartment is very secure with electric fencing all the way around. Secure parking spot for 1 car. There is no green space, but small pets ok.  Below are some photos of rental 1.  Click on photos to enlarge.

“Rental 2” Price $250
RENTED!

Third floor new apartment (no elevator) with an open floor plan. It is in the same building you see above, which is the last photo. Bright and cheery space. There is a terraza (patio) with laundry area and some great views. Beautiful light fixtures in LDK. Master bedroom has its own vanity area.  The apartment is located on bus lines and is 6 blocks from Monay Mall. The apartment is very secure with an electric fencing all the way around. Secure parking for one car. There is no green area, but small pets are ok to have. Here are the photos of rental 2. Click on photo to enlarge.

“Rental 3” Price $210!!

This apartment is RENTED!

2nd floor apartment and just a THREE MINUTE DRIVE TO SUPERMAXI.  This 2nd floor apartment is a 3/2 and has on the same floor in the apartment a covered laundry room. 

The apartment is very secure and is situated above two businesses which are open Monday through Sunday. The landlords live on the bottom floor apartment and are very kind and accommodating. They will show you around and help you with anything that needs fixed, worked on, or updated in the apartment. 

Kitchen has granite counter tops, and the living/dining space has huge windows for great views, and the landlord has weatherized the windows for those chilly and breezy Cuenca days. You cannot beat the price. Oh yeah, they are constructing a huge mall (bigger than Mall del Rio) just minutes away from this apartment. Below are the photos of Rental 3. Click photos to enlarge.

 

Hurry, while these special priced rentals last!
CONTACT US NOW

YOU MUST BE READY TO RENT THIS WEEK  (thru April 18) ONLY. ONCE POST IS REMOVED DO NOT CONTACT US ABOUT THESE RENTALS

On April 18, 2013 this post will be deleted. 

Alice Gives Us a Tour of Her $350 Rental in Cuenca Ecuador!

In this video Alice gives us a grand tour of her lovely home that she rents for $350 dollars. I think you'll find it all quite amazing. Enjoy the home tour...and to see more videos with Alice as she relates her experiences and accounts of moving to Cuenca, click here!

                 

Cuenca Expat's Retirement Dream Comes True by Renting for $350!

 In this interview Alice tells us how much she pays for rent and shares more wonderful details about how she is loving her life in Cuenca Ecuador. Stay tuned because Alice is going to be giving us a grand tour of her new $350 home. We are so grateful that Alice has given us her time and talked with us about her retirement life here in Cuenca.This is number 3 of 6 videos (interviews) with Alice. To see previous videos go to Discover Cuenca Ecuador.

      

Searching for a Local Priced Rental in Cuenca Ecuador: A Day in the Life

All I want to do is rent an unfurnished house for the local price of $300 a month. That’s it.  Is that too much to ask?

It’s the threshold the local taxi driver said we should stay under when we first moved here. It’s the price the blogs were saying was the going rate at the time, only a few short months ago!  And it’s a whopping 75% of the average personal income, although it may be only 30%-40% of household income, which makes sense under the rule of 3 & 4.

Everybody knows we only pay $250 a month for a three year old house, but we’ve already pounded that nail all the way through.  So when a friend asked us to help him find a house for rent in Cuenca for the local price of under the now infamous figure of $300 a month. We agreed!

So when I called an ad in the local paper (spoken in Spanish) and asked the Ecuadorian lady the price on the vacant three bedroom house, and she said $500, of course my next question was – why?  “Why is it so high?” I wanted to know…”does it have a big yard?”. “No, it’s just average sized” she replied.  “Is the house very large?” I asked inquisitively. “Not particularly” she answered, as she described the average floor plan of kitchen living room, laundry room, downstairs, and three bedrooms upstairs w/2 baths.“Is it newly remodeled?” She finally got impatient with my questions and interrupted…”well you know, it’s by Supermaxi”.  Well lo and behold, that explains everything.  “Are you flexible on the price?” I ask.  “No”.  She says, “ok, have a nice day, good bye”.
 
Undaunted, I call another ad.

This one has the price clearly in the ad, it screams at me $300 DOLLARS.
Excellent.  Always looking to save money on my cell bill @ .25 cents a minute, I call that one next.  Here’s the conversation, in Spanish.

Me:  Hello? – I’m calling about the house for rent for $300 dollars.  How many bedrooms does it have?

Landlord: It has five bedrooms, but where are you from?

Me:  (a little skeptical at the question) err…I’m from here, I live here, why do you ask?

Landlord:  You sound like a gringo. For you the price will be higher.  Chuckle.

Me:  (Not laughing) uhm, oh, well, ok, have a nice day.  Good bye.

Ok, well, I’ve made a commitment to help my friend so, as if I am a glutton for punishment, I keep going.  I call the next ad:

(remember, Spanish paper, speaking in Spanish)

Me:  Hello?  I’m calling about the large house for rent.  How much is it?

Landlord:  It’s $800 a month. 
Me:   Uh, why is it so much?

Landlord:  It’s furnished and it’s for foreigners, plus it’s by Supermaxi.

Me:  Isn’t that a little high?

Landlord:  Yes, but, it’s for foreigners.

Me: Ok, thank you and have a nice day.  Good bye.

My Ecuadorian neighbor/friend decided to get in on the foreign rental action. She approached me with a super duper rental deal, I figured she got offered a commission.  Two “large” (her description) houses on one lot, with a pool for $600 a month. Sounds good so far right?
So I called the lady myself, and find out, it’s only one house, it’s only 2000 square feet, and the pool is empty.  I tell my friend, it’s too high.  She frustratingly says:  “is it for you?” as if to say, who cares if it’s too high, it’s not for you, it’s for the foreigners.

Somehow, I didn’t find it appropriate to explain to her, that I don’t appreciate gringo pricing, even if it’s not directed toward me exclusively.

When we were in Salinas, while walking the Malecon an Ecuadorian promoter approached us for boat rides, and condo rentals, etc. so we decided to talk with him and go look at a few.  All his rentals were for $1000 to $1200 a month, furnished two or three blocks back from the beach, and unfurnished waterfront, $1000-$2300.

I patiently explain I’m not a tourist; I want a long term, unfurnished rental at local prices, not tourist prices. “Ok, I’ll call you”, he says.  It’s been almost a year, still haven’t heard from him.  Apparently, there’s no money in it for him.Same thing happened when we walked in to the Spanish speaking Spanish Real Estate Company offices, again, in Salinas, because we saw some advertised houses in the $400 per month price range, on their website, in Salinas.  (We always avoid the gringo agencies as they told us themselves the prices are $800-$1200)

We find out the $400 houses have been gone for two years, and they haven’t updated their website!  But hey, we have some $800-$1200 houses over here.  “No thanks”. We practically beg them to call us when they get some more $400 dollar houses for rent. We even stretch our boundaries to $500.  Many, many moons later, we’re still waiting for the call. But without holding our breath!

This will be the last example.

The ad on Craig’s List had pictures of furniture, so it’s a furnished three bedroom right? $450, ok sounds reasonable so far.   I call the ad, and well, no, it’s not furnished.

Me:  “Why are the pictures of a furnished house then?” I ask.

Agent:  “I forgot to remove those pictures” says the Spanish Real Estate agent. The house is $450 a month.

Me: But that’s a furnished price, for that size of house.

Agent: yes, but it’s not furnished.

Me:  Yes, but that is an unfurnished house and at that price, it’s too high.

The very next day, we saw the same ad on Craig’s List and he had lowered the price by $50!  I still thought it was too high at $400.  Almost all the prices on Craig’s List are too high.  Very rarely do you see something priced properly to the local prices.  It is very skewed toward English speaking foreigners.

So why did I write all this?  Am I trying to discourage you? Absolutely not! To the contrary! We want to give you a feel for the real picture.  That is why the DIY Cuenca Landing Guide is a very necessary addition to your arsenal for living well on smaller means here in Cuenca Ecuador. Avoid the foreign hype, be ahead of the game, get the guide today.  Because you will need all the help you can get.  If you're interested in learning more about the local priced rental market click here.

Pets and Taxi Cabs in Cuenca Ecuador

A lot of taxi cab drivers do not want pets, especially big dogs, in their cab. Some of them don’t care, but most do care. Here in Ecuador many of the taxi drivers personally own the cabs they drive for hire. A lot of the cab drivers in Cuenca take great pride in the cleanliness of their cabs and some drivers will not stop if they see you have a dog. We know this especially to be true with bigger dogs.

We know firsthand of a couple here in Cuenca who was literally stuck in their apartment because there was no cab that would take their big 100 pound dog in the cab. After a few days of being passed by from the cab drivers this expat couple ended up having a local gal “pet sit” for them so they could go buy some much needed food and water at the grocery store.

On one occasion, another cab driver flinched when some expats we were with boarded the taxi with their small 25 pound dog. We all hurried in and sat down before he could say anything, but we could tell he was not too happy with having a dog in his cab.

A lot of dogs, big or small shed a lot of hair and it gets all over the seats of the cab, and if it starts raining, then that’s a whole other issue, they are animals after all.

It’s really just personal preference of the cab driver whether or not he’ll allow your pet in the cab. We just want to let you know that some cabs may just drive right by when they see you have a pet and especially if it is a BIG dog. We just want to make you aware of this before you move to Cuenca Ecuador with your pets, so you’ll know.