Some cost etimates for the process, please!

[MikePastore]

Thanks guys for your assistance. Here is my concern. I keep reading about all these guys making several trips to Colombia and then having a engagement party and then a wedding, going to the islands for a honeymoon then paying Gary Bala to do their visa application. I am very worried that I will not be able to afford to finish the process once I start it. Please advise me of the most cost-effective way to do this. I am thinking that it will take anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000 over 3 trips to Colombia to get the love of my life back here to my little beach town in FL. Is this possible? I don't make a lot of money, so I would want her to be able to start working as soon as she can so we can save for a future together. I want a simple woman with simple tastes, who will be happy at home with me and not want to go Latin dancing in Miami every weekend (maybe once a month). Also I am concerned about the homesickness factor and how often I would have to go back to Colombia for her to see her family. Also English classes, phone cards, etc. I don't want to give you the impression that I am a cheapskate or that I want a domestic servant and sex toy, that is not the case. I am just a struggling single dad who lost everything in my last divorce with limited resources who wants to look for love in all the right places this time. Please give me your best estimation of the funds needed over the course of the time from courtship to marriage and beyond.  With some of the intellect on this board we might come up with a pro-forma spreadsheet with lots of "what if" scenarios!

[Golden]

... in response to Some cost etimates for the process, plea..., posted by MikePastore on Jul 4, 2001

I spent about 1,400 (including the ticket) a pop for 8 days at a time when i went to Peru this year. That average is based on three trips to Peru, but i stayed at places only about 30 dollars a night that included breakfast. I also ate at her house few times. I have to watch money too, so i feel your pain. ...break down of cost 800 ticket, 220 hotel, 25 for that dam airport tax, 350 for food,drinks,taxi and other fun..........Golden

[MikePastore]

... in response to Some cost etimates for the process, plea..., posted by MikePastore on Jul 4, 2001

n/t

[JunFan68]

... in response to Some cost etimates for the process, plea..., posted by MikePastore on Jul 4, 2001

I would say I will have spent over $20k by the time it is all said and done here in about a month.  That is almost a year start to finish, with 5 trips total.  Mine is definately on the high side as I had an egagement party and usually stayed at high end hotels...I would definately do it the same way again.  I hope to only do this one time and wanted to enjoy it.  But remember, money goes a long way down there if you want it to, so I would think it be done reasonably for about 10-12k.

Later,
Mike

[Diego A.]

... in response to Some cost etimates for the process, plea..., posted by MikePastore on Jul 4, 2001

I hear you man (divorced Dad myself) I spent alot on having a novia in Venezuela went there twice and ended up with a broken heart but I would do it again it was the most awesome
experience and I am now I'm going to Cali to start again airfare always be diligent seeking lowest fares
usually $500-700 just have to bite the bullet on this one
Phone calls use phone cards, emailing is free, hotels are
more affordable in colombia and after seeing all the
paperwork and expense of marrying in Colombia I'm going the
K-1 route much cheaper and if she has a child you can file
a K-2 at the same time and then apply for her to have
permission to return to colombia prior to full resident
status, don't despair, work some overtime, a latin bride is
worth 100 american women,
Diego

[DallasSteve]

... in response to Some cost etimates for the process, plea..., posted by MikePastore on Jul 4, 2001

Mike

I got very lucky in my process and I was cheap, too.  I met my wife on my first trip to Bogota and made one additional trip to spend some more time with her.  Don't count on getting out this cheap.  If you have to make several trips to meet the right one it gets much more expensive.  If you want to use an agency there, or go to parties, more still.  If I was going to do it again, I would skip the letter writing and go straight to an agency in Colombia.  But watch their prices.  Some charge a lot more than others, but you don't necessarily get more.

Here's what it cost me.  These numbers are just from memory, but they are close:

300 Membership, South of the Border
700 Airfare, DFW to Bogota, June, 1999
700 Airfare, DFW to Bogota, Ocoober, 1999
400 Apartment, 8 nights, June, 1999
300 Apartment, 6 nights, October, 1999
400 Food and fun in Bogota, 8 nights, June, 1999
300 Food and fun in Bogota, 6 nights, October, 1999
700 Airfare (hers), Bogota to DFW, February, 2000
500 Cash to fiancee to get docs, medical exam, etc.
600 Telephone calls over 12 months
200 Letter writing campaign (postage, photos, etc.)
200 INS fees
----
$5,300 Total

What else have I forgotten guys?  

It would be very easy to spend $10,000 looking for a foreign bride, so be prepared.  If you add in lost wages (which to me is a real cost) the cost soars higher.  Use your own figures for that.

I also spent $600 to fly a woman from Peru to Bogota to meet her while I was there.  Boy was that dumb.  She was the only disappoinment of all the women I met.  Anyway, there are way too many beautiful women in Bogota (or Cali or Cartegena or YouNameIt) to import any extras.

I recommend you pay for her to take driving lessons in Colombia.  That's probably $100 there, $400 here.  I didn't have the patience to teach her myself.  After one accident trying, I put her in the hands of a professional.  It's also a lot cheaper to fix her teeth there if she needs any work done.

I used no lawyer, and I made one mistake on my K-1 application which cost us about 1 extra month.  It took us about 4 months to get the K-1 visa.  

For long distance to Colombia I use Net One International as my direct dial company.  They are about $.25 per minute to Colombia.  I also use 101-6868 as a backup service, which is about $.30 per minute.  I don't like to use phone cards.  Too many hidden charges and lost minutes.

My wife wants to go home every 6 months.  That's at least $1000 per trip.  She'll need airfare and at least some walking around money, even if she stays with family.

I just spent a wonderful July 4 with my beautiful, charming, young wife.  After having spent 17 months with this dream my advice is spend whatever you have to spend.  She's worth it.

Steve

[Michael B]

... in response to Been there, done that, posted by DallasSteve on Jul 5, 2001

Hey Steve, 10-16-868 is only .19 a minute, not 30. And you can get a good phone card (no connect fee, no minimum minutes, no extra nothing) for .10 a minute. Try the 'Texas No Connect' card, availble at a lot of Mexican stores and cheap resturants here in town, is there a Carneceria La Michoacana near you? (and their $3.49 lunch aint bad either) I know there's one on Columbia Ave. about a mile east of downtown (coincidencly right next door to the Bogota Apartments) and another in the shopping center at Beltline and Josey in Carrollton, I think there are 5 or 6 of them altogether, but lots of other resturants have them too. Said shopping center, by the way, also has an excelent Colombian resturant, La Casa Vieja. Not only is the food good, most of the Colombians in town hang out there...if you aren't already familiar with it, take your wife there for some 'back home' food and companionship.

[DallasSteve]

... in response to Re: Been there, done that, posted by Michael B on Jul 6, 2001

Thanks Michael.  I'll tell my wife about the phone card.  I was just guessing about the rates per minute for 101-6868.  And, yes, my wife likes to go by Michoacana about once a week.

Coincidentally, my wife and I were at Casa Vieja last night.  She loves the place and we go about once a week.  Last night she saw two other young women there she knew from English classes.  There were not many people there last night but about half of them were beautiful latinas.  However, the food's not really my favorite.  The mojarra frita is scrumptious but I get sick every time I eat it.

There's also another Colombian restaurant around Josey and Spring Valley named El Paisa, but I don't recommend it.  I think the food is better at Casa Vieja.

Why does it seem like 90% of the men seeking foreign brides are from Dallas?  Maybe we see so many hot latinas in Dallas that we get inspired to go south in the hopes we'll find one that's not a maneater.  God knows Dallas women are not the answer.  Mommy and daddy done spoilt 'em good.

[MikePastore]

... in response to Been there, done that, posted by DallasSteve on Jul 5, 2001

Steve,

This is really good info. I am doing all the research that I can, so I can get a good handle on the costs. Your experience and the experience of others like you is quite an inspiration. I hope to duplicate your success.

[Cali vet]

... in response to Some cost etimates for the process, plea..., posted by MikePastore on Jul 4, 2001

Mike just apply for a Fiance Visa (and you don't need Gary Bala to do it. It's a simple form just dot your ise.) You can finesse the process by going down and going to the embassy in Bogota with her after she gets her "cita". My friend did that and they had her visa in four days. There are incidentals that crop up that she might not have the money for if she goes it alone. And don't worry about about recurring trips to Colombia. You'll grow to love it!

[Houndog]

... in response to Re: Some cost etimates for the process, ..., posted by Cali vet on Jul 4, 2001

Please tell us about 4 day visa's...that's incredible...you could save guys months and thousands by revealing how it's done.

TIA, HD

[Cali vet]

... in response to Re: Re: a visa in 4 days ??, posted by Houndog on Jul 5, 2001

Well the guy filed the application for fiance visa up here, don't know how long that took, and after all his documents, divorce papers etc. were approved his girl was notified and given an appointment date with the embassy for her interview and medical exam. That's when he went down and waited on line with her and walked her through the process. They got the visa and returned to the US together. Now granted he didn't make one single mistake.