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The Panamanian real estate market appears to have
escaped the debacles of the real estate sector in the United States,
Spain, and England, along with the financial crisis brought about by
high-risk mortgage lending in the U.S.
"The
Panamanian real estate market remains competitive," said Iván Carlucci,
former president of the Asociación de Corredores de Bienes Raíces. This
is due in part to a cyclical situation that's helping the local market,
he added. The favorable exchange rate for euros has attracted many
European investors. At the Salón Inmobiliario de
Madrid, one of the world's main real estate conventions, which ends
today, more than 30 companies are representing projects in Panama,
which Carlucci suggested is a sign of the continuing strength of the
market here. If sales at the The Trump Ocean Club
are any indicator, Carlucci might be right. As of March 31, 753 of
1,053 units had been sold for a sum of $322 million, according to a
report from Bear Stearns, which structured the financing for the
project. In its report, the investment bank also noted that Ocean Club
sales appear to be unaffected by the problematic dynamics of the U.S.
real estate market and economy. Bear Stearns recently had to be rescued by federal government in the largest bailout of U.S. securities firm in history. Americans
remain the biggest group of people who have bought into the The Trump
Ocean Club, but major interest in the project has shifted to buyers in
Venezuela, Canada, Europe and Russia. The importance of the Ocean Club, Carlucci said, is that it puts Panaman on the world real estate map.
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Panama 
