I am amazed at some of the replies within this forum

jeff reeder wrote:

At what level of income have you come from to think that $425.00 USD is a gain?

Ha ha, if you don't think $425 USD is a gain, please send ME that amount!

Somehow I get the impression you are not too happy with La República de Chile.  Duly noted.

Hello Jeff. I understand you're frustration because I went Thru the same. But my approach was different.

I'm 2011 I travel to Chile and rent a car, travel from north to south few times until I understand what is what, live and learn by my experiences, not somebody else experiences.

If you want things done in Chile you have to do it yourself, don't ask extrangers or relay on cheap advise, just go to the government office and ask what you need, and get it done. And be patient because  you may have to go 10 times to the same place to ge it done.

In 2013 I bough farmland and beach property, and build a cabin, plant several fruit trees and buy a cheap truck. My monthly expenses were 600.00 a month.

Also in 2013 apply for residence and last year I got my Chilean passport after 5 years of residence. No drama, just patience.

Life is good in Chile, no wars or enemies, organic foods, fresh air and spring water. Can't get any better, ohh and I forget to mention, on weekends I go to the beach for more fresh air and great seafood.

Check my LinkedIn under Cesar Puente Pilgrim

I think that the words "no wars, no drama" are famous last words, given the recent happenings in Chile. The truth is that Chile is an incredibly frustrating country to live in. Do not get me started on the hoops I have to jump through currently just to get my ID document in Chile as well as to apply for permanent residency next year. I'll suffice to say that it took many Sundays waiting in line to get an appointment with the police, which never happened due to the situation in Chile. And this after I did the same registration process 2 months ago. To top it all off, I live in a town which had 6 supermarkets of which one remains. Chile might have been a good place and easy to come to live in in the past, but now it has all changed.
Besides for this, everything is confusing. There is no customer service. Companies just want your money. For example, a courier package arrived in my town at the local depot for me. It was to be delivered the next Monday and on the Saturday before that I went to collect it at the depot. I was told that the package was indeed there, but they won't give it to me because it was scheduled for delivery on the coming Monday and they couldn't pick up the phone to call the delivery person to cancel this
Your job will complain about the fact that you take a lot of time off from work to do your legally compulsory paperwork, despite the country just having gone through the worst violence and upheaval it has seen in 30 years. This despite your boss having been away from work for a week because she was stranded in Concepcion and couldn't get a flight back home.
For those who came before, I get the point. For those who are considering coming now, think twice.

good post!