FORT MILL, S.C. (CN2 NEWS) Some may joke about it, but few would actually do it — make plans to move to a new country given political climates. Well, one Fort Mill family is speaking with CN2’s Rachel Richardson about how they’re preparing for a big move.
Fort Mill’s Kristen Eyler feels like it’s time for a change. She says she’s been disappointed in the direction the United States is going and her son’s future.
“I don’t know what this country is gonna look like in 10 years. I just have a lot of worries as a mom and a single parent,” says Eyler.
She says, for her, it’s not about political parties — but so much more, including the economy, affordability and social stability. She’s decided its time for her, her mom and her 9-year-old son to move to Panama.
She’s been communicating with ex-patriots, others who have left their home countries, who were also in search of a change. CN2’s Rachel Richardson, spoke with a Canadian ex-patriot and “Inside Panama Real Estate” Owner/Realtor, Joanne Hatch.
“Boquete is like living in 1960 or 1970 except we have all the technology so we’re still in touch with the world,” says Hatch. “So here we have everybody no matter what your bag is, there’s groups for everybody and everybody knows everybody.”
Joanna has lived in Panama for the last 10 years and she and others like her, have started businesses to help others make the transition like, Retire in Panama Tours. This group helps people looking to move by giving them a 7 day tour of Panama, helping them with legal documentation, connecting them with real estate, schools and more.
“Every single person that gets our tour and gets a different checklist because we customize it based on your needs,” says Rod Larrivee, Co-Owner of “Retire In Panama Tours”. “So every individual person is going to have a series of things that they need to do to clean up in the U.S. to make the transition to Panama.”
“We tailor according to your needs so, what do you want to do? In less words you say, ‘Oscar jump,’ and I’d say how high basically so we customize details every single step of the way,” says Oscar Pena Sanchez, Co-Owner of”Retire In Panama Tours”.
This group tours around 150 people per year and of that, 40% to 50% actually move. As for Eyler, she says, “I love my country, I’ll always have America in my heart, but you know if you can, if you can afford it, if you’ve always wanted to see other places, and you’re in a position to, like our family is, then go for it if you can.”
For more resources on the move to Panama, check out CN2’s Featured Links page.
