It is not your imagination. It seems people are very reluctant to recognize a loss on a sale so they keep on hanging on.

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Luckily, there are options. We puchased an apartment in PTY ~3 years ago and have been renting it out to great tenants ever since.

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I think a lot of this is that realtors here are horrible and do little of nothing to sell property. It also has to do with where you are. There is no MLS in Panama and some people are asking 3 to 4 times what the property is worth. Property does sell. An example, a friend purchased 7 condo units here 8 years ago for under $400K and rented them for an average of $1200/mo with a 90% occupancy rate for 8 years. He decided to sell 6 of them last August. As of January he has sold 4 of the smaller units for over $600K. If you want property sold here you have to market it yourself, if you wait for the realtors in Panama you will wait for ever. I can give you many more examples. It really is a shame. I have 3 lots for sale at reasonable prices which have been on the market for 2 years, they are 15 minutes from the gringo realtors. Nothing. In November I decided to market them to the Panamanian market and now have one under contract in less than 2 months for 5% under original asking price.

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@longreach
You don't say where you are looking to buy. Here is my take on real estate in the Panama City area where I've lived for 3 years as a renter. The market has been in boom for the last 10 years or so, with thousands of new condo units coming on-stream yearly. This has affected resales: buyers are more inclined to purchase brand new, meaning that resale units sit around for awhile. Inefficient marketing by agents and owners alike doesn't help the situation. The rental market on the other hand is less stagnant if you own an attractive, furnished unit that is well-managed by an agency. It is unclear at this time when the market will absorb all the new construction, and if we are in a real estate bubble here, just when it will burst.

If you aren't interested in making a profit, and given sluggish turn-over, why bother buying at all? If you do buy, consider purchasing an income-producing property, although you'd have to carefully calculate your rate of return on the investment.

Good luck!

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@ longreach

Here in Boquete the demographics have changed considerably. It used to be that your typical expat obtained permanent residency, purchased a home, shipped down their households goods, and also purchased or shipped down a car. The real estate market was vibrant then, in fact there were numerous real estate offices in Boquete up until a few years ago. Now it appears that the majority of expats moving to Boquete come with a backpack and/or suit cases, they don't obtain permanent residency (they border hop), nor do they purchase homes or cars.

That's been my observation. I don't know about the rest of the country.

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You can thank airbnb for much of what you describe.
Without it,the backpackers and cyber nomads would be much less in evidence.

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Thank you for all the responses. This is what I like about this site. I appreciate the time taken to give thoughtful replies. It is true that I did not specify an area and that was remiss of me. I was thinking of Chiriqui Province in general. I was, however very interested in the comment regarding the investment climate in PC. The engine drives the car and steady sales activity speaks well for the future of the country. The comment on the demographics of Boquete changing was very interesting in that it appears that the pioneers of the lifestyle are finishing their watch for whatever reasons and the new generation wants something different.
It seems that they like the idea but not the commitment. I can't say that I blame them when so much is for sale and has been so for a while. If people are asking too much for their property, then the market will correct itself with time. If people want out for another reason, it would be good to know. I think people instinctively know something is up, hence the backpacks and recon. I was amazed at the number of airbnb stuff available. It seems that times are changin'. That's what makes life interesting.
We are coming back for the second time... with backpacks and airbnb, :)

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Good observations on Panama real estate longreach , like Florida & some other states the cost or property in Panama has sky rocketed in the last 15-20, contrary to IL, etc. it is not cheap any more. While looking for property I'd suggest renting for 6-12 months & look around carefully, I'd avoid Valle Escondido in Boquete & Vista Mar near San Carlos & Coronado. Becareful dealing with any ExPat, they'll take you faster than a local. For real estate services in P.C. try Kent Davis kent@panamaequity.com who lives in El Cangrejo or Jasmine at Casa Solution in Boquete info@casasolution.com 720-1331, 720-2060 www.casasolution.com
In any case be careful & research the area where you think you want to live. Tell Kent or Jasmine Lou sent you. PL

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Long, the problem started years ago. about 12 years back you could buy a really nice place anywhere in panama with a huge house on it, or just land. The price was cheap. then the gringo's started coming in, and prices started to jump big time. all it took was one gringo that fell in love with some place and offered three times what the local would have taken for it. every local with a home or land had it up for sale, and sales were good for many years. prices kept going up and the gringos kept paying them. now what you find is a lot of high rise apts, condos ect that people bought and they then found that panama wasn't the place for them, and it's time to sale and move on, but now there are very few buyers and prices are far to much. these people are locked into it, they can't or won't lose money on the sale so they sit on it until that one party wants it. Other properties that are owned by locals, they just slap a huge price on it and if it sales they are good with it. if not no big deal, after all many who own land have maybe .50 cents per meter in it, and have it listed for 12.00 to 50.00 per meter. Lots of condo's were bought to be resold at a higher price as well, but the u.s. and the world crashed and money and jobs were tight so supply and demand are way off. many people find that they can get far more house and land in the u.s. then here. many things that made panama a great place to retire have gone away. cheap living is about gone. cheap homes and land is gone. crime rates are going up. services are going up. power was just raised 22 percent more. someone just killed a single female back packer in bocos de toro. last year two more girls were killed. someone walked into a store and robbed the place and shot the lady in the head killing her. we are a small country and crime hasn't been a issue, when you compare it to the u.s. we don't have any, but now that is starting to change, just like I said months ago, once the canal is done there will be thousands of men out of work, with no way to make the kind of money they were use too, and no way to keep up the life style their families were use to living. so they are stealing. panama must deport everyone of these outsiders to slow the crime rate. service here is very bad, power is hit and miss, many places have no water. el valle de anton has been hit with huge power problems but it has been that way for my whole ten years here. power popping off and then back on, many times per night, plus huge power ups and downs, 60 to 150 within a matter of a hour. any problem you have say with power, or your cable they might get to you in a day or a week.

Back ten years ago, I was always telling people to move here, today I can't say that. Today I too have far to much invested to just up and move. I wish I could.

One thing you have to keep in mind when looking at a place, everything here has gone up. when I first started building a bag of cement was 4.00 and a day worker was 6.00 per day, today its 10.00 per bag and 25.00 for that same worker. so a simple 50k home will cost you 150k to build today.

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Will do llseldon. I will do exactly as you say. My favorite area right now is Volcan to Rio Sereno. More of a working man's area. We want to plug in, not hide out.

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Thanks RICO. I really appreciate your honesty. That is a rare commodity theses days, but one of the reasons I really like this site. I guess it's important to stick with the SECOND rule of real estate. (after location x3). That is to make your money when you buy. (buy at the right price).
We have no illusions of perfection regarding services, crime, regulation, etc. It's happening everywhere. We believe that the only reasonable security that can be had is to be a contributing member of a local community. The community knows the good guys from the bad guys, the best value for supplies and manpower (not always the cheapest BTW) and the ability to leave something lasting behind.
Again, sir, thank you for taking time. You didn't have to and we are grateful for the observations. L-

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yes, I think we are going thru a correction cycle, properties aren't selling b/c of fear of losing money. Greedy sellers want big bucks fro their properties. so they sit on it. there aren't any more suckers.
stuff hasn't been selling for 3 years we have heard from multiple realtors. once again, better to rent than to get stuck holding the hot potato.

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@ Travelocity

You are correct, there are some arrogant greedy sellers but the bulk of the problems lies with realtors particularly in Boquete. They're all essentially just listing agents. I can tell you horror stories with my experience of buying a home. There is no regulatory body for realtors so they can and will tell you whatever they want and you have no recourse. Contracts are worthless in this country. More then 50% of the homes I looked at were in flood zones but the realtors would swear they weren't. I verified with property surveys. As for list prices, realtors are off the charts.

I had friends connect me with an expat couple selling their house. The house was listed by a realtor so I reviewed the information listed on their website before viewing the house. The first thing sellers told me when I arrived at their house was that they'll take under half of asking price. Yes, they were willing to take a bath on their house. I really liked the place but was suspicious of some water abatement changes they implemented on the property especially since the house was only three years old. I verified through a Panamanian friend that the house when originally built had wood floors which were replaced with ceramic tile after repeated floods, this friend of mine was friends with the contractor who replaced the flooring and showed me before and after photos. I later verified through a property survey that the house was in fact in a flood zone. For fun, I had a friend call the realtor listing the property to inquire about the price on the house. My friend specifically asked if the sellers were firm on their asking price and the realtor said yes and that they wouldn't entertain any offers below asking price. Amazing.

I lucked out and purchased a home through a Panamanian attorney who was a straight shooter.

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Just to correct the last poster, there is a regulatory board for realtors
http://www.mici.gob.pa/subcategoria.php?cid=16&sid=51

It is a division of the ministry of commerce, which handles the licencing of realtors and investigates issues but you need to file a complaint with them.
http://www.mici.gob.pa/detalle.php?cid=16&sid=51&clid=58&id=2291

Whether they are effective or not is a totally different discussion.

One issue to keep in mind when dealing with a realtor in Panama is the customary and legal practice they do on pricing. Rather than just charging a commision on the listing price as would happen US and Canada, here they will take the owners asking price and add what ever markup they feel they can get away with. Then if it sells for the higher asking price will pay the seller his orginal price and pocket the difference.
It is always best to deal with the owner of a property directly if you can and you will usually get a much better price.

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00abuse

There is a regulatory board for realtors
http://www.mici.gob.pa/subcategoria.php?cid=16&sid=51

It is a division of the ministry of commerce, which handles the licencing of realtors and investigates issues but you need to file a complaint with them.
http://www.mici.gob.pa/detalle.php?cid=16&sid=51&clid=58&id=2291

Whether they are effective or not is a totally different discussion.

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00abuse

There is a regulatory board for realtors
http://www.mici.gob.pa/subcategoria.php?cid=16&sid=51

It is a division of the ministry of commerce, which handles the licencing of realtors and investigates issues but you need to file a complaint with them.
http://www.mici.gob.pa/detalle.php?cid=16&sid=51&clid=58&id=2291

Whether they are effective or not is a totally different discussion.

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@ StanleySankey

You wrote:

"Whether they are effective or not is a totally different discussion."

Pragmatically speaking, there is no regulatory body.

Title fraud is rampant in Panama, in fact there's a gentleman here in Boquete that has sold the same house four (4) times.

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00abuse

So, my take away on this is;
The price is not really the price.
Deal directly with the seller.
Have a decent lawyer you can trust.
Is that a fair summary?

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00abuse

I bought in the city and I had a good experience with my realtor. Am I the only one? They helped me negotiate the price down by several thousand $ and later found a stable, consistent tenant. They deposit rent payments into my bank account on the 1st of each month like clockwork for past 2 years. They also pay assessments each month and handle any requests from the tenant. I am lucky I suppose. But the key was using a realtor that came recommended by friends. I can confirm that there are good realtors out there but you must take care when finding them.

Also, both my attorney and realtor rec9mmended a small mortgage that could be paid off after a couple years, simply to get the bank involved. Banks tend to be very risk averse and make sure of clear title, etc on your behalf. It was worth the interest for a couple years, especially since the tenant pays the mortgage. There are creative ways to protect yourself if you explore.

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For Boquete check out Casa Solutions. PL

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00abuse

I live in a more local (rather than expat) area of Panama, Puerto Armuelles, and I see properties that have sat for sale for years here too. However, there ARE properties selling as well. My perception is that most of the properties that aren't moving are probably priced too high. Especially if they are owned by expats, though that is not always the case. A lot of people that are buying here are looking for a "deal" and those are often sold by 'word-of'mouth" in Panama, between locals. Once they are listed online or with a realtor the price goes up because they are basing it on what they see listed online already. There is no functional national MLS service so no way to find comps to determine the right price. If I were you, I'd rent first and talk to as many locals as you can to let them know you are looking for a place to buy. You'll have better luck at getting a more reasonably priced property this way. Good luck!

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00abuse

Thanks again, everyone. This is all sound advice. I'm glad there are good experiences. There usually are but you often don't hear about them so it is nice to know that they are there also. I guess the big surprise for me is that the reasonably priced things are typically not on the listings. One more good reason to rent in the area that you like. Then keep your ear to the ground, get involved in the local community and start enjoying the place. Hope to see some of you this March. L-

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00abuse

May I ask the realtor you used?

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So far everything I have checked out has been online. Here is a list;
panamrealtor.com
viviun,com
realsestatechiriqui.com
casasolution.com
encuenta24.com
insidepanamarealestate.com
bestplacestoretire.com
realestate-panama.com
Hope that helps. L-

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00abuse

Like another poster said the realtors don't try very hard to sell anything in Panama.My parents owned a condo in Gordon's right on the beach,the realtor was overseeing it supposedly trying to sell it for 5 years.My parents were tired of dealing with her .According to the realtor there were never any interested buyers of the property.I took the time to check out the realtors website to see if they were trying to sell it and the pics were horrible and the price was way overboard,not the price that my parents thought they were selling it for.So I took it over and sold t he property for my parents and it was sold within 6 months meanwhile my parents still made a great profit out of the property.So from my experience the realtors act like they don't need to make any money cause they sure don't try selling anything.

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00abuse

Indianchief you mean Gorgona?

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00abuse