'Retire to Panama.....think again.....for a long time. ' Retirement

Marvin Turl (190.33.94.54) -

My wife and I retired to Panama, after about two years of vacationing and invwestigating the idea. Panama has a lot going for it.....but the problems we encounter on a daily basis living here for about 18 months full time are at first just frustrating...then that turns to being angry at the country and a large percentage of the citizens.

On a daily basis we are, as Los Estados Unidos Gringoes, lied to, cheated, swindled, and literally stolen from. Business people here are basically going to get into your pocket by any means and then generally make no attempt to honor any agreement you have had. That includes your attempts to "get it in writing." Here in Panama that has very little protection for you. You have no voice here....The U.S. Embassy is a joke. Generally, let's say you have a landscaping job. You get all labor and materials quotes, time frames for completion, etc. The job will get three quarters done and there will be an increase in something... usually labor costs. You point to your 'contract' and refuse. Well....Your project stops dead in the water and no one shows up an longer. Your choices, do it yourself, try to hire someone else and get the same treatment, or sue. The last one is a joke also, because any court action here involving a gringo and a Panamanian will automatically be strongly and obviously biased in favor of the Panamanian.

Oh yeah...all those discounts for being a pensionado....don't hold your breath.

Comment #1 Jim from New York (Contact Member) -

You will find many have experienced the same in Costa Rica... vacations and short stays left them believing it was a beautiful country and a great place to live.

After living there a while, the find out the beauty is only the weather as everything else is convoluted. Even if there is a simple, straightforward and easy way of doing something, the difficult inefficient path will be taken.

Comment #2 Margaret (201.225.193.194) -

Oh my Gosh, I can so agree with you. You dont have a leg to stand on down here. The people want to bleed you dry. If you have contractors doing a job for you you have to go source there tools ect....Its so frustrating. You are believed to be a bottomless pit.

And paying off everyone with 'GREASE' is just making me sick. You are held to ransom for everything. I'm getting out of here as soon as possible, I cant take it anymore, its affecting my health.

Comment #3 Jerry (152.163.40.178) -

Can you flush your used toilet paper in Panama, or do you need to put it in a waste basket next to the toilet like in Costa Rica?

Yeah, my question is probably a bit gross... but much less so than using a toilet in Costa Rica.

Comment #4 nicholas (190.10.63.158) -

Have lived in CR for 22+ yrs looking to mve elsewhere

• problems

Comment #5 Lee from Montevideo, Uruguay (Contact Member) -

Too many problems in Costa Rica or bored there? Do you think Panama will be that much different?

Why not look further South?

If you want tropical, try Colombia. If you want European try Uruguay.

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