I would say the worst places to retire would be anywhere where my life is endangered all the time, and that could be anywhere; from Jamaica to Brazil to South Africa or any African country at the moment and to the Far East. I know Dubai and a few other places are fine for a while, but we have seen the volatility of the world that may change this. Unfortunately, these places have some attributes that I do not think can be compensated for.
Other places are too expensive unless you have unlimited wealth. We can exist here in Panama at a budget of US $4,000 or $6,000 in a style that would cost us $20,000 per month if we lived in Canada or France. We have horses, gardeners, and people who tend horses, etc. Therefore, lifestyle can be very comfortable and very inexpensive here in Panama and there is the infrastructure to support the lifestyle. We have airports that work. We can fly direct from Panama City to Toronto and we change flights once to fly to Panama straight from New Delhi.
I know I would not consider Costa Rica because it is more dangerous over there and it is more expensive. In Costa Rica, it is very expensive to buy homes, cars, or even liquor. Security is an issue. I know people who have left Costa Rica for security reasons, for example a person who had military training but decided to leave because he feels that the place is getting dangerous. I would say the same about Brazil, Nicaragua, Jamaica, and one or two of the other Caribbean islands.
A friend of ours here in Panama sold a fabulous million-dollar home in the American Virgin Islands because of the lawlessness of the country, even though it is, I believe, some sort of protectorate of the US. The law is almost non-existent. You can be robbed at gunpoint, and the government is very corrupt. Our friends sold their nice home in the American Virgin Islands and came to live in a lesser place here in Panama.
Australia is also another place that is not good to live in, unless you are very wealthy and do not mind traveling a long way to go anywhere. New Zealand is now incredibly socialistic and controlled. You will see New Zealanders who have left there now, talking about how expensive it is and how poor the services are there. They say garbage pickup is done once every two weeks in New Zealand. We get garbage picked up twice a week here in Panama.
(Keep New Zealand Beautiful logo, pictured.)
I’m not sure why, but most of my clients prefer to keep their money in the States instead of bringing it to an account here in Mexico. On a practical level, I don’t see an advantage for a foreigner to have a Mexican account.
Here in Belize, we have a variety of religions but majority of the people here are Catholics. There are people who belong to different religions such as he Adventists and Anglicans and they are all accepted. People here in Belize know how to respect another person’s religious belief. .jpg)
The architecture in the Algarve is quite Mediterranean. We have whitewashed houses, and white is still the predominant color for the exterior of the houses here. We have pretty large windows. Although there is an increasing number of structures in the modern architecture style now, 90% of the buildings and houses here are still quite traditional. .jpg)
Flash back to 8 years ago, when I visited Panama (from Mexico where I was living) to attend an International Living Conference. Panama was on my radar big time, as an international investor. The prices, cost of living, ease of doing business, resident visa programs... every box was checked. While I didn’t plan on living in Panama, I was keen to add to my investment portfolio, purchase and furnish a property and set it up for short-term vacation rentals as I do with all my properties. I...
Sarah Booth is a long way from the snowy mountains and ski trails of Whistler, British Columbia, where she began a career that would make an international lifestyle possible. Jet Metier finds out what a blast Sarah is having in Coronado, Panama and the essentials of how to pack like a pro.