Living in Panama Archives | Page 2 of 77

Last Updated Jun 19, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Immersion – How Much Is Right for You

by Ellen Bailey

When considering a move to another country, one of the most important decisions you will make is how immersed you want to be. Some choose to move to a community full of Expats where they will feel a little more comfortable, while others wish to move to one predominately populated with locals/natives. One of the best things about Panama is its diversity and the fact that you can find either of these or even a combination of the two.

Because moving to a new country can be daunting, and even downright scary, many people feel more comfortable moving to a location with a higher Expat population. These communities have a tendency to be a little more modern and have more of the amenities that you are accustomed to having in your home country. Most of the restaurants, pubs, pharmacies, grocery and hardware stores you visit will have English-speaking employees and have a larger selection of “import” items. Visiting a spa or salon will be somewhat similar to what you are use to as many of the same services will be offered (albeit at a lower price). You will be able to share your experiences living in your new country with the other expats you meet while you are out exploring your new country. Some people only hang out with other expats when they first move to Panama. For some, this is the perfect place to start when first relocating because you are living in a different country yet surrounded by those who are more like you, which can make the transition easier.

On the other hand, many people, myself included, chose to move to a different country to be able to experience a different culture and live amongst those who are not just like us. Moving just a couple of blocks from downtown Boquete, into a predominately-Panamanian neighborhood, was exactly what we were looking for. Although many of the employees in the businesses we frequent speak some English, the people and houses around my apartment are mostly Panamanian. Because of this, I am forced to step out of my comfort zone and try to use my rudimentary High School/College Spanish. At times it is downright painful because I KNOW what I want to say and can do so in my head, but actually verbalizing it is another story! Thank goodness for my Panamanian friends who know some English as well and are more than willing to help!

When we first moved to Panama and knew no one, we would go to the same places every weekend to do something we love: sing karaoke! Music unites everyone! It was here that we began to make a lot of friends, not only with the ones who sang, but also with the employees and owners of the restaurants. Some of these have become our closest friends and are actually more like family. 99.9% of these are NOT expats and I consider my life a lot richer because they are part of it. We have learned about some amazing Panamanian traditions and have been included in many celebrations. We have loved being part of a community that is so willing to share their traditions and culture. It has also allowed us to reciprocate and teach them a little about the U.S. and some of our traditions and interests including college football. While it hasn’t always been smooth sailing, it has been one of the best experiences of my life.

Even if you initially move to a neighborhood that has many expats, you should make the effort to get to know Panamanians too. Panamanians are the friendliest people you’ll ever meet.

Panama is so very diverse and offers so many choices for those thinking about relocating here. While not one choice is right for everyone, you definitely will be able to find the right “niche” for you. It may even be that you want to start in a more Expat area and then transition to a different part of the country once you feel more comfortable. Perhaps you chose just the opposite and decided to become more immersed at first only to discover you miss being around others a little more like you. Thankfully, Panama has something for everyone and once you find that perfect balance, you will know, and feel like, you are truly HOME.

Last Updated Jun 18, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Panama Pandemic Update

UPDATE June 17th. Panama announced that international flights will resume July 23rd. But honestly, they have announced dates before and they have been changed. I would not count on international flights starting on July 23rd AND we still don’t know what the rules will be when people arrive. We assume they will need to have a 14-day quarantine.

June 14, 2020

Panama’s borders are still closed. Tocumen International Airport was scheduled to open June 22 but yesterday President Cortizo announced that the airport cannot open with so many new cases of the virus every day. In his Twitter feed he announced that he would like to see the number of new cases go down to not more than 100 a day before the airport opens.

Last week, even the labor unions, including pilots, did a PEACEFUL march through Panama City protesting the opening of the economy too soon. As much as everyone would like to get back to work, it is too soon in Panama to start international flights or to open non-essential businesses. You’ll see why below.

In June, the number of new cases has been between 400 to as many as 800 each day. Teams of people are going door-to-door to do testing because some people have the Covid virus and don’t even know it so they are spreading the virus.

Obviously, with this many new cases ever day it may be awhile before the airport can open for international travelers. Even when the airport does open, initially Panama will likely require a 14-day home/hotel quarantine when you arrive.

The majority of the cases have been in Panama City where there is a very high density of people. I live in Chiriqui Province on the far western side of Panama in the town of Boquete. Boquete has only had 14 cases of the Covid virus and no deaths. The map below shows how many virus cases there are in each province.

THE PROGRESSION OF THE VIRUS IN PANAMA

This is how the virus progressed in Panama and the actions Panama has taken to try to prevent the spread of the virus or overwhelming the hospitals. Panama is an international hub for air and marine travel so it is exposed to a high volume of people coming in from all over the world.

Panama reported it’s first confirmed case of Covid-19 on March 9th, a 40- year old school teacher who have traveled to Italy. By March 10th, Panama had 8 confirmed cases and its first death.

President Cortizo took swift action on March 12 when he announced that Panama was in a State of Emergency and quickly mobilize $50 million dollars to purchase test kits, masks and increase hospital bed capacity to get ready for a big increase in Covid-19 cases.

On March 19th Panama suspended international travel in to or out of the country. Originally this was to be for only 30-days but that date has been moved several times.

We have received daily communications from the Ministry of Health and/or the President to keep us informed of the status of the virus and the government’s plans.

To prevent the spread of the virus, initially Panama enacted a curfew but it did nothing to slow down the number of new cases. So on March 25th, a total quarantine was ordered for everyone in Panama. You could only leave your house three times a week for two hours to buy groceries or get medicine. Beaches were even closed. Women could leave home on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Men could leave their house on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Children had to stay home. Only those people working at grocery stores or pharmacies could go to work.

Most non-essential businesses where ordered to close. Hundreds of thousands of people had their labor contract suspended. Of course, this had a huge impact on Panama’s economy. Because many people could not work, they had no income. On March 27th President Cortizo announced a Solidario program to give $80 a week to each adult who had their labor contract cancelled or suspended. Panama has no unemployment benefits so the Solidario program was a first. Just a reminder that Panama does not have a central bank so they can’t just print more money.

To prevent overloading hospitals, Panama had a new hospital built in less than 30 days. And Panama worked with some of the hotels to convert them in to Covid-hotels where people who tested positive but had mild symptoms could stay instead of going home to their family where they would spread the virus to all family members. The Covid-hotels are staffed with nurses to monitor their situation closely and meals are provided.

In addition, Cortizo signed a measure passed by Panama’s legislature to suspend payments on public services—including electricity, internet, and phone bills. Originally this was for four months which has since been extended to December 31st. And, the president reached an agreement with the Panama Banking Association to institute a moratorium on a number of payments, including mortgages, a variety of loans, and credit cards, until December 31, 2020. Those who had their labor contract suspended do not have to pay rent and they cannot be evicted for not paying rent.

Even though my gardeners and house keeper could not come to work because of the quarantine, I continued to pay them. Most people who could afford to have continued to pay their staff even if it is less than full pay.

Because of the strict quarantine, Panama was able to get the number of new cases to below 200 a day, sometimes only 100 new cases. And the R factor (transmission rate) was below 1.

Panama thought they had control of the invisible enemy…SO..

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Last Updated Jun 27, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Panama Real Estate Post-Covid

Because of the Covid virus Panama’s real estate market took a nose dive. Real estate offices have been closed.. some may never open again. Most notary offices have been closed so you can’t go to a closing. Many contacts were cancelled too. Rentals sat vacant because Panama’s borders were closed and the quarantine prevented anyone from being away from their house for more than 2 hours to buy groceries. So, what’s the future of Panama’s real estate once Panama opens their borders again?

The basic principal of supply and demand indicate that Panama will have much more supply than demand for the next 3-5 years. To make matters worse, in 2020 there has been a big increase in properties and businesses for sale which will add to the already overloaded supply.

For this report about the future of real estate in Panama, I consulted with trusted real estate agents, the biggest developers in Panama and researched what the Panama’s association of real estate agents have to say. I’m also drawing on my 30 years of experience as a real estate investor who monitors real estate trends in Panama and in the United States.

RENT FIRST

Let me state up front that we at Panama Relocation Tours encourages you to rent for at least 6-12 months before you consider buying any property in Panama. Twelve months will give you time to make sure you like living in Panama. Twelve months will give you time to experience both the rainy and the dry season which can be dramatically different in some areas. Twelve months will give you more time to understand the “right” price for houses versus overpaying. In twelve months, you’ll know if you’ve picked the right area or if you need to keep looking at other locations or elevations in Panama.

It is easy to buy in Panama but it could take many years to sell. So, you should not rush to buy something regardless of how good you’ve been told the price might be.

WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG TO SELL A HOUSE IN PANAMA?

There are a lot of reasons that it takes many years, sometimes 5+ years, to sell a property in Panama. Most people selling real estate, including real estate agents, in Panama have no previous experience in real estate so they don’t know how to do marketing. We do not have a widely used MLS (multiple listing service) in Panama so it is very hard to determine the right price to list a house at and most sellers/agents start at a price that is WAY too high. Beware that some foreigners selling or renting real estate do not have a work permit so they are working illegally in Panama. Always ask to see their work permit.

Another obstacle is financing. Financing is available at banks but they will require 20-30% down and it could take months for the financing to be approved. Banks will require that you get a life insurance policy naming them as beneficiary just in case you die before paying off the loan. And banks loans must be paid off when you turn 70 which prevents many retirees from getting financing. You will probably not be able to get fixed rate financing.

Some developers offer short term, less than 5 year, financing for new construction.

The other reason it takes a long time to sell is because there is a mismatch between the price point that most buyers are looking for and the price of the inventory that is available for sale. Ninety-seven percent of the people who come on a Panama Relocation Tour are looking for homes under $200,000. But much of the inventory of homes for sale are prices at $250,000 or more. There are not enough buyers in the higher price points so it takes much longer for those properties to sell. Properties in good condition priced under $200,000 tend to sell quickly if they are in a good location.

GROWING INVENTORY = LOWER PRICES

During the 2008/2009 real estate crash, Panama saw far less drop in prices than other countries. But the Covid-19 impact is different. The borders of Panama have been closed so no foreigner buyers could come in. Even people already living in Panama cannot buy houses yet because real estate offices have been closed since mid-March and the notary offices, where you would go for a closing, have mostly been closed too. According to the Panama’s Association of Real Estate, sales are down 90% in Panama at least.

Construction projects were stopped during the quarantine too.

The president of the Association of Real Estate (Acobir), Frank Morrice Arias, stressed that, “in addition to this (covid-19), previously, they had already been facing a market hit due to the decrease in prices in the last four to five years.”

Prices in many areas in Panama were going down before the Covid-19 virus. And now, with even more inventory, we anticipate that prices will need to go down more if a seller really wants to sell.

Morris announced that, “in the residential sector, it will take about three to four years to absorb all the inventory they have and it will be necessary to carry out strategies to mitigate the situation; In the case of an office commercial, where for several years they had excess inventory, it will take five to seven years to recover.”

Elisa Suarez, executive director of the National Council of Housing Developers (Convivienda), explained that “… We are going to face a market where the demand will be quite contracted and where the supply will definitely have to be restructured. This leaves me to think that there is definitely a tendency for prices to fall in order to leave the inventory that we have so far.”
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