Expert: Juan Carlos Valencia - 6/16/2007

Question
I have heard of Americans retiring in Colombia and other South American countries.  What areas of Colombia have communities of Americans?  Where should an American begin to look to consider emigrating to Colombia? (i.e. Pacific coast, Caribbean coast, major cities, small towns)
Thank you.

Answer
Dear Catherine,

yes, americans and europeans are retiring to different parts of central and south america. This trend is also starting in Colombia, a little late because of the violence of the 1990īs.

As for places where americans are arriving: I would say that Cartagena, a resort city in the caribbean coast is the top destination.  It has many charms: the old, 17th century walled city, a great marina, excellent beaches in the nearby, great restaurants, international tourists, great communications infraestructure, international airport. The drawbacks: hot weather year-round, not so clean beaches in the city itself, a great divide between very rich and very poor (extremely poor) areas.
Safety is not extraordinary (common theft is nuance in some areas) but itīs not bad.

Americans and europeans are buying old houses in the walled city and refurbishing them. They are also buying modern apartments with ocean views in the miami style area of Bocagrande. The prices are high for Colombia but fairly cheap for americans.

There are some other spots where americans and europeans are buying property and retiring: Villa de Leyva, a pleasant small town about 4 hours from Bogota has nice colonial architecture, a pleasant weather with average temperature of 22 *C, nice surrounding countryside with hiking, biking and walking trails and all the conveniences of modern life. Itīs a place to relax, eat healthy foods in a hippie/peasant/artistic enviroment, a sort of Santa Fe (New Mexico) kind of place.

If you want to be more adventuruos, some foreigners are setting up bed & breakfasts in some nice, isolated areas like San Agustin, a warm weather town in the south in the nearby of some of the most interesting pre-columbian ruins in the country.

Some others have bought haciendas in the coffee bean growing plantations on the slopes of the Andes, in the nearby of the cities of Armenia and Pereira.

There are some very charming small towns that could attract foreigners but are not very well known yet like Barichara, a very nice, clean and beautiful small town about 6 hours from Bogota and 2 hours from Bucaramanga.

A few americans can be seen in the big cities of Cali and Medelin, living a low-key type of living in nice neighborhoods.

Prices here are very cheap for westerners. A dinner for two in a top restaurant with wine (La Fragata. Seafood) could cost 120 dollars. The rent for a big apartment with great views, parking lots and concierge in Cali could cost 600 dollars a month. A taxi ride from the airport to the north of Bogota could cost 6 dollars.

A lot of americans are coming here to get medical care and have plastic or other surgeries. Prices are low compared to the U.S and a lot of M.Dīs here have studied in U.S universities.

Cars are expensive because of high taxes. Real-state is becoming more expensive but it may not be so for americans. A good apartment in Bogota (100 square meters) in a nice area could cost 100.000 U.S dollars. People tend in Colombian cities tend to live in apartments not houses.

Let me know if I can help you a bit more.

Saludos

JC