When it comes to thinking about where to go on vacation or a place to move, maybe now or to retire to at a later date, there are many places to choose from. I chose Panama for a number of reasons and all of them have played out positively for me and my family. I left Miami after 38 years and have no regrets. We have a wonderful climate, good healthcare, great shopping and services, an active lifestyle and many places to visit within a few hours drive from home from the mountains to the beach and out to hundreds of Islands nearby.
When I tell people back home in Miami why I live where I do in Panama they look at me funny, cooler climates? Yes, I live in the mountains, kind of like Aspen in the summer.
As my friend Sam Taliaferro used to describe our community of Valle Escondido, no sweat golf! Same goes for hiking, horseback riding and river rafting up here in Boquete.
Boquete and it is in the province of Chiriqui in the western highlands of Panama. Their are a number of great communities here in Boquete including Cielo Paraiso where they have a world class championship course in the mountains http://www.cieloparaiso.com and Valle Escondido, where I live with my family. http://www.valleescondido.biz
There are also numerous other smaller communities and subdivisions to choose from and the lot prices have been heavily discounted in the last 12 months offering bargains. While it is almost impossible to find a house to rent and the inventory of homes that are for sale is shrinking daily, we have a number of good quality builders who are very busy right now building custom homes for under $90 per square foot.
OK, back to why I live in Panama and why here in Boquete, because I am 2 hours from the most spectacular coastal area in the Pacific south of the Southern Passage in Alaska and the fishing for snapper, wahoo, tuna and marlin is incredible. And the family loves to fish!
Our favorite place to stay on the ocean and our favorite beach is 2 hours away from our home in the mountains.
Seagull Cove Lodge, Boca Chica and Isla Bolanos
www.seagullcovelodge.com
What about investing here in Panama
With the investment climate continuing to stagnate back in the US and Europe, more of my friends are asking me how I am doing here in Panama and what is the attraction to investing here. To that I answer a simple fact that speaks to the fundamentals of investing anywhere – Growth. Before I get into a discussion of why Panama, I want to clarify that while I am not suggesting to move all of ones investment capital here, it does make sense to have at least 10 to 15% portion of ones portfolio outside the United States.
Panama’s GDP reached rates of 8.1%, 8 %, 7.5% and 6.5 % during , 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 respectively. This year it approaches double digits. That is huge when compared with the rest of the world. The Panama Canal expansion, continuing Hydro Electric plant expansion and growth in the resort development, the hospitality and commercial real estate market will insure that Panama continues on a forward motion of productivity for the foreseeable future. Major Corporations relocating or opening new offices include Dell, Caterpillar, Singapore Airlines, and the Colon Free Trade Zone (“CFZ”) is the largest free zone in the Americas and the second largest in the world. Relating to the stability of investing in Panama, Panamanian Law provides 10 year stability as of the registration of the investment that all legal, tax, customs, municipal and labor rules will remain identical to those in force at the time of registration. This is an important guarantee to secure no-changes will affect the amortization of investments.
Another important fact about Panama and the investment climate is the existence of Law Number 8 (Enacted in 1994) is the most comprehensive law for the promotion of tourism investment in Latin America.The incentives and benefits under this law are available to natural persons or companies engaged in tourist activities registered at the National Registry of Tourism (Registro Nacional de Turismo) and certified by the Panama Government Tourism Bureau (Instituto Panameño de Turismo – IPAT). These include public lodgings, tour agencies, tourist transport services, tourist restaurants, discotheques, nightclubs, recreational or theme parks, zoos, convention centers, and marinas.
As more investors continue to come in from the US and Europe, I am also continually asked about title to real property in Panama. Panama has an excellent Public Registry, recording title for each property. It is easily researched and title insurance is also available. one of the vendors of choice is Latin American Title Company or LATCO. LATCO is the exclusive representative in Panama for Chicago Title Insurance Co, the biggest Title Insurance Company in the world who re-insures all of their policies and also provides escrow services as well.
Here is a nice article regarding buying property in Panama that gives you an understanding about types of ownership that was written by a friend of mine. Buying Real Property in Panama
In Summary, there are a wide range of investment opportunities in Panama including land banking, agricultural projects, residential development from affordable housing to retirement communities and more. With the growth of tourism in Panama, more resort development including oceanfront resort communities will offer excellent opportunities for investment. The office market sector continues to grow as demand outstrips supply and retail development in Panama is now on the radar of most international developers and institutional investment funds. Panama will continue to grow and investors will continue to prosper here.
COME VISIT US IN PANAMA AND LET US SHOW YOU WHY PANAMA SHOULD BE IN YOUR PORTFOLIO.