Episode Summary
In this episode of The Expat Files, Johnny Mueller explores the cultural and religious nuances of life in Latin America, focusing on car ownership, religious practices in business, and insurance considerations for expats. He shares personal anecdotes and insights into navigating the region's unique challenges and opportunities.
Johnny begins by discussing the cultural significance of car ownership in Latin America, highlighting the preference for white cars due to the heat and the irony that wealthy individuals often choose black cars for visibility. He also touches on the religious aspects of car dealerships, noting the prevalence of Christian imagery and the skepticism expats may have toward such displays.
He then delves into the intersection of religion and consumer behavior, discussing the practice of blessing new cars as a religious ceremony. Johnny recounts an anecdote about a young Latina who went through a process of hand-holding and group prayers when purchasing a car, and shares a personal experience from living in Antigua, Guatemala, where he observed a priest blessing new cars in a cathedral parking lot.
The segment also touches on the broader topic of how expats and non-believers navigate religious conversations in Latin America, emphasizing the importance of being respectful and not assuming others' beliefs. Johnny highlights the cultural sensitivity around religious topics in Latino communities, where jokes about religion can easily cross into blasphemy.
In another segment, Johnny discusses the perception of the United States as the American dream among Latin American immigrants, despite the high tax burden and limited legal work opportunities. He contrasts the legal work environment in the U.S. with the informal, off-the-books work that many immigrants engage in, and compares the cost of homeowners insurance in the U.S. to Latin America.
He also addresses the lack of homeowners insurance in Latin America, contrasting it with the U.S., where insurance is more common and often mandatory, especially with mortgages. Johnny shares an email from Larry, who is skeptical about the lack of insurance in Latin America and questions the risk involved. He explains that insurance is not commonly practiced in the region and that many people do not see the need for it.
In a personal anecdote, Johnny discusses his experience with insurance in Latin America, highlighting the risks of relying on insurance in the region. He shares his personal experience with a house in Montserrat that was damaged by Hurricane Hugo and later destroyed by a volcanic eruption, emphasizing the importance of location and construction techniques in mitigating natural disaster risks.
The episode concludes with a call to action from Johnny, encouraging listeners to contact him via email for more information about his upcoming expat insider seminar in Central America. The seminar is described as a way to gain a two to five year head start on one's plan B.
Episode Notes
Johnny Mueller discusses the cultural and religious aspects of car ownership in Latin America, the role of religion in business, and the insurance landscape for expats. He shares personal experiences and insights into navigating life as an expat in the region.
For more episodes, seminar information, resources, and the full archive, visit ExpatPlanB.com.
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Related guides: Moving to Guatemala · Healthcare in Latin America · Cost of Living in Latin America · Residency in Latin America
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Topics
Cultural aspects of car ownership in Latin America, Religious influence in business practices, Expatriate experiences in Latin America, Religion and consumer behavior in Latin America, Cultural practices around car purchases, Religious rituals and their significance, Cultural sensitivity and religious humor, Expats and religious conversations in Latin America, Religious identity and cultural sensitivity in Latin America, Insurance practices and differences between Latin America and the United States, Cultural and economic comparisons between the US and Latin America, Perception of the U.S. as the American dream
Chapters
00:00:00 Opening 00:00:14 Introduction to the Expat Files Podcast 00:00:26 Overview of the Podcast's Content 00:00:32 A Personal Story About Car Ownership in Latin America 00:02:02 The Preference for White Cars in Latin America 00:03:09 The Cultural Significance of Black Cars Among the Wealthy 00:05:07 Religious Displays in Car Dealerships 00:06:22 The Religious Significance of Car Purchases in Latin America 00:09:43 Car Purchases as a Religious Ceremony 00:10:32 Cultural Sensitivity and Religious Humor in Latino Communities 00:11:38 Religious Identity and Cultural Sensitivity in Latin America 00:12:24 Muslims and Cultural Sensitivity in Latin America 00:14:44 Insurance Practices and Cultural Differences 00:17:08 The American Dream and Tax Burden in the U.S. 00:19:13 Homeowners Insurance Costs in the U.S. vs. Latin America 00:20:56 Mitigating Natural Disaster Risks 00:22:30 Insurance and Natural Disasters in Latin America 00:23:32 Personal Experience with Insurance in Montserrat 00:25:36 Volcanic Eruption and the Collapse of Insurance Coverage 00:27:42 Call to Action for Email Contact 00:27:46 Introduction to the Seminar Waiting List 00:27:51 Promising a Head Start on Plan B 00:27:55 Reinforcement of Email Contact
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 up to play and now I wonder Hello there all you ex-pad 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 Here's a little boots on the ground story. I think you're gonna like well, I was doing a little coffee clutching this weekend Visiting one of my favorite coffee shops, you know all the good ones down here in Latin America have tables outside You know with umbrellas and such so that you can enjoy the fantastic weather
[00:48] Anyway, I was sitting around the only gringo as usual. I rather like it that way to Latino guys in three Latinas So we're shooting the breeze in Spanish, of course, and one of the girls was just so happy that day I thought it was like she won a lottery or something. Anyway, someone said to her you're unusually upbeat today. What's it all about? She said I thought you'd never ask I just bought a new car got it delivered yesterday So, of course, everyone wanted to know the details Naturally, she had photos of it up the gazoo on her smartphone And you have to act excited and pretend you like it to be diplomatic, you know how it goes Buying a new car down here in Latin America is an extremely big deal Thing is was in fact a seven-year-old car, but nevertheless a new cars a new car, right? Turns out she bought a jeep at that
[01:35] You notice that word jeep in the word jeep at that means jeep like vehicle down here. They don't call them SUVs they call them jeep at does sometimes come in at that which could mean small truck or pickup truck or Minivan too. Anyway, this young lady. I think she's around 32. She bought her first car a 2017 Hyundai Something or another anyway a jeep at our SUV. Oh, yeah, here's a strange fact down here in Latin America You see more white cars than any other kind of car Why is that because even the stupidest of Latin Americans know a white car doesn't get so hot when the Sun's beating on it And most of the time if you have a car down here, the Sun's perpetually beaten on it It's true that everyone down here says black is nicer sexier and just a lot more
[02:20] Luxurious than any other color problem is if you have a black car You will suffer especially when you first get in it That is of course unless you get a parking spot or garage with a roof on it then everything's a okay No problem, right wrong though black cars and most have black upholstery too will not suffer while they're being parked at your parking spot You're gonna have to drive around right you're gonna have to go shopping and maybe go to work and your parking spot More than likely will not be covered. No Sun protection. Anyway, I'm a little off the point here Except to say you will see a lot of luxury black cars like Range Rovers BMWs Mercedes, etc Now why would that be if even the dumbest slug on the street knows a black car will turn into an inferno if it's in The Sun yet people with dough who can afford a Lexus or Mercedes or Range Rover will select black over white
[03:09] What's up with that? Well, the reason is almost all of them have a driver So guess what when the owner of that beast wants to go out shopping or whatever He gets into a nice comfy air-conditioned car even if the Sun's been beaten down on it all day Why because the driver got there first and he fried for the first few minutes started it up and put the air on high Before the owner ever even stepped into it. That's why so many wealthy and rich Latinos have black SUVs All they care about is being seen and black SUVs will be seen Latinos are thinking wow, look at that It must be somebody really important in that car while stuffs gringos and expats are thinking Wow There must be some real self-important piece of shit in that car For many Latinos the reaction is envy when they see such a car knowing they'd never be able to afford one themselves
[03:58] So you could say there's three kinds of Latinos that own those big black expensive SUVs You've got wealthy business owning Latinos putting on the dog high-end narco kingpins and their girlfriends and Pustulant shitbag politicians and their wives and lovers too. That's a given but I digress man Did I digress meanwhile back at the coffee shop? This young lady was super high She just bought a white hyundee jeep betta an SUV and of course She was dying to tell us about it now It makes this story so unusual as far as gringos and expats are concerned But so normal for Latinos that live down here is that she told us about her experience on the car lot how she arranged Financing with the dealer and finally after sitting in the sales office for around two hours
[04:45] Sort of nervously shifting in her seat her credit check finally came through and she was approved for the loan That's when the salesmen walked out the office onto the lot and gathered around all the other salesman mechanics and such about six or seven People they all crowded into that little air-conditioned office held hands and said a prayer Yeah, that's right. They had a little prayer session. You see here in Latin America lots of car dealers Especially used car dealers are very Christian Evangelical Christian, you'll know that when you walk into their office and you see Bibles all over the place and Statues and pictures of you know who they'll even have a Bible verse or two on the wall or on their business card on Their Facebook marketplace or what's up home page, too. Of course, not all dealerships are overtly
[05:34] Evangelical Christians, but man, I'd say at least half of them sure look the part there are signs everywhere Of course, if you're agreeing or an expat seeing all that the first thing you're thinking is that it might be a ploy You know car dealers, especially used car dealers have a terrible reputation They're right down there with politicians in the lowest trust category So anything they do to pump it up would be a help like maybe promoting themselves as staunch Evangelical Christians, hmm After all a thoroughly Christian outfit like that would never think to rip off a client sort of suspicious, huh? I mean look if it's the status quo that car dealers are crooks or let's be nice and say opportunists Who would you rather buy a car from a slightly over-the-top? Evangelical car dealer or from a slick haired dealer who offers you a beer while
[06:22] Ragga tone music is blasting out of the mechanic's Bay. The question is what would you do better yet? What would Jesus do? So anyway, this young latino who just had her credit approved Absolutely went in a hundred percent on the hand holding and group prayers Now if you find that kind of weird think about this a while back I was living in Antigua, Guatemala about two blocks from a giant Cathedral My windows did not face the front of the Cathedral But around the backside where there was a huge parking lot I had a second floor apartment so I could see over the big stone wall right into the parking lot and I noticed about one Saturday a month Five or six shiny new cars. Well, they might not have been new but they were shiny All right Some with big fancy bows and ribbons attached to the hood which meant they were very recently purchased now
[07:10] This is a Saturday afternoon. Nothing's going on in the church. It's sort of spooky There's so few people around yet. The doors are flung wide open on that Cathedral Though the odd tourist will trickle in and drop five bucks into the till it's worth it Because there are some very strange things in that place Of course, it's got the usual antique Catholic relics on display In fact, they've got an entire giant room of artifacts dedicated to a particular saint If you're ever in Antigua Guatemala, I suggest you do check it out It's weird looking at all the stuff this guy owned from around 1550 You know the clothes and the vestments he wore his religious artifacts like crosses and rosaries and stuff but for me, there's a must-see the guy's underwear his actual underwear is on display and
[08:00] Considering the state of hygiene back in those days. Thank God. It's under a glass case and man You got to see that underwear. It's got little balls and fringes and designs on it If anything that Saints underwear is a work of art That's not all by looking at that underwear You can tell he was a completely out of shape fat-ass the kind of guy by the way The guy's name is st. Pedro del Alvarado and his clothes and artifacts including some of his bones hair fingernails, etc Have been there since 1568. Oh and another reason I think you should visit the places They've got a gigantic room full of crutches and wheelchairs and leather leg straps, etc That stuff dates back hundreds of years as well from people who claim to have been healed by praying to the guy pretty impressive
[08:45] There's hundreds of old crutches and walking sticks ancient wheelchairs legs plinths, etc It's interesting just seeing how torturous those devices were way back when but back to that parking lot Well as mentioned about one Saturday a month shiny new cars would show up in that parking lot Line right up somewhat nice big bows and ribbons on the hood Then suddenly a rectory door would open and a priest and an altar boy would walk out Greet all those car owners shake their hands. He pulled out a little holy water dispenser kind of a wand I Recognized that thing from my old altar boy days He'd walk by each car saying prayers making a slow pass sign of the cross of his hands as priests like to do when the blessing was over he'd mingle a bit with the new car owners and
[09:34] Soon enough each of those happy car owners would hand the priest and envelope I've seen that before too. That means cash was handed over Yep, such is life down here in Latin America down here for some people buying a car is a religious ceremony In fact, some cars receive two ceremonies one when you buy them at the dealership once your credits approved, of course And number two if you so desire you could have your local priest or even a cardinal bless your new car By the way people get their houses and apartments blessed to now Here's the thing. I asked this young lady when we were talking about this when you get your car blessed I said that does that somehow mean you're gonna get some divine protection from accidents Or is it just insurance against your car being a lemon in that case? Why buy the extended warranty?
[10:24] By that logic extended warranties would only be for non-believers, right? Anyway, she didn't have a good answer for that and looked at me kind of funny for even mentioning it because you know down Here when you bring God Jesus Mary or any of the divine entities into the conversation. You're walking on thin ice Latinos do not appreciate Bible or Jesus jokes and that fine line between a joke and blasphemy is often crossed by going Who's the next best like me? I found most Latinos especially Latinas don't have much of a sense of humor when you're talking about God Which his wife said many times in past shows if you're an atheist man, keep it to yourself I know you don't want to lie You want to tell the truth? But my best suggestion is when someone says what religion are you because they all assume you're you have some kind of religion Just think back to when you were a kid the religion your parents brought you up in for example in my case when people say
[11:15] What religion are you always say I was brought up Catholic because I was and leave it at that now Of course, I know quite a few gringles and expats who are died in the wool atheist, especially some of my nerd buddies engineering buddy Well, you know one of my atheist gringle buddies told me he got in some trouble with his girlfriend's family Turns out in the early days of their courtship their relationship He got invited over to dinner at the folks house as things will usually happen The parents or parent will want to meet you and they'll invite you over for dinner and naturally the question came around to what religion are You he said he was an atheist a teo in Spanish Well, he said it was like someone just threw a bucket of ice water on the whole party and later on in the car on The way home he and his girlfriend had a little fight and in the end He ended up at a meeting with the parents sometime later and he explained that he wasn't really an a theo
[12:04] He was an agnostic Oh agnostic, which of course means you don't really know if there's a god or not But it could be you're just looking for a little more proof Anyway, he said the agnostic thing calmed the parents down a bit though He said he had to explain what agnostic was they'd heard the word but didn't know quite what it meant So anyway again, just a little tip here Another thing Latinos are not really cool with at all is if you say you're a Muslim I've seen how Latinos and Muslims don't mix because you know Latinos are very very Christian mostly Catholic and they remember the Crusades They all went to catechism a million times and know the story So here's another tip for you if you're Muslim, by the way I doubt there's a single practicing Muslim listening to this show right now, by the way
[12:50] I know a Venezuelan girl who lives in Colombia. A lot of them have escaped to Colombia She told me her first boyfriend when she was something like 17 was a Muslim kid about 19 years old Turns out his parents owned a little clothing store in the neighborhood. He used to work there. She used to go in there all the time That's how they met She said they started going out and he eventually invited her over to the house You know as parents usually want to see who their kids dating She said that was the end of the relationship because when they had dinner She said and the uncles and aunts were there The women were not able to speak unless a man spoke to them first And then after dinner and the ladies had all the work all the dishes all the cooking Then the ladies went into a specific room and all huddled there and did their coffee collection and the guys all went into
[13:36] Another room and smoked and talked and drank. She said she was treated like a second-class citizen for two reasons one She wasn't Muslim in two. She was a woman. By the way She was one of the first persons to tell me that Venezuela was filled with Muslims because Chavez, you know President dictator Chavez was selling passports It was an open secret to Muslims any Muslim that want to get out of the country for 20,000 bucks Along with that. She said there was a family plan for 50,000 bucks You could buy a passport for yourself your wife and your kids and Muslims have a lot of kids So anyway right now Venezuela has the highest Proportion of Muslims per capita than any of the 20 Latin American country. Thanks to good old Hugo Chavez and his passport for sale plan Oh, by the way
[14:21] She also told me the Muslim guy she was going out with had a sister Also working at the store and living with the family in Venezuela who at the time was around 15 years old and promised In marriage to a Muslim guy by comb who she'd never even seen she was all upset about that But she said she would comply when the time came because well That's what you do. By the way, the family were Lebanese Muslims in Spanish Libana. All right moving on We've got an email here from Larry He says Johnny. It's so hard to believe that in Latin America You've reported you can buy a house or apartment and not carry any kind of homeowners insurance on it at all I know that here in the United States It's not mandatory either unless of course you have a mortgage then they force you to take homeowners insurance But even when you don't have one Almost everyone has it as for me Johnny if one day one hour lapses between the time my homeowners insurance is in effect and
[15:15] Might get cut off. I get nervous as hell. I just don't want to think about it. Same thing with health care insurance I don't want to be without it for one day the idea of having a nice big expensive house and carrying no Homeowners insurance on it. It seems that you're tempting fate. Can you go into that a little bit more Johnny? Sure thing Larry. Honestly, I felt the same way when I first came down here I thought I'll rent a place or buy a house and pick up some homeowners insurance That is of course until I asked my trusty Latin lawyer where I could get a nice insurance plan He said you don't need one Why bother practically no one carries that kind of insurance down here? Of course, if you want it brokers will always sell it to you and that for me was when I really know things were different Down here in Latin America. That's when I knew I was in the third world
[16:02] Well, Larry, I just checked with AI and it says that a typical homeowner in the US carrying a property value of $350,000 you'll pay around $3,000 a year, by the way in the states the average house is around 400,000 or so. So a $350,000 replacement value is probably a ticky-tacky house in a problem neighborhood Even so replacement value insurance is $3,000 a month. The thing is Larry down here I can't even get into a conversation with even upscale college graduate Latinos on the subject of homeowners insurance I mean, they don't have coverage their parents didn't have coverage So they've got no experience in the matter and thus I think it's unnecessary and if you were to tell them that the average insurance cost in the states for a house that's valued at
[16:50] $350,000 is three grand a year When they hear big numbers like that and you tell them they don't realize how much it costs to live in the states It's so much more expensive up there than down here in Latin America For example car insurance in the states is three or four times more expensive than it is here in Latin America Somehow it doesn't deter them from thinking the US is the American dream and the streets are paved with gold In fact just last week I was talking to a Latina who was bragging that his uncle owns a taxi business in my chamois I said do you think he lives better than you do by the way the guy was talking to owns a little remodeling companies got About six or seven workers here in Latin America. So I said, do you think your uncle in my jammy is better off than you are? I said before you answer that question Do you realize if your uncle's business is legal on the books which it probably is if it's a taxi service
[17:40] He's paying 50 to 60 percent of his income to the US government for taxes. I said to make it easy for you Let me put it this way He works as does everyone else in the United States till about July or August for the government And then when July and August comes around then and only then are you able to put one dime of your own earnings into your pocket Well, you know what Latinos don't want to hear analogies like that They don't want to hear that the Canadian government's even worse that it takes 60 to 70 percent of your income I've found Latinos just glaze over when you tell them that Which is why so many of them when they get to United States end up working off the books illegally cash money pays No taxes though. That's a hard scrabble means to survive showing up every day on a street corner to get work on a construction site
[18:27] Maybe you will maybe you won't that's why I sometimes ask Latinos who like to brag about their illegal relatives making money up in the states You know sending back those remisses a hundred two hundred a month Sometimes they'll ask him. Do you really think your uncle up in Florida is better off than you are guess what? They almost always say yes Of course what they don't want to hear about is the taxes they have to pay when they're working legally on the books Which all Latinos say they would love to do but almost never end up doing it They must realize their work options up in the states are very limited kitchen work maids gardeners and grunt work Off the book stuff that pays cash But I digress hurry. Oh, yeah talking about homeowners insurance here in Latin America if you want it You can get it, but most people never do I
[19:13] Repeat in the states the average cost for homeowners insurance is three grand a year now here in Latin America Where the average adult salary is something like four to six thousand dollars a year When you mention that the average American pays three thousand a year for his insurance man It's a concept that the average Latino down here just does not get at all Meanwhile in California was reading a story about a buyer of a home who shared their story on reddit They were on their way to closing on a seven hundred and twenty thousand dollar property Which is slightly below average in California, but after entering escrow They were hit with a surprise the insurance quotes on that seven hundred twenty thousand property were between fourteen and $17,000 a year again, we're talking about California with all those fires and water shortages and riots
[20:01] Anyway, the prospective homeowner couldn't believe it The two quotes he received were astronomical one being fourteen thousand bucks a year with a twenty thousand dollar deductible in the $17,000 a year policy had a $2,500 a year deductible apparently other states like, Florida Oregon Louisiana and Colorado are facing similar problems people say there are being quoted from nine to fifteen thousand dollars on an average house Hmm somehow getting the hell out of Dodge getting that plan B together is looking better than ever isn't it? So how's your plan B coming now? Of course a lot of newbie and green gringo expats will say to me things like Johnny Latin America is the last place I'd skip getting a homeowner's policy with all those earthquakes
[20:46] hurricanes torrential rains volcanoes and Yes, it's true. All that stuff does exist down here the three keys to success are location location and Construction technique for example, if your house is built with true anti seismic construction You won't have to worry about earthquakes even big ones like seven pointers Which by the way might come around only once in 20 or 30 years Still they will come I've been through a few and the anti seismic dwellings I lived in came through it almost without a scratch now, of course hurricanes are a different thing But again, it's location location and construction technique If your place is made out of reinforced concrete block construction Like most decent places are made here in Latin America Certainly a direct hit from a hurricane will trash up your yard
[21:33] Maybe break a window or two unless of course you have hurricane shutters Then you're completely protected. The thing is most people living down here in the hurricane belt They may have a beach house with the basic part of it made out of steel and concrete But as you probably noticed people like to add on to their beach properties with gazebos cabanas carports Wrap around verandas, which are almost never concrete metal they're most often wood bamboo and thatched roof keeping with that tropical style a nice casual beachfront look But hurricanes will just eat that stuff up So again, as far as hurricanes its location location construction for earthquakes It's the same now, of course if you live in a very very gringoized area like Costa Rica or San Miguel Allende in Mexico, you'll most likely have homeowners insurance problem is though
[22:22] If you've got homeowners insurance that covers hurricanes Let's say and you get hit by a whopper read the fine print cuz most likely you'll have a huge deductible So even if you get earthquake hurricane or flood insurance Insurance will pay out but do read the fine print most people don't then again if your place is constructed correctly You might not want to get insurance at all For example, if you have a really solidly built house and you get hit by a big earthquake Chances are you'll just have a few tiny cracks in a few walls some busted knickknacks on the floor, etc You'll rarely have enough damage to make insurance with your while Same thing with a big hurricane might be a direct hit But if your place is built correctly and high enough above sea level Say 30 foot minimum where your first floor starts
[23:07] It's unlikely your building will suffer much damage at all But certainly your yard will be trashed and any outbuildings You've got made of wood or bamboo or thatched roof could look like a junkyard But that stuff's easy to build in repair doesn't cost much. So in my case, I Never bought homeowners insurance on any of the places. I actually bought or stayed in here in Latin America I will tell you this though in the 1980s I owned a place outright in the island of Montserrat in the British West Indies a British island with population of maybe Less than a hundred thousand lots of retired Brits there. I lived in a neighborhood of retired Brits My house was on a bluff about 50 feet up from the ocean Swimming pool and all that, you know typical holiday house I even shipped the light new Honda Civic down from Miami
[23:56] Because I knew it was dependable and would last a lot of years That was a mistake anyway about a year and a half after I bought the place it got hit full blast by Hurricane Hugo Caused huge damage on the island Hugo brought down the island's entire power grid with 90% of homes suffering significant to total roof loss Making it the most expensive hurricane in the island's history But guess what since I bought it from a retired British diplomat Actually from his wife because the guy had Alzheimer's and that's why they moved back to Britain Anyway, I was new at buying foreign property That was my first foreign purchase and all the Brits living in that neighborhood had homeowners insurance I mean hell it's the first world thing to do right so naturally I bought in too and it was fairly cheap I think only like 200 bucks a year Anyway, hurricane Hugo hit took off the roof of my living room
[24:43] And of course water logged and wrecked all the furniture which I had shipped in brand new specifically from Miami Here's the point the whole house was made out of block reinforced with rebar Except the roof which was one of those really nice tropical jobs with nice wooden beams that open look Well as you might predict the hurricane did no damage to the house, but took off the wooden roof Let that be a lesson to you it was to me Guess what the amazing thing was the insurance company paid for the entire thing got a brand new roof new furniture total cost I believe it was back then around 20,000 bucks the house was only worth about back then Maybe a hundred fifty thousand Probably worth four or five times that right now except for the fact the island got destroyed by a volcano a couple years later So anyway, the insurance actually paid up first time around second time around when the souffre
[25:34] Volcano blew off in 1997 and by the way, it never blew up before it was considered dormant It wrecked pretty much the entire island guess what the insurance company that came through the first time went bust But of course insurance companies are connected with a bunch of reinsures just in case the first insurance company gets wiped out But even the reinsurance companies got wiped out with that volcano So guess what the entire house the entire neighborhood the entire island was unlivable So I lost my entire investment and that great homeowners insurance policy I thought I had wasn't worth the paper. It was printed out So again, if you got a plan B and you're coming down here to Latin America, you do what you want buy insurance If you like just thought I'd give you some reference points here because I do get questions about it all the time In fact, most Americans up in the States think I'm nuts for not having insurance
[26:23] Of course, I don't go bragging about it, but when it does come up I'll tell them and believe me it's not because I'm a cheapskate I want to save a few bucks on the insurance premium homeowners insurance down here is not expensive at all Generally a couple a hundred bucks a year question is though. Will it pay out if you have a disaster? Just remember it with my Montserrat house. I had full coverage umbrella household insurance through a British insurance company And they went bust now imagine you're down here in Latin America And you just bought a house and you're looking for whole house coverage Well your insurance company options the ones you'll get to choose from our pure Latin American insurance company Run basically like third world government bureaucracies. Is that who you're gonna trust? Well, not me Let's just say down here in Latin America. The homeowners insurance game is not mature yet
[27:10] Though you have to remember it 30 years ago when I first got down here The health insurance business was almost non-existent almost no Latinos had private medical insurance though. Suddenly in the last couple of years It's taken off and almost every Latino and Latina I know at least everyone that's got a decent job has some kind of private health care insurance 30 years ago That was unheard of so things do change South 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
[27:55] Send me an email the expat files at gmail.com