Seems like we could use a separate thread re living and retiring in Medellin, re best places to live, furnished and unfurnished apartments, adjusting to the culture, and health care.
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Seems like we could use a separate thread re living and retiring in Medellin, re best places to live, furnished and unfurnished apartments, adjusting to the culture, and health care.
From what I read on the CR forum, and elsewhere, and using common sense too, it seems that renting for a good while, perhaps a year, would be a good idea, as opposed to buying immediately. For that matter, as we've some to know all too well in the US, renting may be preferable in the long run too. The general advice though, is to rent in the area you are considering for all four seasons, to the extent there are four seasons in Medellin, in any event to experience the area you are considering in various seasons and climate conditions.
In this amazing thread I've started, I will ask, which is preferable to retire in, Poblado, Envigado, Sabaneta, Laureles, or elsewhere? And why of course?
this thread is red hot! my next question is, is it possible for an expat to live near medellin without air conditioning? the temp is one thing, but the humidity is another, and of course air conditioning deals with both. can it be done by a guy reared with air?
chesrep001
it depends. how much money do you have?
[quote=chesrep001;1265037]in this amazing thread i've started, i will ask, which is preferable to retire in, poblado, envigado, sabaneta, laureles, or elsewhere? and why of course?[/quote]
it never gets too bad. a ceiling fan and air fan in your bedroom should be adequate.
[quote=chesrep001; 1265684]this thread is red hot! my next question is, is it possible for an expat to live near medellin without air conditioning? the temp is one thing, but the humidity is another, and of course air conditioning deals with both. can it be done by a guy reared with air?
chesrep001[/quote]
Thanks Gringo. In pre-retirement mode, I have noticed that my H&A bill runs some $250 to $300 a month here in the Deep South. It would be nice to cut that expense out. But right now I am addicted. But still it is an intriguing possibility to reduce expenses.
[url]http://www.abebooks.com/blog/index.php/2012/03/05/jonathan-swifts-resolutions-for-old-age/[/url]
[quote=chesrep001;1275678][url]http://www.abebooks.com/blog/index.php/2012/03/05/jonathan-swifts-resolutions-for-old-age/[/url][/quote]with a little explanation.
[url]http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview/id/235402.html[/url]
Well I went to Sabaneta, courtesy of Fernando the taxi driver, and even in Sabaneta the tower construction continues at a heated pace. In other words, what I thought was the sleepy pueblo of Sabaneta is actually about equivalent to our capital city of Columbia, South Carolina. From the heights of Sabaneta, I looked back over Medellin to Bello, and the size of this city is staggering. In elementary school we were taught the word Megalopolis, and that is Medellin. So for my sleepy retirement, I am at a loss.
They have closed the thread on CR, so on my personal forum here on ISG I will write a little about Noah. As you know, he was killed a few days ago, by assassins, perhaps also friends, on La 70. Noah was, like most of us, a mixture of good and bad. He was very intelligent, and personable when he wanted to be, but he was obsessed with mafia and drive-by killings, and of course he had a drug habit. I spent a day with him, maybe 2 days, and we had fun. Anyone who knew him had at least one day of fun with Noah. But he had no goal, no final cause, and combined with his drug abuse, that led him to his early fate, at 46 or 48 years of age. The things he said to me that put me off, were these: He told me, on several occasions in conversation, that he could "see that in me". I don't think he could or did. He used multiple IDs on discussion websites, a trifling act of dishonesty that nevertheless put me off. I just don't tell those kind of little lies. In short, to me his primary defect was dishonesty. And then, if you crossed him, or even disagreed with him, he was capable of divulging your secrets, or whatever he knew about you, in a hateful manner, on the internet in an intentional effort to hurt you. Strange! Ultimately, though, I think, suspect, that Noah had his personal demons. Perhaps he listened to them at night, alone. We could have been friends, but lots of people who knew Noah feel that way. Descansa en paz, Noah!
thanks for the info, chesrep001. sounds like he had a lot of enemies. rip.
[quote=chesrep001;1288086]they have closed the thread on cr, so on my personal forum here on isg i will write a little about noah. as you know, he was killed a few days ago, by assassins, perhaps also friends, on la 70. noah was, like most of us, a mixture of good and bad. he was very intelligent, and personable when he wanted to be, but he was obsessed with mafia and drive-by killings, and of course he had a drug habit. i spent a day with him, maybe 2 days, and we had fun. anyone who knew him had at least one day of fun with noah. but he had no goal, no final cause, and combined with his drug abuse, that led him to his early fate, at 46 or 48 years of age. the things he said to me that put me off, were these: he told me, on several occasions in conversation, that he could "see that in me". i don't think he could or did. he used multiple ids on discussion websites, a trifling act of dishonesty that nevertheless put me off. i just don't tell those kind of little lies. in short, to me his primary defect was dishonesty. and then, if you crossed him, or even disagreed with him, he was capable of divulging your secrets, or whatever he knew about you, in a hateful manner, on the internet in an intentional effort to hurt you. strange! ultimately, though, i think, suspect, that noah had his personal demons. perhaps he listened to them at night, alone. we could have been friends, but lots of people who knew noah feel that way. descansa en paz, noah![/quote]
1 you can't do much of anything in Colombia without a cedula. Like open a bank account. This is a national I'd card. There are cedulas for citizens and cedulas for extranjeros (foreigners). Look at any colombian embassy website for the basics: you can get a job, get a permanent girl, or have your business get you a negocia visa, or try a retired person visa (if you have a pension etc.). Even a simple visa like business visa, that they WANT to give you, can easily take 4 months, or more, including 5 weeks minimum for the issuance of your cedula. Actually, you don't get a cedula, you get a temporary Contrasena card while you wait an indeterminate time for the official cedula card. Your bank will reject the Contrasena, but you can go back to DAS and get a printed regulation that says they have to accept the Extranjero contrasena as if it were a cedula. (Note: DAS is supposed to be gone, but there is a small bit left that deals with visas.)
2. In any new country, renting for a year is always a smart move. Once you have a home, people will start to treat you like a local instead of a tourist, and tell you useful truths (that are hidden from tourists if negative, or just never come up in conversation if they are good). Also, the world is deleveraging (I. E, reducing debt) which means that most real estate in the world is on the way down. There are exceptions, but I don't expect Colombia to be one of them, when the Chinese economy slows, so will Colombia. So renting is best.
3. You can wire money into Colombia from other countries, but the source account must be in your name not the name of a company, like your bank account in Colombia. If the amount is over 10 million pesos (about $6000) you have to go to the branch and explain the source of funds.
4. If you buy a car, you can't use it in the city for 2 days out of Mon-Fri each week (Pico y Placa). This is to reduce congestion. There are car plates (white) that are good for every day, but I have never seen one on a non-commercial vehicle.
5. I don't think you can get medical insurance without the government EPS and I think you need to be a resident for that. Still working on this detail.
6. If you buy a new house, you have one year to pay the deposit of from 40% to 60% of the price. No zero down mortgages here!
7. Utilities are not the same price for everyone. They go up in price as your home gets more fancy. Cheapest is Estrato 1. Very poor area. Highest I have ever heard of is Estrato 10 (giant mansion on the hill outside Bogota overlooking the city). People love to rent apartments that are Estrato 4, but for some reason nicer than Estrato 5.
8. You better speak Spanish pretty well, because not many people speak English.
-zing
[QUOTE=Zing23; 1288446]1 you can't do much of anything in Colombia without a cedula ...
-zing[/QUOTE]Good info, gracias.
Could one of you gentlemen help me with the details of obtaining a Cedula for Colombia? Where do I go? What is the first step? I want to be able to establish a bank account and rent an apartment. I will be staying in Pereira for a few weeks. Thanks in advance.