Best Places In The World To Retire

WELCOME. WE INVITE YOU TO VISIT THE MAIN PARTS OF OUR SITE

Recently Answered Questions

What are the construction standards in Mexico?

Andy James

The Great Pyramid of Cholula, Mexico made of mamposteria, – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

The construction standards here in Mexico have codes to adhere to, but I don’t know anybody who adheres to these codes. There are architects here and builders here, and they will generally build something to a better quality than other guys will. There are a lot of people here who say they can do things but really can’t.

Here in Mexico, you’re unlikely to be inspected. It can happen downtown, especially if you mess with the façade...

Here in Mexico, you’re unlikely to be inspected. It can happen downtown, especially if you mess with the façade because some of that stuff is protected. For example, we were doing renovations on a house downtown in the historic area in Merida, and there was a knock on the door (I wasn’t there- my construction manager was). The guy told my construction manager that he was going to shut the job down because the workers were not unionized. My construction manager lifted this man off of his feet and threw him on the street, and we didn’t hear from him again. That makes me think that he was just there to shake us down.

Strange things happen here in Yucatan, and if you get on the wrong side of a particular individual who has ties with the government, he can lock you up in red tape for the rest of your life. They can pretty much just close you down, and then you will not get anyone, and in order to get yourself out of that, it’s going to be very difficult.

There are a lot of old buildings here in Yucatan that are made from "mamposteria," which is rubble. This is something that was built over a hundred years ago. The entire Yucatan peninsula is compacted rubble. If you build a bridge, the stuff they’re digging up is limestone and rubble.

Rubble refers to rocks- anything from the size of a tennis ball to the size of a basketball. These rocks are naturally occurring in the ground. They used to build everything here in Yucatan with rubble, just like all of these walls that you’re we have here in my home. Now they don’t build with rubble in Yucatan anymore. They build with concrete block.

There’s a good possibility that the building standards on the coast are higher because they have to withstand hurricanes and whatnot, and there are probably more professional builders there. You just have to be careful- there are a lot of cowboys here. There are not a lot of standards, and not everybody who says they can do a thing can actually do that thing.

(The Great Pyramid of Cholula, Mexico made of mamposteria, pictured.)

What is the business culture in Portugal?

Duncan MacGregor - Duncan MacGregor Accounting

Queen Leonor in travel poster set in Caldas Da Rainha, Portugal – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

The business culture in Portugal can be frustrating. The biggest problem in Portugal, as in other southern European countries, is that the legal system does not work. If you have a dispute to try and recover a debt, your case could take up to 15 years to get heard and there are people who use that situation to their advantage. The business culture here in Portugal is not at par as with Anglo-Saxon models; it has a much lower level.

There is a growing trend...

Can I buy good clothes in Panama?

José Martínez - Two Oceans Property Consultants S.A.

Multiplaza Mall in Panama City, Panama – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

In Panama City we have a lot of shopping centers and malls where you can find many different styles of clothes to buy, all with good prices.

Some of the more prominent malls in the Panama City area are Multiplaza Pacific, Multicentro, Albrook Mall, and Metromall. There are many others.

In order to give you an idea of what these malls look like, I inserted a picture here, of the Multiplaza.

Of course,...

What's the overall cost of living in Granada, Nicaragua?

Paul Daemen - Aurora Granada

The cost of living question Lake in Nicaragua – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

will greatly depend on your needs and if you are renting or purchased a home.

We shop for groceries in the Masaya farmers' market where we find spices, vegetables, fruits, and large pots to be used on our fire pit, pottery etc. We never leave here spending more than US$20, except for the large 24-30 inch pots that added US$35.

As it relates to rents, it all depends if you desire to live in Granada or...

The cost of living question Lake in Nicaragua – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

will greatly depend on your needs and if you are renting or purchased a home.

As it relates to rents, it all depends if you desire to live in Granada or outside in the smaller communities. In Granada, rents are higher as you get closer to the Calzada or as we also call this, the entertainment district - music, food and many vendors.

If you are near the Calzada you will also have the constant traffic and noise, and lots of tourists. Here for a 2 bedroom you are looking at US $1,000 - $1,400 and you need to add utilities with a small pool. Friends of ours found a US$400 per month rental without a pool 5 blocks from the Calzada and no air conditioning but did have ceiling fans.

We live in a small farm/bedroom community and here you would spend US $200 to $400 for a home. The question will be condition, and what you will need to fix to make it to your liking.

Electric costs can be a killer, especially if you use the air conditioning. This can add quickly US $200 per month to your rent. Water is fairly cheap US $20 max per month. We do not use air conditioning in any rooms of our home. We only use fans, and we use lots of office equipment and our monthly electric bill is between US $60 to the highest when we had welding work to be done, US $150.

We have Claro internet/cable and phone package that runs US$100 per month.

If you have no car, a taxi around town will cost you per person maybe US $2 per day. Busses between town are fairly cheap, maybe US $1- $2, depending on distance traveled.

We bought our home. All bills are running us approx US $,1000 max per month, which includes 3 helpers, and of course businesses expenses. If I take business and staff out we are living here on less than US $500 a month.

We like most people do not carry medical insurance or home insurance. The costs outweigh the benefit and so far we have been ok on medical, with limited to no costs, except dental cleaning US $25 and other medical bills of US $70 for doctor visits to the home. Medicine is cheaper here with most meds coming out of Mexico and Canada, I save 75% by buying my meds here.

What’s the cost of living in Belize?

Chris Leonard - Paradise Found Belize Real Estate and Development

house in Belize – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

I would say the cost of living is very inexpensive in Belize. My house in Boise, Idaho rents for about US $1,400 a month. A similar home down here in Belize would probably rent for around $600. This is in the Corozal area. You would pay much more on the coastline and certainly way more on the islands.

A house that costs $600 a month to rent would potentially be near the water and have at least three bedrooms and is located near to the center of town. It would be close to...

What are the best places to live in the world?

By Edgington

Biblioteca España, Medellín, Colombia – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

Depends entirely on what you're looking for: Quiet and stimulus free? Cheap and unadorned? Lower cost of living? I can only relate our experience. We lived in Boquete Panama for a year. Then we made the mistake of visiting Medellin Colombia, and fell in love with it. We stayed five days in Medellin, and knew it was the place we wanted to call home. If you're a city person who, like us, loves a good symphony, libraries, parks, public transportation and all other big city...

Recently Posted Expat Stories

Our Life in the Little Town of La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, Nayarit, Just North of Puerto Vallarta

Man eating a taco in Nayarit, just north of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

We have just recently retired and plan to spend winters in our condo in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, Nayarit. We bought the condo 3 years ago and have spent school holidays (I am a retired school teacher) setting up our condo and exploring our village and neighbourhood a little. We barely scratched the surface but look forward to learning more about the area in our 6-month trip this year!

What we have discovered, we love. The locals are so generous and accepting of us "gringos'...

The Road to “Hobbitenango” - Part 4

"What is Hobbitenango?"

Many of my stories involve a place up the hill near us called Hobbitenango, and before I write about building my house here, I must explain what Hobbitenango is. “Tenango” is a Mayan suffix to many of the names of towns in Guatemala, meaning “the place of.” Jocotenango is the place of the Jocos, Alotenango is the place of the Alos, Chimaltenango the place of the Chimals, etc. So this place near us is the place of …. you guessed, the...

ExPat Americans and Canadians Can Get Private Health Insurance

If you have recently relocated to Panama or another foreign country, you may have questions about how to purchase an international, private major medical policy.

Of course no one plans on getting sick or having a car accident, but that is what insurance is all about. It handles the "just the in case" which we hope never actually happens. We hope we never have to use our health insurance the same way we hope we never actually have to use our...