kubla
American expat in Puerto Rico
Forum posts
19
About me
American
Lives in San Juan
Registration: 17 October 2012
Activity
We have arrived! by Siobhan_Nolan
We have been in Puerto Rico now for two weeks. I'll be blogging about life here and our experiences if anyone is interested in taking a look. highsandlowsofexpatlife.wordpress.com/
Welcome to PR! I read your blog and am shocked by the rental prices in Dorado. Do you have to live there? I live in Ocean Park which is also gated although more urban. What I love about it though is that you can actually walk or bike to many places ... Read More
Retire to Puerto Rico? by suzeekyu
My husband and I are considering Puerto Rico as a retirement destination. Now, I must say that we have not yet visited the area yet, and would not just up and move before visiting a few times and doing some research. Just hoping to get some ...
Hi there, I'm the aforementioned US doctor working down here in PR (for a federal program bringing doctors to underserved areas in exchange for loan repayment). I would not advise a move to Puerto Rico if you suffer a chronic autoimmune ... Read More
Excise tax? by BearNVa
I'm gonna be shipping two vehicles to the island. I've tried the website https://siscon.hacienda.gobierno.pr/Siscon/Portal/ARBAW951Form.aspx and I keep getting an error "No existen datos disponibles para su consulta" or "Data ...
The website is notoriously bad and unreliable, even if it does spit out an answer, it will likely not be the amount that they charge you when the car arrives. If you can call and actually talk to someone (would be a small miracle) then that would ... Read More
Moving Questions / Domestic Help / Ocean Park by sorrel2
Ola, I am a marketing executive and a single mother to a kindergarten-aged son. I lived in Brazil some years back--well before motherhood--and am excited about the opportunity of living abroad with him! We are considering a move to San Juan and am ...
oops, didn't see that this post was quite old Read More
Best Internet Providers by Sand and Snow
Hi! I'll be moving to the Rio Grande area in a few months and am starting to gather info on utilities and services. Can anyone give me the lowdown on high-speed internet providers? Or point me in the direction of good information? Thanks for ...
For the San Juan area there is an exciting new development in the works. A company called Optico Fiber is trying to startup in several areas a fiberoptic option for superfast internet (1giga !). They are trying to get people in the areas they want ... Read More
Best Place to Live in San Juan - Recent College Grad by dhb10
Hi, I am moving to San Juan in August to live and work for a year. I will be working in Ocean Park and trying to find a good place to live. I am looking for a safe area (first priority) that is clean and convenient to access groceries and ideally ...
Yes, you can find a studio or 1 bedroom in Ocean park for 6-700. I live in OP and love it. Good community feeling, people of all ages, walkable and bikeable to get to most all the places you need. Read More
Real estate agent in OSJ by Anolis
My wife & I are looking to purchase an apartment in OSJ as a part-time residence. Can anyone recommend a real estate agent? We'd like to get a 2-3 bedroom in the historic district. Any comments on anything we should consider during our home ...
Look in the classifieds section of this website and you'll find the information for Brian Aronson, who is a realtor in Old San Juan and Condado. I think he's very good. Read More
PR health insurance and pre-existing conditions by damisme
My husband and I are both over 50 and will need to find health insurance once we move to PR next summer. My husband is healthy but unfortunately I have not been so lucky. I am wondering if anyone has had to deal with pre-existing conditions when ...
I think that in term of planned care, yes you can typically get faster and maybe more competent care if you have better insurance but for any type of emergency it is truly luck of the draw. The thing is that most ERs here are staffed by generalists ... Read More
PR health insurance and pre-existing conditions by damisme
My husband and I are both over 50 and will need to find health insurance once we move to PR next summer. My husband is healthy but unfortunately I have not been so lucky. I am wondering if anyone has had to deal with pre-existing conditions when ...
I would caution anybody with complex medical problems about moving to PR. I am a doctor (internal medicine) here serving my payback time for a scholarship I received from the federal government. I have been dismayed by the healthcare system here, ... Read More
Relator/Broker needed San Juan by luis.grace
Hello, after looking around we want to explore the option of buying a home rather than renting. Can anyone recommend a good relator and/or broker in the San Juan area? Can I use a broker from FL, USA? If anyone knows! Thanks! :)
(Moderated: Please recommend in the Puerto Rico business directory) Read More
Looking for an inexpensive vacation rental for one week by madtowner
I will be going to Rincon with my wife, our 22 year old son and our 21 year old daughter. We want to stay from 1/21/2014 to 1/28/2014. The dates may be flexible. Does anyone know of a very reasonable vacation rental? Do you know someone else you ...
I would check out the airbnb site and vrbo. These are typically the more affordable than hotels. Read More
Internet for Gaming and Downloading in Vega Baja? by preguntonontrack
Hello, i have been living in Puerto Rico some years now and i moved to Vega Baja for a good work i got. I have been using this last year Claro DSL. For Six months i have been calling their support because i am having slow connection problems, ...
In my experience, Claro has been horrendous for both functionality and customer service. I swear I've lost months off my life dealing with that circus. They seem like they will tell you anything just to get you to hang up the phone, so you end up ... Read More
Your thoughts on Fajardo, please! by cruzan
Hi all, My husband and I currently live on St. Croix, US Virgin Islands and we're considering a move next door to Puerto Rico. We work from home and would like to be about an hour away from the SJ metro area. In looking at apartment rentals in ...
Fajardo is pretty nice, depending of course on the area where you live. There are many nice high rise new apartment buildings. If you are in these areas, you will really enjoy it. If you are down in the main town, it will be a little less safe and ... Read More
Safety in Caguas, Puerto Rico by moni77
We may move to Puerto Rico to Caguas more specifically but I have heard different opinions about the area, could anyone give feedback about whether or not it is a safe area for a family?? I read some reports online and they all seem to say that ...
I live in Caguas (actually in mountains above Caguas between Caguas and Cidra, but technically in Caguas). I think it's neither super safe nor very scary. I think previous posts are correct in saying that you need to be careful and always aware. If ... Read More
Help! Departmento de Hacienda by DocRob
Help! I am considering shipping my vintage motora down with me when I come next Spring. I went to the website for an estimation of excise tax I could be expecting to pay, but it would not give me any detailed info. The only results that came back: " ...
I moved here in September and brought over my 2003 Subaru Outback. The blue book value on the car was about $7000, and it is not in excellent condition. I also had problems finding out before hand what my import tax would be for the car but figured ... Read More