This is the eighth installment of my journey turning the land I bought in Guatemala into my new home. If you haven’t read the earlier parts, check out Parts 1 to 7.
As the year comes to a close, it’s a good time to reflect on the costs of making our house liveable. We’ve spent a significant amount, but thanks to BF’s continuous efforts, the house is not just liveable but quite comfortable. He’s been fixing things, moving furniture, and optimizing our space. As long as the roof wasn’t leaking and the house was relatively clean, I was content. We initially used a plastic cover to protect the thatched roof, but it was months before we upgraded to a transparent roof. Now that everything is fixed, I’m happy with how the house looks, but I plan to wait until the other room is done before doing more. While BF works with the handyman on the house, I’m focusing on developing the 90-acre piece of land that came with it.
To give some context, the property we bought included two plots. One is a 22,000 square foot lakefront plot where our house is, and where we’re building a new room. We plan to live here and start a small guest house next year. The other piece is a 90-acre plot located about 200 yards from the lake. It was previously used for cattle breeding. I considered moving my calves there but decided instead to develop the land for residential purposes. This 90-acre plot will be divided into smaller residential plots of about a third of an acre, which I’ll start marketing early next year. The goal is to attract people who want to live close to nature and enjoy year-round sunshine.
So far, developing the big land hasn’t cost us anything. It was covered in high pastures, so we let a farmer graze 50 cattle there for free, which helped clear the grass. In return, the farmer agreed to clean the perimeter as well. We dismantled most of the fencing but kept the barbed wire. The demolished fence wood will be used for the new room. We also sold a cattle scale that was on the property for $1,300 and used that money to buy a boat motor and some furniture that was not included in the house price.
House Costs Breakdown:
Company Creation and Running Fees: $1,900
– Registering a limited company for us to hold shares, land registry fees, change of ownership on the leasehold for the beachfront land, and monthly accounting fees.
Works on the Beachfront Land: $8,975
– Electrical work: $300
– Mosquito nets for windows: $100
– Digging a septic tank: $50
– Palm tree leaves to fix the roof: $150
– Water pump and pipes: $400
– French bowls field: $300
– Transparent plastic roof: $450
– Temporary plastic roof cover: $50
– Building the entrance wall: $840
– Entrance door: $440
– Building a wall to split into two bedrooms: $420
– Building materials for the new room: $2,450
– Workers on the new room: $1,800
– Excavating land for the new room: $375
– Wooden sticks and delivery: $350
– Full-time handyman: $200/month
Plants and Animals: $180
– Purchased 10 hens and seeds for the garden.
Life Costs: $2,750
– This includes food, bed sheets, a deep freezer, a blender, electricity, car and cooking gas, and travel expenses. Monthly costs were under $700 per person and should decrease over time. BF stocked up on essentials from Guatemala City.
– Electricity: $20/month
– Car gas: $100/month
– Cooking gas: $5/month
Miscellaneous: $1,300
– We bought a boat motor and household items from the previous owner.
Total Expenses: $15,105
Income: $1,490
– Sold cattle scale: $1,300
– Sold plastic roof cover: $110
– Repair refund for deep freezer: $80
Overall, it’s been quite a reasonable expense to make the house liveable, start a new room, and cover two months of living costs. We’ve put $10K each into the company account and still have about $5K left to cover the costs of the new room and land development before I need to sell cattle or bring more money from Europe.
Progress on the house halted for about a week during the holidays but has now resumed. The stone walls for the new room are being constructed. We inaugurated the bowls field with a Christmas game, which, despite the uneven field, was a fun activity and a good icebreaker.
On the animal front, our rooster is recovering after a serious fight with the turkey. We’ve temporarily moved the turkey to the beach to keep it away from the hens. We’re also fencing the property for security reasons and to keep the animals safe. Previously, there was a path through our garden that we want to close off to prevent people from wandering through.
Our garden is flourishing, especially with the new automatic watering system that activates when the water pump is on. The garlic and melons are growing rapidly, though the basil isn’t doing as well except for a few indoor plants.
Lastly, we have a new resident snake. It’s been interesting to observe it around the house.
How’s your week going? Enjoy your New Year’s Eve and best wishes to you all!