Real Estate

Safest Real-Estate Investments in Metro Medellin: Part One

Medellin Herald October 20, 2015

Foreigners exploring metro Medellin to buy a residence, a commercial property or a rental will find that the safest, lowest-risk approach is to acquire an existing apartment, an existing house, an existing building or a well-defined lot inside a fully permitted “parcelacion.” Another option is

Real Estate

Safest Real-Estate Investments in Metro Medellin: Part Two

Medellin Herald October 20, 2015

Relatively safe investment options for real estate in Medellin include not only existing houses, apartments and commercial real estate, but also well-defined lots inside fully permitted “parcelacion” gated communities. The “oriente” region (east of Medellin) is seeing an especially strong growth in such “parcelaciones,” with the bulk of buyers represented by those selling

General News

Antioquia’s Gross Domestic Product Grew 7% in 2014: DANE

Medellin Herald October 20, 2015

Colombia’s national statistics agency (DANE) on October 18 released an analysis showing that Antioquia’s gross domestic product (“PIB” in Spanish initials) grew 7% for all of 2014 – third best in all Colombia and more than one-third greater than the PIB growth in Bogota. The construction industry was a key driver in Antioquia’s 2014 PIB […]

Volunteering

U.S.-Based ‘Emiliani’ Charity Aims to Build Orphanage in Metro Medellin

Medellin Herald October 16, 2015

Following in the footsteps of Saint Jerome Emiliani – a former Italian soldier whose charitable works prompted the Catholic Church to name him the patron saint of orphans – a group led by U.S. military veterans is now spearheading a project that aims to help orphans in metro Medellin. The California-based Emiliani Project – founded by former […]

General News

Antioquia Awards Construction Contract for Crucial ‘Toyo Tunnel’ Project

Medellin Herald October 15, 2015

The Antioquia departmental government announced October 14 that contracts have now been finalized for construction of the 9.75-kilometers-long “Toyo Tunnel” project — part of a crucial highway connection between Medellin and a new freight port being built on the Caribbean coast. The “Antioquia to the Sea” consortium that won the “Toyo” contracts — worth

Professional services

Brokerages Offer Flexible Alternative to Banks for Colombia Money Transfers

Medellin Herald October 14, 2015

While a growing number of foreigners are investing in real estate or other types of businesses in metro Medellin, some have found that the process of transferring relatively large amounts of investment funds from the U.S. or other countries can be frustratingly complex, time-consuming – and even costly. Full disclosure: Ten years ago, my Colombian […]

General News

Antioquia Outshines All Colombia in Institutional Management, Public Finances

Medellin Herald October 14, 2015

A just released study by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (Cepal, in Spanish initials) finds that Antioquia continues to surpass all other departments in Colombia for institutional management and public finances. Antioquia also ranks second (behind Cundinamarca) in over-all “competitiveness,” according to the study. However, the

Congresses & Conferences

Prestigious Medical Congresses Debuting in Medellin; English Spoken Here

Medellin Herald October 13, 2015

Medellin hosts nearly 1,000 delegates for the 11th Congress on Immunology (“ImmunoColombia 2015”) October 13-16 at the Plaza Mayor conference center – with technical presentations in English. The Congress – sponsored by the Latin American Association of Immunology (ALAI) and the Colombian Association of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACCAI) – features leading experts on

General News

New ‘Branding’ Studies Analyze Medellin’s Global Image

Medellin Herald October 13, 2015

A joint study by researchers at the University of Medellin and Spain-based Urbegi University examines how Medellin can tap qualitative and quantitative analytical methods to measure its global “brand” image. On a parallel front, U-Medellin and international collaborators have just launched a separate, related study on “Brand Medellin” (“Marca Medellin”), aiming to measure

General News

Avianca’s Big Expansion Boosts Antioquia’s Growing Aeronautical ‘Cluster’

Medellin Herald October 8, 2015

Medellin investment promotion agency ACI (Agencia de Cooperación e Inversión de Medellín y el Área Metropolitana) announced October 8 that a new “Clúster Aeroespacial Colombiano” (Colombian aeronautical cluster) is becoming a magnet for new business growth in Antioquia.  The growth of aeronautical investment and jobs in metro Medellin is due in part to a huge […]