Episode Summary
In this episode of The Expat Files, Johnny Mueller explores a range of topics related to expat life in Latin America, including cultural misunderstandings, legal considerations, and the challenges of daily living. The episode begins with a discussion on the stereotypes that Latin Americans have about gringos and expats, particularly the perception that they are gullible, loaded with money, and prone to eccentric behavior. Johnny uses the example of a gringo in Cuenca, Ecuador, who posted a $500 reward for a lost poodle, which locals interpret as evidence of both eccentricity and wealth. He also touches on the challenges of owning long-haired dogs in Latin America, noting that they require more upkeep and are more prone to ticks, which can be problematic in the region's climate. He concludes by reflecting on the broader issue of cultural misunderstandings and the need for gringos and expats to consider the local perspective.
In the next segment, Johnny discusses the cultural attitudes of expats in Latin America, contrasting them with the behavior of many native Latin Americans. He highlights that expats tend to treat their domestic help and restaurant staff with respect, often viewing them as part of the family. He also mentions the challenges expats face, such as dealing with cleaning ladies who may cause damage, and the need to be cautious about what is said in front of them due to language barriers. Johnny also touches on the broader issue of corruption in Latin American politics, using the case of Ecuador's former comptroller, Carlos Polis, as an example of how the U.S. government often turns a blind eye to such corruption while being strict with its own citizens.
The episode then shifts to the challenges of withdrawing large sums of cash from banks, highlighting the bureaucratic hurdles and the risk of being flagged by authorities. Johnny then discusses the political and financial activities of Latin American officials, particularly in Miami, where many corrupt individuals have established themselves. He points out that these individuals, despite being under indictment in their home countries, live comfortably in the U.S. He also touches on the situation in Ecuador, where the health minister claims the country has effectively emerged from the pandemic. Johnny contrasts this with other regions, noting that while some areas are experiencing outbreaks, others are seeing a decline in cases. He then discusses the increasing trend of Europeans moving to Latin America due to geopolitical instability and the lack of strategic military targets in the region. Johnny criticizes the idea of moving to European countries like Portugal or Romania, emphasizing the risks and the proximity to conflict zones.
In the next segment, Johnny discusses the practice of cold calling and the use of email lists for targeted marketing, drawing on a listener's experience in a call center selling grave sites. The listener, Willy from Texas, explains how his company obtained email lists from hospitals and health insurance companies, often through legal loopholes. Johnny then reflects on the broader implications of data privacy and the ethical concerns of selling personal information, noting that even his own audience might be valuable to vendors. He concludes by emphasizing the importance of having wills for property in both the U.S. and Latin America, highlighting the need for legal documentation to protect assets.
The episode concludes with a call to action from Johnny Mueller, inviting listeners to contact him for more information about his upcoming expat insider seminar. He emphasizes the benefits of attending, such as gaining a head start on plan B for expat life, and provides contact details.
Episode Notes
In this episode of The Expat Files, Johnny Mueller discusses the stereotypes that Latin Americans have about gringos and expats, including the perception that they are gullible and eccentric. He also touches on the cultural attitudes of expats toward domestic help, the challenges of living with cleaning staff, and the complexities of withdrawing large sums of cash. The episode also covers the importance of legal planning for expats in Latin America, including the need for a properly structured will. Johnny concludes with a call to action for his upcoming expat seminar.
For more episodes, seminar information, resources, and the full archive, visit ExpatPlanB.com.
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Related guides: Healthcare in Latin America · Cost of Living in Latin America · Renting and Buying Property
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Topics
Stereotypes about gringos and expats, Cultural misunderstandings in Latin America, Challenges of owning long-haired dogs in the region, Economic comparisons between the U.S. and Latin America, Cultural attitudes of expats in Latin America, Treatment of domestic help and restaurant staff by expats, Challenges of living with cleaning ladies and language barriers, Corruption in Latin American politics, U.S. government's stance on corruption, Bureaucratic challenges in withdrawing large sums of cash, Corruption and financial activities of Latin American officials in Miami, Ecuador's claim of emerging from the pandemic
Chapters
00:00:00 Opening 00:00:32 Why Latina Was Down Here in Latin America 00:00:55 What's Your Limit? What's the Straw That'll Break the Camel's Back? 00:02:08 The $500 Reward for a Lost Poodle 00:05:46 Why Expats Should Avoid Luxury in Latin America 00:05:53 Expats and the Treatment of Domestic Help 00:06:22 The Reality of Expats' Treatment of Staff 00:07:14 Expats' Gratitude Toward Their Cleaning Ladies 00:10:12 Corruption in Ecuador's Political System 00:11:26 Bureaucratic Hurdles in Withdrawing Cash 00:11:41 Corruption and Financial Activities in Miami 00:12:10 The Complicity of the U.S. in Latin American Corruption 00:12:45 Ecuador's Claim of Emerging from the Pandemic 00:13:54 Geopolitical Instability and Migration Trends 00:14:53 Military Capabilities and Strategic Locations in Latin America 00:16:59 Introduction to the Email List Discussion 00:17:18 Cold Calling and Email List Acquisition 00:21:43 Importance of Wills for Property Protection 00:22:19 Importance of a Latin American Will 00:22:43 Legal Requirements for Wills in Latin America 00:24:12 Complex Family Structures in Latin America 00:26:27 Formalities for Creating a Valid Will 00:27:00 Importance of Properly Written Power of Attorney 00:27:44 Call to Action for Seminar Waiting List
Transcript
Automatically transcribed from the original recording; names and wording may contain errors.
[00:00] South of the border down Mexico way That's where I fell in love when the stars above came out to play and now that I wonder Hello there all you ex-pat wannabes. I'm Johnny Mueller and you're listening to the expat files living in Latin America The show that tells you just what it's like to live work play and or retire down here in Latin America It's a mix of the good the bad the ugly and the great and it's all right here. So let's get started All right Let's talk today a little bit about why Latina was down here in Latin America Anyway, think that gringos and expats are kind of nuts on top of that almost every one of them thinks We're just loaded with money, which is why on the tourist trail where there are so many of us
[00:45] Eventually, everyone's got a story about getting robbed or getting gouged Sometimes over and over again to the question is as one of my gringo friends living in Cancun told me What's your limit? What's the straw that'll break the camel's back? How many times you have to get ripped off or gouged before you throw in the towel and move back to Cleveland? Though PT Barnum did say there's a sucker born every minute. You have to wonder why newbie gringos and expats are so Overrepresented in that aspect. It's true. Many newbie gringos and expats that come down are gullible They're born marks, but we do learn Well, some of us anyway, and then there's those gringos and expats that never learn Often justifying the stereotype that local latins have for gringos that puts us all in a bad or stupid light For example, just the other day. I was checking out a Cuenca Ecuador gringo rag newspaper
[01:36] You know since International Living's been touting the place. It's dead on the tourist trail now anyway I just happened to run across this little full-colored ad with a picture of a fluffy little poodle an ad posted by a gringo Or I should say gringa in both English and Spanish. It says SOS retcompensa a reward offer for little Mickey our lost dog It says in both English and Spanish, please help find our lovely Mickey last seen in Salinas Santa Elena profits $500 reward now, that's exactly the kind of ad that makes locals think two things one That gringos are a little bit nuts and two that they're just loaded with dough and don't care much how they spend it Because let me tell you on occasion you will see an ad somewhere or a posted bill in a grocery store or bulletin board
[02:25] Put up by a latino or latina that says our little fluffy is lost and there'll be a nice picture in the last whereabouts where fluffy was last seen But I've never seen a latino or latina post a reward for an animal That was over 10 or maybe 20 bucks and most of them don't even post rewards They just say please help us find fluffy if you see her dial this number But a $500 reward for Mickey the stinking poodle. Hey, I'm not judging Mickey's hygiene here But if Mickey's been lost for a while, I'm sure old Mick is stinking the high heaven By the way, I always say long-haired dogs in Latin America I don't care if you're on the coast or in the Altiplano not a good idea It's so hard to keep their coats in good shape Especially if you've got six months rainy season imagine that think about the mud and goop
[03:12] They'll have to trot through when they go outside and do their thing now short-haired dogs do fine For example, I've had Dobermans and Rottweilers and the only real problem I had with their coats is occasionally when they go outside They'll come back in with a couple of ticks. Ooh ticks. Yeah, I hate him funny though The dogs don't know it and they don't seem to really care soon enough You'll spot him though, and you'll have to yank him up. You'll spot him quickly Especially if you've got a short-haired dog, you'll see a little depression in their fur It's not smooth like it should be now a long-haired dog Especially if you got a big gardener or you're out in the boonies He's gonna pick up lots of ticks and most times you'll never know it till you give your dog a bath and you're scrubbing them down Those ticks will burrow it deep. They're really good at hiding in long-haired dogs Bottom line long-haired dogs are three or four times more upkeep than the short-haired ones
[04:02] That's why so many Latinos with dogs end up thrown in the towel and their dogs really suffer for it It's pretty sad as a rule the vast majority of dog owners here in Latin America should not have had dogs in the first place Sort of like up in the states where the majority of parents should not have had kids, but where were we? Oh, yeah Little Mickey got lost and her gringo owner is offering a reward Now I'm not sure if Mickey's a male or a female macho or Embra Maybe he's somewhere in between gender fluid today. He's a boy tomorrow a girl I guess it depends on which but he's been sniffing lately dogs. Don't discriminate on that count So I guess the question is for all you LGBT WTFs out there which pronoun do you use for your dog? Will someone please tell me?
[04:48] I don't want to get it wrong and get canceled. Yeah, right, man Am I glad I got the hell out of dodge by the way? How is your plan be coming and what pronoun are you insisting on today? Hmm and think about this a five hundred dollar reward or poor little Mickey is two months salary for the average Ecuadorian put it this way if the average American up in the States makes 3,000 bucks a month That'd be like posting a six Thousand dollar reward for an American version of a lost fluffy up in Milwaukee or Cleveland And if you saw an ad like that, what would your impression be of the person or persons who posted it? I don't know about you But I think the person who posted it was a little eccentric possibly nuts and definitely loaded Or perhaps the dog's collar had a secret compartment with the owners crypto codes in it
[05:38] I doubt it But who knows what this really shows is another example of how gringos and expats never seem to put themselves in the shoes of the locals Same reason I think it's foolish or even nuts to drive a new high-end car in Latin America have the latest iPhone Wear expensive watches and real gold bling or treat your help or waiters in a restaurant like servants or second-class citizens Though I'm happy to say I rarely see the latter when it comes to gringos and expats Most all of us seem to treat our help and the waiters etcetera at restaurants with respect We treat them like real people. In fact our help our cleaning ladies maintenance guys, etc Become part of the family after a while that as opposed to many Latinos I see whether they've got a lot of money or not They often treat waiters waitresses and their own cleaning ladies like second-class citizens. I've seen it myself
[06:29] That's not to say though that you won't occasionally get mad at your own cleaning lady Sure, you'll get pissed off when she wrecks things in your house but accidents will happen though if you're gonna scold her do it in private not in front of anyone else and From what I can see and I've been down here a long long time Gringos and expats are pretty tolerant about the errors made by their maintenance guys and cleaning ladies In fact expat Eddie kind of summed it up precisely when he said, you know, my cleaning lady has ruined a lot of things But I just can't bring myself to yell at her or scold her sure I'll correct her but nicely never with disdain or harshness because I'm always thinking in the back of my mind He says and I know it's stupid, but I can't get it out of my head That she's sort of doing me a favor because when I live back up in the States
[07:14] We could never have afforded a cleaning lady and you know an expat Eddie said that I thought I know lots and lots of Gringos and expats who feel that way, too I've got a little of that in me myself because my parents could never afford it either Oh and one last thing and I'm sure I mentioned this before Just a heads up for you guys out there when you get a cleaning lady It'll take some time for you to get used to her puttering around everywhere, but that's not the worst of it You'll never feel good walking around in your underwear again and forget about prancing around in your birthday suit Oh, and you know, there's a 99% probability. She will speak no English at all But still when we're on the phone speaking to our friends and acquaintances in English if she's hovering around nearby We'll be guarded about what we say on that phone, even though she cannot understand a word
[08:03] When one last thing about that $500 reward for Mickey the stinking poodle I'd say a $50 reward would do the trick nicely even that's too much In fact, I don't think upping the reward to anything beyond that will get the locals to look any harder It only tends to further cement the idea that all of us gringos are rich eccentric and possibly nuts However, I have to say at the other end of the spectrum You've got gringo and expat backpackers who've kind of created a bad vibe with the locals The locals have long since discovered especially the ones that own businesses that backpack and gringos don't tip They drink the cheapest booze They steal toilet paper ketchup and napkins and they seek out the cheapest restaurants, which are usually Scruffy dirty unsanitary Chinese restaurants selling mystery meat chop suey at three bucks a plate
[08:55] Hmm shades of poor little Mickey. Eh, by the way, speaking of bad Chinese restaurants here in Latin America, man They're everywhere. I'd say only about one out of ten are decent and hygienic Them's bad-ass folks. All right now for you woke stir listeners out there who might be pissed off about what I just said I suggest before you say a word you come down here to Latin America and visit a few Chinese restaurants but first visit the restroom you'll find nine out of ten don't have paper towels and With probably a quarter to a third of them you turn on the faucet Not a drop of water will come up which does not bode well for the cooks who also use that bathroom Think of the hygiene problems. Oh and speaking of hygiene problems in both Latino and American bathrooms I really believe one of the worst inventions known to man are those hot air hand dryers
[09:43] Yet they're everywhere and people use them all the time It's been proven that all those machines do is recirculate weakly contaminated air yum-yum As for me if I'm in a restaurant I'll take a couple of napkins in with me and avoid those hot air hand dryers completely and if no napkins are around I'll give my hands a good shake and dry them off on my pants And if someone's using that hand dryer, I'll try not to take any deep breaths But you know lost little Mickey's not the only news coming out of Ecuador Turns out Ecuador's former comptroller Carlos polis was arrested monday and my jammy on charges of money laundering What else is new? I? Know I know that's like no news at all right, but bear with me here turns out They caught him taking eight million dollars in construction bribes
[10:29] according to the Miami indictment it says polis is accused of conspiring with a relative an Oak-bricked construction company executive and another unnamed Ecuadorian businessman and transferring ill-gotten bribery Payments from the engineering firm through a series of shell companies and bank accounts through Miami, South, Florida It says polis Ecuador's comptroller was paid eight million by an unidentified executive to influence official actions by the Ecuador comptroller's office to benefit the Construction company and its business in Ecuador by using yet another co-conspirator Another unnamed relative to make the cash disappear through banks and real estate corporations in my jammy So then why am I bringing this particular case up since there are so many South and Central American asswipe criminal politicians stealing money hand over fist?
[11:19] Well, it's just a further substantiate the fact that the US government looks the other way and allows it while coming down hard on average Americans Just try to go to your bank and ask for a thousand dollars in cash You'll have to give them a written forensic history the who what where's and why's or they'll write up an saf a suspicious Activity form and you'll be on the government's shit list. Isn't it funny though? The number one destination for these asswipe crooks is the capital of Latin America my jammy For example, the article further states the politics the Sun and father were the focus of a Miami Herald investigation in 2019 That showed the Sun had taken out various mortgages on several million dollar properties in the Miami area including a multi-million dollar luxury home and coco plump
[12:07] That had been earlier purchased outright with cash Alright me Johnny here again. What does that tell you? It's a place where Latin American bureaucrats narcos and political crooks park all the bribes and the government cash that they've stolen and you know every Miami even Florida Realtor knows that they know the names. They know the accounts They know the houses and the crazy thing is most of these guys are under indictment in their own countries And if they go back, they'll go directly to the slammer But while living in their million dollar condos in the states in my jammy. They live the high life like royalty There's something really twisted about that. Don't you think and the whole us especially Florida are complicit Oh, and one last thing about the covid it situation in Ecuador turns out just this week health minister Imana Garzon defended the government's decision to reopen most indoor businesses and events at a hundred percent capacity
[12:58] Insisting that Ecuador has emerged from the covid 19 pandemic In fact, she said since March 19th, what's that two weeks ago now We've had recorded only one death from coronavirus and her hospital IC units are reporting very very few virus patients She said the entire South American region. She said is recovering She says our numbers indicate that the pandemic in Ecuador is almost over She added that the omicron b.2 sub variant is widely prevalent in the country But has not affected the downward trend of cases or hospitalizations at all She also states accordingly. There have been no increases in cases following the recommendation or as a result of carnival holiday festivities Hmm seems like covid statistics throughout central and south america are down down down
[13:43] It's practically gone away yet. You hear in the news in certain places in asia They're having outbreaks and locking down again Just goes to show if you listen to the lame stream news, you don't know who to believe But there's one thing for sure more and more Europeans are leaving for latin america They're getting scared, especially with this ukraine thing More and more of them are working on a plan b and getting the hell out of their own version of dodge And knowing all that crap that's going down in europe and the constant threat of war between the arab states in israel The russians and ukrainians not to mention the vast influx of muslims and boat people from africa With all that mess going on. I still get emails from people all the time saying johnny Why not have a plan b and escape to portugal or romania? Poland, lithuania, macedonia, montanegra
[14:30] All I can say is you probably haven't pulled out a map lately to see just how close those places are to all that conflict Have you seen the hordes of refugees pushing west on the news? Have you thought about nato and all the nuclear missile sites posted throughout europe? Do you realize that everything in europe is a strategic nuke target? Now think about latin america except for panama and the panama canal There are no strategic sites for any nukes at all to be pointed at Can you think of anyone who wants to conquer peregway bolivia guadamala? Nicaragua argentina? I don't think so. For example, you have to realize that the entire country of guadamala has exactly 12 tanks Yep, 12 us made m41 tanks and half of them at any particular time are broken down
[15:17] It's that manana time maintenance thing, you know And get this the guadamalan air force has exactly eight propeller planes and four jets four jets And exactly 18 helicopters and none of them are attack helicopters and remember at least half of them are out of service at any given time So that's the present state of the guadamalan military. What a threat hell I bet on a dare arnie sliced the loan the rock and bruce willis could take over the country on easter weekend Hmm, I take that back. Maybe not bruce willis. I've read his brain is liquefying I mean really if you saw any of his last dozen or so movies, we all kind of knew something was wrong, didn't we? But anyway, since more and more europeans are starting to come to latin america They're getting a plan b and getting the hell out of their own version of dodge
[16:04] The question is why do you guys keep sending me emails asking my opinion about moving to places in europe? Did you sleep through geography class? Though portugal and most of the soviet block countries have two things going for them They're cheap as far as cost of living Well compared to most other western european countries and they offer cheap or fast track residency programs But really you need more than just those two reasons to pack up everything and get the hell out of dodge Nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there Even if I inherited an estate in the uk french Riviera, italy or slovakia I'd sell it or rent it out, but I would not want to live there permanently The question is why would you want to live in europe when the smart money over there is wanting to get the hell out? All right yank in the wheel a bit here, you know in the last couple shows we've been talking about wills deaths funerals
[16:52] Those unfortunate occurrences gringles and expense usually don't plan for and as usual after those shows went out I got some emails a lot of good cool and excellent ones along with some haters, too Anyway willy from texas writes and he's not a hater by any means he says johnny I'm a long-time listener who once worked for a time in a call center telemarking service selling grave sites with cold calls He said it stands to reason when you cold call someone about insurance for a death funeral or grave site The person on the other end usually hangs up on you within three seconds But my boss or I should say his company knew all the angles He'd buy email lists from google or facebook of people over 60 years old Prime candidates for what we were selling better yet. He'd buy email lists from hospital billing departments
[17:43] Which by rights is not quite legal because that's not supposed to be confidential But there's a technicality here as long as they don't give up the actual procedures performed They can and will supply an email list of for example heart patients kidney dialysis patients even oncology patients All who will be soon or eventually in the market for the services we provide cemetery plots Oh, and did you know health insurance companies sell their email lists, too? With the amazon and google data departments being the best resources as well For example, you could find out all the emails of parents who've got kids in hospital oncology wards They're all in oncology support groups on facebook, too And yes facebook sells that data when you first sign up and click the yes box for the user agreement
[18:30] You agree to all that of course. No one ever reads that stuff, but you click you agree You could also buy google data and stats and of course massive email lists on everyone searching wheelchairs oxygen tanks catheters bladder control and dementia drugs high blood pressure arthritis and parkinson drugs And you hit the jackpot with people searching on google for nursing homes. You pay good money for that email list Then willy says I know johnny this all sounds pretty cold But that's the world we live in today if you have a product to sell to a specific demographic You check out places like google ads and analytics and buy yourself a nice very specific email list Anyway, johnny. Love this show been listening for three plus years now. All right willy. Thanks for that Now I hate google and fake book even more
[19:15] Though maybe just maybe i'd be a hypocrite too if I had a product to sell and all my competition We're cleaning up by buying email lists from the likes of google and fake book I'd like to think i'd be above all that but who knows you gotta eat, right? By the way, just with my own show the expat files living in latin america I've had inquiries over the years from people saying they'd like to buy my email list You know all you guys that send me emails certain people and vendors would love to have that list I've gotten tens of thousands of emails over the years all of them coming from some email address, right? I could easily pull all those emails up and put them on an excel file and sell them That's what a lot of people do, you know, but not me think of it It takes a certain kind of person to listen to this show, right? You know independent smart looking for a plan b to get the hell out of dodge
[20:00] Distrustful of government big pharma big health care and politicians. That's an understatement, huh? You listeners realize the us government and the fiat funny money systems going down the tubes The us governments turned into a big brother state and your leaders aren't worth a shit That's pretty much the demographic that listens to this show So to vendors of certain products my email list is quite valuable though I'm not at all interested in selling it. In fact when I get email inquiries like that. I never even answer them I just dump them in the spam folder. Oh and beware of spoof mails out there, too If you ever get an email from me, if we've not been in contact before requesting anything from you or proposing or recommending something to you It's not me. It's a spoofer. People do that. You know, they create an email or a website That's almost like yours and they try to trick people into giving them data or money
[20:49] Lots of that going on in the crypto world, especially with the shit coins You've probably gotten one of those, you know, send me a bitcoin or an ethereum and in one month I'll send you two back I know I know it sounds ridiculous that someone would actually do that but people do Just think of all the billionaire nigerian princes that have been in contact with you Funny how they'll ask you for your bank numbers so they can deposit millions into your bank account and share it with you But they won't do a free live video call with you Yep, nigeria a country where every billionaire has got a bad internet connection And here I thought america was god's chosen country. Not so in nigeria. Everyone's born a prince But I digress as usual. Oh, yeah That last emailer willy he reminded me of something wills as in last will and testament
[21:38] In last week's show we hit on wills a little bit. Let's finish it up now Listen up. This is important If you have any kind of bank accounts real estate jewelry art collectibles anything like that up in the states You'll need to have a will drawn up by a us lawyer for that stuff And if you have any kind of quantifiable property in latin america bank accounts real estate gold jewelry art collectibles cash That is more than pocket cash and or a decent smartphone tv well stocked liquor cabinet, etc You will need to have a will drawn up by your local latin lawyer just for that stuff So again two wills one for the stuff you've got here in latin america and one for this stuff You might have back up in the states And if you're living full-time here in latin america or almost full-time your will could or should also have a section instructing
[22:26] Doctors slash hospitals, etc to pull the plug or withhold artificial life support according to your wishes Again, it's really important to note that a u.s Will or any other foreign will does not take the place of a latin american will in the country you're living in because of certain requirements that exist in latin america mostly as far as how and when assets must be disposed of to friends and family when you croak and or disposal percentages a good example of how latin american wills different from us wills is that us wills are often more flexible in terms of permitted Beneficiary designations than latin american laws provide Because in north america families are often less complicated than families here in latin america So what do I mean by that? Well latin american families can often be very complicated
[23:15] Given that one's marital status has often not been legalized But if you live with someone for more than six months, it's considered a common law marriage Can you see the problem there? And there are a very high percentage of common law marriages here in latin america that have never had anything written down on paper Where there's never been a religious or a civil ceremony many gringos and gringas are in that spot Think about this for a second suppose a couple gets married here in latin america a latin american couple They have a couple of kids They break up but don't go through the ritual of getting a divorce Both of them find a partner once again and have a couple of kids with them Now suppose the husband dies Remember he's still legally married to the first wife But he's got kids with the second wife and a common law wife, which isn't quite legal because he's still married, right?
[24:04] Now that stuff rarely happens up in the states though. It does occur It's pretty damn rare except perhaps in some of the less classy trailer parks Just remember this way more than in the usa latinos can have multiple families and many stray kids running around That haven't even met or know the existence of their other siblings And that by the way happens not so uncommonly at funerals where siblings meet other siblings They didn't even know about and that happens with gringos and expats here in latin america, too In fact, one of my friends who I lost track of ended up marrying a nicaraguan girl She came with her own baggage a kid. They've been married 12 or 13 years now and he and his brother both gringos Of course made it big in guatemala. They're in the money. Everything's going. Okay, except 10 years into the marriage
[24:51] There's a knock at the front door there stood a 30 something ragtag latina With an 11 or 12 year old kid that looked just like my gringo buddy Now, of course, you can imagine how well that went down with my buddy's wife. In other words shit happens How about this story which I witnessed firsthand back in around 2005? I got a call from my guatemalan girlfriend. She was over at her mother's house for dinner There was a knock on the front door My girlfriend's mother answered and saw a lady there standing with her kid and the lady said to her This is your husband raffa's kid Now my girlfriend's mom and dad were married something like 20 years. This kid's about five do the numbers, hey Dad was a bad boy Turns out when all the dust settled we found out my girlfriend's dad had three other kids with this woman
[25:37] All while he was still married to my girlfriend's mom and her dad had some dough He owned a hardware store and some other properties So the question is if there's not a will how do you split that stuff up? And if there is a will there's still going to be a fight all this can make end of life matters Quite stressful and could lead to a trail of tears Just imagine gringles if you find a girlfriend or gringles if you find a boyfriend You're living together for more than six months So it's considered a common law marriage and she or he brings a kid or two to the party Now if that kid's growing up and out of the house and not living with you no problem But what if that kid's five or eight or ten years old and is living with you like your kid? But he's not really your kid but his mother or dad or your common law wife or husband Of course, it's a lot more cut and dried if you actually get married, but you have to know as mentioned down here in latin america
[26:22] There are more common law marriages than legal sanctioned marriages and for a will to be legal It can be complicated too. For example in equador a total of five witnesses holding either equadorian residency or equadorian Citizenship not a foreigner. That is not a tourist or a family member Must sign the will a lawyer doesn't have to be present But it would be a great help to get things organized then it cannot be contested ever Did you get that the will is going to be signed by five witnesses now when that's done in latin america It'll usually be your lawyer's office staff that sign as witnesses One last thing about power of attorney It's absolutely imperative that a power attorney be well written containing all the correct name states addresses as well as the specifics of the context
[27:08] In other words, don't draw it up yourself. Have a lawyer do it because you see latin american municipalities notaries tax collecting offices and other lawyers, etc Are all too happy to reject power of attorney documents written by non-lawyers claiming improper Non-specific and or unclear terms bad signatures or dates. In other words, don't copy a youtube presentation. Get a latin lawyer You've been listening to the expat files living in latin america If you need some help with your own plan b we can schedule a one-on-one phone or skype consult Just send me an email the expat files at gmail.com And if you want to get on the waiting list for my next week long expat insider seminar in central america Where you're guaranteed to get a two to five year head start on your plan b. Send me an email the expat files at gmail.com
[27:57] nos vamos