Living in Panama City: neighbourhoods, cost of living and relocation

Panama City is a city of towers lined up along the bay, to which are added a restored colonial centre and former US-held land that has been converted. These three layers coexist within a few kilometres.

Punta Pacífica, Punta Paitilla and Costa del Este make up the modern residential area: recent towers, services, security. Costa del Este, built from scratch, is home to a large share of expatriate families and company headquarters.

El Cangrejo and Bella Vista offer older, more urban housing, with local shops and neighbourhood life. Prices there are lower and the atmosphere far more local.

Casco Viejo, the listed colonial centre, has been restored and attracts an international clientele. Homes there are scarce and expensive, and the district remains touristy and noisy in the evening.

Finally, Clayton, Albrook and Amador, former Canal Zone land, offer low-rise houses in green surroundings, with several international schools. This is the most residential choice in the metropolitan area.

One criterion cuts across all these neighbourhoods: the gap between the vertical, air-conditioned city of the towers and the ground-level city of the former Canal Zone land. The two lifestyles have nothing in common, and this choice comes before the question of budget.

We do not publish a Panamanian median rent: we have not found any official series publishing rents by neighbourhood in Panama City, and we do not reproduce estimates from private agencies.

The rental market is plentiful, the result of very sustained construction of residential towers over two decades. Supply exceeds demand in several segments, which makes negotiation possible.

A security deposit and one month in advance are customary; leases are generally for one year. Building service charges are high in towers with services and must be costed separately from the rent.

As for buying, foreigners are free to purchase, except for land in border areas. One check is essential: properties with a registered title deed coexist with so-called possessory-rights properties, which are untitled and difficult to finance and resell.

Acquiring a property worth at least about $200,000⁵ also opens a route to residency: part of the supply is priced just above this threshold.

Panama City is more expensive than most Central American cities, but remains well below European levels for services, labour and local restaurants.

We do not publish a typical monthly budget: we have not found any official Panamanian series measuring a basket of spending comparable to that of an expatriate.

The US dollar circulates as currency, which removes exchange-rate risk for a dollar budget and makes prices immediately readable. This is a considerable practical advantage for an international investor.

Three items dominate: air conditioning, needed all year round in a humid tropical climate; international schooling, which is costly; and health insurance, whose price rises sharply with age.

Holders of retiree resident status benefit from a set of statutory discounts on transport, healthcare and various services. This is a real and rarely quantified counterweight, which noticeably improves the budget of an older household.

Panama City is home to a large international population, linked to the canal, the financial centre, trade and the air hub. The Venezuelan, Colombian, Chinese and North American communities are significant.

The French community is smaller, but the city has international schools and a network of businesses. Spanish remains necessary in everyday life, English being present mainly in business circles.

The retiree resident permit is the best known of the Panamanian schemes: it requires a monthly pension of at least from $1,000⁶, one of the lowest thresholds in the world for a scheme of this kind.

Opening a local bank account, on the other hand, is slow and requires extensive documentation, contrary to the country's old reputation. Compliance requirements have been considerably tightened and the process needs to be prepared in advance.

The Panama Metro, the first in Central America, serves a north–south axis and is gradually being extended. Outside its reach, traffic is heavy and the car remains widely used.

Tocumen airport is the main air hub in Latin America, with connections to the whole continent and to Europe. It is one of the city's major assets.

Private healthcare in the capital is of a good regional standard, with facilities affiliated to North American hospital groups. International insurance remains essential.

• Panama's territorial taxation protects the foreign source of income, not the person who receives it.
• The nature of the right over a property — registered title or possessory rights — must be checked before any negotiation.
• Opening a bank account is slow and requires documentation: prepare it in advance.
• Civil status documents and criminal record certificates must be apostilled and translated: start the process from France.