New members of the Puerto Rico forum, introduce yourself here - 1st quarter of 2015

Hi, Julien! My name is Hope. I've just started considering a move to Puerto Rico. I've only been once but didn't want to leave. My BF and I are planning another visit in March/April this year. I am not bilingual, but I will learn as this becomes more real although I still don't think I will learn it well enough until I am submerged there. I am in the Army national guard. Therefore, I'm checking out job postings on usajobs to see what's available. I saw a reasonable position. So, I joined expat to learn whatever I can about living there. Any assistance or input is welcome!

Take some time and read back through old posts and you will find a lot of information both good and bad.

Hi, My name's Alex, I'm 29 years and male. I moved here for a job at the beginning of this year and I'm loving it. Right now I live in Vega Alta and work in Dorado. I'd be interested to meet up/get drinks/hit the beach with other expats if anyone's interested.

Hi, Alex, welcome to the forum!  We are not expats yet but there are some here that I believe are in your area and may come along to post.  I saw your post on the autoexpress pass problem, I hope that gets resolved, good luck!

Hello,

I am happy to be part of this interesting blog site.
My name is Lynn Stravecky and I have been living and working on the Island for the past 16 years.
Came here as a "trailing spouse", pregnant with my son and started my journey during the hurricane in 1998!
All these years later I am happy and feel like this is my home.

Although there are many differences from the US... PR is an Island with many wonderful healing properties and sites to see.  Adventure is everywhere if you look.

I wish all a interesting journey while here and hope you remain open minded and curious of where you are living. 
Enjoy the journey!

Hi Lynn -
Welcome to the forum! Where in PR do you live? We just relocated to San Juan from Virginia and I am very happy to be here.
Suzanne

Welcome, Lynn, to the forum!  It will be good to hear from others who have been hear long term

Hello all,
Where to start...I lived in Puerto Rico for 6 years. My dad was in the military and we were stationed on Ft Buchanan. I moved back to the states when I was 14 and have been trying move back to PR ever since lol.  I started traveling back to PR every year for my birthday since I was 18. (I'm 30 now) I have two kids, and I'm looking to move to Puerto Rico to go to Interamericana University and just to submerge my kids into a different  culture.  I've really enjoyed this site and looking forward to chatting with you all!!

Welcome, Jolo84!

Welcome! Should you have any specific questions please go ahead and start a new thread!

Good luck, Jolo.

Name is Ken and my wife Culleen and I are planning on a second home near the El Yunque rainforest. Just looking for any advise or tips to making things easier.

Hi and welcome here!

I just answered your other post. For any specific questions, just go ahead and post them. There are many people here who can help you.

Hello my friends,

I'm moving to the island this summer. Probably Ponce, but possibly Rincon. I was wondering if anyone has recommendations for a spanish language school? I've done Duolingo, but I really need immersion.

Glad to be a part of this expat community. I like how active this website is.

Hi Daniel and welcome!

If you have some time (4 weeks) and $3.500 to spend you could consider the UPR (University of Puerto Rico) summer Spanish course.

Here's some info: http://www.centerforstudyabroad.com/uni … erto-rico/

Welcome, Danie!

Simply excellent, Spanish Immersion Rincon:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Spanish- … 3356227792

In the meantime, you could try the free language learning app called duolingo.

Hello Everyone
What a great site with such friendly informative people! Newbie here living in the snow covered state of Massachusetts. Long story short I lived in Florida until 4 yrs ago so I know the joy of sunshine and waves every day!  My husband and I visited Puerto Rico last month.  We only spent a couple of days exploring Old San Juan and the immediate area however the rest of our visit we spent on Vieques and we loved it!  We are heading back in a couple of weeks to look for a home to purchase as we are confident we want to spend our winters there. Or should I say my husband is confident about winters, me on the other hand I'd like to move there full time. I'm pretty confident I could there full time but I guess time will tell!  I am very curious about electric costs over on the Vieques.  If anybody has any current information I'd really appreciate it! : )

Hi and welcome!

I would think that the cost of electricity electricity on Vieques is the same as on the main island but I'm not 100% sure.
I will try to find out for you.

We do pay premium prices for electricity here on the main island.  On my last bill it  was 22 ct /kWh thanks to the low oil prices. Last summer it was almost 30 ct. Also the service is not reliable. Here out the boonies I really need a generator.

I too love Old San Juan and Vieques. It's great you got to see both in your first trip.

My name is Tyler, and me and my family (4 kids under 5 years old) will be moving to Puerto Rico within the next four months.  So, I am engaging in crash course in everything Puerto Rico.  I will be posting some questions very soon!  Thanks

Welcome, Tyler, and good luck.

Welcome, Tyler!

Thank you so much Gary I really appreciate your help!

Hi everyone.  My husband and I (and two boys) have been planning our move to PR for a year, and this forum has been a great help.  Our plans are finally looking like they will come to fruition soon, so I decided to go ahead and officially join the forum.  I am looking forward to learning more and sharing what I know with others considering a move.  If all goes well, we will be moving to the Rincon area in a few months

Welcome!

Just wondering if all these people who are relocating to PR are aware that the island is going through a serious financial crisis right now and if you move there it will be something you'll have to deal with in one way or another. That is, unless you are filthy rich then it won't matter as much.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to discourage anyone from moving there. It's just that some people don't keep themselves well informed.

Welcome to the forum, CurlyGirl!

Gregg, I think some are retired like us and don't have to worry about a job and others are moving with their job relocation.  I would suggest to everyone to rent for awhile as we plan on doing before purchasing something that you can't sell for some time.  As always, people need to do their research

s.o   what would people's opinion be of buying a second home as a vacation home in Puerto Rico? It sounds as though they're boosting money into tourism creating more hotel rooms and increasing the port size to 7 ships from what I've heard and the airport will be going into some form of construction also to increase flight and departures. my wife and I are just looking at purchasing the home for family and friends to use near El Yunque. so if anyone has any ideas on that feel free to let me know I'm open for discussion. Thanks everybody for their help. Like most people have been saying we're trying to research as much as possible, we have stayed on the island over 1 month and do not foresee the language barrier being much of an issue in the areas that we have been too.

Hi All,

I've really never been a home buyer myself, have always rented, but for those who are thinking about buying a house I've just become familiar with what some are calling Puerto Rico's unusual Inheritance laws.

Something about a problem with a wife not getting ownership of the house if a situation occurs that ordinarily would not be a problem in the states. That the value of the wife's share of the house would go to the husband's relatives if something happened to him.

There are a number web sites that explain this in detail if you search for it..

Apparently many from the states are not aware of this before they buy a house and it can end up being a problem if not handled in a specific way.

Not trying to put a damper on things here but, from everything I have read I believe this is something important to understand before going ahead with the purchase of a house.

Like Schuttzie (and others) already said, I would also strongly suggest to rent for some time before buying. It takes some time to get used to all aspects of life here and if you buy and regret that decision later you will have some extra trouble in trying to sell the place.

You could even try to make a deal to rent the house you would like to buy for a year or so before you take your final decision. You could try to get part of the rent deducted from the buying price if you decide to buy. I' m sure many sellers would be willing to make a deal like that.

PR is in a debt spiral. Inevitable  credit downgrades will further shrink GDP. It is nearly impossible to make $ off of an investment, in real property or otherwise.

Might be a nice time to invest. Tourism related ventures are working well with me. Helps the community too. No capital gains tax. I see great potential from the ground floor. A silver lining maybe. I live a bit outside the box but it always seems like I am a bit ahead of the curve. My suggestion is if you want to make a living here  the best thing is to create the market and you have a job. I am not super rich just creative and enough of an entrepreneur and adventurer to take the risks and go out on a limb. Make your life an adventure and go for it.

Hi All,

Nice to see so many people with similar experiences. I've been living in Condado since December and have enjoyed it tremendously. My girlfriend is PR and I have been traveling back and forth between the States to make it work. My apt is on the border of Condado/Ocean Park/Santurce. Very good price and no complaints. Lots within walking distance. My girlfriend has a car so no issues at all. My spanish comprehension is very good although I am having a lot of trouble understanding "PR Spanish". I can understand "Mexican Spanish" with greater ease as I'm from CA and they speak slower and pronunciate syllables. I'm learning though. No issues with crime as I'm from LA and Washington DC and am used to gunshots and other things that come with the territory.

I think there are tons of real estate opportunities here given the tax laws and expats coming to take advantage of them. I myself am only here for the girlfriend but I can see myself always having a presence here.

I'm looking to get a business going here in PR. Even just to pass the time while I'm here. Something small like a coffee shop/bar/wine and tapas/etc. I'm in the my 30s and am able to run my US business from anywhere. Any recommendations and anyone in the same boat?? I love to go to the beach every day but I really need something to do here. Any card games...poker or otherwise? I also play a wide variety of sports if there are any leagues for adults/expats. Sorry if my comments are in the wrong post.  Overall I'm loving it here...the language is a bit of an issue but I'm swallowing my pride the best I can and dealing with the unpleasantness in stride. I'm used to working in India also so this place is like CandyLand compared to that. Thanks for all the excellent information on the blog.

Welcome, JamM2015!  There are a lot of good people here with helpful information.  Best wishes~

From PR, here to offer advice to those moving to PR! I just left the island but I lived there till I was 8, and then went to study at different aunt's houses stateside. Graduated HS in PR, moved to AK for 2 years, came back to PR for 2 years, moved to Germany, came back... I always come back for a year or two then leave again