When you are planning a potential move it is important to work with people you can trust. This is even more crucial when relocating to a foreign country. Don’t leave your common sense back home!
One of the biggest mistakes I see in Panama, is that new people in town tend to automatically trust other expats. Although resident expats can be a great source of information about what living in this country is like, best places to eat dinner, where to get your car fixed, etc. ~ they can often be the worse source of legal advice, guidance, and direct services.
Unfortunately, the expats who are “not so trustworthy” know that new folks are often easy targets and will believe anything they say. Dealings with these, often overly friendly, 类型是你可能听说过的恐怖故事的来源,,en,阴凉的房地产交易,,en,关于网站和论坛的错误信息,,en,并且高价服务的损失可能会发生,,en,这些外籍员工是销售管理人员的主人，随时准备将你与钱包中的东西分开，并与“天空中的馅饼”故事,,en,这并不需要发生在你身上,,en,你如何防止自己陷入无良的陷阱,,en,这里有一些提示，让您的家庭尽可能无压力地购买和出国旅行,,en,只能与巴拿马的合法居民一起工作,,en,要求看他们的CEDULA,,en,巴拿马身份证,,en,和工作许可证,,en,如果他们不能生产这些,,en,项目,,en,你正在冒险 - ,,en,不管他们给你什么借口,,en. Shady real estate deals, misinformation on websites and forums, and losing money on overpriced services can happen. These expat shysters are masters of sales manipulation and ready to separate you from what’s in your wallet with “pie in the sky” stories. This does not need to happen to you!
How do you prevent yourself from falling into an unscrupulous trap?
Here are some tips to make your home buying and move abroad as stress free as possible:
- ONLY work with legal residents of Panama. Ask to see their CEDULA (Panamanian ID card) and Work Permit. If they cannot produce these 2 items, you are taking a risk – No Matter What Excuse They Give You. 所有非法工作者都有很多理由可以和你一起工作,,en,这听起来合法,,en,与这些人一起工作的问题是，如果他们做错了事，你就没有追索权,,en,一旦他们离开这个国家,,en,你不能把他们带到法庭上，或者在巴拿马解决他们与他们的问题,,en,因为他们不是合法居民或巴拿马管辖区,,en,这将是非常昂贵的，几乎不可能解决问题,,en,这些受害者中的大多数最终会吃亏,,en,骗子们转向下一个标记,,en,与全职的居民一起工作,,en,只有旅游签证的外国人每个国家都必须出境,,en,如果他们不能向你展示Cedula，你就会知道这一点,,en,这些人是另一个国家的合法居民,,en,不是巴拿马,,en,管辖权声明,,en, that sound legitimate. The problem with working with these people is that you have NO Recourse if they do something wrong. Once they leave the country, you can’t take them to court or resolve your issues with them in Panama, since they are not legal residents or under Panamanian jurisdiction. It will be very expensive and close to impossible to resolve the issue. Most of these victims end up eating the loss, and the scammers move on to the next mark.
- Work with full time residents. Expats who are only on a tourist visa have to exit the country every 5-6 months (you’ll know this if they can’t show you a Cedula). These people are legal residents of another country, not Panama (see #1 jurisdiction statement). 兼职生活在巴拿马的合法居民,,en,雪鸟或有工作的家庭或在另一个国家上学的孩子,,en,不会像社区中那样,,en,有你需要的连接,,en,或者给你最准确的信息,,en,只有在巴拿马全职生活和工作的合法居民才能向您提供最新信息,,en,想想吧〜,,en,为什么有人声称他们喜欢住在这里？,,en,多年来一直在巴拿马买卖物业,,en,甚至不是这里的合法居民,,en,红旗,,en,要求参考并跟进,,en,如果有人试图向你推销房地产,,en,或其他服务,,en,承包商,,en,律师,,en,等等,,en,他们应该能够提供您可以联系的多个客户参考,,en,不是朋友或家人,,en,但与他们合作的实际客户,,en (snow birds or families with jobs or children in school in another country) are not going to be as vested in the community, have the connections you need, or give you the most accurate information. Only a legal resident who lives and works in Panama Full Time can give you up-to-date information. Think about it ~ why would someone claim they love living here, have a business of buying and selling property in Panama for years, and not even be a legal resident here? Red Flag!
- Ask for references and follow up. If someone is trying to sell you real estate, or other services (contractors, lawyers, etc.) in Panama, they should be able to provide several client references that you can contact. Not friends or family, but actual clients who have worked with them. 与这些人联系并询问有关他们的经历的详细问题,,en,如果有人出售房地产,,en,他们应该有很多客户,,en,每年至少有一次销售,,en,他们在过去几个月售出了多少房产,,en,如果他们没有客户参考清单,,en,为什么不,,en,红色的Fag,,en,与居民外国人交谈并比较信息,,en,当你参观Puerto Armuelles时,,en,或巴拿马的任何城镇,,en,并遇到住在那里的外国人,,en,问他们他们推荐谁，为什么,,en,或谁来避免以及为什么,,en,对不同的外籍人群也提出同样的问题,,en,如果你从各种人那里得到相同的推荐信,,en,这可能是一个值得信赖的资源,,en,名誉,,en,是好是坏,,en,随着时间的推移发展,,en,总是使用合格的律师来完成房地产交易,,en. If someone has been selling real estate for 5 – 10 years, they should have lots of clients. At least one sale per year, right? How many properties have they sold in the last few months, years? If they don’t have a client reference list, why not? Red Flag!
- Talk to resident expats and compare information. When you are visiting Puerto Armuelles, or any town in Panama, and come across expats who live there, ask them who they recommend and why (or who to avoid and why). Pose the same questions to different groups of expats too. If you get the same referrals from a variety of people, that may be a trustworthy resource to connect with. Reputations, good or bad, do develop over time!
- Always use a competent attorney to close a real estate deal. 不要直接从卖家到买家购买物业,,en,你可能不了解外国法律，合格的法律代表是至关重要的,,en,标题属性几乎总是使用在巴拿马的律师出售,,en,但是R.O.P,,en,财产不遵循相同的规则,,en,确保你了解R.O.P,,en,手段,,en,请求我的免费报告,,en,并使用有信誉的律师来处理交易,,en,有些卖家可能会试图说服你，在购买R.O.P时你会省钱并且不需要律师,,en,财产直接来自他们,,en,因此买方要小心,,en,每个地方都有好人和坏人，所以请记住锻炼常识,,en,如果您遵循这些提示并使用可靠的来源进行工作,,en,你的经验和搬迁到巴拿马将是一个积极的,,en,请跟随和喜欢我们,,en. You probably don’t know foreign laws and competent legal representation is crucial. Titled property is almost always sold using an attorney in Panama, but R.O.P. property does not follow the same rules. Be sure you understand what R.O.P. means (request my free report at Editor@visitPuertoArmuelles.com) and use a reputable attorney to handle the transaction. Some sellers may try to convince you that you will save money and don’t need a lawyer when buying R.O.P. property directly from them, hence Buyer Beware!
There are good and bad people everywhere so remember to exercise common sense. If you follow these tips and work with a trustworthy source, your experience and relocation to Panama will be a positive one.
