Has anyone researched a good place to live to stretch your retirement dollars?
(Sort of along the lines of “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” but perhaps with your own bungalow for more independent living…)
A timeshare realtor we met recently was raving about his new retirement home in Costa Rica. I believe there’s a poster here who also bought a property in that country.
We have fronds who retired to Oxaca Mexico (not sure I spelled that correctly). There is a huge retirement community there of expats from the U.S. Their quality of life is terrific on their very small SS incomes.
There was a poster here (cant recall who) who was from FL but has a retirement home in Mexico. I know some folks who have homes in Costa Rica, but for me, it would be hard to be so far from the kids and not speak the language. Hats off to those who can do it!
I know people who retired in San Miguel de Allende, a beautiful colonial city in central Mexico. (They absolutely love it. )A big expat community there, lots of Americans and Canadians. These days, Panama, Nicaragua and Ecuador are also popular retirement spots – and cheaper than Costa Rica, which has never been terribly inexpensive.
What do people do about medical insurance? I’d imagine that Medicare doesn’t apply outside the US, and you’d have to be pretty wealthy to self-insure, especially at the rate at which older people develop chronic health problems. I can’t imagine too many countries are really happy about taking on insurance liability for older non-citizens. So what happens?
You can buy insurance in that country usually. Often cheaper than part B.
Indonesia (particularly Bali), Thailand, Malaysia get a lot of Western retirees.
I have quite a few friends who bought a home in Bali.
Malaysia has a program called ‘Malaysia My Second Home’ (MM2H). Malaysia is an English speaking country. Many retirees settle in the resort city of Kota Kinabalu. U can google MM2H to get the qualification details. I imagine tbe issues raised will be similar as that for other countries.
Spain & Greece are also popular w European retirees. I have an aunt/uncle who retired to the Canary Islands, and a cousin who retired to an island in Greece.
Problem w buying property in Spain is that the inheritance taxes are pretty much confiscatory, so many retirees sell and return to the home country to die. This highlights the issue of inheritance taxes…
FYI, from Huff Post
No COLA? No Problem in These Top Retirement Havens
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/8315322
One man we shared a table with was talking about moving to Australia/NZ. Personally, I love it in HI and will likely remain here or perhaps relocate to be nearer our kids when they settle. I’d be sure to have a very long term rental before relocating, as it may be difficult to return, especially if you sell your home and are priced out of the market for returning. Also, if you let Medicare lapse or don’t buy it, there will be a permanent penalty when you do opt to purchase it.
Does anyone worry about making new friends when you move internationally? Has anyone here on CC retired and moved far away from family and friends either internationally or in the US?? I would be interested in hearing about your experiences, especially how you found friends with whom to socialize.
A company called International Living has made an idustry out of hawking overseas retirement for Americans. If you get on their mailing list you will receive a constant stream of invitations to seminars and other extra cost sources of information. They have thoroughly researched the topic. They seem to like Ecuador, Panama, and Belize (language is English!) as the best places for Americans to retire considering things like cost of living, availability of healthcare, infrastructure, safety, and many other things you may or may not have thought about.
I would imagine that any place w a large expat retiree community would have a active expat association for socializing and sharing issues.
And I suspect it wouldn’t be all that different from retiring to a lower-cost area in the U.S. You find friends.
It’s often EASIER to make friends in expat communities than with the neighbors down the street in the U.S.!
My friends who retired in Mexico learned Spanish, and have also developed close ties with a few locals that way. (Mexicans were touched that these gringos put in the effort to learn their language.) In fact, they got to know a family from Mexico City that was vacationing in San Miguel de Allende, and later became frequent guests at the family’s home in Mexico City. This family was quite well to do, and my friends had their own posh little casita behind the main house. It made for a very comfortable and safe way to explore Mexico City.
I’ve often fantasized about retiring abroad. But honestly, I just can’t picture living that far from my kids and any grandkids I might have.
I second the rec for San Miguel de Allende. I went there for a week last March and fell in love with it. Yes there is a large expat community buy it still feels very authentic, not touristy. There is a Yahoogroup for San Miguel de Allende. Might be worth joining to get a feel for the place.
@CAMidwestMom, if you liked San Miguel de Allende, next time check out Guanajuato (if you haven’t already.) Very similar to SMdA, but less discovered: fewer tourists, lower prices. I love that whole part of Mexico. It’s a shame so many Americans never venture beyond the ocean side resorts. There’s so much more to Mexico!
Anything I saved would be spent on airfair to come back to see my children and (hopefully) grandchildren.
I would not be happy overseas, it’s just not me.
No offense, but I would never retire in a country such as Mexico with the violence level.
Portugal has a nice write-up:
http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/on-retirement/2014/06/10/11-reasons-to-retire-in-portugals-algarve
@katliamom, we flew into Guanajuato and ended up regretting not spending any time there. If, or should I say when, I go back, I will be checking it out. And yes, many people didn’t understand that we were not going to a beach resort. I agree, that area is amazing in many ways!
It has probably been discussed a lot on CC, but This couple: http://homefreeadventures.com Sold their house and travelled. Seems they caught the expat bug in San Miguel de Allende. She isn’t blogging as much lately, they returned to the states last year for a health issue. That’s the biggie for us.
I know someone who will soon be retiring to the home they bought 5 years ago in Costa Rica. Their kids are scattered across the South US. Costa Rica isn’t much farther than retiring in California. Much cheaper and the family loves visiting.