Leaving the Real Estate Slump Behind in Panama
A Naples developer is capitalizing on unprecedented growth in the once-sleepy Central American country of Panama.
by Amy Keller

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Developer Todd Gates is finding new opportunities in Central America.
[Photo: Greg Brown]

When the real estate slump first hit Florida two years ago, Naples developer Todd Gates began sniffing around Central America and Caribbean markets for business opportunities. Gates, chairman of a Naples-based construction and real estate development company that bears his name, realized quickly the place to be was in economically booming Panama.

The once sleepy Central American nation is experiencing unprecedented growth thanks to an influx of American retirees, investment from other Latin American countries and the $5.25-billion expansion of the 93-year-old Panama Canal, which will double the canal system’s shipping capacity by 2014.

To land projects in Panama, Gates forged a partnership with Cocige, one of Central America’s largest construction companies, helping American and European companies looking to expand into Panama navigate the permitting process. The Gates-Cocige partnership offers companies the peace of mind of working with an American-based contractor and the expertise of individuals who understand the Panamanian system.

Today, Gates-Cocige is working on four projects: A 24-story hotel in downtown Panama, a 1,500-acre resort community on a remote island, a 150-acre marina and resort and a 400,000-sq.-ft. office building and hotel in downtown Panama. Gates spends one week a month in Panama, but he doesn’t mind the commute to the second-largest free trade zone in the world. “You can get there quicker than you can get to Tallahassee.”

http://floridatrend.com/article.asp?aid=48107

Publico este articulo para que vean que muchos inversionistas han desviado sus inversiones de Florida a Panamá por la crisis inmobiliaria que hay en los Estados Unidos.

Muchos extranjeros ven en Panamá lo que nosotros no vemos o no queremos ver,
Muy bien por nuestro pais,
.

COCIGE - GATES

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GATES, the Southwest Florida based construction, development, and real estate services company, recently signed a partnership agreement with Panama-based construction giant COCIGE – one of the largest construction companies in Central America with close to 3,000 employees. The partnership was created to help facilitate the construction and development for United States and European companies wanting to expand into this enormous emerging world market. The company name within Panama and Central America will be called COCIGE – GATES.
http://www.gatesmcvey.com/images/Lighter.jpgSenator Mel Martinez (R-FL) addressing the audience at the press conference held at the Naples Chamber of Commerce. Pictured in the photo from left to right: Todd Gates (Chairman of GATES), Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL), Richard Grant (Chairman, EDC of Collier County), and Representative Garrett Richter (District 76, Florida).

“We wish to congratulate GATES on this successful partnership agreement and are very excited to work closely with the American Chamber, already established in Panama, on more opportunities for our areas businesses,” commented Mike Reagen, President – The Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce.
“On behalf of the EDC, we are extremely proud of GATES to have formed this partnership. This partnership will help our region to create reciprocal commerce and economic development with Panama and all of Central America,” commented Richard (Dick) Grant, Chairman of the Economic Development Council of Collier County.

PREDICTIONS 2008

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It’s crystal ball time for the industry, which is eager to put 2007 in the rear view mirror. Outside of places like Singapore and Cape Verde, it was a tough year, as more and more developments vied to woo increasingly fickle investors and vacation home buyers.

The new year opens with a swirl of questions: Will the U.S. woes spread like a bad virus? Will Spain regain its zest? Will investors turn to Asia for bargains?

Based on input from industry experts, “Raising the Roof” offers a few educated guesses for the year ahead:

* The U.S. market will continue to struggle, particularly in former boom states like Florida and California. “There’s still some blood to be let,” economist Jim Gaines recently told the Associated Press.

* Alternative markets like Montenegro, Vietnam, Malaysia, Panama and Brazil will continue to thrive as investors look for the next big run up.

* In many markets, the phrase “buying opportunity” will replace “housing slump” in the lexicon of estate agents

* The credit crunch will affect developers more than buyers. “Some developments won’t get financed,” a Panama developer said recently. “So what?” In fact, less construction should help values stabilize in many over built markets.

* Home designers will abandon cold minimalism and return to lush, comfortable, traditional styles using organic materials. (Wait, that’s a prayer, not a prediction.)

* After years of growth, European markets, in particular Spain and Ireland, will continue to weaken. “The long boom is over,” Michael Ball, a professor at the University of Reading Business School’s Center for Real Estate Research, said in the IHT’s European forecast.

* The high-end luxury market will continue to thrive, experts say. The rich don’t need credit.

* With the exchange rate a killer in Europe, American dollars will flow to Central America and Asia. And with prices high in the U.S., the rate of second home buyers and retirees fleeing overseas will increase

http://blogs.iht.com/tribtalk/properties/roof/?p=280

Many new developments changed travel this year


12/30/2007

As we near the end of 2007, it might be helpful to review the year's chief travel developments. What was new and different in travel, and how will those developments affect our future travels?

— The dollar comes first: It plummeted against the euro and the British pound, greatly reducing the number of Americans traveling trans-Atlantic (a 20 percent drop, says the U.S. Tour Operators Association). What are the future consequences of that? We cost-conscious travelers now will need either to consider traveling to new destinations (Central and South America, Eastern Europe or most of Asia, where the dollar remains strong) or become more willing to use ultra-inexpensive lodgings (private homestays, weekly apartments, vacation exchanges) in Western Europe.

— Cruise ship expansion: With the exception of a few hyperexpensive ships, virtually every new, normally priced cruise ship is being designed to carry 2,500 to 4,000 passengers apiece. Cruises thereby have become an activity for crowds, and the nature of the experience is greatly altered. Those preferring a quiet, maritime interlude will need to keep a sharp eye for the occasional discounts offered by small luxury cruise ships.

— Central America's popularity: In addition to Costa Rica, awash in tourism, increasing numbers of Americans are traveling or thinking about traveling to Panama, Honduras and Nicaragua. The construction of condominiums in Panama has surpassed Miami levels, and numerous American retirees are making exploratory trips there.

— Medical and dental tourism: This has recently attracted record numbers of Americans to health facilities in Thailand, Singapore, Northern Mexico, South Korea, Hungary, Costa Rica and Rio de Janeiro. A number of serious books favorably commenting on accredited hospitals in those countries have overcome the former reluctance to seek low-cost medical and dental treatment outside the United States.

— Your passport, please: It has become clear throughout the past year that a U.S. passport will now (or soon) become a necessity for Americans traveling by land, sea or air from any foreign nation into the United States. Travelers will anxiously scan the news reports for evidence that the U.S. State Department is able to issue such passports expeditiously.

— Amtrak's still running: This has been a record year for passenger traffic on Amtrak, causing growing support in Congress for adequate, multiyear appropriations for the beleaguered national railway system. Attempts by anti-Amtrak forces to phase it out seem to have been thwarted.

— Vacation homes: A boom in the rental of vacation homes has occurred in Orlando, Fla., and other Sun Belt locations, as well as abroad. New online services for renting vacation homes have been launched even by the hotel companies (see Wyndham Hotels' new EVRentals.com), which compete against the use of vacation homes.

— River cruises: There's been a surprising rise in the popularity among Americans of European river cruises, apparently seen to supply a pleasant and inexpensive method of touring the continent. A similar jump has taken place in the rental of self-skippered boats for cruises along the canals and other nonriver waterways of Europe.

— Foreign aid for flights: Foreign airfare "aggregators" — notably, Momondo.com of Denmark and Mobissimo.com of Italy — have attracted a major U.S. audience of technophiles who use these services even for obtaining low-cost airfares within the United States.

— Priceline.com's comeback: This site has improved, mainly in the rental of hotel rooms and cars. Apparently, large numbers of travelers felt in 2007 that they are not taking a risk by bidding low prices for deluxe hotels whose ratings ensure a good stay regardless of their identities.

Who are the runners-up to these most significant developments?

— The recent startling rise in the number of zany Las Vegas weddings, filling its marriage chapels.

— The growth of the vacation exchange industry (you stay in their home while they stay in yours), a tactic that received the supreme accolade in 2007 of a big Hollywood movie.

— The growing popularity of the repositioning cruise, which spends many days simply at sea (since early this year, they are no longer so hard to sell).

— The emergence of free hospitality for young people using such websites as couchsurfers.com and freeloaders.com.

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/lifestyle/stories.nsf/travel/story/2D9A143B1C8344CF862573BD006F50C8?OpenDocument

Otras publicaciones para reforzar lo expuesto de que muchas empresas inmobiliarias de EU estan poniendo su mirada en Panamá.