What should I know before buying a home in a new housing development in Panama?

Before buying a home in a new housing development in Panama, you should learn as much as possible about the developer. The Internet is a relatively reliable source, especially since many complaints are logged in Spanish. Some developers are better than others and this is well known among professional real estate brokers.

 

For example, there are well documented cases of construction problems, such as gas leaks (with fatalities) or water leaks, less dangerous but...

Before buying a home in a new housing development in Panama, you should learn as much as possible about the developer. The Internet is a relatively reliable source, especially since many complaints are logged in Spanish. Some developers are better than others and this is well known among professional real estate brokers.

 

For example, there are well documented cases of construction problems, such as gas leaks (with fatalities) or water leaks, less dangerous but extremely annoying: when you get a call from the owner of the apartment below yours complaining about water infiltration, it can be costly to find out if the leak originates from your apartment, the one above or from a general pipe which the building administration should take care of. It's not only costly, but it can become a nagging nightmare. Many builders will print glossy brochures vaunting imported cabinetry and fixtures for example, but it's like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get. Technically speaking, it could be manufactured in Milano, Geneva or Pyongyang, and still be imported! I have seen a building whose doors "made in Italy" where fabricated in the building's basement out of thin plywood.

 

There's another thing to take into consideration: when you buy "pre-construction" based on a glossy brochure, there's no guarantee that the building will be ready for occupancy as scheduled. Seven years ago, I was associated with an important real estate company in Coral Gables, FL and we were promoting a very nice building in Punta Pacifica. It's not finished yet...

 

There are two other pitfalls to watch out for: buried somewhere in the purchase agreement fine print, there are two interesting clauses to watch for. First of all, if the apartment is measured after its completion and it's discovered that it's larger than what was initially intended, then you have to pay for the increase. Would you guess that apartments always increase in size, never the contrary? (Must be the humidity). Also, get ready to pay an extra 5% to compensate for construction costs increase.

 

Before taking the plunge, do yourself a favor: take a trip to Panama and get familiarized with the neighborhoods. It might be a good idea to purchase a new, but already completed, apartment, so you can actually see and touch everything. Additionally, many investors who purchased a "pre-construction" property a few years back, when the market conditions were different, are eager to unload their investments, at prices which are below developers' prices...

Talk to other home owners in the project. What do they have to say about the developer? Does he have a good reputation? Has he provided the services and amenities he promised? Is he responsive to their needs and questions? What is the quality of the roads, electricity, water and building construction? What kind of a warranty comes with the house?

 

These are the sorts of questions you should ask about a developer -- anywhere in the world.

 

If...

Talk to other home owners in the project. What do they have to say about the developer? Does he have a good reputation? Has he provided the services and amenities he promised? Is he responsive to their needs and questions? What is the quality of the roads, electricity, water and building construction? What kind of a warranty comes with the house?

 

These are the sorts of questions you should ask about a developer -- anywhere in the world.

 

If more people asked more questions before writing checks, there would be fewer people suffering from buyer's remorse.

 

Chances are that if the other owners are happy there, you will also be happy; and if the other owners are unhappy you will also be unhappy.

 

 

Before buying a new home/apartment there are several things you should take into consideration:

Before buying a new home/apartment there are several things you should take into consideration:

Shortly, there are some important steps you should take before buying a home in a new housing development in Panama:

 

Shortly, there are some important steps you should take before buying a home in a new housing development in Panama:

 

Before buying a home in a new housing development in Panama, it is important to check the track the record of the developer and the projects that they have done before. You can easily go online and find resources. When you have an unsatisfied customer, they go on the Internet. You can also find out about satisfied customers.

Before buying a home in a new housing development in Panama, it is important to check the track the record of the developer and the projects that they have done before. You can easily go online and find resources. When you have an unsatisfied customer, they go on the Internet. You can also find out about satisfied customers.

Please, see if you can speak to others living in the development and also read your contract.  

 

I have a friend that lives in a 'complex' where she needs to pay for guests every time when they visit to use the pool, and the manager can decide at any time if he will let them; little things that may seem insignificant,  but eventually will make all the difference in how happy you are in your complex.

 

(Condo with pool...

Please, see if you can speak to others living in the development and also read your contract.  

 

I have a friend that lives in a 'complex' where she needs to pay for guests every time when they visit to use the pool, and the manager can decide at any time if he will let them; little things that may seem insignificant,  but eventually will make all the difference in how happy you are in your complex.

 

(Condo with pool amenities, pictured.)

 

Before buying in a new housing in Panama, I would recommend that you pick a developer carefully.  The most important thing to consider is the reputation of the developer, followed by price of the property, and then the location of the home.
 
It's important to know who the developer is.  If the developer is not financially sound, then what may happen is that the developer will use the sales of the early units in order to finance the development of the rest of the...

Before buying in a new housing in Panama, I would recommend that you pick a developer carefully.  The most important thing to consider is the reputation of the developer, followed by price of the property, and then the location of the home.
 
It's important to know who the developer is.  If the developer is not financially sound, then what may happen is that the developer will use the sales of the early units in order to finance the development of the rest of the property or there may be some other financing issues where the property development is never finished.  When this happens the people who bought early are left stuck with a property in a not finished development. 
 
Once you’ve found a reliable developer, the next thing to do is to buy a property in the early stages of development.   Under construction developments are good investments because the value of the property tends to go up as the construction is ongoing and is even higher when it gets finished and more amenities are put in, like the club house, tennis courts, etc.   

 

(Proposed common area for Costa Linda, Regency Development's gated community outside of Panama City, Panama, pictured.)

If you do that, purchasing in pre-construction is great because you can get a much better price than you would on an already existing inventory.  And if you’re not ready to retire yet (perhaps you’re thinking of retiring a few years down the line), you can at least know that you’ve locked in to your property at a good price and when it’s ready and it would be your moment to come down and retire you won’t have to pay the whole thing upfront, either.  

First of all, when you are buying a new home or a condo in a new housing development in Panama, you need to know who is behind the development. As always, there are people that have better experience and reputation in Panama and are serious about how they deliver and develop their projects, so as a result, they have very few or no complaints from home buyers. Then there are people who are less serious and think they can be developers who fail, which happens in most countries. So the first...

First of all, when you are buying a new home or a condo in a new housing development in Panama, you need to know who is behind the development. As always, there are people that have better experience and reputation in Panama and are serious about how they deliver and develop their projects, so as a result, they have very few or no complaints from home buyers. Then there are people who are less serious and think they can be developers who fail, which happens in most countries. So the first thing I’m going to do is usually know the developer and check their experience and reputation.
 
It is also important to know where the development is located, because there are areas that have higher expectations of appreciation than others. It’s always recommendable if you can find one or two real estate brokers who can provide an objective opinion, because it’s always difficult to come from the outside and get the information on what area or what city has a higher possibility of appreciation. So get recommendations.

 

(Condos available at Cubita Villas and Condos, Chitre, Panama, pictured.)