Questions: A multiple flags overview, no more euro, a no brainer, Italians in Panama

May 14, 2010
Undisclosed location

I want to start off today by once again thanking you for all the well-wishing emails after my operation this week. I read through a large backlog of email last night, and I was truly humbled by all the positive energy and goodwill out there. Thank you.

With that, I’d like to jump in to this week’s questions:

Phil says, “Simon, I sincerely appreciate the info contained in your letter. I’d like to take your advice: get second citizenship, buy property overseas, store assets outside the US, etc. I’m wondering if you can recommend a ‘how to’ guide with specific instructions for these issues?”

At the moment, there really isn’t one out there that covers the specific ‘how to’ details of getting started with multiple flags. I try to cover these issues on a daily basis, but as our conversations cover so many different topics an abbreviated space, I know we could go much deeper.

Right now, I’m working with a very capable partner to draft a multiple flags instructional overview. I suspect it will be exactly what you’re looking for. We should be finished in a few weeks, so stay tuned for more information.

Maldek asks, “Simon, how do you think the Euro/dollar exchange rate will change if Germany leaves the eurozone and introduces its Deutschmark (DM) again?”

Rumors are already flying that both France and Germany have separately threatened to bail out of the eurozone. It will happen eventually– the single currency is absolutely doomed, just as I believe the integrity of the United States are doomed in the long run.

A German factory worker would no sooner pay for a Greek hairdresser’s early retirement than an overtaxed California entrepreneur would pay for a Rhode Island school teacher’s pension.

Yet these are the kinds of mandates that politicians are forcing on people. Voters may act like sheep when their civil liberties come under attack… but put your hand in their wallets and they get militant.

The real irony is that breaking apart the eurozone is a popular idea in Europe, so you can be sure that the dissolution is inevitable.

If the relatively healthier economies in Europe actually did break away– Germany, Luxembourg, Slovakia (yes I’m serious), Netherlands, Austria, Belgium– the resulting economic union would certainly be among the healthiest, most balanced in the western world.

In other words, today’s euro would become worthless, but the future euro would be quite valuable and respected by investors. The major issue is whether the new currency would be large enough to challenge the dollar’s dominance. We won’t know the answer until they piece the deal together.

William writes, “Simon, I bought Terry Coxon’s book “Unleash your IRA,” and it’s probably the best thing I’ve bought this year. I’m amazed at everything I can do with my retirement funds, including buying gold bullion and foreign property, tax free. Is this a good way to plant another flag offshore?”

Absolutely. Terry is one of the most knowledgeable people I have ever known about all matters related to money, and the Open Opportunity IRA structure he talks about in his book is one of the biggest no-brainers I see out there right now.

Why? A couple of reasons.

First, the US government has its targets set very squarely on retirement funds. There are trillions of dollars of savings that politicians could easily regulate.

For example, do-gooders in the Congress could whip up a new law tomorrow requiring that a percentage of managed retirement funds be invested in US Treasuries… you know, because they’re so secure.

Through Open Opportunity IRA structure that Terry describes in his book, you ensure that no one can confiscate your hard earned savings.

More importantly, though, you can take ordinary returns and make them extraordinary by planting a retirement savings flag overseas.

Imagine that you buy an undervalued property in Colombia. The property is selling for $100,000 and yields about $1,500 per month in net rental income.

Over the years, as Colombia’s economy continues to perform strongly, the property appreciates substantially in value. The Colombian peso outperforms the US dollar. And the rental income rings the register month after month with the reliability of a Swiss train. Not a bad deal, right?

Now let’s assume that you bought the property with your retirement funds through an Open Opportunity IRA. Not only do you receive the rental income, the property appreciation, and the currency appreciation, but you get to take it all tax-free because your IRA owns the property.

I could cite you a million more examples, but frankly Terry’s book does a better job. Bottom line, this is one of the best ways to plant and overseas return and make lot more money at the same time.

Finally, Libero asks, “Simon- you mentioned that Italy has a reciprocity agreement with Panama. I just spent about 2 hours searching and can’t find anything. Can you provide more information?”

Sure. I’m not surprised. Google is the Black Hole of accurate information, and most of the people who write about this sort of thing are just armchair expats who parrot others’ work without putting boots on the ground.

I can tell you with 100% certainty that Panama has a bilateral agreement signed with Italy that provides instant residency for nationals of either country to live in the other. In other words, Panamanians can acquire Italian residency, and Italians can acquire Panamanian residency.

How do you do this? If you’re an Italian citizen, head to Panama and talk to a local **reliable** immigration lawyer. If you need a referral, drop us a line and my assistant will get you in touch with someone. I don’t like to publish these things for Google to index.

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