Best Places In The World To Retire

We have three or four beautiful rivers that cross Portugal. Further south from Lisbon we have the Guadiana River, where I have rafted. Up north we have Mondego River and further north close to Porto we have Douro River, which is where the Porto Wine comes from. And this area Douro; the Douro River and the cliffs surrounding the Douro River, is where they plant the grapes to produce the world famous Porto Wine or “Port Wine” as you call it in America.  We do not have the...

We have three or four beautiful rivers that cross Portugal. Further south from Lisbon we have the Guadiana River, where I have rafted. Up north we have Mondego River and further north close to Porto we have Douro River, which is where the Porto Wine comes from. And this area Douro; the Douro River and the cliffs surrounding the Douro River, is where they plant the grapes to produce the world famous Porto Wine or “Port Wine” as you call it in America.  We do not have the very extreme classes of river rafting but we do have some mild intermediate class areas. People raft here in Portugal in the winter and spring. You can go in summer but the rivers are very low and it becomes a bit boring for people looking for some excitement. 
 
We have sea kayaking in Portugal.  I provide an excursion for my clients that is basically just a beautiful tour around our coastline around Cascais (near Lisbon) in a kayak.  There are two levels of sea kayaking. You have the sea kayaking just to wonder around and you have the surf sea kayaking, which is on waves, which is for another level of expertise. You have to have a lot of experience to do that. But for the first timer, you have to do the traditional sea kayak and you’re only allowed to go when the sea is really, really calm. Portugal is close by the Atlantic Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean is quite rough. So 80% throughout the year we have waves in Portugal. The only two months of the year with light waves are July and August. You can go out throughout the year but then you have to go to protected bays, of which there are many throughout the country.  The Algarve is the perfect place to do this because the Algarve gets the Mediterranean Sea so it doesn’t get as rough as it gets on the west coast, which faces the Atlantic. The southern coast is much more calmer than it is in the west coast.

 

(Sea kayaking provided by Blue Hostel and Suites, Cascais, Portugal, pictured.)

Be very very careful when researching offshore asset protection strategies.  There are sharks in these waters.  Lots of people with absolutely no professional credentials whatsoever have set up shop as self-appointed offshore asset protection gurus, and they'll happily give you advice on all sorts of things they have no real understanding of.

 

In general, there are two main benefits to moving assets offshore:  (i) you potentially make yourself look...

Be very very careful when researching offshore asset protection strategies.  There are sharks in these waters.  Lots of people with absolutely no professional credentials whatsoever have set up shop as self-appointed offshore asset protection gurus, and they'll happily give you advice on all sorts of things they have no real understanding of.

 

In general, there are two main benefits to moving assets offshore:  (i) you potentially make yourself look less wealthy than you are to someone who may want to go after you, and (ii) you remove your assets from an environment where they can be frozen with a simple phone call from a judge or regulatory agency.  However, if push comes to shove, and you are at all interested in not lying under oath, then your creditors may still be able to reach assets you hold offshore (by forcing you to hand those assets over to them).

 

Holding assets offshore typically does NOT reduce your U.S. income tax liability. The typical offshore asset protection structure is tax-neutral, which means that it doesn't change your U.S. tax position at all--you are still subject to tax on income from passive investments you hold offshore. However, there are certain offshore strategies that DO work to reduce or defer payment of U.S. tax, but these are specialized structures that must be designed by working with a U.S. tax attorney.

 

(Shark Spotting Mac notebook sleeve by Jet Metier, pictured.)

"Bienmesabe" which could be translated into "it tastes good to me" is a traditional dessert dish in Panama, most common in Chiriqui. The main ingredients are milk, grated sugar cane and flour. They are mixed together and cooked for about 4 hours, then cut in pieces and wrapped in plantain leaves. It is traditionally eaten together with white cheese. 

"Bienmesabe" which could be translated into "it tastes good to me" is a traditional dessert dish in Panama, most common in Chiriqui. The main ingredients are milk, grated sugar cane and flour. They are mixed together and cooked for about 4 hours, then cut in pieces and wrapped in plantain leaves. It is traditionally eaten together with white cheese. 

The cost for a vacation rental in San Juan Del Sur will depend on what amenities you want, the location, and the time of year. You could find a room for as low as $50 per night. On the other hand, I've seen some vacation rentals listed on Airbnb and VRBO for $750 a night. 

 

The weekly rental cost for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house on the edge of town so you wouldn't need a rental vehicle and that is a new construction with a private pool would be...

The cost for a vacation rental in San Juan Del Sur will depend on what amenities you want, the location, and the time of year. You could find a room for as low as $50 per night. On the other hand, I've seen some vacation rentals listed on Airbnb and VRBO for $750 a night. 

 

The weekly rental cost for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house on the edge of town so you wouldn't need a rental vehicle and that is a new construction with a private pool would be anywhere between $1,200 to $1,500.

 

This same three-bedroom home during the high season, for example the week of New Year's and Christmas or the week of Easter, would go for $3,000 for a week. This is a higher end, beautiful, and newly constructed home in a central location.

 

We've also been able to find rentals for our clients who come to visit for one month. For example, a two-bedroom, two-bathroom condo with a shared pool just on the outskirts of town so you could walk to town in 15 or 20 minutes would be $1,000 to $1,500 per month for just a basic and simple condo.

 

If you wanted something a little more luxurious like something with three bedrooms, newer, nicer, and with a private pool, then you would probably have to pay a minimum of $2,000 to $2,600 per month.

 

If it's a month-long rental, electricity would always be an extra cost so it would not be included in the rental price. Electricity cost is totally dependent on usage and mostly dependent on how much you're using your air conditioner. Electricity in Nicaragua is very expensive. I've heard people say electricity in Nicaragua is four times more per kilowatt hour than it is in Canada or the United States. 

 

If one of our clients were to move into a rental like I've just described for a period of one month and were using two air conditioner units at night for eight hours per night, they could easily be looking at between $150 to $200 for their electricity bill.

 

(Vacation rental, San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, pictured.)