If the idea of working into old age to fund retirement holds little appeal for your clients, they want need to think outside the border and consider retiring, for at least part of the year, in an affordable international location.
In the right markets, the Canadian dollar stretches to provide a healthy and stimulating lifestyle at a fraction of the cost of staying at home, enabling retirees to live well on a fixed income. Exotic cultures, affordable health care, temperate climates and fabulous scenery all can be obtained by those adventurous enough to experiment in building a life in less developed parts of the globe.
International Living Publishing Ltd., the Baltimore-based publisher of a magazine and website catering to people wanting to live abroad (www.internationalliving.com), compiles an annual list of the top retirement destinations.
After examining 22 locales, the magazine has named Ecuador, Panama and Malaysia the top three locations in this year’s survey. It’s the fifth year in a row that Ecuador has come first. Rounding out the top five are Mexico and Costa Rica.
In assessing locations, International Living examines everything from Internet availability to the price of beer. The eight main categories in its rankings include real estate, special retirement benefits, cost of living, ease of integration, entertainment and amenities, health care, retirement infrastructure and climate. The survey also considers lifestyle issues such as staying in touch with people back home, making friends, safety, language, getting around and dining out. International Living, in conducting its research, consults expats who live in various locations, asking about how amenable they find the roads, the doctors, housekeeping staff and their neighbours.
Beaches, mountains or cities
Even within one country, the choice of location depends on whether your clients prefer ocean and beaches, mountains, small villages or cosmopolitan cities. For some clients, the priorities are being near international airports or hospitals; for others, the locals must speak English. While some people seek a small, cozy cottage, others would prefer a luxury condo with a gym, a pool and other amenities.
Some countries offer access to national health-care plans or inexpensive private health insurance.
Dan Prescher and Suzan Haskins, a couple in their late 50s who have written and blogged about their experiences while living in various international locations for the past 12 years, have chosen Ecuador as their home base after spending time in a variety of locations in Mexico and Central America. They live in Cotacachi, a small town in the Andes about two hours north of Quito, Ecuador’s capital and a major city. Prescher and Haskins live in a condo in a four-storey building that they bought four years ago for US$49,000. Today, similar condos are selling for about US$100,000.
“It would be hard to get us out of Ecuador now,” says Prescher, special projects editor with International Living. “It’s comfortable, affordable and the weather is perfect. Ecuador is on the equator; but here, at 8,000 feet [above sea level], you find a climate with pleasantly warm days, cool nights and low humidity.”
Maids, gardeners and cooks
Some countries are so inexpensive that an expat couple who lives frugally could get by on government pension and old-age benefits alone. In other locales, they can spend more but enjoy such luxuries as maids, gardeners and cooks.
“The idea is to make your retirement nest egg go as far as possible,” Prescher says, “while giving up as little as possible in terms of quality of life.”
International Living estimates that a two-bedroom apartment could be rented in Cuenca, a medium-sized city in Ecuador, for US$500 a month, and all other costs, including a maid, entertainment and health care, would add up to about US$1,415 a month. That means a couple could have a comfortable lifestyle for less than US$17,000 a year. In Panama, the magazine estimates, a couple could live for US$1,865 a month, including rent of US$800, adding up to about US$22,400 a year. A couple could live well in Malaysia, the magazine says, for about US$1,100 a month.
The low cost of living allows retirees to increase travel, take up new hobbies and enhance their quality of life.
It’s also possible for retirees to generate income in foreign locations. Jobs in such fields as writing, translating, investment management and consulting are made easier with growing Internet access. Other retirees are opening art galleries, boutiques, small inns and restaurants.
Prescher says it’s important that retirees assess themselves and what they want from the new location, then spend time there and get a feel for the place before making a commitment.
“Retiring is no longer about swinging in the hammock and watching the clouds go by,” Prescher says. “A lot of retirees are working to keep busy, to keep their hand in the game.” IE