Trump's Mexican border condos could spark boom

Trump Baja managing director, Brian Sedrish, far right, makes his sales pitch to a group of prospective buyers next to a model of the first phase of the Trump Ocean Resort Baja Mexico during a sale at the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Diego on Friday. PHOTO: AP

Donald Trump's new luxury hotel-condominiums on Mexico's booming Baja California coast registered about US$122 million in sales, potentially heralding a resurgent development boom along the Pacific shoreline just south of the US border.

The Donald did not show for the one-day sales event on Friday at a plush San Diego hotel, but his persona loomed large in the ballroom, where would-be buyers nibbled on biscotti and sipped espresso as they waited to make their bids and celebrated over sirloin tip and fish tacos after clinching the deal.

"Trump is my idol when it comes to real-estate investments," said Med Sami, 42, of Irvine, California, after forking over US$431,000 for a one-bedroom on the fifth floor of the oceanfront property.

Construction the US$200-million-plus Trump Ocean Resort Baja Mexico is expected to begin by the end of March, with the first of three towers to be completed by the end of 2008, said Irongate, a Los Angeles real-estate investment firm and Trump's partner on the project. Prices range from the mid US$200,000s to more than US$1 million.

A giant screen in the ballroom showed that 188 of the first tower's 232 units were spoken for by the end of Friday, including five of six penthouses in the 27-story building. Names were called one by one, with each person given only a few minutes to decide. The screen displayed the names of four people next in line.

Trump's was just what many needed to take the plunge, said Jason Grosfeld, a co-founder of Irongate.

"When The Donald is willing to put his name on the site, that means a lot," he said.

Buyers Trump's involvement eased concerns about owning land in a foreign country. They were undeterred by spiraling violence in the border city of Tijuana and paid no heed to protesters outside the hotel who said Trump's property was on one of the most polluted beaches in North America, a charge the developer emphatically denied.

"Trump's name didn't hurt," said Tom Pfleider of Beaumont, who dropped US$550,000 for a one-bedroom on the 11th floor. "I'm sure he wouldn't put his name on it if he hadn't investigated northern Baja meticulously."

Trump's in Mexico comes amid a construction boom on the Baja coast, just south of San Diego, fueled by Americans seeking second homes, affordable retirement spots, or a lucrative investment.

Gustavo Torres, a real estate broker from the Mexican town of Rosarito Beach, said Trump's towers could catapult the oceanfront stretch region from Tijuana to Ensenada ahead of Cabo San Lucas, the peninsula's other big resort area.