Hi All,
This community announcement (now called newsletter) is sent to all unit owners of Bohol Jewel in order to provide updates and discuss issues. You can also leave comments and have discussions at the end. Here are the topics for this newsletter:
- Monthly fees will go up to 4,000 starting March 1, 2023
- Cash-less Policy
- Follow up from prior topics (internet, generator, directory)
- Status of the property and what is expected in the future
Monthly Fees
As I mentioned before, we need to increase the monthly fee for all apartments to 4,000 per month starting March 1 for the following reasons:
1. Prices for everything have gone up a lot in Bohol. Common area expenses such as common electricity, water, pool supplies have gone up. If we want to retain our staff we need to give them a salary increase. Richard the security guard has not had a salary increase in 4 years. Joy is paid less than Romielyn was when there were no guests during the pandemic. There are a lot of places hiring in Bohol and it’s getting more difficult to find reliable and experienced employees. We risk loosing our staff if we don’t pay them correctly.
2. You can see from our monthly expenses that our current balance is negative -255,808. This is in part because Apt 309 didn’t pay their monthly fee and utilities and she cannot be reached. This owner has moved out of the unit and I don’t have any hope of recovering this. So I have put this as a write-off of -37,369 in the December 2022 expense report. Unfortunately this is what happens when someone doesn’t pay their bills, it will show up as a write-off and loss on our monthly budget.
3. Maintenance is coming up faster than expected. Things that should last longer already need to be replaced. This includes the water pump and pressure tank of building 2 that was replaced for 60K pesos in Aug 2022, or the gutters that have holes and need to be replaced in building 2+3 (now). Even the LED light bulbs seem to need replacement every few months.
So in summary if we want to keep our property maintained the way it should, and our employees working for us, then we all have to contribute a little. (BTW I am paying the monthly fee for 5 apartments so this hurts me the most).
Cash-less Policy
In order to protect the safety of Joy, increase security and prevent theft, starting immediately we don’t accept any cash payments over 5,000 pesos at the front desk. Please deposit your payments using any of the options we accept including BPI transfer or Gcash.
Follow up
Now that the bad news is over, I would like to point that Bohol is well on it’s way back after three very bad years. All of our available apartments are booked and we still get more inquires. It’s clear that the tourism is finally coming back to Bohol. Those who are renting I’m sure you have noticed the increase. Hopefully for those who are selling we will soon see that come back as well. And for those who are just holding on to their apartment the value of your investment will increase nicely.
That means its also time to bring BJR up to the five-star level we all want. It means the gutters cannot be leaking, and the light bulbs need to be all working. The garbage area needs look better and the back and sides of the buildings needs to be improved.
Internet. Since we stopped giving free internet in October, there seems to be fewer complaints, especially the last 2 months. We also have 3,120 pesos in reserve to use for future equipment upgrades as of end of December. You can see all the Wi-Fi budget here. Thank you to those who support our Wi-Fi internet plan. For those who don’t I remind that we offer unlimited high-speed internet to any apartment for 200 per week, 400 for 2 weeks, or 800 per month. I have also signed up for the StarLink internet that should be available later this year. It will provide unlimited 150 mbps internet, the price will be similar to what we pay now but I think it will be more reliable than PLDT. Next on the list is to put antennas in the back of the buildings.
Generator. In our last meetings we agree to sell the generator and buy a new one that is bigger and able to handle the entire resort including aircon. There is no rush for this as the generator we have is working now and and we need to secure the new generator before we get rid of the old one. That means before we sell our generator we first need to collect 15,000 pesos from each apartment so we can buy the new one at the same time the old one is removed. I will therefore handle this later when I am there in Bohol. I invite all owner to be prepared for the new generator expense this year so you are not surprised.
Directory. As we discussed I have created a directory of owners at Bohol Jewel that you can see here. I have added the names and contacts of all those who asked to be added. I have also made this sheet editable so anyone can add their contact info next to their apartment number if you want other owners to have it. I will keep it editable for one month then lock it to prevent accidental deletion.
Status of the property and what is expected in the future
Now that things are getting back to normal, it’s time to look at the rest of the property and what we can do to improve it. It’s already agreed that we need to improve the garbage area and I will be working on that. There are also a few other things that we need to address especially to reduce noise in the main pool area. We are considering the following and invite comments from other owners.
Additional trees and plants. Maybe some of you remember the original sketch before the construction, it had a row of plants in front of the apartments. We plan to complete this by adding plants between each of the palm trees using smaller plants such as banana tree, ferns, and flowering plants as shown in red.
More motorcycle parking. We are considering adding another motorcycle parking between building 1 & 2. It would be accessed by a new cemented road behind building 1 as shown in red below:
This will be for residents of building 1 and 2 plus staff, so we have more available in the front parking.
Cabanas around the pool. We are also considering adding some “cabanas” around the pool for comfort and to reduce noise. Maybe one in front of building 2 and one in front of building 3. They would look something like this with placement in red:
Children’s playground. Finally we consider putting a small children’s playground between building 2 & 3 so kids aren’t yelling in the main pool area, like shown here:
These additions will most likely have to wait until 1 or 2 more units are sold, but hopefully will happen this year.
I plan to go to Bohol in a month or so to supervise the completion of units 407-409. Then we plan to go again for a longer time this summer and maybe stay for 6 months so we can finish units 401-405 and the garden between the restaurant and building 4 and maybe some of the above items. Maybe we can also open the restaurant at that time we will see what the situation is.
Summary. In summary I want to thank all the owners for your patience these past three years as we navigate some very difficult times in Bohol. If we can get past that, I think we can handle anything! So my outlook for Bohol Jewel is very positive. Those of you who plan to sell you units I would recommend you wait awhile, maybe one or two years. As we finish the property and gain more experience in managing guests, and more visibility in the community, I would expect the value of the units to increase significantly.
As I mentioned in the last announcement, I plan to return to Bohol every few months as needed to oversee progress, and address issues that come up.
Sincerely,
Bill
Comments from Mark A Martinez unit #110
1. When replacing the gutters, Do Not use cheap plastic gutters! Obviously they don’t do well. Go through the extra expense to install proper metal gutters that will last longer.
2. Do Not plant banana trees around the pool area. They may start off small, but they will spread because they grow with a rhizome root that continues to spread under the ground. They will become a big stand of bananas at some point. Additionally, they are very messy. They loose a lot of large leaves. Also, they secrete and drip a water like substance that will stain clothing black. Especially when you trim the large dead leaves. They will continue to ooze the watery substance and stain the clothing or swimsuits of whomever happens to walk under them. My suggestion is to plant some Hibiscus, They don’t require much water and will usually have nice flowers most of the year. They are easy to keep trimmed up and can be trained into a nice hedge. They are always green and shed very few leaves.
3. Buy a brand new generator, not used!
4. Based on my observations when I was last there. Remove any of the Plumeria trees which have been planted between the sidewalks and the buildings. Those are trees, Not bushes! They will get big and the roots will cause cracks in the sidewalks and the branches will cause problems to the building. Better to replant them some where else now, than to have to deal with the problem later.
Thanks and Mahalo, Mark A Martinez
I have another comment.
I am not in favor of a children’s play area. When I decide to purchase a lease on my condo, I was in the mindset that it would be more of an older persons retirement type atmosphere. The owners should have a vote on whether or not we should allocate any money, or space to a children’s area. How many of us have any kids whom will be there on a regular basis? Only a few of the potential short term renters will have kids with them. It will also be an eye shore. for those whom have to look at it from their condos. How about an outdoor area with a barbeque, picknic bench etc. for those whom wish spend time out in the open.
Please put this up for a vote.
Thanks, Mark
Hello Bill,
We write regarding to your email,
Monthly Fees:
We understand that the monthly fees will have to increase, everything will be more expensive and there will be a cost to run it, but at the same time, as you write, we want BJ get 5 stars
Resort, that would be great and we would love it, but unfortunately we have to say that it is not a 5 star resort, but maybe we will work with together
we will make it. We should start investing more, repairing and finishing things that are not finished yet (painting the facade black, repairing gutters as you write, replacing glass on the balconies, railings, outdoor shower, bins, cracked tiles, ceiling in the bar – restaurant etc.
restaurant
(just to thing about) Wouldn’t it be good if someone could rent out the restaurant/bar to have it working and running from dawn to dusk.
The condition of the property and what is expected for the future:
– Other trees and plants:
We think there is no need to add more greenery between the palm trees, BJ is quite green and beautiful and we are glad that there is a lawn. More green plants means there will be more animals
who meet their needs there. According to your original picture there are beautiful sunbeds which are sorely lacking here.
– Motorbike parking:
Motorbike parking is necessary, but we don’t know if providing parking between buildings 1 and 2 is a good idea.
1) Sewage pipes and pipes, elektrik meter and other things go there, owners have their air conditioners, not everyone is a good driver, the equipments could be damaged and repair or buy a new one
Equipment costs something.
2) Everyone has on this side their bedroom, the children will sleep there, none of the owners want to hear the sound of motorbikes and it’s always possible that guests are disturbed by this
follow bad reviews come up for the entire BJ resort (and we all don’t want that), everyone wants to enjoy a quiet stay.
The parking place should be in front of building 4, there is a lot of space there and it doesn’t need a large parking place.
Cabins around the pool:
We think comfortable and modern sun loungers and parasols would be quite enough.
Playground:
unfortunately we have to write that we do not agree at all with the children’s game place and write why.
1) Children play unsupervised in the playground, they may get hurt and parents will try to blame BJ resort for example not built safe etc.
They could ask for a refund or even go to court with BJ
2) There are also guests who are looking for peace and quiet, a quiet holiday, just relaxation
Idea:
– Perhaps it would be a good idea to provide a square and a children’s playground and a barbecue area between the buildings instead of a parking lot, if a larger group of people – guests for whom their terraces or balconies are too small – gather here
. Instead, the guests sit in the restaurant and consume their own alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages.
– there are lovely dogs in the resort that guard the resort from uninvited guests or from snakes, mice, etc. Wouldn’t it be possible to keep them here, give them a place
where they have food and water and take care of them. Even the guests could buy them something to eat.
– There is a lot of clutter on the upper floors outside in the hallway, I understand there is no way to store things, but it doesn’t make a good impression on clients (guests) staying in BJ.
Thanks Monika & Jan