What does it cost for a vacation rental in Chapala and Ajijic, Mexico?
Deborah Van Arsdel
The Chapala lakeside area has many options to choose from for rentals. They range from nightly to long term. I will use US dollars when referring to prices. Nightly rentals can be found at hotels, B&Bs, Trip Advisor, Airbnb, Home Away and VRBO, with prices ranging from $20/night on up depending on size, location and length of stay.
Many of these places will also rent by the week or month. Short-term monthly rentals usually have a discounted...
The Chapala lakeside area has many options to choose from for rentals. They range from nightly to long term. I will use US dollars when referring to prices. Nightly rentals can be found at hotels, B&Bs, Trip Advisor, Airbnb, Home Away and VRBO, with prices ranging from $20/night on up depending on size, location and length of stay.
Many of these places will also rent by the week or month. Short-term monthly rentals usually have a discounted rate with a six-month minimum. Oftentimes these rentals have private owners who utilize these homes part of the year themselves, frequently between the months of November and April. Long-term rentals are generally one or more years.
Like anywhere, there are a range of average prices starting from $300/month for a basic studio or small 1 bedroom, up to $2,000/month + for a fully furnished, multi-bedroom/bath home. The rent may or may not include housekeeper, gardener, cable/satellite TV, internet, phone and other utilities, all of which are quite affordable in Mexico.
A number of real estate companies have rental departments to facilitate both landlords and tenants. Rental properties can be owned by either Mexicans or expats and rental practices can vary widely. Most expect a security deposit along with the first month's rent. It is advisable to seek recommendations when using rental realtors or rental agencies and check into their track record with refunding of deposits. One more tip - in Mexico, often tenants are expected to do all maintenance and repairs out of their own pockets. Inventory of rentals varies throughout the year and can become almost non-existent during the "high" tourist season, November - March. Usually inventory is greater May through October, but a growing sunbird tourist season also exists that time of year.
(Outdoor kitchen in a rental property, Lake Chapala, Mexico, pictured.)
The first country that comes to mind when thinking about the worst places in the world to retire is North Korea. :)
The worst places in the world to retire would be places with lots of social and political upheaval, crime and corruption.
If your physical safety is in question or in jeopardy, why would you go to retire there? Places in this hemisphere with high crime rates include Honduras, Guatemala, and El...
The first country that comes to mind when thinking about the worst places in the world to retire is North Korea. :)
The worst places in the world to retire would be places with lots of social and political upheaval, crime and corruption.
If your physical safety is in question or in jeopardy, why would you go to retire there? Places in this hemisphere with high crime rates include Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador, which has manifested itself in the recent influx of minors coming into the United States. In my opinion, these would be among the worst places in the world to retire.
Also, in Latin America, when one thinks of crime, political and social unrest, one would think of Venezuela, which would also not be a good place to live or retire. If there’s an unstable government, that tends to trickle down to all aspects of life. It causes a lot of corruption, and that’s something else that one needs to think about when retiring, although in many cases, it’s just something you have to live with in certain respects.
For the most part, if you think about Panama and Nicaragua and some of the other countries, corruption doesn’t seem to affect daily life in a negative way.
In addition, the extent to which how much corruption there is in a country or area affects you depends on your activities. For example, if you’re talking just about retiring in a country and you don’t have to work or deal with a lot of commerce or deal with the government, you would be isolated from corruption, so it wouldn’t affect you.
How many Americans and Canadians and other expats live in Corozal?
David Berger - Tradewinds Hospitality at Orchid Bay
Corozal’s total population is about 14,000 people, and I’ve been told that Corozal is the largest expat community in all of Belize. In fact, there are more expats in Corozal than even in San Pedro (on Ambergris Caye). There are approximately 2,000 expats in Corozal, which is a lot. Almost everywhere you go in Corozal, you see Gringos.
The expat population in Corozal includes full-time expats and Canadians coming in half the year. There...
Corozal’s total population is about 14,000 people, and I’ve been told that Corozal is the largest expat community in all of Belize. In fact, there are more expats in Corozal than even in San Pedro (on Ambergris Caye). There are approximately 2,000 expats in Corozal, which is a lot. Almost everywhere you go in Corozal, you see Gringos.
The expat population in Corozal includes full-time expats and Canadians coming in half the year. There are a lot of expats who have been here in Corozal for 6 months. There are those expats who leave for 6 months, but are now on their third or fourth year in a row of being here in Corozal, and everybody already knows who they are.
A lot of expats who have second homes here are from somewhere cold, so they come here this time of the year. We’re seeing a lot of expats coming right now. January is the best month to come here, especially if you live somewhere cold.
(Thanksgiving at Orchid Bay, Corozal, Belize, pictured.)
What's the dress code in Coronado, Panama? What clothes do they wear in Coronado, Panama?
Denise MacDonald - My Panama Real Estate
Dress code during the day in Coronado: flip flops and....? As many have answered here, it isn't common to see Panamanians in shorts, but it does happen in the beaches during the daytime! In fact, many women will wear a bathing suit and cover-up to the grocery store or to run into town for some light shopping.
However, if you are going out for dinner, then most men (Panamanians more so than expats) will wear long pants with a short sleeve shirt and women...
Dress code during the day in Coronado: flip flops and....? As many have answered here, it isn't common to see Panamanians in shorts, but it does happen in the beaches during the daytime! In fact, many women will wear a bathing suit and cover-up to the grocery store or to run into town for some light shopping.
However, if you are going out for dinner, then most men (Panamanians more so than expats) will wear long pants with a short sleeve shirt and women will typically wear dresses and sandals.
There are so many fun 'sun' dresses available that it is fun! Dresses are also typically cooler and more comfortable than pants or shorts. When going into a restaurant though, it is often advisable to carry a shawl, as sometimes the air conditioning can be very cold!
Does the ocean in Portugal have dangerous animals in it?
Ana Ferraz
In the oceans of Portugal, there are no harmful animals like sharks but we do have jellyfish starting in the winter season. From November to January, you will find quite a lot of jellyfish on the shores. Some are still whole and some are bits but you just have to avoid them. Don’t step on them, which is easy enough to do because you would see them on the shore.
You’d usually see jellyfish on the rough beaches and where the sea is rough. You won’t see them on...
In the oceans of Portugal, there are no harmful animals like sharks but we do have jellyfish starting in the winter season. From November to January, you will find quite a lot of jellyfish on the shores. Some are still whole and some are bits but you just have to avoid them. Don’t step on them, which is easy enough to do because you would see them on the shore.
You’d usually see jellyfish on the rough beaches and where the sea is rough. You won’t see them on the bays. Cascais (an upscale area just to the west of Lisbon) is all bays. If you go up to the coasts of Sintra, where the seas are very rough and where they practice the radical sports, there is where you will see the jellyfish.
The waters in the ocean of Portugal are cold so sharks do not like it, especially on the west facing coasts, including the beaches west of Lisbon. Because the air temperatures can be a maximum of 35 to 37 Celsius (95 to 98.6 Fahrenheit), it’s hot, so it’s a pleasure to go into that cold water.
The oceans in the Algarve (which face south) are completely different from the oceans in Lisbon. The Algarve gets warms waters because of the Gulf Stream and because of the Mediterranean. The temperatures in the waters of the Algarve could be around 20 to 22 degrees Celsius (68 to 71.6 Fahrenheit) and up here in Lisbon, it’s around 17 to 18 degrees Celsius (62.6 to 64.4 Fahrenheit). It’s hotter and less windy in the Algarve as well. Lisbon is a windy area because we are on the westernmost part of the European continent. There is also a breeze here so we don’t use air-conditioning in the summer because we don’t need it.
The coasts of Sintra get rough waves but overall, the other coasts of Algarve and Lisbon are perfectly safe for swimming.
(The village of Azenhas do Mar on the coast of Sintra, Portugal, pictured.)
Jet Metier was going to meet Rich Novak and his wife and business partner Janet in Panama, but Jet developed a “funny tummy” and had to beg off. More than a year later, as an avid listener to Rich’s radio program in podcast form, Jet wanted to turn the tables on “Your Man in Panama” and interview him.
Instead, Rich took the initiative and contacted Jet to report on what was new to the landscape in the environs of Coronado, Panama, the jewel in...
I purchased my first rental property in the ski resort village of Whistler, BC, Canada, when I was 23-years-old with a very small down payment.
At the time, I was working as reservations manager for a property management company so I had first-hand knowledge of the strong returns that could be achieved through rentals. Over the following eight years, I proceeded to buy, renovate, rent short-term and ultimately sell nine Whistler properties.