What are the construction standards in Puerto Vallarta?
Ron Morgan - Ron Morgan Properties
Construction standards in Puerto Vallarta are different than what we have in the States. In the States, we use a lot of sheetrock and wood for the principal construction. In Puerto Vallarta, you'll find some sheetrock in new construction. Old construction used reinforced concrete and concrete blocks. You don't have real issues with fire insurance in Puerto Vallarta because there's nothing to burn.
There is recent construction in Puerto Vallarta...
Construction standards in Puerto Vallarta are different than what we have in the States. In the States, we use a lot of sheetrock and wood for the principal construction. In Puerto Vallarta, you'll find some sheetrock in new construction. Old construction used reinforced concrete and concrete blocks. You don't have real issues with fire insurance in Puerto Vallarta because there's nothing to burn.
There is recent construction in Puerto Vallarta which uses steel structures. We have one building like that going up now, but most of the buildings are made of reinforced concrete with pilings that go deep into the ground.
In Puerto Vallarta, many of the new buildings are built with similar, if not more, qualifications as the US, such as earthquake construction standards in California, that would withstand hurricanes, earthquakes, and fire.
Expats coming to Puerto Vallarta intending to buy a house or condo need not be concerned that what they're buying may be so poorly constructed that it's just going to fall down. Buildings are concrete. It's interesting because you don't have all of the regulations that you would in the US, but you're getting a better product. You're not getting a wooden house with shake shingles on the roof that would burn up in 10 minutes. You've got a concrete building. Even if it were a very simple building, these are buildings built to withstand different weather conditions.
As in Europe, you don't see a lot of sheetrock in Puerto Vallarta. The sheetrock that is used now in new construction is used for the overall look, as a niche, or for decorative architectural designs within the properties. Designers use sheetrock to do the design rather than do it in concrete. The building's main structure is heavy concrete, but we are now seeing some structures with steel.
In general, how does the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) affect me if I move overseas?
Tom Zachystal - IAM
FATCA seeks to turn non-US financial institutions into reporting agencies for the IRS. In essence, the regulation mandates that foreign (ie. non-US) financial institutions (FFIs) check their accounts for "indicia of US ties". That is, the FFIs need to identify their account holders who may be subject to US tax and report certain information regarding these accounts to the IRS.
FATCA can affect US persons living overseas in four ways (and one of these points also pertains to...
FATCA seeks to turn non-US financial institutions into reporting agencies for the IRS. In essence, the regulation mandates that foreign (ie. non-US) financial institutions (FFIs) check their accounts for "indicia of US ties". That is, the FFIs need to identify their account holders who may be subject to US tax and report certain information regarding these accounts to the IRS.
FATCA can affect US persons living overseas in four ways (and one of these points also pertains to non-US persons with accounts in the US):
In certain instances, the FFI will choose to get rid of all their US clients in order to avoid having to deal with FATCA - so American clients will be asked to transfer their accounts.
In other cases, the FFI will comply, in which case there may be a request for certain information from the account holder. For most people who are not trying to hide their identity, this is not a big deal.
Most of the FATCA agreements signed to date are reciprocal; that is, the participating country has agreed to send information on Americans' bank accounts held there to the IRS but the US has in turn agreed to provide information on the country's citizens and residents that have accounts in the USA. This is going to be a real mess and could mean that US financial institutions will be much less likely to deal with non-US residents. Also, it will mean that US financial institutions will be sharing account data with foreign governments, which may lead to taxation by the foreign governments on these accounts.
Finally, there is a personal requirement under FATCA in that there is a new (for 2011 tax year) IRS form to be completed to report a US taxpayer's foreign holdings - form 8938. Check with your tax advisor on whether you need to complete this form.
The national school system in Portugal is not very great and not to be recommended. However, there are some international private schools in Portugal that are among some of the best in Europe. They are for the high school levels and lower and cater to expats living in Portugal.
There is a German school, a French school, and an American school. My granddaughter goes to an international school in the Algarve. There are about three or four international...
The national school system in Portugal is not very great and not to be recommended. However, there are some international private schools in Portugal that are among some of the best in Europe. They are for the high school levels and lower and cater to expats living in Portugal.
There is a German school, a French school, and an American school. My granddaughter goes to an international school in the Algarve. There are about three or four international schools in the Algarve, all of which are very good.
However, the private international schools here in Portugal are not cheap. If there is one thing that is expensive in Portugal, it’s a top-rank education.
(Carlucci American International School of Lisbon girl's soccer team, Lisbon, Portugal, pictured.)
The newspaper recently reported that Panama would finish this year with 6.3% growth, which is the highest in Latin America, and above, for example, Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia. In addition, inflation is significant in other countries. Colombia went from 100 to 3,000 and Brazil is over 4 reals to the dollar, while the exchange rate used to be 1 real to the dollar. In contrast, here in Panama, we don’t have exchange rate or inflation issues because we are a US dollar-based...
The newspaper recently reported that Panama would finish this year with 6.3% growth, which is the highest in Latin America, and above, for example, Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia. In addition, inflation is significant in other countries. Colombia went from 100 to 3,000 and Brazil is over 4 reals to the dollar, while the exchange rate used to be 1 real to the dollar. In contrast, here in Panama, we don’t have exchange rate or inflation issues because we are a US dollar-based economy.
The current administration in Panama is only one year old. They are starting a new train subway system, which will run from the airport all throughout the city, connecting with the first railroad system. The widened Canal will be in operation in 2016, which will bump the economy another $1.2 billion net profit above what the Canal used to provide us every year. There are companies coming into Panama to do mining. We have one of the biggest copper deposits. We have silver and gold. We haven’t looked for oil yet but there are people who are looking for everything here and large companies are coming in. Two big mining companies from Chile and Peru are already here and working. The future looks bright.
(Cobre Mine, outside of Panama City, Panama, pictured.)
Nicaragua is a country with different traditions depending of the region you go to.
We celebrate various Catholic festivities like "La Gritería", which is a celebration that started in León to give thanks to the Virgen María for stopping a volcano eruption. Now every year we have to different day for La Gritería, one on August 14th called "La Gritería Chiquita" that celebrates La...
Nicaragua is a country with different traditions depending of the region you go to.
We celebrate various Catholic festivities like "La Gritería", which is a celebration that started in León to give thanks to the Virgen María for stopping a volcano eruption. Now every year we have to different day for La Gritería, one on August 14th called "La Gritería Chiquita" that celebrates La Asunción de María, and one on December 7th that celebrates La Concepción de María. People make a beautiful scene with an image of the Virgin in the center and in which visitors to the house are given candies, toys, etc.
If you go to Managua they celebrate Santo Domingo de Guzman, a celebration that goes for one week with two main days. August 1rst is when the image of the saint comes to visit the downtown of Managua and then on the 10th goes back to its sanctuary. The people of Managua prepare a "Hípico", which is a show of horses.
If you go to Masaya on the last Friday of October they celebrate "Los Aguizotes" (birth that announces death), which is a very Nicaraguan tradition of the different legends of Nicaragua.
So as you can see, different places with different traditions in Nicaragua and all of them are very enjoyable.
How's the golf in and around Cayo, Belize, including San Ignacio and Belmopan?
Gwido Mar - Grupo Mar Realty Ltd.
There is one golf course here in the Cayo District, Belize and from San Ignacio it would be 30 minutes away. The name of the course is Roaring River Golf Course.
You can go in to play; absolutely. Outsiders are welcome. You don't need a reservation or anything like that.
Originally, they had some sort of villas on the property and you could, of course, stay there. They would serve you meals and you could stay there while you golf.
The course has 18 holes...
There is one golf course here in the Cayo District, Belize and from San Ignacio it would be 30 minutes away. The name of the course is Roaring River Golf Course.
You can go in to play; absolutely. Outsiders are welcome. You don't need a reservation or anything like that.
Originally, they had some sort of villas on the property and you could, of course, stay there. They would serve you meals and you could stay there while you golf.
The course has 18 holes and is privately owned. It’s on the river. They call it a river, but it's more like a creek. It's a nice fresh water creek along the property.
Belizeans don't generally play a lot of golf. The more affluent play on the weekends and then some expats play as well.
Given that our planned drive from Puebla to Orizaba was only a little more than three hours, that our combination Puebla hotel / restaurant / fraccionamiento was so pleasant, and that the restaurant had an all you can eat Mexican buffet breakfast, we saw no compelling reason to refuse the beautifully arranged food we found so temptingly arranged before us. Even in this upscale restaurant with impeccable service and sophisticated ambiance, they allowed us to dine...
Panamá is very small country, but full of surprises. From biodiversity to pre-colony (15th century) famous path, to music, to technology and growth.
But I want to refer specifically to one man who made the difference in music. Born and raised in Panamá, he become an icon to locals, and is internationally known. His name was LUCHO AZCARRAGA. He was called to entertain at every important public or private event.
Surfing has been here in the Pedasi area for a long time. The waves in Venao (about 30 minutes away by car) were discovered a long time ago. The first time I came here to Pedasi, which was about 10 years ago, Venao was a very quiet place where the only things you will see are cantinas. During that time, beer only costs US $.40 per bottle and one meal was only about $2 per surfer. The surfers were happy because they came here in the summer, set up their tents at the beach, the...
Construction standards in Puerto Vallarta are different than what we have in the States. In the States, we use a lot of sheetrock and wood for the principal construction. In Puerto Vallarta, you'll find some sheetrock in new construction. Old construction used reinforced concrete and concrete blocks. You don't have real issues with fire insurance in Puerto Vallarta because there's nothing to burn. .png)
The national school system in Portugal is not very great and not to be recommended. However, there are some international private schools in Portugal that are among some of the best in Europe. They are for the high school levels and lower and cater to expats living in Portugal. 
The newspaper recently reported that Panama would finish this year with 6.3% growth, which is the highest in Latin America, and above, for example, Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia. In addition, inflation is significant in other countries. Colombia went from 100 to 3,000 and Brazil is over 4 reals to the dollar, while the exchange rate used to be 1 real to the dollar. In contrast, here in Panama, we don’t have exchange rate or inflation issues because we are a US dollar-based...
There is one golf course here in the Cayo District, Belize and from San Ignacio it would be 30 minutes away. The name of the course is Roaring River Golf Course..jpg)
Given that our planned drive from Puebla to Orizaba was only a little more than three hours, that our combination Puebla hotel / restaurant / fraccionamiento was so pleasant, and that the restaurant had an all you can eat Mexican buffet breakfast, we saw no compelling reason to refuse the beautifully arranged food we found so temptingly arranged before us. Even in this upscale restaurant with impeccable service and sophisticated ambiance, they allowed us to dine...