Living in Central America – Panama among the cheapest countries

Living in Central America has been considered by many as the perfect place if you are looking for a low cost of living. Countries such as Panama, Nicaragua and Belize, attract much attention for its low costs compared to United States and Canada. But living in Central America is really cheaper? And if so, how much cheaper can it get?

Living in Central America – Gogetit Highlights

* In countries like Panama, American expats get many benefits, such as climate, cost of living and price of properties for sale or rent.

* A study entitled “Expat Report: Is it cheaper to live abroad,” noted that 43.1% of 400 expats surveyed reported that the cost of living in Central America was 25% to 50% on their country of origin.

* In general, expats surveyed took advantage of the extreme difference in the cost of domestic service by hiring domestic employees and gardeners, so much easier than they would in their home country.

For living in Central America, one of the things that reflect the lower costs is the price of housing. In the specific case of Panama, properties in areas inside the country, as Boquete, are usually cheaper than what could cost a home in Texas, United States.

This particular case is about a surveyed expat, who said that “It took more than U.S.$ 2,400 a month to live in a city in Texas, which at that time was 25% lower than the average cost of living in the US. Here in Panama, we can do it for U.S.$ 1,600 easily.” That is why, among other things, living in Central America is usually quite attractive to many people.

Among foreign residents of Nicaragua, 60.5% said the cost of living there was half or less of what it costs in their home country. The rate was 45.3% to 19.9% ​​for Belize and Panama.

Several categories of expenditure, helped pull accounts for lower living costs, and in some cases there was a lack of certain expenses. Examples include payment of electricity or (in some cases) property taxes.

The case of an American surveyed Roy Cannon, who now has been living in Panama for 10 years, explained that “in relation to the possibility of buying more, here in Panama I can afford the house, (including assistants) by less than it costs my utility bill and taxes in the United States.