Retire To Granada, Nicaragua

Dear Live and Invest Overseas Reader, 

What in the world is a nice, retirement-aged couple from Vermont doing building condominiums in Granada, Nicaragua? 

Jay Snyder gets this question a lot. 

It started about seven years ago. After some 40 years building and operating the Landgrove Inn in Vermont, Jay and his wife Kathy turned their thoughts turned to semi-retirement and change. 

"We intended to sell our country inn business, and that prospect put us face-to-face with the big 'What Next?' question." 

Jay started searching online, where his attention was caught by articles on Central and South America. As he puts it, "It was as though I could hear a voice saying, 'Go south, old man.' 

"I decided it was time for me to live my dreams." 

Jay made a list of countries to explore. At the top was Nicaragua, partly because it was the shortest flight time of all the countries that interested him (!), but also because 
it is a very inexpensive place to live. 

Jay planned a visit to Granada, where he enrolled in a Spanish-language immersion program. He lived with a local Nica family and went to Spanish classes each day for a week. Then he took off to see the rest of the 
country--remote villages, coastal towns, planned developments... With only three days remaining on this 
first visit, Jay returned to Granada and took the plunge.
He began speaking with real estate agents. 

"Walking around Granada with the agents," Jay explains, "I realized that all my senses were satisfied. I liked what I saw, what I smelled, what I heard, what I tasted, what I felt... 

"I place a lot of value on the sixth sense, too--on intuition. And I liked what my gut told me about Granada. The place felt right, and I felt at home." 

The next day, just before leaving for home, Jay made an offer on a piece of vacant land in town. He didn't come to Granada with the idea of buying land to build condos. And he and his wife weren't ready to move permanently from their home in Vermont. 

At the same time, Jay realized what all retirees in the States are realizing right now: They're facing a serious dilemma. It's impossible, really, to live on Social Security in the States. And the cost of quality retirement living options has risen dramatically. The current meltdown in U.S. housing costs doesn't change this fact. Most retirees can't afford a retirement home. 

For Jay, his initial trip to Granada was life-changing. For, it occurred to him, walking around the streets of this Spanish-colonial city, that he'd found an alternative, a viable, appealing option for Americans trying to figure out how in the world they're going to make it in retirement. 

Nicaragua offers what more and more American retirees are looking for--an affordable, quality lifestyle bundled with the chance to start over...to make a significant change in their lives. 

Plus, in Nicaragua, you're not too far from the States, so you can get back and forth easily, and the medical care is both inexpensive and excellent. 

That said, as I explained, Jay and his wife weren't ready for "retirement." What they wanted was change. A plan began to formulate even before Jay returned home from his first Nicaragua visit. He found a suitable piece of land and decided to design and then to build the turn-key part-time retirement home he and Kathy were looking for. Only he wouldn't build just one full-service condo for his own use. He'd build a handful of them, sell them to like-minded part-time retirees, and then put the rental and property management services in place to support his fellow owners.  

"If the turn-key condo solution was what we were looking for," Jay explains, "I figured it'd work for others just like me. Something like, build it...and the retirees will come." 

Jay made his plan, made his property investment, and then returned home, prepared for battle. He expected incredulous stares and raised eyebrows from his wife and the rest of his family. 

But they disappointed him. Instead of, "Are you out of your mind?" Jay's plans were met with enthusiasm, excitement, and encouragement. Jay credits the support he's enjoyed all along from family and friends as a big part of the reason he's been able to follow through on the plan he hatched those first days in Granada.

Today, seven years later, Jay's Condominiums de Xalteva are a fait-accompli. Jay and Kathy have built 12 two-bedroom condos, in a Spanish-colonial style, around a pool and a garden, in the heart of Granada. They've sold nearly every one of the condos, have set up a management team, and are renting out the units for the owners. They've created the part-time retirement home of their dreams..times 12. Meaning they've also created a community of like-minded part-time retirees. 

Jay and Kathy divide their time between Granada and Vermont. They make five trips a year to Nicaragua, staying two to six weeks at a time. 

"I don't have a solution to the problems facing Americans right now," Jay continues. "It's too frustrating to contemplate. I do feel, though, I've found an alternative that works for me and that could work for many, many others, as well. 

"You've got to think outside the box--the box being the United States. I realize this isn't a new idea, but it's truer and truer. Statistics show an increase in the numbers of Americans leaving the States and a big increase in the numbers considering the idea. 

"It's tempting to continue living the way you've been living. It's easy. Certainly easier than making the kind of change I'm talking about. It can be very frightening to think about creating a whole new life for yourself in a foreign place. 

"That fear can keep us from acting on chances for fun, for adventure, and for possible profit. 

"All I can tell you now is that I'm thrilled with this project. It has been one of the most satisfying experiences of my life. And the part-time life Kathy and I have created for ourselves in Granada suits us perfectly and has completely transformed our outlook on the rest of our lives." 

Kathleen Peddicord 

P.S. Jay and Kathy have created something truly special at their Condos de Xalteva. Take a look. Continue Reading:

• Retire To The Mountains Of Panama On US$800 Per Month