Name: Sarah Booth

Age: 42

Nationality: Canadian

Living in: Coronado, Panama

When I first arrived in Panama, I was like a kid in a candy store. As a real estate investor, I immediately saw the opportunities. I was attending an IL conference and on day two I purchased my first apartment for $76,500—four blocks from where the conference was being held. (It’s since generated close to $40,000 annually for the last few years.)

Life in Canada had been great but uninspiring. I wanted to embrace the challenge of living in another country, learn a language and enjoy a different culture. My lifelong goal had always been to travel. I just had to figure out a way to do what I loved and earn a living.

So I sold my Canadian property management/vacation rental business and went traveling in Southeast Asia. After a few years on the road I ended up in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. There I purchased my first international property and started a small, personal-vacation rental business.

When I came to Panama my intent was to close on the apartment I had bought, furnish it, and begin to market it online for weekly-vacation rentals. I was going to move on to Argentina and beyond for travel and investment opportunities.

But I began making friends and meeting neighbors. They were so incredibly friendly that I really fell in love with the country and people.  I continued making investments, renovating and adding properties to my rental portfolio in Panama City. Business has been great. My clients includes business people, relocators, investors and tourists, so there is really no “off season” as you’d find in a resort area.

I now live in a gated community in Coronado. It’s full of surprises and interesting people. I have befriended locals and expats alike and there is always something going on: BBQ’s; monthly expat dinners, ladies’ golf days and fun golf tournaments.

I’ve never fancied myself as a gated-community type at all. I am an adventurer and a backpacker; I love to live among the locals. But Coronado is different. It is not a typical gringo community. It’s a Panamanian weekend community where the most interesting expats I’ve ever met happen to live, and they keep coming. These folks are entrepreneurial and full of adventure, and together we are making a community full of fun, support, recreation and activities.

For me, Coronado is an awesome combination of Panamanian immersion and culture. The caretakers (who live in a small casita on the property), don’t speak a word of English, which is wonderful for my continuing effort to improve my Spanish. These folks “came” with the house, along with a parrot and four lovebirds. Their grandchildren often come for a visit, and there are always hugs and kisses for Auntie Sarah.

Now there is a state-of-the-art medical clinic at Coronado with a CAT scan, two grocery stores and more amenities opening all the time. I go to the San Fernando Clinic regularly to buy my two grande cappuccinos ($1.10 each) to start the day. Passersby must think I’m a hypochondriac or terminally ill, as I’m seen at the hospital every single day!

Business is still vibrant, even though the rest of the world seems at a bit of a standstill. The networking opportunities are outstanding, the rentals are busy and people seem very positive around here. I often invite my city clients to my property in Coronado for a swim, lunch or a beer. I get to meet interesting people from all over the world.

I run my new vacation-rental business in Panama City. It now consists of six apartments in prime locations. I have a trusted “man-on-the-ground” in Panama City, who receives my clients at the airport, checks them in and looks after them.  This is Jose, a taxi driver I met on the side of the road three years ago. Jose is now my close friend and property manager. I can travel again knowing everything is taken care of in Panama!

My caretakers are like my family; they look after me and my property completely. Labor is inexpensive. I could never afford such luxuries back in Canada. Decent Chilean wine is generally $4 to $7 per bottle and groceries are inexpensive—as long as you buy locally and not the fancy imported goods. My number one masseuse brings her own table and charges $25 per hour, compared to my former $110-an-hour massages in Canada!

There are a million reasons why making a move overseas could be right, satisfying and downright fun for anyone. You don’t even have to make a drastic move. I have many snowbird friends…and personally, I still keep my Canadian passport, my Canadian medical insurance, and a property in Canada to borrow against to finance my overseas properties. I have properties and close friends in three different countries that I see regularly, so I really didn’t “leave” anything behind.

It doesn’t have to be an-all-or-nothing move. You can test the waters and have the best of both worlds…whatever is best for you. It doesn’t have to be scary and 100% life-changing, just life-enhancing. I came here looking for investment opportunities—but I  ended up with a whole new life.

Editor’s Note: Sarah’s business, Panama Holiday Homes, now has six properties in Panama City and two casitas for rent on her property in Coronado. She continues to provide holiday rentals in Puerto Vallarta and currently has properties for sale by owner there.

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