Move to PR

Hi, z4luvz. Do you work in banking? I do as well (in-house international tax lawyer). You're office will probably be in Hato Rey, which is the banking district. I've found rental and real estate agents to be helpful but I think it would be nigh impossible to find a place in three or four days.

If I were you, I'd rent one of the colonial houses in Old San Juan. Another good option is a high-rise apartment on the eastern side of Guaynabo or in Hato Rey itself. These threee locations will have short commutes, something very rare for the San Juan metro area. Good luck!

Thanks for the advice.  It is not a bank per se, but another financial institution.  It is still not 100% sure that my company will open the office there and that I will actually receive an offer.  However, I consider both likely. I am trying to find out as much as I can, to make an informed decision. 

I have visited Old San Juan several times and it is beautiful. I really enjoyed walking about the town, soaking in the history and culture.  I wasn't sure if it would be affordable. One knock I have heard is that it can tend to be very loud at night. Obviously, that's all about a specific location. 

I am concerned how much time I will have to find a place to lease.  Like you say, 3-4 days isn't very much time to nail something like that down.  I am trying to do as much online research as I can, but being there makes all the difference.  Maybe I could use VRBO or airbnb to get a place for a longer time period so I can figure out the lay of the land and make a decision.

Thanks again for your excellent advice.

You're very welcome, z4luvr. Anytime.

H z4luvr,

Welcome to Expat.com

I have created a new thread with your post on the Puerto Rico forum in order to help you to discuss more freely with the other members.

Thanks

Priscilla 

z4luvz, welcome!  I would suggest you rent a vacation rental for a week or two like you had thought from vrbo or homeaway or airbnb.com.  That way you can have a bit of time to be on the ground and search out rentals.

Best of luck!

Schuttzie, Thanks for the feedback.  The more I think about the logistics, I agree that 3-4 days isn't going to be enough.  If I had everything nailed down to a small area such that I required my place to be walking distance from my office, I could easily do that.  However, I have no such restrictions.  I want a to look at a lot more options.  Besides, I won't just be house hunting.  I will be doing a lot of other administrative things like bank accounts, etc.  I will also be on Island time.  That's going to be an adjustment for me in my business life.  Experiencing it on vacation is one thing, but being patient in a business and daily life environment will be a learning experience.

Thanks again for the advice. 

Anyone able to comment on my electric car questions?

z4luvr wrote:

Schuttzie, Thanks for the feedback.  The more I think about the logistics, I agree that 3-4 days isn't going to be enough.  If I had everything nailed down to a small area such that I required my place to be walking distance from my office, I could easily do that.  However, I have no such restrictions.  I want a to look at a lot more options.  Besides, I won't just be house hunting.  I will be doing a lot of other administrative things like bank accounts, etc.  I will also be on Island time.  That's going to be an adjustment for me in my business life.  Experiencing it on vacation is one thing, but being patient in a business and daily life environment will be a learning experience.

Thanks again for the advice. 

Anyone able to comment on my electric car questions?

I haven't seen any infrastructure for electric cars in PR (though I have not looked intensely) - nor have I seen any electric cars, for that matter. You do see some hybrids around, though. If you are environmentally conscious & working in Hato Rey, you might want to consider access to the Tren Urbano - a light rail public transport system in San Juan that works very well.

There are numerous high-rise apartment buildings in Hato Rey that look pretty luxurious from the outside, yet I'm sure that the prices are modest compared to areas closer to the beach such as Condado & Ocean Park. I think the attractiveness of those buildings will probably depend on the kind of lifestyle you want to live as Hato Rey - though very busy with as a financial district during the day - is not much to walk around in at night. If you are homebodies after hours, and just want to set on a nice balcony or go to the gym or pool that such buildings surely have, one of these buildings could be very good for someone working in Hato Rey.

I personally wouldn't consider an electric car at this point in time. Aside from the rapidly rising cost of electricity, which is already very high, power outages are very common. It would be my luck for the power to go out when I need a charge. If you live in the metro area or anywhere else for that matter anymore, don't expect your environment to be anything close to being quiet. Keep a close eye on what happens to the economy in the very near future. It will have an impact one way or another on what decisions you make. If the government shuts down, just keep in mind that the government owns and runs the electric company. In my humble opinion, I personally feel that if anybody out ther has a desire to relocate to PR, it might be best to hold off for a little while to see what happens with the looming financial crisis.

Thanks for the advice.  Even if the electric utility is run by the government, I don't see a default causing a long term blackout.  That would be chaos.  The US won't let that happen.  However, I think your take on an electric car is probably correct.  Few charging stations, intermittent blackouts / power spikes, expensive electricity without off peak discounts are all strikes against electric cars.  I talked with the people at Tesla and they would not sell me a car in PR because they have no service capability there at this time.

However, in the long run, I think the Caribbean needs to be more proactive about electric cars.  Fossil fuels are already very expensive there and the idea of encouraging overnight charging such that off peak capacity is utilized will mean no incremental power plant investment.  The relatively shorter travel distances also bodes well for electric power.  Unfortunately, one big strike that is also in play is heat.  Batteries don't retain as much charge in higher heat areas.

Thanks again for the advice.

Doesn't the Caribbean get their electricity by generating it with the use of fossil fuels? I'm no expert on this - it's an honest question.

Excellent point.  Yes, fossil fuels are still at the root of that power but the process of generating electricity in a power plant is much more efficient and cleaner than having a hundred thousand small internal combustion engines (cars) generating power.  Another big issue is that power plants have excess capacity in the evening that can be utilized without the incremental capital needed for another plant.  You would import more fossil fuels to power the plant, but less gasoline to power cars.

z4luvr wrote:

Excellent point.  Yes, fossil fuels are still at the root of that power but the process of generating electricity in a power plant is much more efficient and cleaner than having a hundred thousand small internal combustion engines (cars) generating power.  Another big issue is that power plants have excess capacity in the evening that can be utilized without the incremental capital needed for another plant.  You would import more fossil fuels to power the plant, but less gasoline to power cars.

Absolutely. Pretty much regardless of the source, electric is cleaner. In addition, in spite of the high cost of electricity per kWh in PR your still looking at about half the cost of a conventional internal combustion engine. (Of course, this might make it only about the same as a gas-electric hybrid.) Unfortunately, and I could be wrong on this, I suspect that there is limited if any charging infrastructure in PR, which means you will only be able to charge at home. (Again, don't take my word on this - I could be wrong.) In addition, you will certainly find yourself idling in traffic in San Juan on occasion. Even if you take every precaution to avoid the worst of San Juan's notorious traffic, it'll get you eventually. I'm not sure if this is a problem for an electric vehicle. Maybe just get a Prius?

Thank you, z4luvr & anolis. I'm interested in Caribbean infrastructure and appreciate your responses. In light of what you've both said, would the natural gas pipeline that was proposed under the Fortuno administration have helped? I'm referring to the so-called Via Verde project.

I don't know the details, but I would think it would have helped.  The US is producing natural gas such that there will be a glut of supply for many decades.  Enhanced drilling techniques such as horizontal drilling and fracturing have made gas production cheaper, allowing producers to tap reserves that were previously uneconomic.  The cost of gas per BTU  is significantly less than oil in the US.  Using gas for electricity production is also the cleanest non-renewable source of power.  Pipelines are by far the most economic and safe way to transport natural gas.  The problem with natural gas is that it is difficult to export.  It can be liquified and shipped over the water on specially made ships, but the US does not currently have the infrastructure needed to do this on a large scale.  There are also many regulatory and safety concerns associated with exporting natural gas, including the political opposition of exporting fossil fuels while still importing oil. 

One of the emerging trends in the US over the next decade will be to switch commercial trucks from diesel fuel to compressed natural gas.  Obama just came out with a new clean air mandate for commercial vehicles.  Compressed gas is really the only economic way to meet those goals with currently available technology.