Poker player relocating with wife and 1 year old, thoughts?

Charles,

I am going to respond to both posts you posted last night, one on Panama and the one in Mexico if that's okay.  We lived in Panama and are right now in Cuernavaca so I have the perspective of both answers. I will then send you privately an email detailing some new developments on the beach areas of Panama since you talked about safety.

You are correct.  You are allowed to stay 6 months in each of these countries without having to leave. You then need to leave for 3 days and you can return for another 6 months.  There are ways around this little issue in Panama right now and if you want to know more let me know.

Internet usage in both countries is incredibly good.  I need to use the internet for my businesses as well and I am on 12 hours a day, seven days a week.  It is also how we stay connected to family and friends and we have had no issues with internet coverage.

Are you not allowed to have a bank account in the US?  The reason I say this is because any money you have deposited into a bank in Panama is going to be converted to the balboa.  So even though the money coming out of the ATM is the american dollar they are going to charge you a service fee to convert the money over.  Those fees add up.  So if you can explain that a little better I can give you more information.  We opened an HSBC account in the US and that's where our money gets deposited.  I then pay fees only on the amount of money I withdraw, not on the whole amount. 

Las Tablas is a wonderful area of Panama and it was one of my favorites.  I suggest you go there and rent for 6 months before you decide its the best location for you however.  And yes, you can rent for $600 a month.  If you negotiate with a reliable realtor and you are willing to pay the rent in advance you might be able to get a better rate as well.  Keep that as an option.  American renters are very well received in Panama because most Americans pay their rent on time, and many locals do not, mostly because they can't afford too.

As I said I am in Cuernavaca.  It is safe and I would think about this area if I were you.  There is a lot of information about the violence in Mexico that does not tell the whole story.  The recent rape of 6 Spanish woman who were visiting Acapulco for instance did not disclose internationally that the woman had purchased drugs earlier in the day from the men who raped them so that is why they knew where the woman were and how to get into their place.  It was not a ramdom act of violence against tourists.  The same thing happened in Panama near Colon.  It was reported in spanish papers that a wealthy spanish millionare was killed in Panama.  What came out later was that he was a drug runner for drugs to Spain.  So there are reports and then there is the truth.  You need to dig deeper to get to the truth. 

While gun violence in Panama is rare it does happen. There was a particularly bad occurance last night but I will email you privately with that information.

I hope this begins to answer some of your questions.

I will now email you the rest of the information.

Best,

pokerchief29 wrote:

Hi all!

Just found this forum a few days ago.  Im a online poker player from wisconsin.  In 2011 the u.s government shut down my poker sites mainly pokerstars and fulltilt crippling my ability to make a living.  Since i went back to work in masonry in the twin cities found a wonderful woman and had a son. 

Recently I have learned that with proof of residency in another country i can get back to making a living doing what i love!  So my first thoughts were what place can i stay at the longest.  I can stay in panama for 6 months and also mexico.  I believe most the other countries is 3months.  My main question is cost of living.  We are looking into the las tablas area.  after travel expenses we will have about $10,000 for the 6 months. After rent, utilities and internet we would like to spend around $600/month. Is this a safe/realistic amount?  I will need reliable internet.  Also to get back on the poker sites i will need a bank account.  I have heard these may take a while to get set up. 

I have always loved traveling.  Im 35 now and when I was growing up my mother was a travel agent.  My favorite place to go was mexico.  Ive been there maybe 10 times over the years and love it there.  Now especially that we will be bringing my 1 year old son safety is one of my main concerns and the reason that I am thinking of panama more than mexico.

I havent contributed to this community yet but any info/thoughts on my journey would be GREATLY appreciated on the pros and cons of panama and mexico.

We were looking into ecuador but I think i can only stay there for 3 months?

thanks all,

charles