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Home Archives for Living in Panama
Renting in Panama- The Do’s and Do Not’s from a Pro

Last Updated on September 28, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Renting in Panama- The Do’s and Do Not’s from a Pro

elaine hayes panamaWith so many people planning to move to Panama and looking for a rental, I thought you could use some advise from a pro!  So, I asked my friend Elaine Hayes to write an article about renting in Panama.  She has lived in Panama five years and moved TEN times.  She’s uniquely qualified to advise you about what to do and what not to do too. She and her husband Don have made every mistake in the book.  Read this article and follow her advise to avoid making costly mistakes. 

Hello! Let me introduce myself. My name is Elaine and my husband Don and I decided to retire in Panama in 2015. Before I begin, I want to stress to you that we will always live in Panama. For us, it is the best place on earth and there are wonderful places to live where you will be so happy and retire in paradise! But this article is letting you know the mistakes we have made, so hopefully we can prevent others from making the same. I have lived in some great places and made a lot of mistakes! Don and I have moved 10 times in 5 years. We are pro’s at moving! So here is my story:

I always prided myself on doing my research. I researched the entire world when it came to deciding where to retire. I researched where other expats lived, the money exchange, the crime, the weather, the language. We picked Panama because it checked out all the boxes and we have never regretted our decision. But one thing I did not research was how to go about renting a place in a foreign country. It’s something so new to most expats. For instance, most of the rental places for expats here are furnished. Completely furnished, with everything you will need just to move in with your clothes. A rental will come with kitchen appliances; pots, pans, silverware, plates, bowls. It will be equipped with towels and bedding. You will have a TV and may have a washer and dryer included. Most of us have owned homes in the countries that we have lived in, or if we have rented, we knew the ins and outs of what to do and not to do. But doing all of that in another country is different. So, I am here to gladly tell you my story. I can help you with your research. Panama is a wonderful country to live in, and renting is definitely the key. You can always buy a house or apartment once you get the lay of the land. But renting is the only way to go when you first arrive. So here are some “dos and don’ts” that I have learned from experience! I will give you a list first, and then explain in the next paragraphs some of our specific experiences!

panama city panama rental 850-GO AND INSPECT THE PLACE THAT YOU ARE GOING TO BE LIVING. INSPECT EVERYTHING YOURSELF, DO NOT RELY ON THE LANDLORD TO TELL YOU THINGS ABOUT THE HOUSE (DO NOT ASSUME ANYTHING). DON’T RENT A PLACE BY JUST RELYING ON THE INTERNET PHOTOS.

–ASK AND VERIFY – MAKE A LIST OF WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO YOU – HOT WATER IN THE KITCHEN, WASHER AND OR DRYER, HOT WATER ON DEMAND. ALSO DECIDE WHAT YOU CONSIDER YOUR “DEAL BREAKERS”. VIEWS, WALKING DISTANCE TO STORES AND RESTAURANTS? YOU NEED TO PERSONALLY CHECK THE HOUSE AND THE SURROUNDINGS OUT FOR YOURSELF!).

–CHECK OUT THE NEIGHBORHOOD – (ARE THERE BARKING DOGS AND CHICKENS CLOSE BY? IS THERE TIMES WHERE THE AREA YOU LIVE IN ARE GOING TO BE LOUDER AT TIMES THAN OTHERS?)

–DOES A GARDNER COME WITH THE RENTAL? HOW OFTEN DOES HE COME – (SOME PLACES HAVE SOMEONE COME A FEW TIMES A MONTH, AND SOME COME A FEW TIMES A YEAR.)

panama rental playa uverito–WHAT UTILITIES ARE INCLUDED IN THE RENT, AND WHAT TV/INTERNET SERVICE IS AVAILABLE IN THE RENTAL?

–TALK TO NEIGHBORS. SEE HOW THEY LIKE THE NEIGHBORHOOD. GET THEIR ADVICE.

-DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU CHOOSE TO LIVE IN PANAMA, THE LOCATION OF THE SUNRISE/SUNSET MAY BE VERY IMPORTANT. LIVING ON THE OCEAN IS WONDERFUL, BUT BE AWARE WHERE THE AFTERNOON SUN WILL BE IN YOUR RENTAL. DO YOU WANT THE SUN TO BE BEATING DOWN IN YOUR LIVING ROOM? ARE THERE BLACK OUT CURTAINS THAT YOU CAN SHUT WHEN THE SUN IS AT ITS HOTTEST? WHEN YOUR LIVING ROOM GETS TO BE A SAUNA, WHERE THE SUN IS LOCATED AT WHAT TIME BECOMES VERY IMPORTANT.

–REALIZE WHEN YOU BUY SOMETHING, YOU WILL HAVE TO MOVE IT. BUYING AN OUTDOOR GRILL IS WONDERFUL. BUT JUST KNOW THAT WHEN YOU HAVE TO MOVE, YOU WILL HAVE TO MOVE YOUR GRILL AS WELL. YOU WILL BE SURPRISED HOW MUCH YOU ACCUMULATE.

Don’t Do This!

fuzzy house panama
The Fuzzy House

Now for the story of what Don and I did when we were still in the States. I was scrolling the internet and saw a cute house that was close to the town we wanted to live in. The pictures looked so nice, and the location seemed perfect! It was a fellow expat that owned it, so naturally I trusted him with no questions asked. He wanted first month, last month rent with a security deposit. He was willing to sign a 3-month lease. That appealed to my husband and I. If we didn’t like it, we had 3 months to find another house or apartment! We sent him the money using a wire transfer, and we were set! We sold everything we owned, kept 5 suitcases and a chihuahua to take with us, and off we went to start our new adventure! [Read more…]

Filed Under: Living in Panama Tagged With: find rental in panama, living in panama, move to Panama, rentals in Panama, renting in Panama

Expats in Panama Giving Back to the Community

Last Updated on September 21, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Expats in Panama Giving Back to the Community

rotary boquete panamaOne of the many joys of moving to Panama are finally having the time to do the things you want to do, when you want to do them. People who move to Panama bring with them years of experience in business, teaching, photography, and other endeavors. They love giving back to the community by sharing their experiences.

Teri Novak is the perfect example. She comes from a background as a business owner which requires organizational skills. She puts her knowledge to work by volunteering with the Boquete ROTARY.  In the video Teri mentioned that Adriel was able to overcome his fear of math by studying math at the Khan Academy.   Teri meant to say that Adriel spent 700 minutes, not 700 hours of study.

The Rotary has many different programs to help Panamanians including helping children learn, build houses, provide food for the needy and more.  The mission of Rotary International is to provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through its fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders.

ROTARY CLUB OF BOQUETE MISSION

Boquete Rotarians are neighbors, community leaders, and global citizens uniting for the common good to promote peace, support education and improve health.

Watch this video to learn why Teri and her husband moved to Panama, what she thinks about living in Boquete and how they are giving back to the community by volunteering at the Boquete Rotary.

Learn more about the amazing things the Rotary is doing in Panama, subscribe here https://rotariodeboquete.org

The Rotary is always looking for new volunteers who can share their skills and make life better for all Panamanians. Contact the Rotary at https://rotariodeboquete.org/

 

Filed Under: Expats in Panama, Panama Expat Experience Tagged With: expats in Panama, living in panama, move to Panama, retire in panama, Rotary in Panama

Covid Testing for Travel to Panama

Last Updated on November 19, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Covid Testing for Travel to Panama

On October 12th, Panama will allow anyone to come in to Panama who presents a negative Covid test that is not more than 96 hours old.  But which Covid test should you get so it will be acceptable?  Marne Coggan wrote a great article about his experience with getting a Covid test, the right test, to be allowed to come in to Panama last week.

After October 12, no quarantine is required when you come in to Panama.  You will only need to present the negative Covid test.

Our Experience: COVID Testing for Travel to Panama

by Marne Coggan

marne cogganI’m writing this from the kitchen of our home in Volcancito, a Boquete neighborhood about 1,000’ feet above town center. My wife Debbie and I just flew in from California, which means we’ve traveled into Panama with negative COVID-19 tests. I want to share what we’ve learned so you can too.

In April 2019, my wife and I took a Panama Relocation Tour with Jackie Lange. On that same trip, we worked with a Panamanian attorney recommended by Jackie to obtain our temporary residency visas and get multi-entry stamps on our passports. Our Permanent Visas were ready in June, and in August we returned to Panama to get our Cedulas. We eventually found a house we liked in Volcancito, very close to Jackie’s wonderful home. We plan to move there permanently in early 2021.

We had left our Volcancito home on March 9, 2020 for what was planned to be four weeks in our soon-to-be-ex-home in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco. We had booked an April return flight to Panama. But March 9 was just a few days before Panama announced a COVID-19 lockdown with a 30-day suspension of travel into or out of the country. Each following month, April through August, that 30-day suspension was continually renewed. So each month, April through August, we’d have to cancel our flights at the last minute, then re-book for the following month.

Finally, in late August, the rules changed. On August 13th, the Panamanian Health Ministry (MINSA) issued Resolution #766, allowing travel into Panama. But there were three key restrictions on this travel. First, this travel was allowed only for returning Panamanian citizens and legal residents, meaning holders of permanent visas. (That was us!) Second, returnees were required to quarantine for 14 days in their homes. (We were fine with this — we were going to stay in our Volcancito home anyway.).

And third, on arrival in Panama, returnees were required to present documentation of a negative test for the COVID-19 virus taken within 48 hours of travel. 48 hours? YIKES! (Later, MINSA Resolution #853 from September 3 extended that time limit to 96 hours. But our essential problem remained.)

We knew that testing for the SARS-COV-2 virus was widely available in the Bay Area. While once it was offered only to first responders, medical personnel and people showing symptoms of COVID-19, now anyone could get tested. Mostly, the tests involved sample collection with nasal swabs and lab amplification with PCR. The tests looked for the presence of virus particles in the body, indicating a current infection, whether symptomatic or not. Most of this PCR testing required an appointment, but some tests were offered to walk-ins.

The problem was that the results for these PCR tests weren’t available for some time, usually 5-7 days, and often longer. We did hear of a few tests with results advertised as optimally available in 1-2 days. But there were no guarantees, and the actual results times usually were longer.

We needed to have test results in our hands, in Panama, in 48 hours. It seemed like it couldn’t be done in our area. It was a deal breaker.

Now, we knew that rapid-result COVID tests were available. But these were antiBODY tests, blood tests that looked for the presence of antiBODIES to the virus, indicating a past infection. And antiBODY blood tests were not accepted by MINSA for return travel to Panama. We’ve heard of folks showing up at the airport with a negative antiBODY test being denied boarding by Copa personnel. (As they should.)

So why am I annoyingly capitalizing BODY in antiBODY? Because it helps to differentiate it from antiGEN tests. As a college Anatomy instructor, my immunology lesson included a serious portion of class time devoted to explaining the differences between closely named antiBODIES and antiGENS. Briefly, antBODIES are molecules produced by the body’s immune system in response to a pathogen (a bacteria or virus). But antiGENS are parts of the pathogens themselves. If you find an antiGEN in a test, you’ve found an actual, present virus or bacteria.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Living in Panama Tagged With: covid test for travel to Panama, move to Panama

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