Frequently Asked Questions

What Is The Cost Of Living In Panama?

You will also find 6 more posts on this popular subject, below.

• 2018 Cost of Living – by an expat living in Puerto Armuelles, Panama

• 3 Questions To Determine A Realistic Budget

• Actual budgets of 25 expats living in Panama

• How much does it cost to live in Panama City?

• What is the cost of living in towns popular with expats? 

• Interview on Cost of Living in Panama with Lief Simon of Live & Invest Overseas

• Take our brief quiz to find out

• 22 Things To Know BEFORE You Move To Panama

Here are a few articles from our series, How To Be Happy in Paradise.

• Panamanian Secret to Happiness & More

• Pursue New & Old Hobbies & Other Happiness Tips

• 4 Tips For A Healthy Lifestyle in Panama

How Can I Make Money In Panama?

Also, check out these posts for more answers

• Video of an expat on his job teaching English online

• Don’t wait to retire – live in Panama & earn

• 5 Ways To Find A Real Job in Panama

• Caution:  25 Professional Jobs You Cannot Work In Panama

• How To Get A Work Permit In Panama

• About Health Care in Panama

• The health care systems in Panama

• Do you need health insurance in Panama?

• What are your health insurance options and more

• Which health insurance is right for you?

• How to apply for Panama health insurance plus some advice

• Our health care experiences in Panama

What about Obamacare?

• Does living in Panama make me exempt from Obamacare? (US Citizens only)

Do I Qualify For Panama’s Pensionado Visa?

• What is the Pensionado Visa program
• What age do I have to be to qualify?
• Are its benefits and discounts mostly hype?

4 Options For Your Panama Resident Visa

• 4 most common visas, including the Pensionado and Friendly Nations Visa

What Do I Need To Do To Move To Panama

A great checklist that covers everything, including

• What should you do with all your stuff?

• What should you bring with you?

• How about my mail, my pet, and my taxes?

What Cell Phone To Use & How To Set It Up

• What type of cell phones function in Panama?
• What cell services are available?
• Apps to use & more

How Do You Buy Property In Panama?

• A detailed guide to the process

Is It Safe To Buy ROP Property?

• What precautions can you take?

What To Do To Safeguard ROP Real Estate?

• Do these 3 things IMMEDIATELY after buying ROP property

How To Title Property In Panama?

• You must complete a number of steps. But none of them is difficult.
  You will need a good lawyer.

Why Buy Property From Us

Of course, this assumes you already love Puerto Armuelles and plan to buy property in Puerto.

1. Our Financing Offer on Property
2. Pay for Airfare 
3. Reserve Property for 60 Days 

• Perfect House Design for the Tropics

• How Much Does It Cost To Build A House?

• Which Building Material Should I Use?

• Why Use Concrete To Build Your House

• Should You Use M2 Panels for Your House Construction?

• Pros and Cons Of Building A House Of Wood

• Shipping Container Housing in The Tropics

• Building A Bamboo House

• Is Remodeling An Existing Home A Good Choice?

• Tiny Homes May Be A Good Option in Panama

• An Expat Talks About Building In Panama (video)

For most expats, Panama offers food, including fruit & vegetables, they have never experienced before (and many familiar foods).  We have written about some of them, see below.

• Panama’s National Dish: Sancocho (chicken soup)

• Panama’s Culantro vs. Cilantro

• Panamanian Tamales

• Fruit in Our Yard – A Video Series

  • All About Almonds in Panama

• Part 1 – Virtual Mailboxes & Getting Your Mail

• Part 2 – About the Panama Postal Service

• Part 3 – Domestic Mail Service Options

• Part 4 – Getting Online Orders Delivered & More

• Homeschooling in Panama-Part 1

• Our initial experience with schools in Panama

• Expat teen writes about Schools in Puerto Armuelles

• Panama Property Taxes – Rates, Exemptions & Tips

• Updated Property & Real Estate Transaction Costs

• US Taxes & International Real Estate – requirements, loopholes & exclusions

18 Ways To Finance Real Estate In Panama

• Self-directed IRAs, Cash-out Refinancing, and other ways

How To Get A Mortgage Loan In Panama?

• What are the 2 factors that determine if you will get a loan
• What documents will you need?
• Do you need to be a resident?

How To Open A Bank Account In Panama?

• Can Americans open a bank account?
• What documents do I need to bring from “home”?

How Can I Transport My Pet To Panama?

There are a lot of regulations and organizations involved

Should I Bring My Car To Panama?

• The pros and cons

How To Buy A Used Car In Panama?

• There are 7 steps to buying a car in Panama

What Is It Like To Drive In Panama?

• What are the rules?
• Is it safe to drive in Panama?

This is a big topic.  Here are some of my related posts.

• New Years Day Rituals and Customs
• New Years Eve In Panama: meal, traditions, etc
• Carnival in Panama – where, what happens, traffic
• Easter in Panama – more religious than secular
• Mother’s Day In Panama – Is It Collective Guilt?
• Make Your Own Halloween In Panama
• November Holidays In Panama  – 5 of ’em
• Privacy in Panama – Does it exist?
• Corruption in Panama – how bad is it?

How Do I Get To Puerto Armuelles?

• How to drive from David to Puerto Armuelles?
• Do I need to go thru Costa Rica?
• What do I need to show at Police checkpoints?

• Where can you eat in Puerto Armuelles?

• Musicians in Puerto Armuelles

• Where to go for help with cell phone problems in Puerto

• Art classes and workshops in Puerto

• Where to get art supplies in Puerto (+David & Panama City)

• Ocean swimming in Puerto Armuelles for beginners

• Does Puerto have a big colorful 3-D town sign?

• Are there any good hardware stores in Puerto Armuelles?

Is Panama Safe?

• How safe is Panama?
• Is the crime rate high in Panama?
• Is the government & currency stable?

Guns In Panama

• Can I bring my guns into Panama?
• Do I need a permit?
• What are the rules about gun ownership in Panama?

Where To Live in Panama?

• What are my choices?

What Is Panama’s 10 Kilometer rule?

• Is Puerto Armuelles inside or outside 10K line?
• Can you buy property within 10K of the border?

What Is The Weather or Climate Like?

• Did you know Panama has hundreds of microclimates?
• Are There Hurricanes in Panama?

Click one of the links below for info on learning Spanish

• 3 recommended books to learn Spanish faster
• Our experience learning Spanish
• Online Spanish Language Programs – A good option?
• Rocket Language Spanish – A Review

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