I am new to this forum but not to forums or to retirement. I posted this as a response on an existing thread but thought it would also serve as my first 'new thread' as well.
Where to retire to is probably the most common question people who are contemplating retirement and living in another country ask. I'm going to suggest to you that it is the wrong question.
I have been retired for a long time (26 years, I got an early start) and lived in various countries. If there is one thing my experiences have shown me, it is that there is no way to know if you will 'stick' or not, until you try it.
What seems to be a paradise on a 2 week vacation may turn out to be totally different from your expectations after you have lived there for a year or more. So a 'visit' to see if you like a place will tell you nothing unless it is a very long visit.
I have seen a lot of people set themselves up for failure by starting out from the wrong mindset. I would suggest that 'where to retire' is part of that. Instead, I suggest starting from a different position.
When I retired, I did not think about where I wanted to retire to. I thought about where did I want to live NEXT. That is a whole other question that puts a completely different perspective on things.
First, it isn't necessarily permanent but nothing rules that out. Second, you cannot 'fail' to get it right (a common set yourself up for failure issue), it can only turn out to be a short 'next' or a longer stay.
If you think about why anyone would ask 'where to retire', there are the obvious practical factors like wanting a place with a cost of living they can afford and good healthcare, infrastructure, etc. But there is also the usually unasked reason. That is, 'I don't want to get it wrong'. Well, you can eliminate wrong completely if you look at it from the perspective of NEXT.
While it is only anecdotal evidence, I can say that from my personal observation of people who came to their 'paradise' to retire, about half left within 2 years and only 1-2 were still there after 5 years. Whether you accept those numbers as meaningful or not, there is no denying that it does not work out for everyone the way they thought it would.
The biggest single reason I have observed for people not 'sticking' is a simple inability to adapt to 'different'. Nothing to do with power outages or poor medical services, etc. It just isn't the same as home. Unfortunately, there is no way to know beforehand whether you will 'stick' or not. It isn't about right or wrong, good or bad, it is just about different. So my advice to anyone contemplating living in another country is that you just realize you may not stick and plan accordingly. If you do that, then you will see that it will lead to very different decisions all along the way.
First, it can make deciding which country to try much easier. In my own case for example, I did not start out trying to choose any country to live in. I just went travelling with no fixed time limit on how long I would stay or even a plan of which countries I would go to. Isn't that freedom to get up in the morning and decide what you want to do that day, part of what being retired and financially independent (to whatever degree) is all about? You are to a degree free to live wherever you want for as long as you want. Why would you want to try and decide something that it is impossible to know about beforehand and that would 'lock you in' to whatever degree?
What if instead, you said to yourself, here are 3 countries I think I would like. I will start with them and see what happens. So you go to the first and rent for 3 months and then on to the second, rinse and repeat. No stress to 'get it right', no problem to move on if you feel like it.
After 2 years of casually moving from place to place, I went to a small island expecting to stay for a week or two as part of my time in that country and ended up staying for 7 years. After I had been there a few years, I would get asked by tourists (it was a tourist destination) who heard I had been there a while, what made me decide to stay. I would honestly answer them that I had never actually decided to 'stay'. I just hadn't decided to leave yet. Eventually I did decide to leave. I packed up and left in a week. On to the next.
Going back to the issue of 'sticking', that brings me to the most important piece of advice in my opinion that anyone contemplating a move to another country can get. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, buy property until you have lived in a country for at least 1 and preferably 2 years. That's how long the honeymoon phase can last. When the rose coloured glasses finally come off, the picture may be entirely different as I have said. Renting means you can very easily decide to move on if you wish. Buying locks you in to a much greater degree.
During my 7 years on that island for example, I never once say anyone leave with more money than they arrived with and most left with considerably less than they arrived with. It is easy to buy a home in many 'desirable' retirement locations, it is not so easy to sell. Usually by the time someone gets to the point they want out, they really want out. That's not hard to understand and the locals usually understand that very well indeed. So they will not offer anywhere near what you think your property is worth. They know that by that point you just want out and make their offers accordingly. You then have 3 choices, stay and be unhappy; sell at a loss and move on; hope to find a new starry-eyed foreign buyer looking for their piece of paradise.
This brings me to the next thing that I think is important. Who to listen to. I recognize that not everyone can deal with the idea of NEXT. Some people feel they have to have roots and the idea of well maybe we'll stay and maybe we'll move on, just isn't for them. They really believe they need to make a permanent decision of 'where to retire'. For those people, who to listen to is therefore important.
Other people contemplating a move can tell you all about what their research has found. Crime rates, healthcare, etc. They can't tell you anything about living in that country. The information they can share is valuable in terms of what it does tell you but of no value in terms of telling you whether you will like it there.
Next are those in the honeymoon phase. They live there and can tell you how they went about choosing, how they like it SO FAR but it is likely to be a rose tinted perspective. It's like someone who bought a new car. They love it for the first year and have no complaints yet.
Next are the people I think you should really listen to. Those who have been there at least 5 years. They are the ones who really know what it is like to live there. They are more likely to tell you the reality of living there. But bear in mind, even within this group you have different (from you) kinds of people. So finding people who are the most like yourself in terms of interests, outlooks on life, etc. will be your best source of information. They are people who 'stuck' but if you they aren't like you, their perspective is of limited value.
So to re-cap, I don't advise asking where to retire, ask where to try for a while next. Rent don't buy, whatever you do, whether that is a 'next' or a intended permanent move. Finally, if you adopt a 'next' approach, you don't need to listen to anyone really but if you insist on trying to plan a permanent move, listen only to those who have been there at least 5 years.
Where to retire to is probably the most common question people who are contemplating retirement and living in another country ask. I'm going to suggest to you that it is the wrong question.
I have been retired for a long time (26 years, I got an early start) and lived in various countries. If there is one thing my experiences have shown me, it is that there is no way to know if you will 'stick' or not, until you try it.
What seems to be a paradise on a 2 week vacation may turn out to be totally different from your expectations after you have lived there for a year or more. So a 'visit' to see if you like a place will tell you nothing unless it is a very long visit.
I have seen a lot of people set themselves up for failure by starting out from the wrong mindset. I would suggest that 'where to retire' is part of that. Instead, I suggest starting from a different position.
When I retired, I did not think about where I wanted to retire to. I thought about where did I want to live NEXT. That is a whole other question that puts a completely different perspective on things.
First, it isn't necessarily permanent but nothing rules that out. Second, you cannot 'fail' to get it right (a common set yourself up for failure issue), it can only turn out to be a short 'next' or a longer stay.
If you think about why anyone would ask 'where to retire', there are the obvious practical factors like wanting a place with a cost of living they can afford and good healthcare, infrastructure, etc. But there is also the usually unasked reason. That is, 'I don't want to get it wrong'. Well, you can eliminate wrong completely if you look at it from the perspective of NEXT.
While it is only anecdotal evidence, I can say that from my personal observation of people who came to their 'paradise' to retire, about half left within 2 years and only 1-2 were still there after 5 years. Whether you accept those numbers as meaningful or not, there is no denying that it does not work out for everyone the way they thought it would.
The biggest single reason I have observed for people not 'sticking' is a simple inability to adapt to 'different'. Nothing to do with power outages or poor medical services, etc. It just isn't the same as home. Unfortunately, there is no way to know beforehand whether you will 'stick' or not. It isn't about right or wrong, good or bad, it is just about different. So my advice to anyone contemplating living in another country is that you just realize you may not stick and plan accordingly. If you do that, then you will see that it will lead to very different decisions all along the way.
First, it can make deciding which country to try much easier. In my own case for example, I did not start out trying to choose any country to live in. I just went travelling with no fixed time limit on how long I would stay or even a plan of which countries I would go to. Isn't that freedom to get up in the morning and decide what you want to do that day, part of what being retired and financially independent (to whatever degree) is all about? You are to a degree free to live wherever you want for as long as you want. Why would you want to try and decide something that it is impossible to know about beforehand and that would 'lock you in' to whatever degree?
What if instead, you said to yourself, here are 3 countries I think I would like. I will start with them and see what happens. So you go to the first and rent for 3 months and then on to the second, rinse and repeat. No stress to 'get it right', no problem to move on if you feel like it.
After 2 years of casually moving from place to place, I went to a small island expecting to stay for a week or two as part of my time in that country and ended up staying for 7 years. After I had been there a few years, I would get asked by tourists (it was a tourist destination) who heard I had been there a while, what made me decide to stay. I would honestly answer them that I had never actually decided to 'stay'. I just hadn't decided to leave yet. Eventually I did decide to leave. I packed up and left in a week. On to the next.
Going back to the issue of 'sticking', that brings me to the most important piece of advice in my opinion that anyone contemplating a move to another country can get. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, buy property until you have lived in a country for at least 1 and preferably 2 years. That's how long the honeymoon phase can last. When the rose coloured glasses finally come off, the picture may be entirely different as I have said. Renting means you can very easily decide to move on if you wish. Buying locks you in to a much greater degree.
During my 7 years on that island for example, I never once say anyone leave with more money than they arrived with and most left with considerably less than they arrived with. It is easy to buy a home in many 'desirable' retirement locations, it is not so easy to sell. Usually by the time someone gets to the point they want out, they really want out. That's not hard to understand and the locals usually understand that very well indeed. So they will not offer anywhere near what you think your property is worth. They know that by that point you just want out and make their offers accordingly. You then have 3 choices, stay and be unhappy; sell at a loss and move on; hope to find a new starry-eyed foreign buyer looking for their piece of paradise.
This brings me to the next thing that I think is important. Who to listen to. I recognize that not everyone can deal with the idea of NEXT. Some people feel they have to have roots and the idea of well maybe we'll stay and maybe we'll move on, just isn't for them. They really believe they need to make a permanent decision of 'where to retire'. For those people, who to listen to is therefore important.
Other people contemplating a move can tell you all about what their research has found. Crime rates, healthcare, etc. They can't tell you anything about living in that country. The information they can share is valuable in terms of what it does tell you but of no value in terms of telling you whether you will like it there.
Next are those in the honeymoon phase. They live there and can tell you how they went about choosing, how they like it SO FAR but it is likely to be a rose tinted perspective. It's like someone who bought a new car. They love it for the first year and have no complaints yet.
Next are the people I think you should really listen to. Those who have been there at least 5 years. They are the ones who really know what it is like to live there. They are more likely to tell you the reality of living there. But bear in mind, even within this group you have different (from you) kinds of people. So finding people who are the most like yourself in terms of interests, outlooks on life, etc. will be your best source of information. They are people who 'stuck' but if you they aren't like you, their perspective is of limited value.
So to re-cap, I don't advise asking where to retire, ask where to try for a while next. Rent don't buy, whatever you do, whether that is a 'next' or a intended permanent move. Finally, if you adopt a 'next' approach, you don't need to listen to anyone really but if you insist on trying to plan a permanent move, listen only to those who have been there at least 5 years.
