JMOON87 has left 176 comments

JMOON87 comments on excuses and addtional information of the legal advice of the week

Robi is Correct His comment and gators are correct when i was in Colombia last MAY AND JUNE and looked at many apartments and met withe several attorneys ....The only thing that gets a bit sticky was the change in the banking laws that happened in APRIL and the if you have a spouse and were wanting to put property in both names .

JMOON87 comments on ANY TIPS FOR TOURIST VISA?

this came from the embassy .. my brother in law called the embassy and pin number and asked what she needed to bring and they gave her a emergency interview or at least they said they did maybe everybody gets a interview in 10 days (because we were not ready for it this soon)- they wanted to know the stability of who she was going to stay with and they said to make sure to bring proof that my wife (her daughter) is pregnant .as far as the income they know she makes a meager salary and only owns her house which is probaly worth 50k ....i know it is a crapshoot but i have seen others get visa with less than her and others get denied with a lot of assets.thanks

JMOON87 comments on why should we change the way we dress?

No problems I have been all over Colombia in shorts and sandals and never felt as it was a problem -other than Bogota at Christmas got a few looks while it was cold and i had shorts and sandals while others were bundled up and had gloves on while it was only 55-60 degrees....Sorry but Cali and Cartagena are hot and unless it something formal or a work dress code , i have no desire to dress up so i can be soaking wet with sweat 10 minutes later .

JMOON87 comments on Get married In San Andres Island- Colombia (no documents required) Law 915/2004

We enjoyed also I think San andres is a great place for 3-4 days .We went for 3 days the first time -than went again for a week and got bored .

JMOON87 comments on Pissed & Frustrated!

I think it does make a difference if you go to the interview with her ...Me and my wife had our k1 interview last december for the fiance visa - when we originally applied -all we sent was 3 photos and copys of the airline tickets when i flew over twice and copys when we traveled once together to san andres -all our proof was from before march of last year ...When we went to the interview we had more photos -more airline tickets -copys of phone cards and a couple of phone bills ....when we tried to give the info to the interviewer she said - NO -she chose to interview us verbally -we were asked alot of questions , like what type of work we both did when we met - names of all family memebers -when we knew we were in love -exact dates of all my travels -alot of questions in general ............Our day at the emabassy we only saw three girls out of about 15 not get the visa and each one of them was alone .good luck !

JMOON87 comments on The Grass Is Always Greener on the Other Side

The Carolinas .. The Carolinas are beauitfull but it is not a place for people from other country's looking to start out in life it is a place for retirees who have sold the 800k house in California and looking to get the same house somewhere else for 300k -there is not gonna be a lot of job options like in california-new york - florida ,also even though the cost of living may be higher in califonia and florida there is probaly a better chance of making ends meat .My business partner has a condo on myrtle beach he bought as a rental and it has turned out to be a nightmare ....Also i think a lot of latins such as my wife who is from Cali hate the cold weather and do want to be around other latin people untill they can learn more english .

JMOON87 comments on marraige in colombia with only a passport?

as of april As of april you did not need a special visa to marry in colombia as we went to the Miami Embassy to register our u.s. marriage certificate with them and for me to get my spouse visa so i could get my cedula .

JMOON87 comments on INVESTING IN COLOMBIA - MY EXP....

IMO The info i am giving here is just what i experienced from may 15th -june 2nd ...i know there are exceptions to the rule but when i get told the same thing by 4 different banks i gotta think there is some truth behind it .as far as how do they know my wife was not in the country the last 6 months they just looked in her passport-remember we were going to open the account to wire the funds to colombia to buy a house and it was too much money for my wife to explain without a job in colombia because we live in the u.s. , but they did make an exception because i gave them so much info on where the money was coming from (exp. bank letter showing i had an account since 1989 with the same bank , my tax forms , copys of huds from investment property sales ,state license ) but it took a week to get the final approval and by than it was too late -like i said it just didnt work out for us but i would never tell anyone to not invest in colombia just do all your homework and still prepared for many unforseen hoops to jump through ...i was told by 2 banks in april all i needed was my cedula to open an account well i got my cedula and they still would not let me open an account without my wife and that took an exception ...as far as the windfall taxes the bank manager did not say to pay him the money , he was actually being nice and warning us as he said many banks will not inform the customer because they are scared they will not open the account once they are informed of the tax laws ..which makes me think when many of the people on here say they do things without a problem maybe there is no problem now but there may be one in the future.My advice would be to contact DIEN like i did and they confirmed what the bank manager said was true .Good Luck !!

JMOON87 comments on INVESTING IN COLOMBIA - MY EXP....

I did speak to 4 banks .. Wasteland , i did speak to 4 banks =Citibank, Conavi(sp) , banco de bogota and bancolombia was the only one that did not show us the door once they discovered we had not lived in colombia the previous 6 months ..the point i am trying to make on the tax is that with the new law it does not seem likely that i can open a bank account unless i have lived there for 6 months so in turn they would allow me to open one with my wife but she would have to pay the taxes for half the amount according to DIEN .As far as putting it in her name also- that was my idea for her and our child ....as far as an agent we worked with 5 and saw probaly close to 60-70 places , than i had to go thru each agent trying to scare me about the other agents listing being in drug neighborhoods are the builders were being investigated by the government for drugs and if you invest you could lose all your money etc..i have worked in the real estate and finance industry here in florida since 1993 and i think i will just stick with what i know even if business is pretty dead right now lol .

JMOON87 comments on INVESTING IN COLOMBIA - MY EXP....

Miami is the same The branch in Miami still follows colombian laws as far as new accounts you will need cedula and proof of residence in colombia , i tried that when we went to miami to get my visa so i could apply for my cedula and was told the colombian laws apply for new accounts ,remember as i said the banking laws changed in april of this year.

JMOON87 comments on CALLING CARD (6 CENTS PER MINUTE)

Mr. Brode a ? I agree on the dental i had dental work done there last october . i was quoted $1500 in the u.s. and had it done there for $400 ....Mr. Brode , do you have any suggestions for purchasing a apartment or house in Cali , my wife and i will be going to visit her mother in 10 days and want to look ..thanks

JMOON87 comments on Experience with US Embassy in Bogota.

I was told... From what i have heard the C.O.'s already know if they are gonna give you the visa or not before you even go up to be interviewed this why they often dont even look at any papers . I was told this by a C.O.. when we were touring in bogota and one was in our tour group showing family around bogota.

JMOON87 comments on What Strato are you and your wife-gf-amiga con derechos?

Same here ... I never heard of the strata status untill this post and i have been with my wife for a year and a half.The only time it was kinda mentioned was when i asked her what utilities cost and she said it was different prices for different neighborhoods ..her mother lives in a small apartment in strata 6 but it is no nicer than the houses she owns in strata 4 but she lives there because it is suppose to be more safe as she lives alone ...This reminds me of the mindset that all doctors and lawyers make lots and lots of money , i have been doing loans for all walks of life for 13 years and the small business owners are usually the ones making the most money of course there are many doctors and lawyers making alot of money but there are far more barely making 40k- 50k a year .

JMOON87 comments on How do mortgages work in Colombia?

Try.. Try your local bank also , i spoke to my bank Wachovia and they said they would do a loan in colombia for me but i needed all details about the house/apartment and we have not made a decision yet ...So try this also all they can say is no ..good luck

JMOON87 comments on AOS Interview in Portland... good!

Silvia , we live in Tampa , Florida .Which is good as there is many colombian restaurants and bread places and even one place that sells colombian clothes .i have lived in Tampa all my life and never realized there was that many colombians restaurants .

JMOON87 comments on Unbelievable business practices!

Calipro -You never know .. My ex was from Brazil and was very nice to me when we met .i met her in the u.s. as she was going to school , i was doing great financialy than i spoiled her ,she soon quit school started working in the real estate and mortage industry and catered to other brazilians and marketed herself very well ,she soon started to make alot of money while not paying any bills in our household -i mean like basics her car insurance -car payment - health insurance etc . I told her she was making too much and it was time to grow up and start paying some of her own bills .Every month it was the same "give me one more month " so i finally had with her and with her attitude as making money changed her and how she treated other people .....So Calipro , you are correct you never know how things will change a person or if they will change you can only follow your heart and learn from your mistakes like you said .

JMOON87 comments on Transferring funds for a house ?Help

You get a temporary cedula The embassy told us i would get a temporary cedula for 6 months and than if i stayed for 6 moths would get the regular cedula - so you are correct but i can at least get a temporary cedula and get a bank account when we do make our move .

JMOON87 comments on What Strato are you and your wife-gf-amiga con derechos?

Actually... Actually , i asked my wife she said she grew up in 3-4 but was living in 6 with her family when i met her .

JMOON87 comments on What Strato are you and your wife-gf-amiga con derechos?

Strata Well in the u.s. i have seen many people go from living in a Strato 6 to living in a Strato 1 almost overnight not sure how it works in colombia but the IRS and the Stock Market can control alot of Stratos here in the u.s. .... i would rather rank Stratos by someones personality and what they do to help others and by that Strato my wife is a 6 and i am a NEGATIVE -2 but she is helping me to get better , i hope to one day be half as nice as she is so that would put me at a 3 lol.

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

kernow - you know the heat lol My wife and i take a nice hour long walk every evening and she thinks the Tampa weather is great (shes only been here 3 months) and forbids me to turn the A/C on .I told her in another 6-8 weeks she will beg me to turn the A/C on will tell me to take walk in the hot muggy night air by myself .

JMOON87 comments on How much time between my NOA2 approval till my wife gets her visa

Our k-1 was about 5-6 weeks from when it got to bogota to the interview date so pretty fast but it was the 4 months in calfornia that drug our timeline out.good luck

JMOON87 comments on Transferring funds for a house ?Help

Brians , we are planning the same thing basically as you as far as buying smaller apartments to rent out on a gradually basis ....what i meant by going to miami for the visa is that we are married in the u.s. but not in colombia so i want to be able to get a cedula so i can have a bank account in colombia and the embassy in miami told me i needed to get a fiance visa to live in colombia with my wife .....brian , i agree about the market here in the u.s. i did the numbers and i would get more rental return in colombia from what i have seen- than here in florida now -houses in my neighborhood with a 20% down payment will give you PITI payment of $1800 a month with perfect credit plus you will be responsible for any repairs maintence etc or you can rent the exact same house for $1200 a month .I have heard that Pennsacola is suppose to be a great place to invest now but i have yet to look into it ...I also dont worry about the kidnappings i feel more safe in colombia than my mom's old neighborhood in New york and the couple months i spent in Brazil , i see guys in unicentro walking around with rolexes on and getting into sport cars - i dont know maybe they only kidnap gringos but there are alot of colombians doing way way better than me .

JMOON87 comments on Transferring funds for a house ?Help

Brians , we were planing to do exactly what you said looking at something in the 75-100k range we were gonna transfer it into my wifes account or builders as i do not have a bank account yet and will be going to miami soon to get my spose visa so i can get one .Part of the money will be my wifes due to florida law on homestead ...... As far as being kidnapped if we purchase something in May we probaly would not even live in it untill dec-jan i dont know if this lowers the odds of being kidnapped -also is it better to transfer to a seller or builder would they than be the ones at risk for kidnapping .....I just know firsthand many people from other countrys to invest in colombia , my wife used to work in real estate with Constructora Melendez S.A. in Cali and she said about 20% of her sales were from other countrys such as the u.s.,canada ,europe ,etc ..her last project there consisted of apartments ranging from 80-115k and out of 101 units 23 were non colombians ...We would be buying the houses with a loan against our house in the u.s. dont know if this would work to my adavantage or my bank said they would finance me for an international loan just need a large down payment 20-30 percent .also that is all i would pay is a 6% tax when i sold as long as the forms 4&11 were filled out ??/i know there are better countrys to invest in but my wife does not have family in theses countrys lol sorry to bother everybody but just trying to learn -thanks again.

JMOON87 comments on Transferring funds for a house ?Help

Thanks Viewpoint , how does the Pat tax affect residents all would be buying now is a primary residence and would not buy anything else unless it was in my wifes name or i was a resident which would be a few years from now ? ............GIB , i appreciate your advice and it is well taken but we would like to get a house or apartment there .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

Same as Gasoline .. This bread talk remnds me of all the people that said awhile back that when Gasoline went to $2 a gallon they would start taking the bus or a bicycle and that people were carzy to pay $2 a gallon for gasoline ,well... Its almost $3 a gallon and these people are not taking any buses or riding any bikes .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

Poco very enjoyable post Poco , you may want to get out more .I can only give you the price of bread at the local Publix here in Tampa .Alot of people find it difficult to believe that many people pay $3500 year in haz insurance on a 275k house and $4500 a year in property taxes ..I wondered where your point was coming from but when you mentioned prices in Houston it all made sense to me if you think Houston is the mecca for high price items come on down to florida or take a trip to california .I guess i am a sucker for paying $2.50 a loaf but it is eitheir that or drive to wherever you live .I feel no worse for paying $2.50 a loaf for bread than i do eating out at any restaurant .

JMOON87 comments on Search: Furniture, fixtures, etc in Cartagena

Thanks lot CH i was hoping to just get some honest advice from someone familliar with the area , i will look you up when we schedule the trip for May (waiting for wifes travel document ) .thanks again.

JMOON87 comments on Transferring funds for a house ?Help

THANKS Calipro, does this apply also to transeferrring al large sum of money for the purchase of a houses like 75-125k ?..what are the forms 4 and 11 -just like a registration or recording of the transaction ..i just read on some old post that you will pay 42% when you sale and try and get the money back to the u.s. ..thanks again

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

PINEAPPLE RELIEF !!! All i know is my wife is pregnant and craves fruit all the time and i may have to get a second job to afford her fruit addiction - with the prices of fruit. Example today 2 pineapples was $7.99 at Publix .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

Bread is cheaper in colombia .. I pay about $2.50 for a loaf of wheat wonderbread here in tampa never seen bread for under a dollar unless it is out of date .I thought the bread was cheaper in colombia and much more fresh .i think alot depends on where you live in the u.s. also .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

U.S. IS HIT OR MISS ON FAT This was a intersting conversation i had with my wife before she came to the u.s. ...she asked about the overweight people .i told her there were more people with perfect bodys in the u..s. than i had saw in colombia but those that were overwight in colombia was only by 10-20lb ,the problem is when people are overweight in the u.s. it is usually by at least 30lbs and of course some by triple digits so it screws it up for all the people that do exercise and eat correct ...I took her to Clearwater beach and she was amazed at how in shape the people were at the beach but on the other hand tooke her the first time to the movies and i dont know if we saw 5 people that were not way overweight .

JMOON87 comments on Should I be afraid of the police?

My exp with the police My first trip to cali we were pulled over for one of the road side searches -so of course i had 3 large suitcases -i explained to the police that i had gifts for my wife and her family (as they were in the car also) and if they would be so kind as not to open the gifts in front of them if they were going to search them - they were very nice took the suitcases to the side did their search and returned everything in tact ..i had money in my carry on and expensive video camera equpment and nothing was harmed or taken and they even laughed when i told them not to open the gifts and rolled their eyes .......my only problem i had was on my 4th trip was returning through customs/immigration the police could not find in my passport when i entered because the idiot who stamped it when i enetered stamped over a previous stamp and none of the police could speak english so i could not get them to understand about the double stamp- i could not understand it was a international flight how do you not have somebody that can speak english sorry but not every tourist is gonna be able to speak spanish well - so they ran me thru a xray machine and did a very good search of my body to make sure i was not a mule .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

SQ FOOTAGE Poco , i have found the same thing on the square footage many places advertised as 2500 sq ft end up being 1500 sq ft with a 1000 sq ft of patio and terrace.

JMOON87 comments on Search: Furniture, fixtures, etc in Cartagena

CH- thanks Thanks for the info , the few realtors in cartagena i have talked to have been little help and one project next to las americas we were thinking about went from 175k to 205 k in a matter of a week - we would be buying the house/condo to live in and keep for at leat 3 years ..i just want to be close to the beach at least 15 minute walk ..thanks for the help .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

You get what you pay for I love Taco Bell also but you get what you pay for .I have eaten lunch there for years and noticed that the amount of chicken seem to be vanishing in the chicken tacos could easily equate it to a lettuce and tomato taco but i asked abuddy of mine whos 16 year old works there after school awhile back - i said joking to him whats up with the no meat tacos and he told me a normal chicken breast will be divided into about 6-8 tacos lol .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

Pete you are correct Pete , you are correct your body needs protein if nothing else people should take protein drinks or something similar to keep the muscle they have ........ i do agree with you on Lenos you cant beat the price for the food they give you -me and my wife eat there also for about $12-14 and i couldnt buy the food they give you unprepared at my local super market for that -my wife said that El Corral is considered more like a applebys's or something of that sort but i understand it does seem similar to fast food to me - i do know her nephew usually gets a happy meal at mcd's and it is about the same price as here in the u.s. ..the pizza i think is a little more i usually eat papa johns as i am a sauce guy and i know one lg with the works runs about $20 with tax, delivery and tip here and we usually ordered from Karins Pizza in colombia and it was about the same .

JMOON87 comments on AOS Interview in Portland... good!

Doing good Hi Silvia , we are doing good we are expecting a baby in september sooner than we planned but we say it is gods decision (discovered the only true birth control is abstinence lol ) ...Kelly is a little like you said onece ready to jump out the window lol- as we waiting for her ead so she can find something to do .

JMOON87 comments on I make 400K a year in the US and want the same in Colombia

GringoD, that is another issue the Hurricanes -Its getting difficult to get haz inurance here especially at a good price just lost a deal last week the current owner of a home was paying $1600 a year the new buyers cheapest quote was $3200 so it killed the deal ...Here in Tampa we dont get much from hurricanes we are the Lightning capital of the u.s. (ie the name of the hockey team) . my directv satelite took a direct hit last year and the current was so strong my dogs collapsed on the floor and it caught the tv in my bedroom on fire than it redirected from the satellite and caught a palm tree in my yard on fire did about 10k in damage had to make my first claim on my insurance so i am sure it will go up .

JMOON87 comments on Costs in Colombia LONG

Good post Pete , your post was long but i enjoyed it we are thinking of buying in cali or cartagena ..I agree with most of what you said except the fast food prices here in the u.s. are about the same unless you are buying off the value meal and not supersizing something lol.

JMOON87 comments on I make 400K a year in the US and want the same in Colombia

Not yet ! begottenson,I sold some other investment houses that i had because i was losing money each month (how the new owners buying at a higher price than i paid are gonna make money i have no clue) so if i buy i will use that equity and equity in my primary residence , i am just now starting to research the market in colombia and hopefully make a good decision with my wifes help -i would rather buy close to the beach because i feel you may not make any money but you usually dont lose any money if you can wait it out but i am completly ignornant right now to houses in colombia , i have gotten different advice from people ....my bank did say they would finance a house in colombia for me but i needed all the details on the house before they would give me any terms .

JMOON87 comments on Fiancee had K-1 Visa approved today

My timeline We sent ours june 13th and ur interview was december 12th(6 months) but we had a couple small problems our k1 went to texas and than got forwarded to californa which cost about 10 days than we got a RFE for a more clear copy of a document (the document i sent i know was good but oh well) which cost us about 2-3 weeks ...good luck to all .

JMOON87 comments on I make 400K a year in the US and want the same in Colombia

The Baby Boom ! Kernow , Everyone has marketed the WWII Baby Boom and the amount of people to retire in florida in the next 5 years ,So the prices have went crazy but i think there will be a 5-15 percent dropback soon as the market is getting oversaturated , my neighborhood usually never has more than 2-3 houses for sale now there is 12 now and all priced higher than the highest price sale in the last 12 months ...i really think some places in colombia could be a better short term investment than Florida unless it is florida waterfront IMO .

JMOON87 comments on I make 400K a year in the US and want the same in Colombia

I understand -begoten.... begottenson , same here i work with first time home buyers and folks with not so good credit ..and now it is cheaper to rent than to buy here in most of central florida ..Good prices can be had in the Carolinas but i would rather move with my wife to Colombia so she could be near her family as i could still co-broker even from there.

JMOON87 comments on Search: Furniture, fixtures, etc in Cartagena

CARTAGENA HOOKER Cartagena Hooker , do you have real estate agent you would recommend as far as buying or do you think it is better to do it yourself - we will be in Cartagena in may and we ar looking at some of the new condos that are going up ..thanks

JMOON87 comments on AOS Interview in Portland... good!

Congrats Silvia , Kelly and i wish you the best of luck .

JMOON87 comments on I make 400K a year in the US and want the same in Colombia

Begottenson , How is the real estate market in portland ? If it is like Florida now may be a good time to take some time off although i work in residential not commercial ....On your trip make sure to visit Cartagena -it was my favorite place..good luck.

JMOON87 comments on Miami translating for embassy

Thanks Bob , thanks for the info .Hope business is good i sent a few people your way .. i have to go get a spousal visa in miami so i have to get some items translated , we are hoping to be living in cali or cartagena by august .thanks again.

JMOON87 comments on Finding management jobs in Colombia?

Will be there april or may Mariasman, i will look you up - we will be there end of april or May as we are waiting for my wifes Travel document and she is pregnant so she wants to see her Mom -trust me if it were up to my wife we would live in Cali close to her family-i live in florida so used to the beaches but we have to investgate both cali and cartagena as far as where is best for us to possibly live i just thought cartagena may be better because of the tourist factor if we could come up with a small business idea but probaly dreaming lol-i just feel as a long term investment the closer to the beach the better but i am ignorant as far as living expenses etc there ..... in cali We hang out at Unicentro most of the time(about a 15 minute walk) eating at Leno's or having a few drinks at one of the outdoor bars ..I love every city i have visited so far and have had no problems .

JMOON87 comments on What is process do i need a visa ?

Thanks Gator , thanks for the help .we are planning on going to miami the first of next month .

JMOON87 comments on Finding management jobs in Colombia?

MARIASMAN ? Mariasman, how do you like living in Cali and what made you decide there over the other possible citys in colombia ? that is where my wife is from and i spent about 3 months there last year but i have told her if i was gonna live in colombia i would rather try cartagena and be near the beach but i know the cost of living is alot more there .