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Where to Find The Very Best Values Overseas Today
Warren Buffet said: “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.” When it comes to retirement overseas today, you can get good value, indeed—and at prices so low, you’ll think you misunderstood when you hear them.
Even in the most popular and long-established retirement havens—places like San Miguel de Allende, Mexico or Costa Rica’s Central Valley—though hardly the cheapest places on our beat, you’ll find it easy to enjoy a top-notch life, for a lot less than you’d pay in the U.S.
But it’s in up-and-coming locales—the ones not yet overrun by expats—that you’ll find your dollars really stretch. And it’s those places we point you to in this issue.
For starters, we sent our correspondents on the hunt for low-cost, great-value real estate in Latin America’s up-and-coming, under-the-radar towns, and they delivered. Pacific Ocean-view condos for $169,950…a five-bedroom colonial home for $83,000…a three-bedroom condo for $118,000 in one of the world’s most famous coffee regions. These are all in spots worthy of becoming the next big expat haven, but which haven’t hit the mainstream—yet.
Farther afield, in English-speaking Sri Lanka is slowly being discovered by expats, and IL Roving Correspondent Sharyn Nilsen explains why. “Sri Lanka offers clean, sandy beaches, and clear blue water. Plus costs are very low,” she says. A couple can live well here on under $1,400 a month and “that includes eating out every day with enough left over for exploring.” Read her full report here.
Over in Europe, Gene and Jan McCall fell in love with the Le Marche region of Italy (a place The New York Times called “Italy’s best kept secret”) and have made it their part-time retirement home. Living in their town house that’s part of a 14-century castle, they enjoy the fresh, local food (“mains at a good restaurant cost around $10”), the good quality healthcare, and the ease of travel—and all of it on a modest budget.
No matter how much money you have to spend in your retirement, you’ll get much better value for it overseas. From his home just outside Medellin, Colombia, Robert Venhuizen sums it up: “I’m living a lifestyle I couldn’t come close to in the U.S. I have enough money to do what I want.”
Explore Arequipa’s Colca Canyon, Peru
Most visitors to Peru make a beeline to Machu Picchu, Cusco, or the Sacred Valley. In doing so, they can overlook a site worth visiting: the Colca Canyon. Located near Arequipa, the canyon cuts a 75-mile gorge through the Andes. Outsiders only began to hear about this area after 1981, when a Polish rafting expedition made the first descent of the Colca River. Since then, the canyon and the small valley villages have become one of Peru’s most popular tourist destinations.
Bucaramanga, Colombia
I’m in Bucaramanga, a Colombian city of a million people on a mesa in the Andes mountains. You get the benefit of dramatic mountain views but with flat, pedestrianfriendly streets. Since arriving here from my home in Medellín (an hour’s flight away) I’ve been checking out the best neighborhoods to live.
Cave Swimming with Bats in Mexico, Road Tripping in Thailand, and More
We peer down what looks like a bottomless pit festooned with giant tropical tendrils. Across the shoulder-wide opening, a young man flashes a grin, lets loose a triumphant howl, and jumps in. Two seconds later we hear a deep splash with a resonant echo
Good Time to be a Stock Picker, Silver Poised to Shine, and More
In 2017, Coca-Cola delivered another year of declining sales. And yet its stock was up. That’s because of indexing. An example of indexing is an S&P 500 Index fund. These funds aim to mimic the returns of the S&P 500 by buying all the shares in the index in the exact proportion they are held in the index.
“Outside Medellin I Built My Dream Home”
I’m living a lifestyle I couldn’t come close to in the U.S.,” Robert Venhuizen, 68, says. “I have enough money to do what I want.” After working for decades as an independent manufacturing representative in Holland, Michigan, Robert decided to retire at age 50. “I was just burned out with materialism,” he says.
Clean Living in Cuenca on $500 a Month
Since moving to Cuenca, Ecuador, in 2013, Louis Bourgeois, 63, has proved you can change your life when you embrace the Ecuadorian lifestyle. Louis’s spiritual philosophy toward life led him to settle in Ecuador. But he’s also found it to be a place where he can successfully— and happily—live on an extremely small budget: his $500-a-month Social Security pension (expat couples in Cuenca typically spend around $1,700).
Luxury Rentals on Penang From Just $310 a Month
As one of the easiest places in the world to retire, the Southeast Asian haven of Malaysia is a tropical paradise that goes out if its way to make expats welcome. Though foreigners can buy property here, many people decide to rent. It’s great value, without the headaches that can come with property ownership. Problem with your pool? The condo board deals with it, not you. And prices are low…
Enjoying the Surf Life in Tamarindo, Costa Rica
I Like Doing Anything That Keeps Me Active and Healthy” Name: Jim Hurt Age: 71 From: California Living in: Tamarindo, Costa Rica The surfing culture in the U.S. exploded in 1962, when the mass success of the Gidget movies perfectly collided with California’s “coolness.” That was also the year native Californian Jim Hurt began surfing, at age 14
Finding A Wealth of Choice in Low-Cost Nha Trang, Vietnam
Northern California native Steven Elam says, “I was first attracted to Nha Trang because of the ease of living and the availability of recreation. Living here on a retirement budget is really good. I don’t make a lot of money, but I am able to save nearly half my income and still have a great lifestyle.”