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Panama: Getting answers in Panama - Gail Geerling, Success in Central America

Customer service and attorneys

I’m often asked what is the biggest challenge foreigners face when they visit Central America, particularly if they want to purchase property or do business in the region. My answer is usually, “It’s easier to identify what ISN’T a challenge in Central America!”

Just so we’re clear, for the geographically challenged: Central America is not Kansas or Missouri. It’s the cluster of countries that connect North America to South America - including Belize, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. On a map, it’s the long skinny bit in the middle of the two larger Americas.

While North America is largely the First World, and South America has a somewhat European orientation in many places, the land bridge separating these two continents has somehow managed to become the red-headed stepchild of the Americas — left behind just a bit. Yet, I can say without a shadow of doubt that some of the most dynamic property deals and investments in the world are on offer in Central America right now.

So instead of leaving it out of your portfolio, why not learn how to meet the unique challenges Central America presents—and use the cultural, social, and business anomalies to your benefit?!

The first ‘issue’ visitors often have with Central America- in particular, in countries such as Panama where the massive skyscrapers give one the impression of the First World - is Customer Service. Let’s face it, I’m originally from the US, and even my stomach roils sometimes at all the “Have a Nice Day” terminally happy jargon. Yet, upon arrival in Panama, my soul cries out for the tiniest bit of recognition by an Immigration employee… the smallest guidance through a complex and often time-consuming system.

My expat friends often joke that in Panama, nearly all the restaurants are Self-Serve, whether staffed or not. They’d be just about right, actually.

While this is changing slowly, the concept of Customer Service has not yet made it to many parts of the region. Learning how to handle this in a property transaction can save you time, money, and lots of grey hair.

For example, often my clients will leave a real estate purchase in Panama in the hands of an attorney, and be confused when they don’t receive responses to their emails and the deal has not yet closed. They usually ask if they picked the wrong attorney…

Picking the right attorney in Panama - in fact, in any Central American country - is a difficult process, much like it is in your home country. Often when I’m asked if there are any good attorneys in Central America, I reply, “Yes, and I can give you contact details for both of them!”

All joking aside, it may be that they have picked the wrong attorney. However, it’s far more likely they’ve picked an ineffective means of communication for the cultural norms of the region.

Those of us from First World countries are generally accustomed to email communication, and we use it regularly. Email is fast, effective, and it serves as a set of notes and a record of what has been agreed, in case one or the other party forgets.

However, I have found many people in Central America who prefer not to use it at all, or, if they do it’s used sparingly and ineffectively.

Business culture

Culturally, business is simply done face to face. There is no getting around it, and there are no easy shortcuts. If you can’t be here in person for some length of time, your transaction is likely to be delayed until your return—or, eventually, until you handle it another way.

If you’re having trouble getting a response from an attorney in Central America via email, try to use these key Tips for Success:

1) Sometimes email is lost. In an unofficial review, I discovered that nearly one-third of emails between my computer here in Panama and the outside world are never received. Whether this is because it’s easy to say “I sent that email reply a long time ago” or because they really do get lost, I have no idea… But the fact remains that often communications systems go down within the region, especially in rural areas.

2) If you know a contact who can be used to follow up on your behalf, use them. In other words, buyer’s advocates are your best friend. The extra money you spend on someone to chase your transaction will be well worth it in the end.

3) If you must do the follow through work yourself and have sent an email with critical information, follow up with a phone call to the attorney’s office just to make sure your email was received and reviewed.

4) While on the phone, ask when you could expect a reply. Tell the person you’re speaking to that if you have not received a reply by then, you will follow up with another phone call. This puts them on the alert that you should not be one of the papers that gets buried under the stack.

5) Follow-through in Central America is rare, without some pushing on your part (Remember, if your face is not in front of theirs, they will forget). Be prepared with a list of questions to ask on the phone, and be prepared to make several phone calls in order to get what you need.

And, finally, always remember that while Panama - and other countries in Central America may seem to be the first world, in many ways we are worlds apart.

Gail Geerling

Gail has lived nearly fifteen years in Central America, managing and consulting for real estate development projects in Belize, the Bay Islands of Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama. Her ‘Success in Central America’ program teaches some of the most valuable insights gleaned during her time in the region, giving her clients the ability to choose a clear direction forward and follow through to their own success.

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