Job Discussion Forums

amity · Joined: 08 Mar 2007 Posts: 72 Location: central Texas

Where are the best places around the world to retire on the relatively modest savings of an ESL instructor, both in terms of getting the most bang for your buck, and in terms of having plenty of fun things to do, other adventurous ESL retirees to socialize with, and decent health care services if needed?

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

Lots of people go to the Philippines to retire.

saint57 · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 3:34 am Post subject:

Wherever the bottom of the economic ladder happens to be by the time you retire.

GambateBingBangBOOM · Joined: 04 Nov 2003 Posts: 2021 Location: Japan

naturegirl321 · Joined: 04 May 2003 Posts: 9041 Location: home sweet home

More and more people are coming to Peru. If you can prove that you get 1000 USD a month, they'll give you a visa and residency that are good until you die.

tedkarma · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 5:08 am Post subject:

I would agree with Thailand - and specifically Phuket. Away from the tourist areas prices are reasonable and there is still the flavor and texture of Thai life.

Retirement visas are not difficult to obtain if you can claim an income of about US$1600 per month (you don't have to spend it all and won't need to) or put US$23,000 in a bank account here (you are allowed to spend it down during the year, but need to top it up each year) - or a sliding scale combination of the two. There are, of course, more details than those but it is fairly easy to do.

Excellent medical care at 1/10 (or less) to 1/5 of the price of care in the USA. Great food, great weather.

Phuket is where I have chosen to retire and I enjoy life here. You can live quite well on about US$1000 per month (IMO/IME).

merlin · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 10:43 am Post subject:

You'll have to define "modest".
I belive "modest" retirement savings to be 300,000 to 700,000 US dollars.
If you have less than 300,000 you're looking at third-world countries, and all the things you want are possible EXCEPT the good medical care part.

Under my definition of modest retirement you should look at buying some property in Eastern Europe (NON-EU Former USSR). Somewhere around the Black sea? The mountains of Rumania might be quite an adventure. If nothing else you can live off of edible mushrooms.

naturegirl321 · Joined: 04 May 2003 Posts: 9041 Location: home sweet home

bobinet · Joined: 19 Feb 2006 Posts: 15

How come no one has mentioned Italy or Spain?

Spain being one of the main countries that the british seem to go for

Bobby

spiral78 · Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash

Because Spain and Italy are relatively wildly expensive!

globalnomad2 · Joined: 23 Jul 2005 Posts: 562

Lots of people head for Belize and Costa Rica.

I love my movies on wide-screen HDTV, however. Does Costa Rica offer US satellite TV, I wonder? I saw that Belize does.

I've even been searching the US for retirement places. It seems the Elmira, NY area--near the Pennsylvania border, within 30 miles of several colleges including Cornell U (i.e., cultural energy) has the lowest median house prices in the USA--$78,000. And they're nice, big old houses too. You can find beautiful ones up to 3800 sq. ft or so for $66-69,000. A number of them are multiple-unit homes, so you can even live in one and rent out the others for extra income. With rental income, social security, whatever retirement investments you've made, medicaid/medicare and full ownership of a house, that's a pretty good life, imo. And you get to have all the usual US conveniences.

I own a house in Houston outright worth $150,000 (Houston is very cheap; it's a nice house) and I would sell it, buy an Elmira NY house for $69K and invest the rest. Well, this won't appeal to everyone, but some might find it interesting. I've lived 32 years outside the US worldwide, but I think I'd like retiring back home.

By the way, you can also get lovely forested/meadowed land in northern Maine for $800-1000 an acre. I saw a "saltbox" house on 62 acres all for $85,000. www.realtor.com search under Presque Isle and under additional search options choose surrounding areas.

John Hall · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 9:00 pm Post subject:

tedkarma · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 11:01 pm Post subject:

sidjameson · Joined: 11 Jan 2004 Posts: 629 Location: osaka

Americans are very lucky if you have a chance to buy such high yielding houses. In he UK I don't believe it is possible to get anywhere near that 100:1 ratio. 200:1 would be more like it.

BUT I would like to suggest another option. Buying high yield shares.
I believe that they offer another option because they don't require any maintenance or management fees.

For example, buying (in the UK) shares in banks at the moment offer yields of 5% or more. Not as good as the 6% yield Ted K's suggesting, but still attractive. Both house prices and shares should go up in the long term so both offer capital appreciation.

The big advantage of shares though is that you can draw down on your equity far easier. Very hard to sell part of your house! Unless you want to pass on a house to your kids why die with unspent assets? The difference this drawdown will make on your retirement income is pretty big.

As far as places to retire go, I would say that it is very individual. Look a cities as apposed to countries. Chiang mai sounds good to me. Cheap, lots of things going on; even a chess club! but then again the hot summers put me off. I plan to spend the next few years looking for paradise, but don't expect me to post the address when I find it. Smile

shuize · Joined: 04 Sep 2004 Posts: 1270

I agree that $300,000 in the bank could provide a comfortable living many places around the world. However, I am skeptical about the 100:1 monthly income numbers for rental property cited above. The real estate boom has pushed house prices up considerably, but the rental rates have yet to catch up.