Best Places In The World To Retire

In general, the crime rate against Americans and other expats in Chapala and Ajijic is fairly low. The crime rate seems to ebb and flow depending on the prosperity of the times. There would be crimes like break and entry and sometimes it's because people haven't been careful, prudent, and cautious like locking their doors and windows. 

 

I have a client who told me that they had a desk fairly close to a window and the perpetrators cut a wire, broke...

In general, the crime rate against Americans and other expats in Chapala and Ajijic is fairly low. The crime rate seems to ebb and flow depending on the prosperity of the times. There would be crimes like break and entry and sometimes it's because people haven't been careful, prudent, and cautious like locking their doors and windows. 

 

I have a client who told me that they had a desk fairly close to a window and the perpetrators cut a wire, broke a branch, and pulled some stuff out.

 

Violent crime in Chapala and Ajijic is not very frequent. 

 

The crime rate in Chapala and Ajijic compared to the crime rate in Calgary, Alberta, Canada is not much different. Ajijic is a small village so I would compare the crime rate here to the crime rate of a small town outside Calgary. Most large cities have not so good areas, which Calgary has. I do not go out by myself at night in Calgary. 

 

In Chapala, I don't go out at night not because I'm afraid to go out at night here, but because I don't have good night vision and don't see very well. Furthermore, there are a lot of unexpected things on the sidewalk. There are hazards on the gutter like ramps to get to houses and people can get into personal accidents.  You can't be walking, gawking, and talking at the same time.  

 

(Peacocks walking the terrace at Hotel Villa Montecarlo, Chapala, Mexico, pictured.)

 
We first thought that we would like to live in Turks and Caicos, some small islands with a small population in the Bahamas.  One of the things we thought we liked about it was the...

 
We first thought that we would like to live in Turks and Caicos, some small islands with a small population in the Bahamas.  One of the things we thought we liked about it was the beach.  It started out that we walked on the beach every day.  Then, we walked on the beach a few times a week, then, once a month.  It turned out that the beach wasn’t as important to us as we thought.  If we had bought in Turks and Caicos without fully understanding this, it would have been a mistake, at least for us.  (Maybe not for you, if you really love the beach.)
 
Later, we came down to Panama, to Boquete, to visit friends who lived here and were enthusiastic about retiring here, so their attitude influenced us.  In addition, the cost of living and the lifestyle we saw in Panama were totally different than what we had in Toronto, Canada, which is where we’re from, so we decided to build a vacation home in Panama.  Having a vacation home in Panama worked for us because we could visit before making the final move.
 
We knew more what we wanted because we had already done the beach scenario at Turks and Caicos, and even though we enjoyed it there, it became clear to us that our priorities were for golfing, the social activities in a retirement community, and the weather, so the beach started to take a second position, because we found that in Boquete, we had the things that we discovered were most important to us.
 
Another very important factor is the cost of living.  The cost of living in Panama is much, much less than in Toronto, Canada, which you realize when you come here to Panama.  This becomes an eye opener, and you think “I can come down here to Panama with my US $2,000 to $3,000 per month pension and live quite nicely.”
 
This is one of the reasons why, if you’re on a budget, Panama is much better than Turks and Caicos.  The costs in Turks and Caicos are unbelievably high for food and other items.  Everything is imported.  I used to joke that when we went down to visit for two or three weeks, it felt like I had to take out a second mortgage just to finance the purchase of our groceries.  I was talking with a woman yesterday who has her home on Curacao who told me that her electrical bill was something like $1,000 / month.  Many of these places are very nice and have picturesque beaches, but when it comes to actually living there, when push comes to shove, it’s very, very expensive.
 
In Boquete, which is up in the mountains, the weather is especially nice, if you like cooler weather in the evening.  Here at Tucan, in Arraijan, we’re closer to the ocean, so the weather is not as cool in the evening.  We do, however, have other advantages that may appeal to you: 

Is this the best place for you?  Maybe, if these things appeal to you. Find out what you want and then find your best place.

It is very difficult to get a job in Portugal.  The unemployment rate in must be hovering at 15% at the moment. 

 

It might also be difficult for a foreigner to find a job here but that could also depend on his area of expertise. The Portuguese are trying to attract high value added professions, which is in part why the government came up with the Non-Habitual Resident regime, to try and get highly skilled people to come here or to be transferred...

It is very difficult to get a job in Portugal.  The unemployment rate in must be hovering at 15% at the moment. 

 

It might also be difficult for a foreigner to find a job here but that could also depend on his area of expertise. The Portuguese are trying to attract high value added professions, which is in part why the government came up with the Non-Habitual Resident regime, to try and get highly skilled people to come here or to be transferred here by multinationals.

 

The local job market, though, is extremely tight. So if you are a foreigner, depending on your skill, it may or may not be easy for you to find a job in Portugal. If you are an IT expert, for example, you would find a lot of opportunities here but if you are a doctor or a lawyer, you would probably find the market saturated. There are some niche areas where there is a shortage of really top class professionals.

 

(Logo for Duncan M cGregor Accounting, DMA, whose proprietor Duncan McGregor is an expat doing business in the coastal town of Cascais, Portugal, pictured.)

Living in San Juan Del Sur has a very relaxed feel. There is no rush at all and you wouldn’t feel the stress of living in big city. Things are very slow-paced over here in every way possible.

 

If you are a person who likes the nightlife, there are always fun things to do both for older people and for younger people. There are also a lot of outdoor activities you can do during the day so if you are a person who likes to go out and hang around the...

Living in San Juan Del Sur has a very relaxed feel. There is no rush at all and you wouldn’t feel the stress of living in big city. Things are very slow-paced over here in every way possible.

 

If you are a person who likes the nightlife, there are always fun things to do both for older people and for younger people. There are also a lot of outdoor activities you can do during the day so if you are a person who likes to go out and hang around the beach, or if you like going hiking, or surfing, or even if you are a person who likes to just relax, you can enjoy a lot in San Juan Del Sur.

 

What you will not find here is the east coast mentality where it is all work and then you’ll get a 2-week long vacation. It is quite the contrary over here in San Juan Del Sur because out here it is one big vacation!

Due to our Barrier Reef (which we have the second largest in the world), our waves are not big enough for wave surfing.

 

You can, however, so wind surfing. We do not have huge waves but we do have a lot of wind.

Due to our Barrier Reef (which we have the second largest in the world), our waves are not big enough for wave surfing.

 

You can, however, so wind surfing. We do not have huge waves but we do have a lot of wind.