Panama Real Estate Archives | Panama Relocation Tours

Last Updated May 22, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Panama Cost of Living in 2019

What does it cost to live in Panama? That’s the question I get asked most often. The answer is… it depends on where you live and how you live.

Some areas of Panama are much more affordable than others. If you live near Coronado or Panama City, your cost of living could be more than where you live now. But if you live in other areas in Panama your cost of living could be substantially less than where you live now.

I live in the highlands of Panama in Boquete. It’s not the most affordable place to live in Panama, but it is much more affordable than living in Texas where I moved from. Other places in Panama are even more affordable than Boquete.

I’ve been tracking my living expenses ever since I moved to Boquete so I thought I’d share them to give you a realistic picture of what it costs to live in Boquete in 2019. Keep in mind that I live a modest lifestyle. My house is about 1000sf on a large property with a lot of flowers and a vegetable garden. I don’t try to keep up with the Joneses.

HOUSING

Housing is usually your biggest expense, but it does not have to be in Panama.

In Boquete, like all other places, your cost of living will depend on your lifestyle choices. If you want to live in Valle Escondido or any of the other gated community, your costs will be much higher than other areas.

You can rent a house for $200 a month or spend $4000 a month.

Boquete has a huge variety of rental prices, like most areas in Panama. Only you can determine if the price you are willing to pay is in an area you like. You probably will not need to spend as much as you think for a house you really like.

During the tour, we sometimes visit with a couple who lives in a fantastic furnished 2 bedroom on one acre with the Pacific Ocean right out their front yard – all for only $400 a month. See it in the photo to the right. We also see fancy high rise Ocean front condos which rent for $1200 to $1800 a month. There’s something for everyone, in every budget, in Panama.

Affordable living is available in Panama if you know where to look! (we show you where during a Panama Relocation Tour)

I recommend that you rent for at least 6-12 months before you buy anything. That’s the only way you can really get to know an area.

Many people make the decision to only rent when they move offshore. Renting gives you a lot more flexibility. Rent is so affordable, it really does not make a lot of sense to buy. In Panama, it is easy to buy but it could take many years to sell. The other big advantage of renting is that you can easily move to a different location in Panama if you don’t like the weather or the neighbors where you are.

When I moved to Panama, I paid $600 per month rent for a fully furnished 2-bedroom, 1.5 bath house on an acre with 100 banana plants, coffee plants, exotic flowers and a spectacular view. I could pay more.. but why? I had everything I need at an affordable price.

After living in Panama a few years, I purchased the house for $120,000 so I don’t have a rent payment anymore. And I don’t have any property taxes – every! My house insurance is less than $200 a year.

Now ten years later, that same furnished house would rent for $695 to $795 today including includes all utilities.

FOOD

You can eat at a Panamanian style restaurant for $4 – $5 per person. It’s hardly worth it to cook at home with those prices. Most high-end or expat-owned restaurants have prices similar to North America though. In some areas in Panama, you’re only choice is a Panamanian style restaurant.

I buy most produce at the Mercado (farmers market) or grow my own in my greenhouse. Produce prices are much cheaper than the United States and the quality is better too. For example, I recently bought 2 large sweet pineapples for $1.50. You can buy 4 Hass avocado for $2. I can buy 50 pounds of carrots for $6 or 100 oranges for $4.

Bananas are free… I get them on my property.

In 2019, I spent an average of $400 per month on food including eating out. Some of this expense is for cat food.

PHONE

I only use a cell phone in Panama. My data/talk plan is $32 a month. This is a huge savings over what I paid in Texas. With my Panama cell phone, I can make international calls at no additional costs!

I use Skype to make calls to friends and family all over the world at $0 expense. I have a dedicated Skype number so anyone call dial that number and it rings at my house in Panama. I pay $50 a year for my dedicated Skype phone number.

SHIPPING AND POSTAGE

Panama does not have mail delivery service to your house. I use a mail forwarding company in Boquete to get mail delivered from the United States to Panama. It’s expensive at about $3 a pound to get Amazon orders delivered so I try to buy everything I need in Panama to save money. There are in-country courier services available too.

MEDICAL

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Last Updated Feb 10, 2020 - by Jackie Lange

Beware of NET Listings in Panama

In Panama, some things are done in a different way than you are familiar with. A good example are real estate sales and rental listings. In Panama, it’s common to see the same house listed at several different prices with different agents. Sometimes the “spread” can be as much as $100,000 difference for the same house!

In North America, most houses for sale are listed as an exclusive listing. This means that one real estate office as the exclusive right to market the property. If that same office finds a buyer, they will typically make about a 6% commission. If an agent from a different office produces a qualified buyer, the “listing” agent will usually agree to split the 6% commission. In North America, a real estate agent has a fiduciary responsibility to the seller/buyer so all the dealings for the transaction are revealed “on top of the table.”

There are some exclusive listings in Panama too. But most listings are NOT exclusive. Instead, the seller has agreed to pay a commission to whoever produces a qualified buyer. This is why you will see the same house listed with several different office and at different prices. A typical commission in Panama is 5-6% of the sales price.

But sometimes, the seller has told the agent(s) that they need to NET a certain amount at closing and anything the agent can sell it for over that amount will be there profit. This is called a net listing. Net listings are illegal in most of North America, but it is business as usual in Panama. Here’s an example:

Joe and Mary need to walk away with $150,000 on the sale of their property. Real estate agent Sue advertises it for $220,000 – with room for negotiations, she’s hoping it will sell for $200,000 so she can walk away with a $50,000 commission versus the $12,000 commission she would have earned at 6%.

Maybe $200,000 is the right price for the house. But perhaps $150,000 is the right price. It’s hard to know in Panama because there is not a reliable MLS system to show comps of recent sales in the area. We do have an MLS system but most agents don’t use it and that’s why it’s not reliable.

Last year, I had breakfast with the broker for a local real estate office. He was bragging about how me made $600,000 profit on a NET listing near Boquete.

HOW WIDESPREAD IS THE PROBLEM? [Read more…]

Last Updated Apr 3, 2019 - by Jackie Lange

How Panama Relocation Tours Saved Me $45,000

During a Panama Relocation Tours, you’ll learn a lot of ways to save money when you relocate to Panama.

♦ You’ll meet an affordable and reliable immigration attorney to help with your residency Visa.

♦ You’ll learn the most affordable way to get your pets and household goods in to the country.

♦ You will learn the one thing you should NEVER do when buying health insurance- this alone could save you $2,000 per person per year (which will pay for your tour).

♦ You will learn some negotiation techniques for getting a getting a better price when you rent or buy.

♦ Plus, when you get a Pensionado Visa, you get discounts on everything from restaurants, prescriptions, airfare, utility bills and so much more. These discounts apply to
Friendly Nations Visa holders too once they meet the age requirements of 55 for women and 60 for men.

A little savings here and a little savings there adds up to so many ways you can live BETTER for LESS in Panama.

There are other ways that Panama Relocation Tours can help you save money when you move to Panama. I’ve been a real estate investor for 27 years. Now, I invest in Panama real estate too. Over the years, I’ve learned a lot of ways to get a better price when I buy real estate. This knowledge has come in handy for Panama Relocation Tour clients too!

A few months after John and Peggy came on a Panama Relocation Tour, they moved to Panama. Initially they rented a house in Panama but they knew they were ready to put down roots so they started looking for the perfect house to buy. They found a house a lot faster then they thought. It’s a spacious fully furnished home with a wrap around porch. It’s on several acres with many fruit trees. The asking price was $165,000. They asked me if I thought it was a good price. You can almost always get a better price so I taught them exactly what to say to get the price down to $120,000. I also recommended a great attorney to help with the contract and closing. They closed a month later and moved in. I don’t think John and Peggy have stopped smiling since! [Read more…]