Part 1
By Pierre Wauters
bbxmusic.com
A few months ago I gave myself the challenge to build a house in Vilcabamba in the Loja province of Ecuador in the Uchima green real estate development for USD 15,000. Not just a tin shed or a glorified garage but a *real* house with running water, bathroom and kitchen, everything you’d expect.
I did this because I am the happy owner of some beautiful land along a pristine river not far from the village of Vilcabamba in the province of Loja in Ecuador. I am currently paying rent each month to live in a house, a very nice one that is, in the village and many times I asked myself “why am I not living on my own land for Christ sake?” Finally this is about to become a reality, a few more months and we’ll be all set.
Why 15,000? Because that is what I could afford at this point in time and also because I believed intuitively that it was possible. Many expats build for much more particularly when they deal with other expats to do the work and/or when they try to transpose here what they had in the 1st world The locals on the other hand build for much less than that but they seem happy with a toilet outside flushed with a bucket, no hot water, few windows, a low ceiling, unpainted brick walls on which they stick religious posters, dirt floors etc… I am not criticizing by any mean but these places give me the creep. I like my comfort. I wanted a house with windows, cold and hot water in kitchen and bathroom, lots of light inside, an open kitchen with ample bench space to chop vegetables, a cosy atmosphere, something that looks good and feels good, something finished without rebars sticking up above the roof. Also I wanted to try and set an example of what can be done for a fixed price, because many would be buyers in the Uchima project ask me how much it would cost to build and how long it takes etc… There is nothing like a real project and a real home to show to answer these questions.
The building is not finished yet, so I don’t have all the answers yet. This article is part one of a series and I will keep posting as the work progresses.
Read on at
Great work on your 2 building house. The pictures were great to view, congratulations.
https://picasaweb.google.com/105762498895001905820/AdobeHouseRioUchimaVilcabambaLojaEcuador?authuser=0&feat=embedwebsite
Thank you for your feedback. From now on this blog will continue here http://www.seekvilcabamba.com?req=press
Pierre – October 2015
I noticed that the info on Madre Tierra hasn’t been updated for a long time. We should probably talk one day to make this happen if you are interested. I could even do a “gringo al SUR” on Madre Tierra (see http://www.seekvilcabamba.com?req=gas for more info)
Be in touch.
Pierre
this is a lie… that you can build a house there with $15,000 im from Ecuador and from Loja exactly and i know loja is the most expensive city in Ecuador with that money you can build something in Quito very small but not in Loja CHECK THE PRICES
you are definately right. you may be able to build a house for 15k but it is either going to be concrete with no water electricity or bamboo. both present unique problems. I am an american that owns land in the montanita area and i am trying to import pine to Ecuador. most pine there now i understand is from chile and very expensive. do you know this to be true? if you are willing to check prices at local hardware/lumber retailers and get me some information i would be willing to compensate for your time
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I have been surfing online more than three hours today, yet I never found any interesting article like yours.
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