Only 6 months to a year left!

[freedom42]

Hi I'm Mike also and can't stand going to work, must be contagious My girlfriend and I are Canadians and have been doing our research for quite a long time to FIRE in a warmer country that's cheaper to live. It looks like we can live on less than $1,500 a month comfortably. Together, we will have $450,000 in real estate and together we will have about $400,000 in retirement savings, 20,000 in cash and another 40,000 in things to sell. We plan on putting the money in some pretty safe investments, like our rrsp's are in, and live a life of leisure, can't wait!
oops! should state our ages, we are both 42.

 

[friar1610]

Welcome aboard. I live in Vermont and often go to Montreal and Quebec City. I have also been to the Atlantic Provinces (Labrador and Newfoundland excepted) and to BC. Your country is beautiful but I agree it is an expensive.

When my family and I went to Costa Rica last winter we found there were Canadians everywhere. I guess there comes a point when you get sick of hockey and want some sun. Those of us in VT feel the same.

 

[aaronc879]

My girlfriend and I are Canadians and have been doing our research for quite a long time to FIRE in a warmer country that's cheaper to live.

Lets see; a country that's warmer and cheaper than Canada. That must be at least 95% of countries in the world. Good luck narrowing it down.

Edit: This was my 1000th post!

 

[Purron]

This was my 1000th post!

Yeah! And to freedom 42:

 

[freedom42]

I think I'll play that song in my car when I walk out of the slammer (work) for the last time. Good guess Friar, it is CR, been there a few times going again in Jan. for the final due diligence trip. We're going to rent a place in case we decide it's not for us and we want to come back, then we'll go with the back-up plan and that's great too because it will also mean FREEDOM! Put in 23 years hard time at my current job.

 

[photoguy]

I'm in a similar position but I'm actually considering moving back to Canada for retirement (at least for a couple years). It saddens me a little that I've seen more of other countries like the U.S. than I've seen of canada.

 

[freedom42]

Canada is beautiful in the summer and I don't mind the winters too much, but moving and living cheaper means retiring earlier. We'll definitely be back to visit Canada. Like you I haven't seen enough of Canada myself.

 

[Koogie]

congrats

Hope to follow you out the door in about a year or so at age 39.

Would you mind starting a post with some of your costs/considerations in doing Costa Rica ? rent, etc..

It'll give us wage slaves something more to consider as we toil.

Cheers.

 

[freedom42]

Wow koogie, 39 , good for you. I could get into all that Costa Rica info but really there's a ton of info out there, here's the best place I've found : Retire, Live or Travel in Costa Rica. Residency and Immigration. ARCR I just had a long winded response and my 'puter crapped out and I lost it! Here's the short version. There are alot of expats couples living in CR and many that live comfortably on $1,500 a month and many living on much less than that. You can live very expensively there but you can also live there cheaply which you can't do here. Some approximate costs: Rent a nice place with a view for $400 or 500. Utilities are dirt cheap if you don't run the a/c and dryer, less than $100 for power, cable, internet, phone,water. No need for heat (some places at higher altitudes do have fireplaces) Supermarkets are about the same prices but there are many farmer's markets to get cheap quality produce. Drawbacks are crime and poverty, some places are much worse than others.
Visit a few times and if you decide to move there, just rent and spend alot more time evaluating the place. It's easy to buy a property there but really hard to sell. Personally we love it and every holiday ends too quickly. Can't wait to give away my snow shovel!

 

[Sea Kayaker]

Well, since this seems to the "extreme early retirement for Canadians" thread, I'll chime in. My situation is extremely similar to the original poster: I really detest working... not that I am lazy, because I enjoy working hard, but the work itself is not fullfilling in the least. Trouble is, I'm good at the job, paid quite well with great benefits. To find another job now would be bit risky - the evil you know (my current job) is more often safer than the evil you don't know (some new job). So I am likely to stay put until I can pull the plug. Question is when. And how much income do we need? DW and I are 38 with 400k in cash and investments, and 750k in mostly paid for real estate (owe about 90k). Can we ER at 40? 42? Our original goal was 45, but the more I hang around this site, maybe we can do it sooner. We really need to save our butts off in the next few years.

Nice to see other fellow Canucks on the site.

 

[freedom42]

I hear ya SK. My job pays well and is ok so it has turned into kind of a trap, but after putting in all those years it's worth it to be in a good position financially. You're in good shape, and the more research you do the more comfortable you'll be with retiring early on the island or even earlier in a cheaper country. Too many people work til they're dead or close too it.

 

[Koogie]

I agree, good to see other Canajuns on the site too. And especially guys/girls in the same age bracket and position. Nice to know there are other people struggling with the same hard decisions. Plus, we can bore each other with talk of TFSA and RRSPs instead of IRAs !