August 24, 2023 • 29 mins
Welcome to episode #3 of RealtyCast Global – a global connection to all things real estate, hosted by Hugh Gilliam, president of Global Property Pros.
Imagine making a bold leap from the tech industry to creating a mortgage company in Belize. That's precisely what Michael Cobb, co-founder and CEO of ECI Development, did. He shares the fascinating story of how he and his business partner, identified a unique opportunity in Central America and turned it into a thriving business venture. Michael's journey is far from traditional, filled with challenges, misconceptions, and lessons learned - all of which he generously shares in our candid conversation.
Michael has over two decades of developing in Central America to his credit and has gained insights that could save you from potential pitfalls of relocating to a new country. His 'Consumer Resource Guide: Global Property Resource Kit' is a treasure trove of information, designed to help you avoid common mistakes and ease the transition of moving overseas.
The insights don't stop there. We delve into the nuances of purchasing real estate domestically and abroad, and the importance of safety inspections, particularly in zones prone to earthquakes and hurricanes. Michael also compares the process of building a house versus buying an existing one, giving you a fresh perspective on construction costs in Central America. As we wrap up, don't miss the chance to take Michael's 'Are You Ready to Live Overseas' quiz - and gauge your readiness for a big move. Are you ready for an adventure with Michael Cobb? Start planning your move today.
Visit blog.realtyhive.com for full episode details.
About Michael Cobb:
Mr. Cobb transitioned from a successful tech career into Central American real estate. and co-founded Exotic Caye International (1996), offering loans to North Americans buying property across Belize and Honduras. The company transformed into an international bank in Belize, expanding services beyond mortgages. Recognizing a need for quality real estate catering to Baby Boomers, Cobb led into development, including an Ambergris Caye resort. They also bought beachfront property in Nicaragua (2000) and on the coastline in Costa Rica (2006). Mr. Cobb has spoken a
About the host - Hugh Gilliam:
Hugh Gilliam co-owned a national transportation company, created a land development business, and worked as a general contractor in residential and commercial construction for over two decades. Hugh also co-founded an international distribution company and successfully negotiated and contracted with 135 sales representatives in the United States, Canada, France, Brazil, Japan, and the Netherlands.
Today, Mr. Gilliam is affiliated with RealtyHive, LLC where he serves as Director of International Real Estate and President of Global Property Pros. His duties include involvement in commercial and residential transactions, plus promoting marketing systems and lead generation platforms.
For real estate professionals looking to take their business to the next level, check out Global Property Pros!
He is also co-founder of the luxury digital magazine, DOORWAYS INTERNATIONAL, powered by RealtyHive, which serves as a platform for Brokers and Buyers throughout 70 countries.
Hugh's Designations Include:
- Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist
- Certified Distressed Property Export
- Certified International Property Specialist
- Certified International Investment & Immigration Specialist
- T
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Hugh Gilliam (00:01):
Welcome to Realtycast Global, where we
bring insights and advice fromtop professionals in the global
market.
Join us for a journey ofculture and real estate from
countries across the globe.
My guest today is Michael Cobb.
Michael, I so appreciate youbeing here with us and
appreciate your time.
(00:22):
We'll be doing three episodeswith Michael and we're going to
start the first one on ConsumerResource Guide that he published
several years ago.
But I first need to have alittle bit more information
about you.
You've had an incrediblebackground.
Going through all the materialthat you sent me, it was
unbelievable to think that youhad a job in the computer
(00:44):
industry in the 90s, just asthings were taking off, and you
left that job to go to CentralAmerica and start a brand new
business.
Michael Cobb (00:53):
I did.
Hugh Gilliam (00:54):
First let me say this Michael is the co-founder
and CEO of ECI Development andthen, if you'll get into that,
tell us about the developmentcompany and about your jumping
off in 1996 into this newventure.
I think the public here wouldlove to hear what you have to
say about that.
Michael Cobb (01:14):
Well, sure, Hugh, thanks for having me on your
podcast.
We just recently got to knowone another, which is so
fascinating because we've bothbeen pounding around NANAR and
FIABCI for a long time andfinally we were introduced and I
think it was a great meeting ofthe mind.
So thank you for having me ontoday.
(01:35):
Going all the way back, I gotout of college in 1986 and moved
to the DC area in northernVirginia and I had a polycyte.
I majored in polycyte, so I hada polycyte degree and I don't
know what to do with that.
Nothing really, unless you wantto be a lawyer, and I didn't
want to be a lawyer.
So I got into sales and veryfortunately, fortuitously, I
(01:57):
just ended up in computer sales,but even more so on the PC side
of things.
Right, because this was 1986.
I mean, mainframes were stillout there, minis were still out
there.
But I ended up on the PC side,again very fortuitous, because
we know, over the next decademainframes and minis pretty much
went the way of the dinosaursand PCs obviously were fully
(02:18):
ascendant and so very fortunate.
So from 86 to 98, I was in thecomputer business in the
Washington DC, northern Virginiaarea, but somewhere around
early 93, it might have beenlate 92, early 93, I was invited
to go to a country calledBelize.
So a buddy of mine who didbecome a lawyer he was a
polycyte major went to collegetogether.
(02:38):
He calls me up on a Tuesday.
I never forget.
I'm sitting at my desk,springfield, virginia.
I get this phone call from Joel.
He says hey, cobster, what areyou doing this weekend?
You know college fraternityname, right, absolutely.
What are you doing this weekend?
I said I don't know why.
He says do you want to go toBelize?
I'm like, absolutely.
(03:00):
Now, this is 1983 or 1993, sorry, 1993.
There's no Google, right?
So I'm sitting there, I'mtalking to him, I'm scratching
my head, please, please, please.
I had no idea where Belize wasright, anyway.
So finally I have to fess up.
I'm like, yeah, what now?
Where are we going again?
And you know where is that.
So went to Belize, had aphenomenal time.
(03:21):
I said, dude, the next timeyou're coming down I'd like to
come again, you know.
And so a month or two laterhe's headed back down.
I go with him, and we ended upbuying a couple of condos.
This was like March, april of93.
And so what was interesting wasis that the developer there had
built 44 condos around a poolfacing the ocean.
(03:42):
He'd started his second, youknow horseshoe shape of condos,
just where we bought.
And really through the end ofthat year nothing was happening
to you, nothing Like there was abuilding that was kind of
halfway up.
There was one with thefoundation.
There was a hole in the ground.
We never saw any workers overthat, you know, like six, seven,
eight months through the end of93.
And so we're talking to thedeveloper.
(04:04):
One day we're over by the pool.
Hey, jim, what's the deal?
Why aren't you finishing?
He said because I'm carryingall this paper.
I had to finance all of thesesales.
We're like what do you mean?
He goes yeah, you're likeyou're bank up there in DC or
Pittsburgh.
They're not lending you moneyto buy a condo in Belize and the
banks down here aren't lending,you know, foreigners money.
So I have to finance almost allof my sales.
(04:27):
So my business partner, thenfriend, but now business partner
I, we put our heads togetherand we started a little mortgage
company here.
This was end of 93, going into94.
And we said look if we can goout.
And I went out.
To a bunch of my buddies in thecomputer business.
He went out to a bunch of hisclients and we raised a couple
million bucks, right, and westarted going down.
(04:48):
We started buying paper fromthe developers.
We didn't originate loans, wejust bought paper.
It was a great business.
We had to do a second round.
Friends and family.
We started to tap out on money,maybe raise another million and
a half or something.
Then we were just stuck right.
We just couldn't raise any moremoney on the sort of that
friends and family circle.
So we ended up taking ourmortgage company applying for a
(05:10):
banking license and we actuallygot our banking license.
It took another six, sevenyears.
We got our banking license in2003.
But in the meantime so I'mgetting to the development side
here real quick.
I know we're yeah, but likewhen I was doing the inspection,
joel's a lawyer, he's doing allthe legal deal, money kind of
(05:30):
stuff.
I'm doing the inspections ofthe property and I would walk
into these condos and homes andthere'd be countertops that were
too high or too low, a light inthe bathroom that was behind
instead of over top of themirror, right Door handles at
different heights, and Iremember one home that I walked
into it was a condo.
(05:51):
Actually, where they're in theliving room there was one outlet
on one wall and they hadplugged in two power strips,
plugged extension cords into thepower strips to get power all
the way around this living roomout of one outlet right.
And Joel and I just got ourheads together and we're like
man, like to fix.
Most of this.
Stuff is free, or next to free,right, a few more outlets,
(06:14):
whatever, but I mean countertopsat the right height, mirrors in
the right places, door handles,whatever the standards are
right.
And we said this was now 95,going into 96.
And we're like you know what?
We could fix all of theseproblems for almost free and
deliver a product that a NorthAmerican consumer would want and
expect.
And that was the genesis of ourdevelopment company.
(06:36):
And in 1996, we started ECIDevelopment.
And in 98, it was going so wellthat, yes, I left the computer
industry and went full time intothis business, but it really
started as a service right.
First, on the financing side,there was a hole in the
marketplace.
How can we fill a need that'snot being served?
(06:56):
And then, on the developmentside, how could we serve a need
that was being not served verywell?
How could we serve it better,and so that's really the heart
of service, right.
It's always been sort of me azig-ziggler, like if we help
enough other people get whatthey want, we can have what we
want.
And so, you know, the genesisof our business really comes out
(07:19):
of that service mentality.
Yeah.
Hugh Gilliam (07:24):
You know, I think that's a great story.
And here's the thing you didn'tset out to do the development
work to begin with.
No, you got there.
You saw that there was aproblem or a crisis with that
individual that was andbasically stopped because he
tapped out on his money and youtried to take care of that
service and in doing that youdiscovered a whole new world.
(07:47):
Who would have thought youwould have been a developer at
that point in time?
Michael Cobb (07:51):
Certainly not me.
Hugh Gilliam (07:53):
I mean, what a great story and you have so much
wisdom.
Also, I mean, in lookingthrough, we will have three
different episodes here andwe're gonna touch on Belize, the
next episode, and then we'regonna get into another section a
little bit later.
But so many people havemisconceptions.
They have a beautiful dreamabout moving into another
(08:15):
country.
It's a they romanticized thatdream and but the reality hits
when they hit the ground andwhen they're in the country
trying to figure these thingsout.
So I think you can be a great,a great pocket of wisdom for
people that are watching thispodcast and people that wanna
know more about the how-to's,the nuts and bolts about moving
(08:37):
to another country, because youdon't just jump in, but you have
to have assistance.
And there's something you saidI can't think of exactly what it
was, but I think it's we don'tknow what we don't know.
Michael Cobb (08:49):
Yes.
Hugh Gilliam (08:50):
And that's pretty profound, really, because we
don't know what we don't know,and that's why it's so important
to have someone we can lean on,that's been there and, in your
case, since 1996, that's beenthere, that understands and you
know how to make the dream cometrue.
Michael Cobb (09:08):
Well, you know, thank you.
Hugh, I appreciate those reallykind words.
And you know, a big part ofthese lessons that we put into
the Consumer Resource Guide werelessons that you know, I and we
as a company paid a lot oftuition to learn.
I mean, these weren't freelessons.
I mean we banged around, likeyou said, what did I know about
(09:30):
development in 1996?
You know, not much, right, Imean I'd stayed in developments,
right, that's kind of what Iknew.
And so we made a lot ofmistakes over the years, but we
documented those and we turnedthem into lessons.
Right, we paid the tuition, youknow, and so then we turned
them into lessons and then weput those lessons into the
(09:52):
Consumer Resource Guide tohopefully, you know, help other
folks coming along, you know,avoid the ones that we made.
Everybody makes mistakes.
I think that's just part oflife.
Right, you make mistakes.
But if we can take the big,huge potholes off the road or,
you know, fill those in at least, or at least point where they
are and we can avoid those, youknow we our goal.
(10:12):
Again, coming back to this ideaof service, look, we give away
our Consumer Resource Guide,literally thousands and
thousands every year.
We give them away any chance weget and we don't get thousands
and thousands of sales everyyear, but I hope that the people
who get them, whether they buyone of our properties or buy
somebody else's property,actually have a much happier
(10:33):
experience, like you said, Imean, the romanticized vision
really can come true to a largedegree, because it is wonderful
to live in the tropics, it iswonderful to live where the cost
of living is much lower and thequality of life can be much
higher.
Right, I mean, thisromanticized notion can largely
be true if we take care of someof those details on the front
(10:55):
end, right?
And so every time and personyou know an expat let me just
use the word expat every time anexpat happily transitions to a
new location, whether in one ofour communities or, in the vast
number of cases, somebody else'scommunity, right, at the end of
the day, the world of expatsgets better.
People talk about thiswonderful experience and you
(11:17):
know it is truly the rising tide, right, if we can help more
people have a successfultransition into an expat
lifestyle or a vacation propertyor even an investment property
ownership, because those twoelements also hang in the mix,
right, it's not just thefull-timer expats, it's people
who have a bi-vacation propertyor an investment property.
(11:38):
But when that transactionhappens wonderfully and
successfully and then on thebackside much of that
romanticized vision comes topass, Wow, what a wonderful
experience that is for everybody.
And when that tide lifts, youknow we're going to get our
piece of that business somewheredown the line too.
So, yeah, we're very happy todistribute this consumer
(12:01):
resource guide widely andbroadly and help.
As many folks you know see thebig potholes right.
And, by the way you mentionedwe don't know what we don't know
.
There is a corollary to that,and it's that we also have to
forget what we think we know.
Right.
So it's both we don't know whatwe don't know.
(12:22):
But we also have to discardassumptions that we bring with
us, because many assumptionsthat we have coming out of North
America just simply don't holdwater, you know, outside of
North America.
Hugh Gilliam (12:34):
Exactly, Michael.
You mentioned the resourceguide, the consumer resource
guide, and I think it's greatthat you prepared that, because
it answers a lot of questionsthat people might have when
they're thinking about makingthat big move and it's a big
move to invest in anothercountry.
But at the very bottom, in theepisode description area, we
(12:56):
will have your information, yourwebsite, all of your
information at the very bottom,and people can actually email
you and ask for this consumerresource guide, which is really
like a bible to that country,basically not necessarily that
country, but to Central Americaor any other country that you
would be moving to.
Michael Cobb (13:17):
Right.
Well, I would say that theconsumer resource guide works
anywhere in the developing world, whether it's Latin America,
Asia, Africa, it doesn't matter.
The developing world is aforeign, different environment.
And so this consumer resourceguide, what it really helps us
do, Hugh, is it helps us beginto think differently.
Like, we have 15 questions,right, and the 15 questions are
(13:42):
not even close to exhaustive ofall the possible things that can
be out there, right?
But if we take those 15questions and we begin to go,
okay, I see why this isimportant, I see why we're
asking this question, so if wecan understand the why of it,
then we can come up with our own15 more, or our own 30 more.
Or, because a lot of it's verysituational, right, we're down
(14:04):
there, we're on the ground,we're looking at it and we might
go like we might come up with awhole different question or a
couple of questions that hadnothing to do with anything we
ever thought of before, butthey're situational and they're
relevant in the moment, right?
So, really, what I hope and Italk about this in the consumer
resource guide early on, andsort of the prep for it, right
(14:26):
is to say, hey, this is really adocument to help us change how
we think, because we are leavingfrom North America, Northern
Europe, we are leaving the landof seller beware.
Right, there are so manyconsumer protection laws,
regulation agencies, privateorganizations, Ralph Nader,
(14:46):
right, I mean, he didn't workfor the government at his own
right, I mean.
So you have all of theseorganizations, institutions,
people that are looking out forthe consumer in North America.
It's really hard to, like youknow, stick it to the consumer.
It's not that it doesn't happen, but it's hard.
I mean, it happens once in awhile.
But when you go to buyer beware,where you don't have the
(15:07):
regulatory compliance, you mightnot even have the regulations.
You don't have the regulations,you don't have the compliance.
Many of the times the countrymight have the regulations but
they don't have the resources toenforce them, right?
So you've got a whole differentenvironment, which is buyer
beware.
And so, again, if we can changehow we think, right, we can
then be in this environment in amuch more prepared status.
(15:32):
Right, we become prepared andwe become aware of things around
us that we would normallyassume.
Again, that assumption thing.
That's why that's dangerous,right, and some of the questions
have to do with assumptions andthen some have to do more with
you know, we just don't knowwhat we don't know.
Hugh Gilliam (15:49):
Exactly, exactly Well, I think also in your guide
.
It stimulates those 15questions actually the person
looking at those questions andtrying to answer those because
they're thinking seriously aboutmoving and investing in other
countries.
It helps them to be able tothink maybe beyond the curve a
little bit so that theyunderstand more about what they
(16:12):
don't know.
But let me ask you this I knowthat common mistakes are made,
but in your opinion, what arethe most common mistakes that
people make that made 20 yearsago?
People made these mistakes 20years ago compared to common
mistakes today in investing orbuilding in other countries.
Michael Cobb (16:36):
Wow, hugh, no one has ever asked me that question
before.
A lot of times I kind of walkinto this stuff very prepared
because, like most of thequestions I've had before, never
had that one before.
Thank you, well done.
Let me ponder that one just amoment and just start with a
very specific example and thensee where it goes.
(16:57):
But I would say that the commonmistake that people make is
they go too fast, they rush intothings.
I would say almost all of theproblems stem from rushing into
something as opposed to takingtheir time.
We look at how people buy realestate in the US.
Most people I would say wisepeople they go out and they get
(17:20):
a realtor not everybody, butmost people get a realtor to
represent them, become theirrepresentative, in something
that on the surface might notseem so hard.
I'm just buying a house.
It's not like buying tomatoes,we're buying a house.
There's a lot of stuff thatgoes on with that.
Most people end up hiring arealtor.
(17:40):
When we go overseas, manypeople just simply they don't
hire a realtor.
They don't get a realtor.
They just go straight to aseller or straight to a
developer and they purchase aproperty.
They do it on the same trip,their first trip, I think that
tends to be, if I had to isolatethe, the root cause of most of
(18:01):
the problems it's not theproblems themselves, but it's
the root cause is moving tooquickly into a situation and
doing so without good guidance.
Okay, I don't know that it'schanged very much yet, but I
actually think that it is in theprocess of changing
significantly, and that is NAR.
(18:23):
Back in I guess it was 2011 or12.
I don't remember when it was Iwas invited under whenever Steve
Brown was president it was aSteve Brown's initiative a
presidential advisory group.
He invited 12 of us 11, 12 ofus up to Chicago for a week to
talk about how to improve NAR'sglobal positioning right, and
(18:44):
Janet Branton was the VP atGlobal and Commercial at the
time so went up there, and Ithink there was this real desire
on the part of NAR to build astronger global presence right
and a global interaction.
Forget the presence part, butthe interaction part, and I've
watched that happen since 2012.
(19:04):
I ended up on the board of NARfor a year and then served on a
couple of the committees andI've attended lots of events,
and so I have watched thisprogression of NAR's engagement
with the global community.
And the big one and a big onewhich I think is very, very
exciting is the actual desireit's not it's not foolproof, but
(19:26):
the desire to enforce thelicensing of the agents overseas
and then the listing ofproperties in the US.
I'm gonna get into the weedshere a little bit, but let me
just back out of the weeds andjust come to the big picture.
The bottom line of that is thisthat there's more realtor
presence overseas now than thereever has been before, and that
(19:46):
that realtor presence is beingrespected both in that country
and by their own licensingauthorities and by NAR, and that
combination of the two isdriving more people to use a
realtor when they buy propertyoverseas.
And I would say that of thethings that has changed the most
(20:10):
, that's probably a big one.
It's still largely a buyerbeware environment.
That hasn't changed.
And the other thing that'sprobably changed, to Hugh, is
there's more awareness of aNorth American consumer, and so
I think there's more awarenessof building a product that's
comfortable and familiar for aNorth American consumer.
(20:31):
So I think the trends are inthe right direction for sure,
and I don't know if I answeredyour question or not.
Hugh Gilliam (20:39):
No, you did, you certainly did, and I do know
that NAR has moved forward in agreat force to reach out into
these other countries and bringthat NAR presence, have the code
of ethics there for thoseagents and it's a huge
undertaking but they're doing agreat job at it.
Michael Cobb (20:57):
They are, and you know what.
It'll take 20, 30 years, andwe're 10, 15 years into it,
right?
So, yeah, right, that's true.
Hugh Gilliam (21:04):
Let me ask you this.
Let me ask you another questionwhat are the pros and cons of
building in another countryversus buying a home that's
already built?
Michael Cobb (21:14):
Let me start real easy.
Typically, on a home that'salready built, you're gonna get
a much better cost per squarefoot, right?
So because if somebody built ahouse 30 years ago and it costs
30 bucks a square foot, they cansell it today for 100 bucks a
square foot and they're happyand right, whereas today the
cost to build a house overseasby the way, this is kind of an
(21:39):
interesting misnomer the cost tobuild overseas in the
developing world is onlyslightly less than the cost to
build in the US, becauseconcrete steel nobody builds In
Latin America, it's all concrete.
So we don't even talk aboutwood, right, but concrete, steel
.
Doors, windows, electric wire,faucets, I mean lights, I mean
(22:00):
everything like that is allpriced at the world price.
There's no discount on concreteand steel in Costa Rica because
it's world price, right.
And so labor is the onlyvariable in the cost of
construction where you actuallycan save money.
No-transcript.
Again, new construction in theUS, canada, new construction
(22:23):
overseas is pretty comparable.
It might be 10% to 15% lessoverseas, but it's not
significantly less.
The land piece, again, if youbuy a lot.
Looking at the ocean in, say, Ilike Nicaragua, right, an
oceanfront lot in Nicaragua for$150, $250,000,.
Same thing in California.
It'd be $2 million, right?
(22:44):
So we're talking $0.10 on thedollar, right?
Costa Rica might be $3,000,$400,000.
So, again, different pricepoints.
But then when you come to builda new house, you're only going
to be 10%, 15% less than what itwould cost in the States.
However, this is where it getsreally cool and, again, this is
where, again, paying a lot ofattention up front counts.
(23:06):
Because if the things that costa lot of money in the States
high labor items so a mosaic,tile, floor, iron work, just all
kinds of detailing that wouldjust take craftsmen hours and
hours and hours at somehowoutrageous $50 an hour or
whatever to do in Latin America,that stuff is inexpensive, it's
(23:28):
just insanely inexpensive.
And so what you can end up withis a house that would cost
three times more in the Statesbecause of all the craftsmanship
that's gone into this reallyhigh labor component.
But if you were to just say,build a 1500 square foot house
tiled up right in the States andin Latin America, your cost to
(23:48):
be 15% less.
But if you start to get smartabout it and build something
really cool and sexy and craftsyright now, all of a sudden
you're going to have a housethat would cost double or triple
that in the States, and that'sbecause of the labor component.
So there's where you reallystart to pick up your advantage
the the one disadvantage ofbuying a pre-existing home is
(24:11):
you don't necessarily know howwell it was engineered and
depending on where you purchasethe home on the Pacific side of
Central Mexico all the way downto Chile I mean, that is the
ring of fire.
That is the same fault.
It's not exactly the same faultline as California, but it's
basically the same fault systemfrom Alaska to Chile, right.
(24:32):
And so you have earthquakesthat whole western side of the
Americas.
And so if you buy a structurethat's already built, you can
have them break away the wallsand stuff like that, and in fact
I think in an earthquake zone.
If I was buying a home thatalready existed, I probably
would do that because I wouldwant to know that that house
(24:54):
would stand up to a majorearthquake, because they get
them.
I mean that's just like youknow, it's on the Pacific coast,
right.
So if you build new and you hireand we recommend this in the
Consumer Resource Guide and youhire your own third party
engineer to validate the plansand then do construction
inspections to make sure it'sactually being built according
(25:16):
to the plans, right?
Then you know that you're goingto get a house that will hold
up to an earthquake, right?
Same thing on the other side,right On the Caribbean side.
I mean, you've got hurricanesright and so you want to make
sure that whatever structuresyou're building there, you know
accommodate, you know, cat four,maybe cat five, whatever people
have different opinions on that, but a cat four, a cat five,
kind of hurricane type ofstructure.
(25:38):
So the engineering on those isimportant, far more important on
the seismic side for apreexisting home, because you
just don't know unless you breakaway walls and really see
what's behind it.
So anyway, but you'll get amuch lower price on a prebuilt
home.
So it might make sense to takethe lower price and bust away
(25:59):
some walls and really check theyou know, check the construction
standards on it.
Hugh Gilliam (26:04):
Yeah, we're running out of time, but I have
one more question about and it'skind of a crazy question it's
about a personality typeperspective.
But then we'll be moving intoour second podcast with you
shortly and that will be aboutBelize.
We'll concentrate on Belize.
But my question is this from apersonality perspective, what
(26:29):
people would you not advise tomove to Central America?
Michael Cobb (26:34):
I love it.
So in the Consumer ResourceGuide, which you're going to put
a link to right here on page 4,or it's right inside, is this
what we call are you ready tolive overseas quiz?
And I mean just a couple of thequestions Are you usually one
(26:54):
of the first to try new things,new food and new experiences?
That's a question.
One, two or three, right, andit's a point system.
Are you able to relax, willingto adapt to a lower, slower,
easier life pace?
Do you make new friends easily?
Are you open to adventures andnew activities?
Right, I mean.
So there's, I think, 15questions there or something 12,
(27:16):
15 questions, and you just rankthem one, two, three.
And so what I have found isthat this little quiz has been
the best predictor of people whowill make it overseas with very
little adjustments.
Everybody gets culture shock,right, everybody gets culture
shock.
How well do you deal withculture shock?
(27:38):
That's what this quiz says.
And, like one point what areyou waiting for?
Go ahead, kind of the middlerange, yeah, you're gonna bump
along, but you're gonna getthrough it.
The people who score low onthis, like just stay home,
you're gonna be miserable, likeit is just not the right thing
for you.
So that quiz is a lot of funand it is so powerfully
predictive better than anythingI've seen in 26,.
(28:03):
Now 27 years of my careerhighly predictive, yeah.
Hugh Gilliam (28:08):
I think you did a great job on that quiz and I
haven't taken it yet, but Ipromise I will.
I promise I will sometime inthe near future.
Okay, it's been great beingwith you today and again I thank
you for your time.
I thank you for what you'vedone.
I see you as an individual thatyou've ventured out into
uncharted waters.
(28:28):
Basically, for you, you got outof your comfort zone.
You went to one location inCentral America and you saw a
need and you provided a serviceand that service grew into
another opportunity and I thinkyou're the total package.
I think you're excellent inwhat you've done.
I've heard a lot of wonderfulthings about you, your company,
(28:50):
and I think that anyonelistening to this podcast, if
they have any questions aboutCentral America, you're the man
they should contact.
Michael Cobb (28:59):
Well, thank you, and I hope that folks will reach
out for the Consumer ResourceGuide, because that is a very,
very valuable tool thateverybody looking for property
overseas should have in theirhands.
Hugh Gilliam (29:09):
Yeah, Okay, thank you, Michael, we appreciate you.
Thank you, goodbye.
Thanks for joining in ontoday's episode of RealtyCast
Global.
Make sure to subscribe to thepodcast to be notified when new
episodes air.
Welcome to Realtycast Global, where we
bring insights and advice fromtop professionals in the global
market.
Join us for a journey ofculture and real estate from
countries across the globe.
My guest today is Michael Cobb.
Michael, I so appreciate youbeing here with us and
appreciate your time.
(00:22):
We'll be doing three episodeswith Michael and we're going to
start the first one on ConsumerResource Guide that he published
several years ago.
But I first need to have alittle bit more information
about you.
You've had an incrediblebackground.
Going through all the materialthat you sent me, it was
unbelievable to think that youhad a job in the computer
(00:44):
industry in the 90s, just asthings were taking off, and you
left that job to go to CentralAmerica and start a brand new
business.
Michael Cobb (00:53):
I did.
Hugh Gilliam (00:54):
First let me say this Michael is the co-founder
and CEO of ECI Development andthen, if you'll get into that,
tell us about the developmentcompany and about your jumping
off in 1996 into this newventure.
I think the public here wouldlove to hear what you have to
say about that.
Michael Cobb (01:14):
Well, sure, Hugh, thanks for having me on your
podcast.
We just recently got to knowone another, which is so
fascinating because we've bothbeen pounding around NANAR and
FIABCI for a long time andfinally we were introduced and I
think it was a great meeting ofthe mind.
So thank you for having me ontoday.
(01:35):
Going all the way back, I gotout of college in 1986 and moved
to the DC area in northernVirginia and I had a polycyte.
I majored in polycyte, so I hada polycyte degree and I don't
know what to do with that.
Nothing really, unless you wantto be a lawyer, and I didn't
want to be a lawyer.
So I got into sales and veryfortunately, fortuitously, I
(01:57):
just ended up in computer sales,but even more so on the PC side
of things.
Right, because this was 1986.
I mean, mainframes were stillout there, minis were still out
there.
But I ended up on the PC side,again very fortuitous, because
we know, over the next decademainframes and minis pretty much
went the way of the dinosaursand PCs obviously were fully
(02:18):
ascendant and so very fortunate.
So from 86 to 98, I was in thecomputer business in the
Washington DC, northern Virginiaarea, but somewhere around
early 93, it might have beenlate 92, early 93, I was invited
to go to a country calledBelize.
So a buddy of mine who didbecome a lawyer he was a
polycyte major went to collegetogether.
(02:38):
He calls me up on a Tuesday.
I never forget.
I'm sitting at my desk,springfield, virginia.
I get this phone call from Joel.
He says hey, cobster, what areyou doing this weekend?
You know college fraternityname, right, absolutely.
What are you doing this weekend?
I said I don't know why.
He says do you want to go toBelize?
I'm like, absolutely.
(03:00):
Now, this is 1983 or 1993, sorry, 1993.
There's no Google, right?
So I'm sitting there, I'mtalking to him, I'm scratching
my head, please, please, please.
I had no idea where Belize wasright, anyway.
So finally I have to fess up.
I'm like, yeah, what now?
Where are we going again?
And you know where is that.
So went to Belize, had aphenomenal time.
(03:21):
I said, dude, the next timeyou're coming down I'd like to
come again, you know.
And so a month or two laterhe's headed back down.
I go with him, and we ended upbuying a couple of condos.
This was like March, april of93.
And so what was interesting wasis that the developer there had
built 44 condos around a poolfacing the ocean.
(03:42):
He'd started his second, youknow horseshoe shape of condos,
just where we bought.
And really through the end ofthat year nothing was happening
to you, nothing Like there was abuilding that was kind of
halfway up.
There was one with thefoundation.
There was a hole in the ground.
We never saw any workers overthat, you know, like six, seven,
eight months through the end of93.
And so we're talking to thedeveloper.
(04:04):
One day we're over by the pool.
Hey, jim, what's the deal?
Why aren't you finishing?
He said because I'm carryingall this paper.
I had to finance all of thesesales.
We're like what do you mean?
He goes yeah, you're likeyou're bank up there in DC or
Pittsburgh.
They're not lending you moneyto buy a condo in Belize and the
banks down here aren't lending,you know, foreigners money.
So I have to finance almost allof my sales.
(04:27):
So my business partner, thenfriend, but now business partner
I, we put our heads togetherand we started a little mortgage
company here.
This was end of 93, going into94.
And we said look if we can goout.
And I went out.
To a bunch of my buddies in thecomputer business.
He went out to a bunch of hisclients and we raised a couple
million bucks, right, and westarted going down.
(04:48):
We started buying paper fromthe developers.
We didn't originate loans, wejust bought paper.
It was a great business.
We had to do a second round.
Friends and family.
We started to tap out on money,maybe raise another million and
a half or something.
Then we were just stuck right.
We just couldn't raise any moremoney on the sort of that
friends and family circle.
So we ended up taking ourmortgage company applying for a
(05:10):
banking license and we actuallygot our banking license.
It took another six, sevenyears.
We got our banking license in2003.
But in the meantime so I'mgetting to the development side
here real quick.
I know we're yeah, but likewhen I was doing the inspection,
joel's a lawyer, he's doing allthe legal deal, money kind of
(05:30):
stuff.
I'm doing the inspections ofthe property and I would walk
into these condos and homes andthere'd be countertops that were
too high or too low, a light inthe bathroom that was behind
instead of over top of themirror, right Door handles at
different heights, and Iremember one home that I walked
into it was a condo.
(05:51):
Actually, where they're in theliving room there was one outlet
on one wall and they hadplugged in two power strips,
plugged extension cords into thepower strips to get power all
the way around this living roomout of one outlet right.
And Joel and I just got ourheads together and we're like
man, like to fix.
Most of this.
Stuff is free, or next to free,right, a few more outlets,
(06:14):
whatever, but I mean countertopsat the right height, mirrors in
the right places, door handles,whatever the standards are
right.
And we said this was now 95,going into 96.
And we're like you know what?
We could fix all of theseproblems for almost free and
deliver a product that a NorthAmerican consumer would want and
expect.
And that was the genesis of ourdevelopment company.
(06:36):
And in 1996, we started ECIDevelopment.
And in 98, it was going so wellthat, yes, I left the computer
industry and went full time intothis business, but it really
started as a service right.
First, on the financing side,there was a hole in the
marketplace.
How can we fill a need that'snot being served?
(06:56):
And then, on the developmentside, how could we serve a need
that was being not served verywell?
How could we serve it better,and so that's really the heart
of service, right.
It's always been sort of me azig-ziggler, like if we help
enough other people get whatthey want, we can have what we
want.
And so, you know, the genesisof our business really comes out
(07:19):
of that service mentality.
Yeah.
Hugh Gilliam (07:24):
You know, I think that's a great story.
And here's the thing you didn'tset out to do the development
work to begin with.
No, you got there.
You saw that there was aproblem or a crisis with that
individual that was andbasically stopped because he
tapped out on his money and youtried to take care of that
service and in doing that youdiscovered a whole new world.
(07:47):
Who would have thought youwould have been a developer at
that point in time?
Michael Cobb (07:51):
Certainly not me.
Hugh Gilliam (07:53):
I mean, what a great story and you have so much
wisdom.
Also, I mean, in lookingthrough, we will have three
different episodes here andwe're gonna touch on Belize, the
next episode, and then we'regonna get into another section a
little bit later.
But so many people havemisconceptions.
They have a beautiful dreamabout moving into another
(08:15):
country.
It's a they romanticized thatdream and but the reality hits
when they hit the ground andwhen they're in the country
trying to figure these thingsout.
So I think you can be a great,a great pocket of wisdom for
people that are watching thispodcast and people that wanna
know more about the how-to's,the nuts and bolts about moving
(08:37):
to another country, because youdon't just jump in, but you have
to have assistance.
And there's something you saidI can't think of exactly what it
was, but I think it's we don'tknow what we don't know.
Michael Cobb (08:49):
Yes.
Hugh Gilliam (08:50):
And that's pretty profound, really, because we
don't know what we don't know,and that's why it's so important
to have someone we can lean on,that's been there and, in your
case, since 1996, that's beenthere, that understands and you
know how to make the dream cometrue.
Michael Cobb (09:08):
Well, you know, thank you.
Hugh, I appreciate those reallykind words.
And you know, a big part ofthese lessons that we put into
the Consumer Resource Guide werelessons that you know, I and we
as a company paid a lot oftuition to learn.
I mean, these weren't freelessons.
I mean we banged around, likeyou said, what did I know about
(09:30):
development in 1996?
You know, not much, right, Imean I'd stayed in developments,
right, that's kind of what Iknew.
And so we made a lot ofmistakes over the years, but we
documented those and we turnedthem into lessons.
Right, we paid the tuition, youknow, and so then we turned
them into lessons and then weput those lessons into the
(09:52):
Consumer Resource Guide tohopefully, you know, help other
folks coming along, you know,avoid the ones that we made.
Everybody makes mistakes.
I think that's just part oflife.
Right, you make mistakes.
But if we can take the big,huge potholes off the road or,
you know, fill those in at least, or at least point where they
are and we can avoid those, youknow we our goal.
(10:12):
Again, coming back to this ideaof service, look, we give away
our Consumer Resource Guide,literally thousands and
thousands every year.
We give them away any chance weget and we don't get thousands
and thousands of sales everyyear, but I hope that the people
who get them, whether they buyone of our properties or buy
somebody else's property,actually have a much happier
(10:33):
experience, like you said, Imean, the romanticized vision
really can come true to a largedegree, because it is wonderful
to live in the tropics, it iswonderful to live where the cost
of living is much lower and thequality of life can be much
higher.
Right, I mean, thisromanticized notion can largely
be true if we take care of someof those details on the front
(10:55):
end, right?
And so every time and personyou know an expat let me just
use the word expat every time anexpat happily transitions to a
new location, whether in one ofour communities or, in the vast
number of cases, somebody else'scommunity, right, at the end of
the day, the world of expatsgets better.
People talk about thiswonderful experience and you
(11:17):
know it is truly the rising tide, right, if we can help more
people have a successfultransition into an expat
lifestyle or a vacation propertyor even an investment property
ownership, because those twoelements also hang in the mix,
right, it's not just thefull-timer expats, it's people
who have a bi-vacation propertyor an investment property.
(11:38):
But when that transactionhappens wonderfully and
successfully and then on thebackside much of that
romanticized vision comes topass, Wow, what a wonderful
experience that is for everybody.
And when that tide lifts, youknow we're going to get our
piece of that business somewheredown the line too.
So, yeah, we're very happy todistribute this consumer
(12:01):
resource guide widely andbroadly and help.
As many folks you know see thebig potholes right.
And, by the way you mentionedwe don't know what we don't know
.
There is a corollary to that,and it's that we also have to
forget what we think we know.
Right.
So it's both we don't know whatwe don't know.
(12:22):
But we also have to discardassumptions that we bring with
us, because many assumptionsthat we have coming out of North
America just simply don't holdwater, you know, outside of
North America.
Hugh Gilliam (12:34):
Exactly, Michael.
You mentioned the resourceguide, the consumer resource
guide, and I think it's greatthat you prepared that, because
it answers a lot of questionsthat people might have when
they're thinking about makingthat big move and it's a big
move to invest in anothercountry.
But at the very bottom, in theepisode description area, we
(12:56):
will have your information, yourwebsite, all of your
information at the very bottom,and people can actually email
you and ask for this consumerresource guide, which is really
like a bible to that country,basically not necessarily that
country, but to Central Americaor any other country that you
would be moving to.
Michael Cobb (13:17):
Right.
Well, I would say that theconsumer resource guide works
anywhere in the developing world, whether it's Latin America,
Asia, Africa, it doesn't matter.
The developing world is aforeign, different environment.
And so this consumer resourceguide, what it really helps us
do, Hugh, is it helps us beginto think differently.
Like, we have 15 questions,right, and the 15 questions are
(13:42):
not even close to exhaustive ofall the possible things that can
be out there, right?
But if we take those 15questions and we begin to go,
okay, I see why this isimportant, I see why we're
asking this question, so if wecan understand the why of it,
then we can come up with our own15 more, or our own 30 more.
Or, because a lot of it's verysituational, right, we're down
(14:04):
there, we're on the ground,we're looking at it and we might
go like we might come up with awhole different question or a
couple of questions that hadnothing to do with anything we
ever thought of before, butthey're situational and they're
relevant in the moment, right?
So, really, what I hope and Italk about this in the consumer
resource guide early on, andsort of the prep for it, right
(14:26):
is to say, hey, this is really adocument to help us change how
we think, because we are leavingfrom North America, Northern
Europe, we are leaving the landof seller beware.
Right, there are so manyconsumer protection laws,
regulation agencies, privateorganizations, Ralph Nader,
(14:46):
right, I mean, he didn't workfor the government at his own
right, I mean.
So you have all of theseorganizations, institutions,
people that are looking out forthe consumer in North America.
It's really hard to, like youknow, stick it to the consumer.
It's not that it doesn't happen, but it's hard.
I mean, it happens once in awhile.
But when you go to buyer beware,where you don't have the
(15:07):
regulatory compliance, you mightnot even have the regulations.
You don't have the regulations,you don't have the compliance.
Many of the times the countrymight have the regulations but
they don't have the resources toenforce them, right?
So you've got a whole differentenvironment, which is buyer
beware.
And so, again, if we can changehow we think, right, we can
then be in this environment in amuch more prepared status.
(15:32):
Right, we become prepared andwe become aware of things around
us that we would normallyassume.
Again, that assumption thing.
That's why that's dangerous,right, and some of the questions
have to do with assumptions andthen some have to do more with
you know, we just don't knowwhat we don't know.
Hugh Gilliam (15:49):
Exactly, exactly Well, I think also in your guide
.
It stimulates those 15questions actually the person
looking at those questions andtrying to answer those because
they're thinking seriously aboutmoving and investing in other
countries.
It helps them to be able tothink maybe beyond the curve a
little bit so that theyunderstand more about what they
(16:12):
don't know.
But let me ask you this I knowthat common mistakes are made,
but in your opinion, what arethe most common mistakes that
people make that made 20 yearsago?
People made these mistakes 20years ago compared to common
mistakes today in investing orbuilding in other countries.
Michael Cobb (16:36):
Wow, hugh, no one has ever asked me that question
before.
A lot of times I kind of walkinto this stuff very prepared
because, like most of thequestions I've had before, never
had that one before.
Thank you, well done.
Let me ponder that one just amoment and just start with a
very specific example and thensee where it goes.
(16:57):
But I would say that the commonmistake that people make is
they go too fast, they rush intothings.
I would say almost all of theproblems stem from rushing into
something as opposed to takingtheir time.
We look at how people buy realestate in the US.
Most people I would say wisepeople they go out and they get
(17:20):
a realtor not everybody, butmost people get a realtor to
represent them, become theirrepresentative, in something
that on the surface might notseem so hard.
I'm just buying a house.
It's not like buying tomatoes,we're buying a house.
There's a lot of stuff thatgoes on with that.
Most people end up hiring arealtor.
(17:40):
When we go overseas, manypeople just simply they don't
hire a realtor.
They don't get a realtor.
They just go straight to aseller or straight to a
developer and they purchase aproperty.
They do it on the same trip,their first trip, I think that
tends to be, if I had to isolatethe, the root cause of most of
(18:01):
the problems it's not theproblems themselves, but it's
the root cause is moving tooquickly into a situation and
doing so without good guidance.
Okay, I don't know that it'schanged very much yet, but I
actually think that it is in theprocess of changing
significantly, and that is NAR.
(18:23):
Back in I guess it was 2011 or12.
I don't remember when it was Iwas invited under whenever Steve
Brown was president it was aSteve Brown's initiative a
presidential advisory group.
He invited 12 of us 11, 12 ofus up to Chicago for a week to
talk about how to improve NAR'sglobal positioning right, and
(18:44):
Janet Branton was the VP atGlobal and Commercial at the
time so went up there, and Ithink there was this real desire
on the part of NAR to build astronger global presence right
and a global interaction.
Forget the presence part, butthe interaction part, and I've
watched that happen since 2012.
(19:04):
I ended up on the board of NARfor a year and then served on a
couple of the committees andI've attended lots of events,
and so I have watched thisprogression of NAR's engagement
with the global community.
And the big one and a big onewhich I think is very, very
exciting is the actual desireit's not it's not foolproof, but
(19:26):
the desire to enforce thelicensing of the agents overseas
and then the listing ofproperties in the US.
I'm gonna get into the weedshere a little bit, but let me
just back out of the weeds andjust come to the big picture.
The bottom line of that is thisthat there's more realtor
presence overseas now than thereever has been before, and that
(19:46):
that realtor presence is beingrespected both in that country
and by their own licensingauthorities and by NAR, and that
combination of the two isdriving more people to use a
realtor when they buy propertyoverseas.
And I would say that of thethings that has changed the most
(20:10):
, that's probably a big one.
It's still largely a buyerbeware environment.
That hasn't changed.
And the other thing that'sprobably changed, to Hugh, is
there's more awareness of aNorth American consumer, and so
I think there's more awarenessof building a product that's
comfortable and familiar for aNorth American consumer.
(20:31):
So I think the trends are inthe right direction for sure,
and I don't know if I answeredyour question or not.
Hugh Gilliam (20:39):
No, you did, you certainly did, and I do know
that NAR has moved forward in agreat force to reach out into
these other countries and bringthat NAR presence, have the code
of ethics there for thoseagents and it's a huge
undertaking but they're doing agreat job at it.
Michael Cobb (20:57):
They are, and you know what.
It'll take 20, 30 years, andwe're 10, 15 years into it,
right?
So, yeah, right, that's true.
Hugh Gilliam (21:04):
Let me ask you this.
Let me ask you another questionwhat are the pros and cons of
building in another countryversus buying a home that's
already built?
Michael Cobb (21:14):
Let me start real easy.
Typically, on a home that'salready built, you're gonna get
a much better cost per squarefoot, right?
So because if somebody built ahouse 30 years ago and it costs
30 bucks a square foot, they cansell it today for 100 bucks a
square foot and they're happyand right, whereas today the
cost to build a house overseasby the way, this is kind of an
(21:39):
interesting misnomer the cost tobuild overseas in the
developing world is onlyslightly less than the cost to
build in the US, becauseconcrete steel nobody builds In
Latin America, it's all concrete.
So we don't even talk aboutwood, right, but concrete, steel
.
Doors, windows, electric wire,faucets, I mean lights, I mean
(22:00):
everything like that is allpriced at the world price.
There's no discount on concreteand steel in Costa Rica because
it's world price, right.
And so labor is the onlyvariable in the cost of
construction where you actuallycan save money.
No-transcript.
Again, new construction in theUS, canada, new construction
(22:23):
overseas is pretty comparable.
It might be 10% to 15% lessoverseas, but it's not
significantly less.
The land piece, again, if youbuy a lot.
Looking at the ocean in, say, Ilike Nicaragua, right, an
oceanfront lot in Nicaragua for$150, $250,000,.
Same thing in California.
It'd be $2 million, right?
(22:44):
So we're talking $0.10 on thedollar, right?
Costa Rica might be $3,000,$400,000.
So, again, different pricepoints.
But then when you come to builda new house, you're only going
to be 10%, 15% less than what itwould cost in the States.
However, this is where it getsreally cool and, again, this is
where, again, paying a lot ofattention up front counts.
(23:06):
Because if the things that costa lot of money in the States
high labor items so a mosaic,tile, floor, iron work, just all
kinds of detailing that wouldjust take craftsmen hours and
hours and hours at somehowoutrageous $50 an hour or
whatever to do in Latin America,that stuff is inexpensive, it's
(23:28):
just insanely inexpensive.
And so what you can end up withis a house that would cost
three times more in the Statesbecause of all the craftsmanship
that's gone into this reallyhigh labor component.
But if you were to just say,build a 1500 square foot house
tiled up right in the States andin Latin America, your cost to
(23:48):
be 15% less.
But if you start to get smartabout it and build something
really cool and sexy and craftsyright now, all of a sudden
you're going to have a housethat would cost double or triple
that in the States, and that'sbecause of the labor component.
So there's where you reallystart to pick up your advantage
the the one disadvantage ofbuying a pre-existing home is
(24:11):
you don't necessarily know howwell it was engineered and
depending on where you purchasethe home on the Pacific side of
Central Mexico all the way downto Chile I mean, that is the
ring of fire.
That is the same fault.
It's not exactly the same faultline as California, but it's
basically the same fault systemfrom Alaska to Chile, right.
(24:32):
And so you have earthquakesthat whole western side of the
Americas.
And so if you buy a structurethat's already built, you can
have them break away the wallsand stuff like that, and in fact
I think in an earthquake zone.
If I was buying a home thatalready existed, I probably
would do that because I wouldwant to know that that house
(24:54):
would stand up to a majorearthquake, because they get
them.
I mean that's just like youknow, it's on the Pacific coast,
right.
So if you build new and you hireand we recommend this in the
Consumer Resource Guide and youhire your own third party
engineer to validate the plansand then do construction
inspections to make sure it'sactually being built according
(25:16):
to the plans, right?
Then you know that you're goingto get a house that will hold
up to an earthquake, right?
Same thing on the other side,right On the Caribbean side.
I mean, you've got hurricanesright and so you want to make
sure that whatever structuresyou're building there, you know
accommodate, you know, cat four,maybe cat five, whatever people
have different opinions on that, but a cat four, a cat five,
kind of hurricane type ofstructure.
(25:38):
So the engineering on those isimportant, far more important on
the seismic side for apreexisting home, because you
just don't know unless you breakaway walls and really see
what's behind it.
So anyway, but you'll get amuch lower price on a prebuilt
home.
So it might make sense to takethe lower price and bust away
(25:59):
some walls and really check theyou know, check the construction
standards on it.
Hugh Gilliam (26:04):
Yeah, we're running out of time, but I have
one more question about and it'skind of a crazy question it's
about a personality typeperspective.
But then we'll be moving intoour second podcast with you
shortly and that will be aboutBelize.
We'll concentrate on Belize.
But my question is this from apersonality perspective, what
(26:29):
people would you not advise tomove to Central America?
Michael Cobb (26:34):
I love it.
So in the Consumer ResourceGuide, which you're going to put
a link to right here on page 4,or it's right inside, is this
what we call are you ready tolive overseas quiz?
And I mean just a couple of thequestions Are you usually one
(26:54):
of the first to try new things,new food and new experiences?
That's a question.
One, two or three, right, andit's a point system.
Are you able to relax, willingto adapt to a lower, slower,
easier life pace?
Do you make new friends easily?
Are you open to adventures andnew activities?
Right, I mean.
So there's, I think, 15questions there or something 12,
(27:16):
15 questions, and you just rankthem one, two, three.
And so what I have found isthat this little quiz has been
the best predictor of people whowill make it overseas with very
little adjustments.
Everybody gets culture shock,right, everybody gets culture
shock.
How well do you deal withculture shock?
(27:38):
That's what this quiz says.
And, like one point what areyou waiting for?
Go ahead, kind of the middlerange, yeah, you're gonna bump
along, but you're gonna getthrough it.
The people who score low onthis, like just stay home,
you're gonna be miserable, likeit is just not the right thing
for you.
So that quiz is a lot of funand it is so powerfully
predictive better than anythingI've seen in 26,.
(28:03):
Now 27 years of my careerhighly predictive, yeah.
Hugh Gilliam (28:08):
I think you did a great job on that quiz and I
haven't taken it yet, but Ipromise I will.
I promise I will sometime inthe near future.
Okay, it's been great beingwith you today and again I thank
you for your time.
I thank you for what you'vedone.
I see you as an individual thatyou've ventured out into
uncharted waters.
(28:28):
Basically, for you, you got outof your comfort zone.
You went to one location inCentral America and you saw a
need and you provided a serviceand that service grew into
another opportunity and I thinkyou're the total package.
I think you're excellent inwhat you've done.
I've heard a lot of wonderfulthings about you, your company,
(28:50):
and I think that anyonelistening to this podcast, if
they have any questions aboutCentral America, you're the man
they should contact.
Michael Cobb (28:59):
Well, thank you, and I hope that folks will reach
out for the Consumer ResourceGuide, because that is a very,
very valuable tool thateverybody looking for property
overseas should have in theirhands.
Hugh Gilliam (29:09):
Yeah, Okay, thank you, Michael, we appreciate you.
Thank you, goodbye.
Thanks for joining in ontoday's episode of RealtyCast
Global.
Make sure to subscribe to thepodcast to be notified when new
episodes air.
Popular Podcasts
Bookmarked by Reese's Book Club
Welcome to Bookmarked by Reese’s Book Club — the podcast where great stories, bold women, and irresistible conversations collide! Hosted by award-winning journalist Danielle Robay, each week new episodes balance thoughtful literary insight with the fervor of buzzy book trends, pop culture and more. Bookmarked brings together celebrities, tastemakers, influencers and authors from Reese's Book Club and beyond to share stories that transcend the page. Pull up a chair. You’re not just listening — you’re part of the conversation.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!