On this episode of The Most Dwanderful Real Estate Podcast Ever, host Dwan Bent-Twyford sits down with Anne Michelle Wand, a woman whose journey took her from running beauty salons in Colorado to becoming an international real estate developer in Panama. Her story is one of resilience, reinvention, and following lifelong dreams.

Life in Panama

Anne Michelle currently lives in Bocas del Toro, Panama, an archipelago of islands on the Caribbean side of the country. Unlike the U.S., Panama enjoys a consistent climate with 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of night year-round. For Anne, that stability and warmth were part of the draw that eventually led her there.

Building Passive Profit Partners

Today, Anne Michelle is the founder of Passive Profit Partners, a company focused on housing development projects. She describes it as a type of family office that gathers investors to work on meaningful developments, especially addressing the shortage of senior housing both in Panama and worldwide.

While she maintains a presence on Instagram and Facebook, Anne primarily shares her work and connects with others through LinkedIn, where she’s active under her full name and her company page.

The Early Days: From Single Mom to Real Estate Investor

Like many successful investors, Anne Michelle’s journey began out of necessity. After a divorce left her a single mother of two boys, she needed a way to support her family.

She started learning real estate strategies such as fix-and-flips, subject-to deals, rentals, and buy-and-hold properties. Her very first deal was a creative land subdivision in Boulder, Colorado. She purchased a house on a one-acre lot, subdivided the property into four parcels, lived in the house with her kids while fixing it up, and sold the additional lots. This deal gave her both financial momentum and the confidence to keep going.

Running Salons and Building Wealth

Interestingly, Anne didn’t jump straight into real estate full-time. While investing, she also pursued another passion: hairdressing and salon ownership.

She purchased a historic property in Boulder called London Hair, which featured a quirky London phone booth in the front yard. After years of running the salon, expanding it to include nails and massage, and even buying the building through owner financing, she eventually sold the business when she decided to pursue real estate full-time.

Running the salons provided her with both business experience and real estate assets, laying the foundation for her next chapter.

Transition to Full-Time Real Estate

After selling her salons, Anne became a licensed real estate agent. This gave her early access to properties on the MLS, helping her build a portfolio that included single-family homes, a duplex, and even a 44-unit apartment building in Denver.

Her ambitions grew, and soon she decided to try her hand at vacation properties. She purchased a cottage in Hawaii with her sister, complete with rentable smaller cottages on the property. While Hawaii was beautiful, Anne realized it wasn’t her ultimate dream location.

Searching for Paradise

Anne had always dreamed of living on the Caribbean Ocean, so she and a close friend began traveling through Central America in search of the perfect place. Their adventures took them to:

• Puerto Rico
• Nicaragua
• Guatemala
• Belize
• Costa Rica (multiple times)

While Costa Rica came close, it never quite fit—either too remote, too expensive, or not quite right. Then one day, Anne stumbled across a newspaper ad claiming to offer the “cheapest land in the Caribbean.” That ad pointed her toward Bocas del Toro, Panama.

At the time, she and her friend were already in Costa Rica, so they decided to take a side trip. That decision changed everything.

Discovering Paradise

When Ann Michelle first set foot in Bocas del Toro, Panama, she knew she had found something special. Stepping off a small puddle-jumper plane, she was instantly captivated by the colorful shacks, ocean breeze, and laid-back charm that reminded her of Key West in its early days.

“I used to love Key West in the old days,” she recalls, “and Bocas gave me that same feeling—authentic, vibrant, and inviting.”

From Colorado to the Tropics

At the time, Ann was still based in Boulder, Colorado, where she had a thriving real estate business. After buying two pieces of land in Bocas—one on the island of Salarte and another in Bocas Town—she began splitting her time between Colorado and Panama.

Though initially hesitant to visit the mountains of Panama (after all, she was from Colorado and thought she had seen enough mountains), Ann soon fell in love with Boquete, a lush town with cool temperatures, coffee plantations, and mountain views. “It looks just like the Rocky Mountains, but with tropical foliage,” she says.

A Life-Changing Move

By 2009, after the passing of her mother and the real estate crash of 2008, Ann and her husband decided it was time. “We’d been waiting to move to Panama—this was the sign,” she says. They relocated full-time and began building on their land.

Ann launched a real estate franchise in Bocas, which she successfully ran for 10 years. She delighted in showing properties by boat, developing her own commercial spaces, and building a home on the island of Salarte. Eventually, she sold the franchise to a young couple and turned her focus to building one home per year to sell in the $200,000–$400,000 range—a sweet spot in the local market.

Identifying a Need: Housing for Elders

While working in real estate, Ann noticed something critical: the expat population that had flocked to Bocas 20 years earlier was now aging, and there were no assisted living facilities in the area.

“In Panama City, yes. But here in Bocas or Boquete? Nothing,” she explains. “I thought—what if I built a little community where elders could thrive, with both independent and mildly assisted living?”

Her vision is to create a village of small, private homes with shared amenities—a central activity center, library, game room, wellness therapies, pickleball courts, and excellent food.

She calls it Active Agers, with a mission to help people not just age, but thrive. “I want to create the next blue zone,” Ann says, referring to regions in the world where people live exceptionally long and healthy lives.

Passive Partner Profits: Investing in the Vision

To fund the project, Ann established Passive Partner Profits, an LLC structured to welcome investors. Rather than calling it a syndication, she describes it as more of a family office model: “These partners are going to be more like my family—we’ll group together, build something, and I’ll take the lead.”

Her goal? To raise $7 million and bring elder-focused communities to both Bocas del Toro and Boquete.

A New Era of Retirement Living

Ann’s idea resonates with shifting cultural expectations. While Panamanians have traditionally cared for their elderly at home, the country’s growing middle class is starting to demand more services. Expats and locals alike will benefit from high-quality, affordable housing options that support active lifestyles in later years.

“Not a big apartment building,” Ann clarifies, “but small homes with privacy, plus lots of activities and wellness. A place where people can live fully.”

Living the Dream While Building for the Future

Ann and her husband currently live in a home perched over the sea, where every day begins with ocean views. “For now, it keeps me fit and healthy,” she laughs. At 74, she remains active, medication-free, and inspired by her mission.

As she looks toward the future, Ann sees not just personal fulfillment but a chance to transform senior living in Panama. “Maybe one day, I’ll live in the community I’m building,” she says. “But for now, I’m excited to keep creating and to help others thrive in their elder years.”

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