Moving back

Moving back in stages: how families return without burning bridges

Claudia Velazco · RE/MAX Eleva, Maracaibo, Zulia · 8 min read

Only 12 percent of Venezuelans abroad report concrete plans to return soon, while 44.7 percent would return if conditions improve. That second group does not need to choose between returning and staying: it needs a staged return, where every step can be undone if something does not work.

The conversation about returning is usually framed as a switch: you stay or you go. In practice, families who return well almost never do it in one leap. They do it in stages, keeping bridges open, and close each bridge only once the next one is solid. This article describes what that process looks like.

Why stages matter

The figures say what intuition suggests. Among Venezuelans surveyed abroad, 12 percent have concrete plans to return soon, close to 9.7 percent want to return but not immediately, 44.7 percent would do so if conditions improve, and 23.7 percent prefer to stay out. Most people, then, are not decided: they are assessing.

The reasons that come up most among those who return combine migration fatigue, xenophobia in the host country, the de facto dollarisation that made daily life more manageable, and the wish to be near ageing parents.

Stage 1. The reconnaissance trip

Before moving anything, go. Not on holiday where everyone celebrates you, but living an ordinary life for two or three weeks.

• Stay in the area where you would actually live, not with relatives in another sector.
• Do the shopping, visit a clinic, handle an errand, use the internet during working hours.
• Visit schools if you are returning with children, and ask about real fees, which run between 65 and 200 dollars a month per child.
• Note how often the power goes and how often the water arrives.

Stage 2. Rent before you buy

This is the stage most people skip and the one that prevents the most regret. Renting for six to twelve months lets you learn the city from inside, understand which area suits your actual life, and avoid committing capital to a decision made on incomplete information.

One practical figure to budget: Venezuelan landlords typically demand several months in advance, and the total to move into a rental can exceed 3,000 dollars once advance, deposit and contract drafting are added.

Stage 3. Buy, once you know

With the city known and the area decided, buying stops being a gamble. And since Venezuela has no mortgages and everything is paid in cash, the transaction is structured in stages through a purchase option, a deposit of 10 to 20 percent and a 30 to 90 day window for legal verification.

Buy with two things in mind at once: the life you will live, and the exit. A property with independent water, a generator and fibre is not only better to live in, it also sells when you need it to.

Stage 4. Close the bridges, one at a time

Only here does liquidating on the other side make sense, and with judgement:

• The last thing to close is whatever is hardest to rebuild. Immigration status, a bank account or a credit history take years to reconstruct.
• Keeping an account and an address in your former country of residence makes receiving and managing money enormously simpler.
• If you owned a home there, consider renting it before selling. Turning it into income gives you room while you confirm the decision.

The mistakes I see most

1. Buying on the first trip. The emotion of returning is real, and it is a poor advisor on a capital decision.
2. Choosing an area from nostalgia rather than from services. The neighbourhood of your childhood may no longer have what your life needs.
3. Liquidating everything before testing. This is what turns an adjustment into a crisis.
4. Not budgeting the settling in. Arriving costs money: deposits, furniture, appliances, air conditioning.
5. Underestimating the climate. Air conditioning is not optional in Maracaibo, and it raises the real cost of living by 10 to 20 percent.

Returning well is not returning fast. It is returning in a way that, if something does not work, leaves you room to correct without losing what you built abroad.

Frequently asked questions

How do you plan a staged return to Venezuela?

In four phases: a reconnaissance trip living an ordinary life, a rental period of six to twelve months, the purchase once the area is decided, and only at the end the gradual closing of ties in your former country of residence.

Should I rent before buying when returning to Venezuela?

Yes, it is the most consistent recommendation. Renting for six to twelve months lets you learn the city from inside and avoids committing capital to a decision made on incomplete information.

How much does it cost to move into a rental in Venezuela?

It can exceed 3,000 dollars once advance rent, deposit and contract drafting are added, since landlords typically require several months up front as security.

How many Venezuelans abroad want to return?

Twelve percent report concrete plans to return soon, close to 9.7 percent want to return without an immediate date, 44.7 percent would return if conditions improve and 23.7 percent prefer to stay abroad.

What should I not liquidate before returning to Venezuela?

Whatever is hardest to rebuild: immigration status, bank accounts and credit history. Keeping an account and an address in your former country simplifies receiving and managing money during the transition.