Baja Bernie
`Normal` Nomad Correspondent
Posts: 2962
Registered: 8-31-2003
Location: Sunset Beach
Member Is Offline
Mood: Just dancing through life
|
|
Building A Dream Home
Posting a little early this week because I am heading down to the Pyramid Resort to visit with Keri and Mike and other Nomads who will be at the Baja
Authors Book Signing. Hope you can make it
From Mi Baja No Hurry No Worry
So! You have let it be known, in camp, that you are about to start construction on you dream home. What an exciting time! Before you select your
contractor you will save yourself unnecessary grief if you do two things. First have all of your plans drawn up by a licensed Mexican Architect.
Occasionally they will use your plans but all of the language must be changed into Spanish and all of the measurements converted to meters. The
Architect should also get your permits. Make sure that your contractor is paying Social Security for himself and his workers. If this is not paid in
advance the penalty can be over 100%. Yes, you get stuck with this unnecessary expense. All of your neighbors in camp have their favorite contractor
and most of them will visit you to extol the work of “their” maestro (master) builder. You talk to a few of them and decide that Chicho will be your
guy. He will be the one to work the magic to make your Casita (little house) exactly as you wish it to be. Very quickly you will find that building
a house in Baja is unlike building anything anywhere in the world.
True! The basic skill and tools are the same but the approach taken by your contractor is original and unique to Mexico. He will usually only quote a
price for a small portion of the job at a time. A good deal of this is because the cost of materials swings rapidly as the peso is devalued. Let’s
say that he has given you an estimate for the sub footing, the main footing and the walls of your Casita. You have agreed upon his price and yet, he
stands there with his arms folded across his chest. He will look at the ground, push his hat back upon his head, and shift from foot to foot. He is
waiting for you to give him some of the money so he may start the job. You should know that in Mexico a handshake or a verbal agreement still means a
lot—“like it used to in the States.” Many contractors and even business people will become very offended if you ask for a receipt. Still, it is best
if you keep a log of expenses. At the same time they do not like to discuss money. It is just not the thing to do in the Mexican culture. This is
not a problem in a large city or a metropolitan area. But, you would not be building your dream home in one of those areas. Heavens no! You want to
be right up front with an uncluttered view of the waves as they frolic upon the white sandy beach. Can’t you just hear it now! The sound of the surf
is so soothing to your soul as it blocks civilizations constant attempt to intrude upon your solitude.
Ok! It is up to you to figure out how much money Chicho will need to start the job and keep his guys working until you get back down with some more
money and to see what progress has been made. This is a very difficult part of contracting. You have to control the money so that he does not get
too much money ahead of you. If he does then he and his men are likely to wander off and have a fiesta. Then nothing gets done on your house. Or!
If you give him too little he will work until the money for the materials is gone and then he will send his men home because he does not have any
money to pay them. In either case you will be less than ecstatic when you return and find little or no progress has been made. If you have given him
the proper amount of money you may still pull into camp on a Friday afternoon and find that Chicho and his crew are working on a job at the other end
of camp. When he notices you are in camp he will come by and assure you that all of his guys will be working on your Casa Grande (great house) first
thing Saturday morning. They will be! You will hear their music, hammering, and laughter by 7 o’clock. They will make a great show of working very
hard until noon or even one o’clock.
Yes! The average Mexican workingman still works 44 hours a week. You will soon learn that without your more or less continual presence little real
progress will be made on your dreams.
The Mexican appreciation of time is far different than is ours. It is not that they are they are lazy or indifferent. It is just that they know that
your house will get done sometime. In the meantime other more pressing matters need their attention. Particularly, if you are absent and another
client is standing there with money in his or her hand. They will work on that place until he or she leaves and then they might return to your job.
This behavior boils down to the fact that they “honestly” want to make all of us happy!
By now you are finding that no matter how large, small, or humble the house in Baja it is always a dream home. You will find that it is not so much a
house as it is a Condition. It becomes a new philosophical approach to life itself. It involves a new sense of freedom, an ability to relax and let
down barriers and to interact with and enjoy people. You will always describe your dream as mi casita (my little house) even thought you always think
of it as mi casa grande.
Finally, you have reached the stage that the work on the footings and the walls are almost complete. You have even gotten over the shock that your
house sits a little crooked on your lot and a couple of feet away from where you had planned for it to be. You are beginning to blend into Baja and
realize that it is just no big deal! At this point Chicho politely informs you, he prefers to do this through a third party, an interpreter (somehow
this seems to make the meeting less direct and somehow more pleasant). He tells you that due to things beyond his control it will cost you just a
little more than he thought to complete the next portion of the construction.
You don’t really have any choice at this point unless you want to walk away and give up your dream. Even if you were willing to walk you would have
to contend with your ego, your family’s desires, and a whole lot of other things. How do you go back to the States and tell your friends that you
have been a fool and that you didn’t realize what you were getting into by trying to build a house in a country where you really didn’t appreciate the
rules, customs, or language.
Chicho makes it easy on you because he has a finely developed sense of how far he can go in this little game. He will only increase the cost a little
bit and the price will still be within the ballpark of what you ‘knew’ it should cost.
Now the walls are up and you have learned a great deal, that is if you are smart and do not have more money than good sense. You know that you have
to ‘drop’ in on your construction unannounced and a various times during the week. Never tell your crew that you won’t be down for two or three
weeks. This just gives them an okay to work on another project until you return. You realize that it would be even better if you hauled a trailer
down and stay on site for a few days or a week at a time. This will allow you to be fairly sure that the work will go ahead on schedule.
Something to remember that will make your contractor think you really are starting to learn about the rules in Baja—never give him or any other
Mexican a check. When they take an American check to the bank in Baja they will have to pay 10% of the amount of the check to cash it AND they may
have to wait up to two weeks to get the money! Always pay in cash AND in U.S. currency. No pesos! They will love you for understanding this. So
will your neighbor because some old timer will end up cashing your check for their amigo and then they will have to wait for the transfer to take
place even in the States.
Now that you are forced to spend a little extra time in Paradise you will be able to get some fishing in with your kids. Or surfing, or just
wandering on the beach and talking. You may even wander up to the hub of the camp-the Cantina-have a few beers and meet some new friends. Should you
bring your spouse, or whomever, you can make a point of going out to dinner and dancing the night away. Who knows, your marriage, or friendship, may
grow just as your dream house does.
Wow! This is getting easier with each passing month (only kidding), the roof is almost finished and Chicho is after you to decide what kind of tile
you want on the floors and countertops. You favor the rustic, genuine, Mexican tile and he tries to talk you into going with a good Italian tile.
You may like the rustic stuff, but he is right. A few years of wear and you will find that it acts like a blotter. It will absorb anything and you
will wish that you had listened to him. Now you have to start thinking about the bathtub, toilets, sinks, stoves, etc. Let Chicho do the tile work
for a good size tub and shower. You buy the glass doors and fixtures in the States. They will be cheaper and of better quality. Same with the
toilets, sinks, faucets, and all of the appliances.
You are now set to embark on one of the National pastimes of Mexico, smuggling. The Federales may not think it is funny but it really gets the old
adrenaline fired up. You buy the stuff and try to hide it, then you time your trip across the border to increase you chances of sailing though the
border without stopping to pay duty. That is a real dirty word to the guys who have been around for any length of time. One guy spent 20 years
smuggling big stuff into camp for anyone and everyone. At last count he had smuggled fourteen TV sets, seven stoves, three freestanding fireplaces,
nine refrigerators, and a bunch of other stuff. He just got a kick out of outsmarting the Federales!
Don’t be alarmed if you turn your cold water on and find that “C” is really for Caliente (hot). Some of the guys still hook the water lines up in a
manner in which we believe to be incorrect. Don’t argue, just wait and reverse the lines later. Should you decide to install security bars think
about placing them inside the windows, particularly, if your house is anywhere near the ocean. They are guaranteed to rust if they are on the outside
and they will have to be painted at least three times a year for “ever.”
Well! You have come a long way, your dream is not finished but at least you can move in and relax for a few days.
It’s funny but houses in Mexico are never finished. There is always something to do, but don’t let that get in your way of enjoying the sun, fun, and
the people.
Welcome to Baja and please do yourself a favor, continue to learn about this wonderful culture. After all that is why you decided to build your Casa
Grande.
P.S. It has been a bunch of time since I wrote this and nowdays I am still amazed, and confused in a silly way, when I see a pumper truck spewing out
concrete faster than twenty working guys could do it only ten years ago........!
Disfrutar! (Enjoy!)
My smidgen of a claim to fame is that I have had so many really good friends. By Bernie Swaim December 2007
|
|
|
jerry
Super Nomad
Posts: 1354
Registered: 10-10-2003
Location: loreto
Member Is Offline
|
|
thanks Bernie
it cant be a coincedence that i have seen every thing you mentioned here acually happen more then once must be part of the baja building code??
jerry and judi
|
|
|
bajadock
Super Nomad
Posts: 1219
Registered: 12-20-2006
Location: Punta sur de \'Nada
Member Is Offline
|
|
Any Difference in USA?
Bernie,
Thanks, as I'll enjoy all of the help and advice offered.
I've just completed first month of first house from the ground up and living in Baja for 6 months. First floor and foundation just poured this week.
I do have complete remodeling experience, but, am doing this with some community research, a dollop of wisdom and dash of guts.
It seems to me that building here is a lot more like USA than not. I also get the feeling that my area(Ensenada) and the last few years have
increased competition and quality.
My only caution on interviewing homeowners for references on contractors is to seek objective information. Just as any restaurant serves a bad meal
each night, builders have dissatisfied customers. Some poor builders also get a subjective high mark due to relationship skills.
I tuned out second-hand information and sought the following facts:
1. Experience: If you don't know what you're doing, admit it and consider hiring a General Manager who will be a your upfront contract negotiator and
your day-to-day ramrod, troubleshooter, communicator, etc. The less-experienced the homeowner interviewed, the more impressed they were with the
quality of their builder. Kinda like your first kiss, but, hey, mine was great!
2. Quality: Let me see recent work on at least 3 houses and those houses need to be somewhere in the galaxy of my budget.
3. Budget: What budget increases occurred, what was your fault, contractor's fault, what else?
4. Time: Under-promise and over-deliver works just as well in Baja as in my selling career. What was completion v. goal and what were variables?
5. Communication: If you're not available on-site daily(I am), need a GM who can do it, phone you, email you photos, legal doc's, etc. If you are
the GM, what regular meetings occur, what's the agenda, who else needs to attend...
So, how much different is it than north of the border? Remember I said I'm just beginning, so ask me when my foundation is sliding down into the
Pacific! Prefer Pacifico's sliding down.
|
|
|
bajamigo
Super Nomad
Posts: 1218
Registered: 6-17-2006
Location: Punta Banda, BC
Member Is Offline
Mood: hubimos llegado
|
|
Great benchmarks for Encinitas; a little too pie-in-the-sky for Ensenada.
|
|
|
Baja Bernie
`Normal` Nomad Correspondent
Posts: 2962
Registered: 8-31-2003
Location: Sunset Beach
Member Is Offline
Mood: Just dancing through life
|
|
Bajadock
True.......but the little differences will hurt you............see my comments on JDTrotters post of 'Now I know" regarding septic systems that very
few re-modeling folks deal with in the U.S.
Oh! I was born in Encinitas way back before hospitals and things have improved there also.
I have built three (3) houses in Baja and each of them was an experience and a ton of fun..............I remember climbing down into the septic tank
and using a single jack (hammer) to break a hole between the two sections to allow the relatively clear stuff to flow into the second
chamber..........no, no, and no! it had not seen any use before I played around down there.
The edit.......my grandparents home in Encinitas was build with eucalyptus branches for studs and it had giant ab shells for Sconces (for the candles)
which provided light during the evening hours before electricity.........yep! things have improved there also.
[Edited on 5-4-2007 by Baja Bernie]
My smidgen of a claim to fame is that I have had so many really good friends. By Bernie Swaim December 2007
|
|
|
FARASHA
Senior Nomad
Posts: 848
Registered: 6-3-2006
Member Is Offline
|
|
BERNIE -I am bit late this time, I am out in the desert of Sinai, and tell you - this seem to be the same RULES here and everywhere, when you build -
HA - tell ya, got to be the very SAME genes in their blood!!! Same tricks, excuses, same wicked charming smile.
greetings from the other end of world!!
|
|
|
Baja Bernie
`Normal` Nomad Correspondent
Posts: 2962
Registered: 8-31-2003
Location: Sunset Beach
Member Is Offline
Mood: Just dancing through life
|
|
Farasha
Just visited your blog and you certainly do have your feet planted in at three distinct cultures in this world..........Your own country in Europe,
Baja, and the Middle East. Your descriptions and pictures are wonderful.............Thanks!
My smidgen of a claim to fame is that I have had so many really good friends. By Bernie Swaim December 2007
|
|
|
|
![[*]](images/xmbforum/default_icon.gif){kind=icon}
