Any advice for someone who's considering relocating to Puerto Rico from the Mainland US? (Pros/Cons)

[kyle19125]

OP, you might consider Panama which is fairly easy to emigrate to. The capital city of Panama City is surprisingly 21st century forward, affordable, feels Caribbean and English is widely spoken. Panama also pegs it's currency to the US dollar and is accepted everywhere.

https://foundtheworld.com/panama-city/

[AntonioR]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

OP, you might consider Panama which is fairly easy to emigrate to. The capital city of Panama City is surprisingly 21st century forward, affordable, feels Caribbean and English is widely spoken. Panama also pegs it's currency to the US dollar and is accepted everywhere.

https://foundtheworld.com/panama-city/

Based on this comment by the OP:

* Unlike Hawaii you're not too far from the US virgin Islands and the Dominican Republic

I assume he also wants be close not just to those two places, but also the east coast of the USA. It may or may not be a deal breaker, but Panama is much farther than Puerto Rico to the US Virgin Islands/Dominican Republic/east coast of USA. In much of the east coast of the US mainland you can eat breakfast in the USA and by lunch time you are in San Juan. There is no way that is possible with Panama.

Plus, there are more flight options from Puerto Rico to any of those places than from Panama. With the case of the US Virgin Islands, you can't directly fly from Panama.

Anyone that wants to be close to the USA is limited to Canada, Mexico and parts of the Caribbean. For some flying is no big deal while for others they want to get over with as soon as possible.

[roodd279]

you might consider Panama which is fairly easy to emigrate to

Not as easy as Puerto Rico - since no such emigration is required. That was kinda the point - the OP would still be on US land, it just doesn't "feel" like it.

[stephenMM]

Originally Posted by roodd279

Why is "distance in kilometers" a PRO? Because, oddly, their speed limit signs are in MPH.



Gas is also sold by the liter - but nearly no place accepts "pay at the pump" - so it's a wait-in-line situation twice, and it is never - ever - fast.


Being close to the Dominican Republic is not exactly a PRO either. Many other far better destinations nearby.


But the main thing here to consider is that PR may become a state - or may become independent - but EITHER WAY - big changes will happen. I think the "status quo" is short on time.

I had to laugh at the comment about the Dominican Republic being not exactly a "Pro". Years ago, a friend and I fled the cold winters of Reno to go try and live in The US Virgin Islands. We were not very well informed. Oh, we found a nice apt for $700 but the water and electric bills were $500 a month! Turned out that water had to be sent over on boats unless you could get by w/ a catchment system.

They also had a lot of shady characters who showed up at night in the bottom of boats leaving from the Dominican Republican. You know you are in serious trouble when you are on a small island with people who have been kicked OUT of the D.R.!

[AntonioR]

Originally Posted by stephenMM

I had to laugh at the comment about the Dominican Republic being not exactly a "Pro". Years ago, a friend and I fled the cold winters of Reno to go try and live in The US Virgin Islands. We were not very well informed. Oh, we found a nice apt for $700 but the water and electric bills were $500 a month! Turned out that water had to be sent over on boats unless you could get by w/ a catchment system.

They also had a lot of shady characters who showed up at night in the bottom of boats leaving from the Dominican Republican. You know you are in serious trouble when you are on a small island with people who have been kicked OUT of the D.R.!

I would say there is a big difference between the small islands of the Lesser Antilles and the bigger islands in the Greater Antilles. Puerto Rico is about the smallest of the big islands and it might as well be a continent compared to any island in the Lesser Antilles including all the Virgin Islands combined (US and British.) With Dominican Republic you can include the entire Caribbean combined (minus Cuba) and it’s still bigger. In the Lesser Antilles you always know you’re on an island because the sea is never far, but in the bigger islands it isn’t obvious they are actual islands because the sea is not always close. It isn’t possible to go around the island in a relatively short time. When you do see the sea it isn’t as if you can go a few minutes in the opposite direction and soon enough see the sea again. In fact, there are people in the interior of the Dominican Republic that have never seen the sea. Imagine that in the Caribbean! There is a Dominican politician from Santiago that said the first time he saw the sea was as a teenager when he went to Santo Domingo. He couldn’t believe his eyes. That’s something no one from the Lesser Antilles lives through, yet in the DR it’s not only possible, but it’s real.

Also, there is no comparison in terms of population. The Lesser Antilles combined has a population of about 3 million. That’s about the population of Puerto Rico alone. Greater Santo Domingo alone has more people than the entire Lesser Antilles and they don’t even make up most of the population. Another way to get an idea of how different are the dimensions, the middle class of the DR has more people than all the rich, middle class and poor of the Lesser Antilles combined.

Unlike in the Lesser Antilles which have to import almost everything and that drives up costs, in the Greater Antilles there is enough land to not have to import everything. Take food as an example. In all the Lesser Antilles most of the food is actually imported because agriculture is very limited due to a lack of space. If those islands had to depend on their food production, their populations would be considerably less. This is actually the complete opposite regarding the Dominican Republic which is quite self sufficient on its domestic food production. Keep in mind the DR produces food for its 10 million or so population and the 10 million foreign visitors between tourists and cruise ship visitors, plus some for export. This is one of the main reasons overall food tend to be cheaper in the Dominican Republic than in those Lesser Antilles islands.

As a general rule of thumb, life is very expensive in those Lesser Antilles compared to the bigger islands. Everywhere imports are more expensive than you will find them in their countries of origin. The big difference is that while in the Lesser Antilles practically everything has to be imported, that is not always the case in the bigger islands.

I mention agriculture, but many sectors also have a strong local component such as manufacturing. A lot of local brands which are locally produced are found in the bigger islands and are lacking in the small ones.