Richard Detrich’s Boquete Blog An Interesting Perspective On Expatriate Life In Panama

Richard Detrich’s blog provides an interesting look at the American expatriate life in Panama, specifically living in Boquete. After scouring the internet for interesting blogs on Panama, Mr. Detrich’s blog is a refreshingly honest look at life in Panama, amid a veritable wasteland of commercial and spam filled sites. According to his site, Mr. Detrich is an ordained minister and retired businessman who relocated to Panama with his wife. He often writes about his day to day experiences living in Boquete, as well as his experience owning and operating a small shade coffee plantation in the mountains. His blog is varied and eclectic, with posts on Panama politics and history, photographs of wild orchids, and stories of gruesome battles between spiders and scorpions in his laundry room.

For anyone interested in buying property, building a house in Boquete, or is looking for advice on investing in Panamanian coffee, Mr. Detrich’s Boquete Blog is a valuable resource.

Reading Mr. Detrich’s blog is especially useful for investors interested in Boquete, but also provides general insight for real estate investments elsewhere in Panama. One particularly useful page on his site is an extensive Q&A section that answers many questions people may have about buying property and living in Panama. Some of the questions addressed include “how isolated is Boquete from the rest of the world?”, “Are foreigners allowed to own property?”, and “how is banking in Panama different than in the United States?” For anyone interested in buying property, building a house in Boquete, or is looking for advice on investing in Panamanian coffee, Mr. Detrich’s Boquete Blog is a valuable resource.

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Torrijos Says Panama Canal Expansion Is On Schedule

Panamanian President Martin Torrijos has stated that the major expansion to the Panama Canal is currently on schedule. The President said yesterday that the Canal Authority is still looking at options for financing nearly $2.5 billion of the project, but that the contract to build the new lock system will be announced by the end of 2008. Companies currently bidding for the locks contract include Bilfinger Berger AG of Germany, Empresas ICA SAB of Mexico, Mitsubishi Corp in Japan, and the American firm Bechtel Group Inc.

The President also stated yesterday that nearly 283,000 Panamanians had applied to work on the canal expansion, accounting for nearly 12% of the nation’s workforce. It is estimated that 7,000 jobs will be created in the construction of the project, and that an additional 40,000 will be created to support related industries. Reassurance from Torrijos that the canal expansion project is on schedule is good news for Panama, especially with the current economic slowdown and problems with lending institutions in the United States.

Source:
Panama Canal Expansion Is On Schedule, Torrijos Says (Bloomberg.com)

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Forbes Reports That “America’s Loss Is Panama’s Gain”

An article in Forbes today stated that the economic losses in the United States are proving to be a major gain for Panama.  Many investors that lost out in the real estate bust in Florida are now looking to Panama as a viable investment alternative.  The article cites several reasons that Panama has become especially sought after, including a high quality of life and comparatively low crime rate.  The article states that “two maids and a driver in Panama cost you $1,000 a month,” and that many people are moving to Panama from other Latin American countries to escape the threat of being kidnapped or burglarized.  In addition to this, Panama has also become a popular tourist destination as it is significantly cheaper and easier to obtain a visa for entry to Panama than it is for the United States.  For tourists interested in spending a weekend shopping internationally, this can be a deal breaker when deciding where to go.  For these reasons Forbes claims that the economic loss in the United States is a gain for Panama.

Source:
America’s Loss, Panama’s Gain (Forbes.com)

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World Famous Architect Designing New Biodiversity Museum In Panama City

Frank Gehry, the world famous architect best known for the innovative Guggenhiem Museum in Spain, has designed a new biodiversity museum in Panama City. The “The Bridge of Life” Museum will house exhibits that showcase the diversity of life at the crossroads of two continents. Permanent exhibits currently being developed include an exhibit focusing on interdependent systems in ecology, an exhibit with full scale models of extinct animals that once inhabited the isthmus, and an exhibit on the separation of the aquatic ecosystems of the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean. The museum is in a partnership with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and will be the first international museum incorporated into the Smithsonian’s affiliations program.

The impressive architecture of the new building will surely bring prestige to the city, as Frank Gehry has become one of the most sought after architects in recent memory

The museum is being built at the Amador Causeway, a location only a few blocks from the main cruise ship port in Panama City. The area is currently being developed as a major tourist destination, with the Gehry designed biodiversity museum as the centerpiece. The impressive architecture of the new building will surely bring prestige to the city, as Frank Gehry has become one of the most sought after architects in recent memory. His buildings have included world famous landmarks such as the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles and the Experience Music Project in Seattle.

Panama City’s new biodiversity museum is currently slated to be completed in 2009, and once open will bring a level of prestige to the city through its world class architecture and affiliation with one of the most important tropical research institutions in the world.

Check out these pictures of the buildings design from the Bridge of Life’s website:

sources:

Panama City Tourism (Wikipedia.org)

Bridge of life: The building (Biomuseopanama.org)

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Interesting Time Lapse Perspective Of The Panama Canal

Check out this time lapse clip of the Panama Canal, it’s definitely an interesting (and somewhat mesmerizing) perspective of the canal. It will be interesting to see how busy the canal becomes once the expansions have been completed.

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Panama Listed Top Travel Destination As Dollar Continues To Fall

Money magazine listed Panama as a top travel destination for Americans as the dollar continues to fall. With exchange rates making travel to Europe extremely expensive for many Americans, Panama is becoming a much more appealing option to Americans interested in traveling abroad. With the balboa pegged to the dollar, Americans don’t have to worry about exchange rates or changing currency, especially when the dollar is accepted almost everywhere in the country.

Here’s what Money Magazine has to say:

Panama. This small country boasts mountains, rain forests, 1,500 miles of coast (your pick of the Caribbean or Pacific) and, of course, the magnificent canal, where you can gawk at supertankers being raised and lowered through the locks. Forget exchange rates: Panama’s currency, the balboa, is pegged at parity with the U.S. dollar, and the dollar itself is accepted virtually everywhere.

Source:

Vacation where the dollar is still strong (Marketwatch.com)

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Governor of Bocas Del Toro Names Development “Most Environmentally Friendly In All of Panama”

Sunset Point on the Isla Colon has been named one of the “most environmentally friendly developments in all of Panama” by Esther Mena de Chio, the Governor of Bocas del Toro Province. The Bocas del Toro region is famous for its ecological diversity, and as a result has become an eco-tourism hotspot. The area is also home to the Bocas del Toro Research Station, a biological research station operated by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Station. According to the Smithsonian, “the Bocas del Toro province is a magnificent natural region with humid tropical forest, swamp forest and banana plantations in the terrestrial habitats and mangrove forests, seagrass meadows and coral reefs in the marine coast.”

Unfortunately Bocas del Toro has long held a reputation for having dishonest and often corrupt land developers. In this recent article on the subject, the author describes his past experiences with developers in Bocas del Toro attempting to sell isolated plots of land in the middle of a swamp. Fortunately the author claims that the Sunset Point development is a move in the right direction, as the developers have invested a huge amount in building the infrastructure of their project. According to the article, the developers have worked also with Smithsonian to make the project sensitive to the local ecosystem, and have planted native mangroves along the banks of the recently excavated canal. It is for these efforts that the Governor of the Province has given the development his praise.

The Sunset Point development is situated on a 200-acre piece of property that overlooks the Caribbean. According to their website, the community is planned to have 108 single family homes and 21 “villas” each composed of two or four units. The development is situated next to the largest living coral reef on the Isla Colon, and has a deepwater lagoon and marina. According to their website, the developers are looking forward to further cooperating with the Smithsonian, and hope to keep the reputation as one of “the most environmentally friendly developments in Panama.”

Click here for more information on Sunset Point, and check out this video from their website:

Sources:

Sunset Point does it Right in Bocas del Toro

Bocas del Toro Research Station

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Panama Extending Real Estate Tax Exoneration

Panama is extending a real estate tax exoneration law that will exempt any foreign builders from paying property tax for up to 20 years on new projects, according to this blog. Builders have up to July 1, 2009 to obtain a building permit, and until December 31, 2011 to acquire an occupancy permit to qualify for the tax exemption. Recently completed projects may also be tax exempt for a period for those interested in buying newly built real estate, as the tax exemption laws can roll over to new owners of property.

According to another blog written by a real estate developer in Panama, the current extension of the tax exoneration program gives investors a window of 8-10 months to start looking for property to develop. So if you are interested in taking advantage of this extension of real estate tax exemption in Panama, this summer would be the time to start thinking about your options.

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Free Trade Agreement Between US And Panama Likely To Be Stalled Until A Free Trade Agreement Is Reached Between The US And Colombia, Reports Latin Business Chronicle

The Latin Business Chronicle reports that the current hang-up on the trade negotiations between the United States and Colombia will further stall any free trade agreements between the US and Panama. A free trade agreement between the two countries was already unlikely to occur before September, when the president of Panama’s national assembly, Pedro Miguel Gonzalez is expected to leave office. Gonzalez is wanted in the United States for killing a United States soldier in Panama in 1992, but has been acquitted for the crime in Panama. With the free trade agreement between the United States and Colombia unlikely to be resolved before September, the article reports any new trade agreement between the United States and Panama will presumably be discussed after negotiations have concluded with Colombia.

Read the article here:
Panama FTA: Uncertain fate (Latinbusinesschronicle.com)

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Panama Gives Incentives To Foreign Investors Interested In Investing In Reforested Timber Plantations

The government of Panama provides many incentives to foreign investors interested in investing in reforested timber plantations, including tax exemption and visas for these investors. Timber is one of the most important natural resources in Panama, and the region is one of the few in the world that can support high quality teak plantations. Teak can be a particularly lucrative investment, and is used in a variety of products including many veneers, and due to its high oil content is a choice wood for boat decks. Due to the relatively fast growth of teak, it is renewable and can make an idea green investment.

Through investing in Panama’s reforested timber program, the investor is given complete tax breaks on any profits from harvested timber, a title for the timber property they own, as well as the option for a residency visa in Panama. Care must be taken though when investing in timber companies, as there have been cases of fraudulent activity in this sector. Thorough due diligence and accredited lawyers are recommended for anyone interested in these types of investments. More information on the reforestation program can be found here.

There are other options for investing in timber in Panama, including investing directly in timber companies. With any of these options, including the reforestation program, it is recommended that investors consider certified forestry practices to maintain and harvest their forests, such as those outlined by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). While becoming FSC certified can increase costs upfront, there is a payoff in the end as green certified products can be sold at a much higher market value than products without certification. With the right research and due diligence investing in Panama timber can be both a lucrative investment as well as a green investment, and can help to protect local biodiversity and sequester carbon, all while continuing to turn a profit for the savvy investor.

Teakwood has a high oil content and is ideal for making boat decks

source:

Timber investments in Panama (Nuwireinvestor.com)

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