Interview with Ana Maria Platas of the Property Journal

Last week Garza Blanca’s Signature Residences had a special visit from Ana Maria Platas, the respected owner of The Property Journal Puerto Vallarta. We took the opportunity to find out more about this local publication that hits the streets every month in print, packed full of real estate tips and advice for purchasing property in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Read on for our interview with Property Journal’s Ana Maria Platas:

Who reads The Property Journal?

Mostly Canadians and US Citizens who live here full or part-time and snowbirds. Also, we have a large readership amongst tourists because we distribute to the hotels and tourist hot spots. That’s the objective.

How was the idea of The Property Journal born?

Many years ago I was working as a teacher giving communication classes at a high school in Cabo San Lucas. I made the kids create a newspaper and they had to sell their own ads so that the school had no costs. In just 2 years, this newspaper worked better than the local paper! It was a great success. That was in 1991.  When I decided to move to Puerto Vallarta, I started out working in advertising for a local real estate agency and implemented a newspaper for the company that was just 4 pages. We printed 20,000 editions. It was such as great success that I decided to leave and start my own project. That is how The Property Journal was born.

I started out with zero funds, selling my own advertising. In my first day of sales, I achieved 4 contracts who paid me 50% up front and I was elated. From then on, I never ran into red numbers and had no debt. The paper worked well like this for many years until the downturn in the market happened around 2010. The Property Journal Puerto Vallarta suffered a lot. Agencies weren’t making commissions and I had to downsize. This meant laying off employees etc and I almost closed. However, having downsized costs and personnel, with a small team I kept the Property Journal afloat. I began again, doing all the tasks by myself. During the most difficult times I did everything. Thanks to the advice of a marketing friend who told me “don’t close, lower your prices,” I decided to adapt to the needs and budgets of my clients. My earning margin was next to none, but I survived.

Thankfully, in 2012, the market came back and, boom, we are doing better than ever. Our pricing is great, much lower than the competition.

What is the future of The Property Journal?

We will continue to evolve with the opportunities presented by technology and the ever-changing requirements of our modern clients, offering an affordable advertising platform geared to the real estate community’s needs in Puerto Vallarta.