New Expat Housing: Rent or Buy?

article from November 18, 2010
By Jamie Douglas

So you want to become an expat! No matter the reason or where you come from, the most important thing is housing. So what are you to do when you are finally ready to make the big leap into the great unknown? Should you contact real estate agents at your chosen destination?  Look at online classifieds in publications?  Rent or buy?

Here are some of my experiences over that last 40 years. I have lived in countless countries and always rented. I had mostly great experiences and a couple that were only good. The worst were in the USA, where apparently landlords believe that that the security deposit is theirs to keep, no matter what, when they know you are leaving the country.

On the other hand, when the washer or water heater check out, I call the landlord, and generally speaking, things get fixed quickly. And that is just one advantage. The other is mobility. If the location does not live up to your expectations, you are much more free to move on.

So you go to – let’s say – Parador, where there is a large expat community, and everything is hunky-dory, until the Army decides to suspend the constitution and declares martial law. Chances are, of course, the CIA and United Fruit or some mining company had something to do with that, and Yanquis and Gringos are not very popular at the moment. Now you are confronted with two choices: Stay and risk everything, including your life, or bail out on the last flight leaving Parador, which is already overbooked with the former corrupt  government officials trying to flee the country along with your fellow expats.  I speak from experience here, and not just once!

If you rented, you sacrifice your household goods and walk away – with a minimum loss.

If you bought land or a house, you are now completely on your own, and selling your dream-become-nightmare will not be so easy because the other 7,000 expats are trying to sell as well, and some are willing to take centavos on the dollar just to get out, thereby  depressing the market tremendously – that is, assuming that the new Maximum Leader has not decided to nationalize your lovely coffee plantation and adjoining vineyard, which you put so much time and dedication and all of your and your investors’ money into.

And if you bought into a gated community, don’t forget that the friendly man in the pseudo-police uniform never really could stand all the rich foreigners and locals who lived behind their walled compounds, and he won’t be there to keep looters and kidnappers out.

The army and police will be either decimated or busy establishing themselves in positions of importance. Everywhere you look, the graffiti on wall says “GRINGOS FUERA DE SAN VINCENTE!” And of course, there will be the usual chorus of peasants: "Parador’s lands are for Paradoreños!" 

So now what do you do? Stay and fight like in the Wild West Movies – bad, bad idea – or get packing – great idea, as you can always come back later when things calm down? And don’t worry about your caretakers. They will squat on the land and then claim it as their own.

So, my suggestion is to RENT until you get to know the place pretty well, make local friends, blend in, and don’t flash your wealth.  If, after a year or two, you feel comfortable, and you have that absolute need to want to fix your own appliances, roof and anything else that will definitely go wrong, you now have a great circle of local acquaintances who will know who wants to sell what, you can hire a local attorney of repute (again your local friends will gladly help you) and you can save yourself a bundle of money, all the while making new friends and actually getting to know your neighbors.

Jamie Douglas
At large in South America

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.