Best Places In The World To Retire

I have a condo on the beach right now, near Chicxulub (about an hour away from downtown Merida in the state of Yucatan, on the ocean), which is a very nice four-bedroom, three-bathroom condo with 2,000 square feet of living space that looks out over the water and sells for US $99,000.
 
Condos are not quite as available in town but townhouses are. You could buy a very nice three-bedroom, three-bathroom townhouse with 1,500 square feet for as little as $7,990 but it would probably...

I have a condo on the beach right now, near Chicxulub (about an hour away from downtown Merida in the state of Yucatan, on the ocean), which is a very nice four-bedroom, three-bathroom condo with 2,000 square feet of living space that looks out over the water and sells for US $99,000.
 
Condos are not quite as available in town but townhouses are. You could buy a very nice three-bedroom, three-bathroom townhouse with 1,500 square feet for as little as $7,990 but it would probably need some updating. The same townhouse that is completely brand new would cost up to $200,000. We just sold a brand new 2,500 square foot townhouse located in central Merida. Everything in that house is brand new from the windows, floors, doors, electric, plumbing, all the way to the roof, pool, filtration systems, and air-conditioners. I did the inspection on it because I also have a home inspection business. That house sold for $140,000.

 

(Renovated townhome offered for $199,000 in Merida, Yucatan, pictured.)

Sad to say, but for us the biggest surprise was how friendly, open and caring people are in both the countries that we've been expats in. Panama has some of the friendliest and most helpful people in the world, and Colombians are, if anything, even more so. If you're considering becoming an expat, give up the existential fear of other people, other cultures, and you'll feel a lot better, and fit in much faster. There are a lot of unfounded, stereotypical horror stories about hostile...

Sad to say, but for us the biggest surprise was how friendly, open and caring people are in both the countries that we've been expats in. Panama has some of the friendliest and most helpful people in the world, and Colombians are, if anything, even more so. If you're considering becoming an expat, give up the existential fear of other people, other cultures, and you'll feel a lot better, and fit in much faster. There are a lot of unfounded, stereotypical horror stories about hostile native people, and gringo bashing episodes, but the vast majority of them are fabrications, Sure, there are criminals and malcontents everywhere, but in our experience, the rest of the population, in Panama and again in Colombia more than make up for the bad actors.

 

One more thing: If you show a real effort to learn the local language, people tend to be even more friendly and helpful. Go for it.

 

BE Medellin

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(Cartagena, Colombia, pictured.)

The Portuguese Constitution assures the principle of private ownership of assets regardless of the nationality of the owner. Thus there is no risk of confiscation by the Government authorities. Please note that the Constitution prevails over any law that exists in the country and can only be changed with a qualified majority in the Parliament which is hard to obtain and will (based on the last 40 years of democracy) always require the two main parties (which are both moderate parties) to...

The Portuguese Constitution assures the principle of private ownership of assets regardless of the nationality of the owner. Thus there is no risk of confiscation by the Government authorities. Please note that the Constitution prevails over any law that exists in the country and can only be changed with a qualified majority in the Parliament which is hard to obtain and will (based on the last 40 years of democracy) always require the two main parties (which are both moderate parties) to approve it.
 
Besides the protection afforded by the Portuguese Constitution, there is also the European Union rules and the European Union Courts that would also stop this from occurring, as it violates all rules and principles that are in place.
 
This is not a risk in Portugal as it would mean a complete revolution in the political scenario and in the population’s mentality as there is a tradition of private ownership in Portugal since the day of its foundation back in the year of 1143.
 
The only legal and possible reason for the Government to assume the ownership of private assets in Portugal is in cases of expropriation for public interest (for example, private land that is required to be transferred to the government for the construction of a highway) in which case the expropriation law would be applied which will allow the owner to receive a fair compensation for its assets calculated on market value prices and supervised by a court judge.
 
Regarding banks, there were banks that failed during this crisis as in most of other European countries.  Nevertheless, the process of bailout made by the Portuguese Government and the European Union did not affect the deposits that existed in those banks.

 

(The Couros River near Guimarães, a town that precedes the settlement of  Portugal, pictured.) 

The Pedasi, Azuero Peninsula area of Panama is a pretty safe, very countryside location with high values and traditions that go back to the time of the Spanish Conquistadores. 

 

People there are very respectful and educated who will try to help.

The Pedasi, Azuero Peninsula area of Panama is a pretty safe, very countryside location with high values and traditions that go back to the time of the Spanish Conquistadores. 

 

People there are very respectful and educated who will try to help.

Our biggest natural disaster worry in the Cayo, Belize area is flooding and even that's not that much of a concern. When we get a rain shower downpour during the rainy season then we may have some flooding, but it's not something that’s super devastating that cripples the economy in any way.
 
We're far away enough from the coast, so if and when we do get hurricanes it's not as bad. Thankfully, (and I'm 30 years old), I've only experienced one hurricane in my...

Our biggest natural disaster worry in the Cayo, Belize area is flooding and even that's not that much of a concern. When we get a rain shower downpour during the rainy season then we may have some flooding, but it's not something that’s super devastating that cripples the economy in any way.
 
We're far away enough from the coast, so if and when we do get hurricanes it's not as bad. Thankfully, (and I'm 30 years old), I've only experienced one hurricane in my life and that was 2010 Hurricane Richard. Here in Cayo, the result was basically just rain and wind and not any damages.
 
We are about maybe 50 to 60 miles from the sea as the crow flies. If we were to drive to the coast the closest one would be Belize City, which is 75 to 78 miles.
 
Every once in a blue moon we may get a light tremor but that's about it.
 
We may get a wild brushfire, but it's not like neighborhoods and houses are threatened or burnt down; that's not the case. 

 

(The blue morpho butterfly with its wingspan of five to eight inches finds refuge in the lush rainforest of the Cayo District of Belize, pictured.)