Panama's True Real Estate Deals Via The Road Less Traveled

Oct. 10, 2007 - PRLog -- The small Republic of Panama has been reaching new heights in a real estate industry recently that’s taken Central America by storm. However for those baby boomers who think they’re too late for a piece of the action, small new pockets of development in the country’s charming countryside are offering cheaper and more unusual investment opportunities.

Many Americans are bypassing the hype of city real estate in Panama to uncover true gems of the “interior” where ocean view property and large parcels of land offer truly great values.

“Just a few steps further” assured Clint Ogden, a forty three year old insurance lawyer originally from Manhattan. “This will be one of the best views you’ll ever seen in your life.”

And it most certainly was. Ogden, not unlike a small handful of similar expats in Panama, was a seasoned Manhattan professional who several years ago turned in his suit and briefcase for the more enviable vocation of watching sunsets from atop his oceanside cattle farm in Pedasi, one of Panama’s up and coming investor destinations. He cited the country’s retirement benefits, infrastructure, and near-perfect climate as the main guilty parties.

We walked a hand-laid stone path up to a small viewing area where Ogden had set up big pillows on an inviting couch, complete with a holster for his bottle of Miller Light. He outlined the boundary of his farm which ran for miles nestling up neatly against the sparkling ocean, including his gorgeous villa and trails for hiking. Then, almost on cue, we watched as falling sun set the Pedasi sky ablaze.

“Travelers and investors to Panama will be interested in authentic destinations” alleged Casey Halloran at this year’s Panama AMCHAM event: one founded on the theme of sustainable or as he calls it “authentic” tourism. Halloran, owner of the nation’s top online travel agency Panama Luxury Vacations (http://www.vacationtopanama.com), believes new age travelers are looking to experience less the resort or city type atmosphere and more something eco-friendly and unique.

People like Clint Ogden seem to echo this notion to a tee. “Panama City real estate is great, don’t get me wrong” said Ogden, “but it was these gorgeous rolling hills and these friendly people in Pedasi that really felt like something special. The price tag didn’t hurt either” he chuckled. Ogden purchased his 10 acre ocean view finca for under $200,000 in 2006 and is currently in the process of selling individual parcels to people just like him. “We couldn’t risk the natural disasters in Florida any more and prices in Costa Rica were out of our price range. That’s when we came across Panama’s Azuero Peninsula and Pedasi when we were astounded by its beauty and value.”

Experts in Panama real estate are quick to point out that beyond the glitz and glamour of major resorts and cosmopolitan Panama City, the Republic has some of the most pristine coasts in the region. Matt Landau, Founder of The Panama Report (http://www.thepanamareport.com) was quoted last month stating, “the real estate and tourism potential of coastal regions in the Los Santos and Veraguas provinces (Azuero Peninsula) is staggering…for investors alone, the deals available in these regions are sometimes one tenth the price of Costa Rica and in many opinions just as exquisite.”

A number of baby boomers making their way down to Panama, just like Ogden, are coming dejected from Costa Rica where real estate prices have skyrocketed to inappropriate levels. And when they stumble across towns like Pedasi, they’re intrigued by fantastic roads, access to electricity, and general first-world amenities not usually associated with rustic coastal living.

In fact, Pedasi is so primed for investment that it made Landau’s list of Under the Radar Hotspots in his Panama Real Estate Report (http://www.thepanamareport.com/real-estate-report/panama-...) which was released this past Spring. “Where else you could score a piece of ocean view property with this kind of infrastructure for this little money I don’t know” he claims. “Whether you’re looking to retire to sublime sunsets or simply make a lucrative investment, Panama’s road less traveled is definitely a great way to go.”

According to Halloran, Panama’s eco-tourism boom is just underway so it appears that investors and retirees alike will have several years to snatch up sunsets as beautiful as these. And from atop Ogden’s hill, the lights of booming Panama City and the bustle from his previous life in the US seem blissfully far away.

Website: www.vacationtopanama.com