Moving to another country is no small thing. A million things to consider, and it can be overwhelming. We’ve been contacted by people in this position, and we get it. We’re still going through the process.
Thankfully, to date, we haven’t made too many wrong turns. Yes, we’ve made the odd poor decision, but it hasn’t cost us much. Whatever we’ve lost we gained in experience. For what it’s worth these are my top tips to anyone thinking about making the move.
Give All Information and Advice a Good Rinse
As I read through the comments on posts and discussion threads I often see information being offered that is mostly accurate but for a few points. There’s many reasons why this happens. Sometimes people are giving outdated advice, and occasionally the information seems to be almost deliberately misleading because the source has something to gain.
Generally, we don’t buy a car without checking reviews, or a house without doing a due diligence regarding the property and the area. Moving is no different. It’s advisable to cross reference any information that you might be relying upon to relocate. If someone makes a claim, reach out to them. If possible see if the source can refer you to others who have relied on that information.
There is a global industry that’s been built around relocation. Countless ‘experts’ ready to give THE good oil on the best place to go, how to get there, what to do when you’re there, and who to rely on.
Despite what the former NZ Prime Minister claimed, it’s healthy to proceed on the basis that there is no single source of truth. See my previous post Is it Mis-information, Dis-information or Just Plain Bs?
Trust but verify.
Build Contacts
Contacts are gold, especially when you’re moving to a new country. We usually take it for granted that we know where to go to get something done, or we find out through people we trust. We need to rebuild that resource when relocating.
Fill your little black book with solid contacts. Do this before you travel and have contacts in the place that you’re traveling to. Jump on expat forums of the country you’re considering and find people that are blogging from that country – and live or have lived in the country.
Good contacts lead to more good contacts. Make a list, and when you find a good contact, ask them, who’s your Doctor, Mechanic, Dentist, or Real Estate Agent? How do you get around, Uber, Bolt, taxi? Do you have a reliable taxi driver? Where do you shop? The list of questions is endless and by asking good questions you will invariably make many valuable contacts from almost every contact you make.
Gather info from Locals
Most importantly, when looking for contacts, shop local. A contact actually on the ground is much more likely to know the current state of play. To illustrate, at this very moment, I have just spoken to a friend who has recently visited a particular part of Paraguay. My friend loved their time away but shared some details about that part of the country that would make you think twice about moving there.
And the fact that I’m not being specific about that information leads me to my next point regarding the importance of local contacts. There is some information that can only be conveyed in confidence. In some countries (I am not talking about Paraguay in this instance) you dare not say anything critical of the authorities, even as an expat. Therefore, the information coming out is sanitized, and prickly facts that you should know remain buried.
Take Your Time, and Don’t Feel Silly
Sometimes it feels like we’re on a conveyor belt. There’s so much going on, and you’re trying to get your head around the language and different ways of doing things.
It’s so easy and tempting to make a decision to make all the white noise go away. There’s a kind of pressure that comes from being in the space between considering something and sealing the deal. Added to this is we often have people around who are waiting on us to make a decision.
Recently we have been considering purchasing a particular house. It is a beautiful property and we like it more each time we pass by. However, after ongoing conversations with the owner, we revisited the property with five different people for their advice. Their observations, thoughts, assessments, perspectives, and concerns have been priceless. After all of that, we have decided to pass on that property.
Like everything, there’s also a balance between being cautious and procrastinating. Analysis paralysis, the decision to not make a decision is also a decision that comes with consequences. We have met people who seem to be perpetually in this space, and it’s not a nice place to be. The more you have followed the process of 1. rinsing the information and 2. building your contacts, the more efficiently you can work through the decision-making process.
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The Paraguay Relocation Guide is an essential planning tool for your move to Paraguay.
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It’s essentially a summary of all the most important lessons we learnt from our moving journey!
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