Where to retire.

[Deputy Purple 1,294]

I had a friend of mine killed in Belize.

Why on earth would you have a friend of your's killed?

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

There are a number of Cost of Living studies, and some focusing on retirement that you can look up or pay for. Runzheimer International is a big outfit doing that. I underbid them on the last study for the State of Alaska, and did cost of living estimates for over four hundred locations they send beneficiary checks to. Philippines came out on top. In the US, Arkansas was about the best.

We can't find the right combination of things yet in the Philippines. The more remote you go to match our ideas about living, (being from Alaska and needing a lot of space), you can't seem to get it without bringing on risks with NPA, Abu-Sayyef, MILF, kidnap for ransom thugs, etc. I was very disappointed at the lack of sanitation, garbage disposal, and water treatment in the remote areas too. I like it clean. You can do the gated compound thing in and around Manila. The medical facilities are better there too, but cost more. But even there the cost of living is half the average of the USA cities I looked at.

Still looking.

Good stuff. One question for me is what to do is my spare time, which as a retiree, would be most of my waking hours. I would want to keep my hand in some sort of business, and my wife wants to keep me from all the young girls looking for a sugar daddy. I don't see much opportunity in the Philippines for the first, and the wife sees too much opportunity for the second. The wife would be reluctant to return to the rural life she knew as a child, and I am not much of a farmer.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Why on earth would you have a friend of your's killed?

Asked and answered, your honor!

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/329385-where-to-retire/page__view__findpost__p__4899293

[trutolife27 0]

Why would she have to worry other woman unless your not faithful. You have spoken twice about woman. seems your the one looking. If man is faithful to his wife, then there is no problem.

[MyLittlePony 340]

You can live easy in the Philippines house paid for and food is cheap.

[Dan & Jenni 457]

Why would she have to worry other woman unless your not faithful. You have spoken twice about woman. seems your the one looking. If man is faithful to his wife, then there is no problem.

he's not called crusty old perv for nothing??

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Why would she have to worry other woman unless your not faithful. You have spoken twice about woman. seems your the one looking. If man is faithful to his wife, then there is no problem.

Wait until you move a little farther along in the process. The more you have, the tighter you hold onto it.

[jingles01 1]

COSTA RICA, love it, very little crime and over 50,000 americans and canadians there.Very clean. But u have to learn the language, Spanish.I thought about living there many times. Just vacation there, and see for yourself.Most of the people are middle class and educated.

[rlogan 2,036]

Good stuff. One question for me is what to do is my spare time, which as a retiree, would be most of my waking hours. I would want to keep my hand in some sort of business, and my wife wants to keep me from all the young girls looking for a sugar daddy. I don't see much opportunity in the Philippines for the first, and the wife sees too much opportunity for the second. The wife would be reluctant to return to the rural life she knew as a child, and I am not much of a farmer.

There are some export potentials. I looked into a number of things for different clients. One of the difficulties there is that Philippines is one step away from this stupid human trafficking designation that puts all these economic sanctions on them. The State Department has no data at all supporting their designations. They have these "nonprofit" rescue-industry parasites/predators that have perverse incentives to report millions of "human trafficking and child labor" victims in order to get huge grants and foundation money to pay themselves to do make up these fantastical statistics. These are corporations with hundreds of millions in budgets. I saw one study that put one-third of the entire population of 9-17 year olds in the Philippines in that category. If you went out on a fishing boat with your father to learn the trade, you were exploited child labor. The women going to Japan to be karaoke girls was the thing they were shrieking about the most. Different studies call that sex slavery and human trafficking. Oh, and they say prostitution is not sex trafficking unless you do it because it pays better than being a sales girl or working in the fields. Then you were "coerced" into it by the bigger money. It was call center economics I was looking into, and found Philippines was on a Watch List for human trafficking. One notch down on that State Department list, and there goes all your US business.

A modest business for the family to run, that's the more likely thing. A scuba-related enterprise in Cebu to serve Americanos is a possibility. I have a client going there to do just that in November. Years ago a woman had me look into export of shells. I looked into construction of pension houses. The biggest potential I saw was in electric power production, but their power industry is so much bureaucracy, forget it. Corruption too. You can't put all your eggs at risk on a business there.

Edited September 14, 2011 by rlogan

[del-11-03-2013 1]

Paul and I plan to move to Ubud, Bali after I finish my study. We went there before and we love it

[DavenRoxy 1,073]

I am thinking the same about the Philippines. Besides, my wife would go crazy with the competition. I have seen that happen with other Fil-Am couples moving back to the Philippines.

What competition?

And what happens to other Fil-Am couples in the PI?

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

What competition?

And what happens to other Fil-Am couples in the PI?

My wife says, "All those young girls would steal you away from me. They all think Kanos are rich, and just want to have a good time."

One friend moved back a couple years ago, and he spent most of his time in either the local gym, or at the expat bar. His wife would secretly tail him everywhere he went. She caught him in a hotel room talking to one girl. They are still together, but she keeps him on a short leash. She wants back in the US. He bought a house. He plans to stay. She still wants back in the US.

Edited September 15, 2011 by Crusty Old Perv

[DavenRoxy 1,073]

My wife says, "All those young girls would steal you away from me. They all think Kanos are rich, and just want to have a good time."

One friend moved back a couple years ago, and he spent most of his time in either the local gym, or at the expat bar. His wife would secretly tail him everywhere he went. She caught him in a hotel room talking to one girl. They are still together, but she keeps him on a short leash. She wants back in the US. He bought a house. He plans to stay. She still wants back in the US.

That is an issue with a less-than-trustworthy husband, nothing to do with where they live. That happens all the time all over the world. If your wife doesn't trust you in the PI, then she probably won't trust you much of anywhere (whether she admits to this or not).

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

That is an issue with a less-than-trustworthy husband, nothing to do with where they live. That happens all the time all over the world. If your wife doesn't trust you in the PI, then she probably won't trust you much of anywhere (whether she admits to this or not).

Wife says, "No baby. It's different when it's a white guy. Most of those girls would do anything to get him. It's not fair!"

[adiiann 163]

Definitely Philippines, already check the medical capabilities in Manila for my husband since I know he will have health problems once we retire in Philippines (35 years from now).

- Will only cost me $5000 to buy a land near the beach with a good enough backyard of coconut trees.

- Combine mine and my husband's pension, I only need $1000 monthly to live comfortably.

- My health insurance will cover most our major hospitalization in St. Lukes Medical Center.

- I can get someone to help us out everyday, way cheaper than here.

- I don't have to pay so much property tax.

- Don't have to deal with snows when bones are aging.

- Life is not stressful.