Expat Files - 04/05/13

-Reviewing a few dangerous countries in Latin America that are not recommended as permanent destinations for Expats

-Some people think that since Chavez has just died, and the currency (the Bolivar) has been devalued twice in the last 50 days (close to a western world record for fiscal irresponsibility), maybe Venezuela‘s hit rock bottom and just might be a good time to get in on the ground floor of a big boom. Well I don’t think so… here are 101 more reasons to avoid Venezuela as an Expat destination.

-Some thoughts on making deals and signing contracts with Latinos

-Using ATM machines in countries like Venezuela, Cuba and Argentina: the Latin  countries that have strict currency controls

-Since the official Venezuelan dollar to Bolivar exchange rate is only about 1/3 of what you can get on the street, that means if you have USD’s you get an instant 300% return on your money (if you have a trustworthy black market currency exchange guy). Now there’s a golden opportunity, right? If only one could get a truckload of USD's into the country….

-Man, can governments lie. If you think that Obama and Bush have advanced degrees in endless BS, well how about this whopper… according to official Venezuelan govt. statistics the country’s monthly minimum wage is about $400 (and 80% of Venezuelans make that minimum wage). But the actual monthly minimum wage is just $115. Here’s how they try to feed that big lie to the world...

-I’ll soon be announcing the latest plans for the next Expat Wisdom “Latin American Insider Seminar” which will of course be off the tourist trail. It’ll be coming up in the early summer so stay tuned for more info…

-Follow the link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com to schedule a private consultation with me. If you want to discuss the details of living, working, playing, doing business and/or retiring in Latin America, now you and I can talk about your situation one on one