Why do I focus in these dispatches on the countries I do...and give less (or no) virtual ink to others? I have a Top 10 list. On it are my picks for the best places in the world right now to think about spending your time and your money. This list has been created based on more than 25 years experience traveling the globe and covering this live, retire, invest overseas beat...and it has been compiled with the help of dozens of correspondents and friends who keep in touch with me in real time from all corners of this earth.
I can't be everywhere at once or know, firsthand, the situation on the ground in every country in the world at any given time. But I can stay well-informed, with the help of smart, savvy people I trust to provide me not only with information (information alone is a glut on the market...often not worth the virtual paper it's printed on), but, much more important, with perspective and judgment.
In that context, here are my Top 10 picks right now:
The trouble with a Top 10 list is that it's limited to 10. If I were to expand this list a bit, I'd add:
Some of these countries make sense as full-time overseas retirement havens; some are more interesting for part-time living (because of the challenges and costs associated with establishing permanent legal residency).
All, though, offer particular advantages to the would-be retiree, adventurer, or investor.
That is not to say, however, they are the only places in the world that could make sense for you. You have your own agendas and circumstances, your personal experiences and priorities.
If you've been traveling to the Bay Islands of Honduras for years, for example, as has one reader who wrote the other day...have made friends in this part of the world...have begun shopping for a beach home on Roatan...don't think you must adjust your plan and refocus your attention on Belize because I recommend that country over Honduras.
It's true. Belize is generally more advantaged than Honduras. The whole of the country is English-speaking (while, in Honduras, it's the folks out on the Bay Islands, only, who use English as their primary language of communication).
Belize is more stable politically than Honduras. Its currency is tied to the U.S. dollar. Its foreign residency program is one of the most user-friendly in the world right now. And Belize qualifies as one of the few remaining banking havens on the planet.
All of that is true, but it doesn't mean Roatan, Honduras, couldn't make sense for you.
This is such a personal decision. I offer my Top 10 list as a guide...as some stars to steer by. Based on my long experience and with the help of real-time intelligence from friends on the ground in each place, I recommend these places as worth a close look. But, again, I understand, and you should, too, that they are not the only places to consider considering.
The other important thing to understand about any Top Picks list is that, if it's based on real-world experience and real-time intelligence, you can count on it to change.
Tax laws, visa requirements, the cost of real estate, the cost of living, and the availability of quality health care...as well as the political situation, the value of the local currency, and the ease of coming and going from other parts of the world...all these things change all the time.
Just as some U.S. states are more appealing today as places to live or retire than they were a decade ago, some countries are more interesting to the would-be overseas retiree right now than they were two or three years ago. And we can expect that others will become more interesting in the future than they are today.
Any list of the World's Top Retirement Havens, including mine, is a moving target. One thing you come to understand when you begin considering the idea of spending time and money overseas is that you must be flexible and open-minded.
Just as circumstances are changing dramatically in the United States right now, so, too, can they and do they elsewhere.
One way to hedge the potential risks that this truth implies is to diversify...not only your investments, but also your life.
Just as it's smart to invest in different markets and to hold assets of different types in different currencies, so, too, are there advantages to spreading your life among different jurisdictions.
Do your banking in one country (where you can feel reasonably secure your deposits are safe), reside in another (where you pay no tax), run your business in a third (where entrepreneurs are respected and incentivized) and hold a passport in another. If possible, hold a second passport.
I didn't invent this strategy, of course, It's written of often, as the Five Flags plan. It's about organizing both your time and your money (that is, planting your "flags") to your greatest advantage.
Plant your flags based on your current circumstances and agendas. But don't plant them in concrete. You might want to be able to move them around from time to time.
Kathleen Peddicord P.S. What else this week?
PLUS: From Global Real Estate Investing Guru Lief Simon:
How much does it cost to build a house overseas?
As my wife, Kathleen Peddicord, likes to say when people ask her how much it costs to live overseas, "I have no idea...and neither does anyone else."
It depends where and what you're building. Not only in what country but where in that country. And not only whether you're building big or small but also how you're finishing, fitting out, etc.
A friend is building a small house in the interior of Panama. He is acting as the general contractor and hiring local laborers. He can do this because he has years of experience building in this part of this country.
It's a small house, so he's buying materials retail. And it's basic. Nothing fancy.
His cost for this small guesthouse, once it's completed, will be US$30 to US$35 per square foot, including the cost of the enclosed space and the covered exterior space.
That's an appealing number; US$30 a square foot is absolutely (as opposed to relatively) cheap.
So, if someone were to ask me what it costs to build a house in Panama, I could reply, "About US$30 a square foot."
And I'd be telling the truth. I could provide the invoices to back it up (with my friend's help).
But I wouldn't be giving the full story.
At that price, you're building what I refer to as "local housing." A simple structure that serves the basic purposes. There's a basic bathroom, a basic kitchen, a small bedroom, maybe a small sitting area. No fancy fixtures, no high-end tiling (maybe no tiling at all), no closets, no laundry room, etc. This kind of "local house" can be comfortable and certainly livable, but it is not the quality of construction and finishes you would expect to find in a middle-class U.S. neighborhood, for example. And it probably doesn't meet the expectations of the typical retiree considering building a home in another country.
Jump up to the next price level--to say US$50 to US$60 a square foot--and you're building what I call middle-class local housing. This is probably closer to the kinds of structures you'd expect to find in a middle-class neighborhood in the States--except for the finishes. Still, these won't be what you're used to. Windows, faucets, door hardware, and lighting fixtures, for example, will be what you'd likely consider very low-end.
Go up to US$90 a square foot, and you're in the ballpark for high-quality construction and finishes. You can spend as much as you want when it comes to finishes, and this is where the cost of construction can really increase. In the US$90-a-square-foot range, you're buying very good quality stuff.
So, again, how much does it cost to build a house in Panama? As much as you want it to cost, within a very broad range (US$30 per square foot to US$90 per square foot or more), depending on the kind of house you want to build.
This is the case almost everywhere. In some countries, you can't build at the really super cheap end of the range, because of construction regulations. This is the case in much of Europe. Still, even in Europe, for example, you can spend as little or as much as you want on finishes.
I was reminded of all this by a reader who wrote yesterday to say that he believes he could build a house cheaper in the States than in either Costa Rica or Panama. I guess that could be true--some places in the States, for some kinds of construction--though, frankly, I find it hard to believe. Not when you compare apples to apples--comparable kinds of construction and comparable levels of finishing.
Read more...
I can't be everywhere at once or know, firsthand, the situation on the ground in every country in the world at any given time. But I can stay well-informed, with the help of smart, savvy people I trust to provide me not only with information (information alone is a glut on the market...often not worth the virtual paper it's printed on), but, much more important, with perspective and judgment.
In that context, here are my Top 10 picks right now:
- #1: Panama
- #2: Belize
- #3: France
- #4: Malaysia
- #5: Ecuador
- #6: Argentina
- #7: Uruguay
- #8: Croatia
- #9: Dominican Republic
- #10: Chile
The trouble with a Top 10 list is that it's limited to 10. If I were to expand this list a bit, I'd add:
- #11: Vietnam
- #12: New Zealand
- #13: Mexico
- #14: Nicaragua
- #15: Malta
Some of these countries make sense as full-time overseas retirement havens; some are more interesting for part-time living (because of the challenges and costs associated with establishing permanent legal residency).
All, though, offer particular advantages to the would-be retiree, adventurer, or investor.
That is not to say, however, they are the only places in the world that could make sense for you. You have your own agendas and circumstances, your personal experiences and priorities.
If you've been traveling to the Bay Islands of Honduras for years, for example, as has one reader who wrote the other day...have made friends in this part of the world...have begun shopping for a beach home on Roatan...don't think you must adjust your plan and refocus your attention on Belize because I recommend that country over Honduras.
It's true. Belize is generally more advantaged than Honduras. The whole of the country is English-speaking (while, in Honduras, it's the folks out on the Bay Islands, only, who use English as their primary language of communication).
Belize is more stable politically than Honduras. Its currency is tied to the U.S. dollar. Its foreign residency program is one of the most user-friendly in the world right now. And Belize qualifies as one of the few remaining banking havens on the planet.
All of that is true, but it doesn't mean Roatan, Honduras, couldn't make sense for you.
This is such a personal decision. I offer my Top 10 list as a guide...as some stars to steer by. Based on my long experience and with the help of real-time intelligence from friends on the ground in each place, I recommend these places as worth a close look. But, again, I understand, and you should, too, that they are not the only places to consider considering.
The other important thing to understand about any Top Picks list is that, if it's based on real-world experience and real-time intelligence, you can count on it to change.
Tax laws, visa requirements, the cost of real estate, the cost of living, and the availability of quality health care...as well as the political situation, the value of the local currency, and the ease of coming and going from other parts of the world...all these things change all the time.
Just as some U.S. states are more appealing today as places to live or retire than they were a decade ago, some countries are more interesting to the would-be overseas retiree right now than they were two or three years ago. And we can expect that others will become more interesting in the future than they are today.
Any list of the World's Top Retirement Havens, including mine, is a moving target. One thing you come to understand when you begin considering the idea of spending time and money overseas is that you must be flexible and open-minded.
Just as circumstances are changing dramatically in the United States right now, so, too, can they and do they elsewhere.
One way to hedge the potential risks that this truth implies is to diversify...not only your investments, but also your life.
Just as it's smart to invest in different markets and to hold assets of different types in different currencies, so, too, are there advantages to spreading your life among different jurisdictions.
Do your banking in one country (where you can feel reasonably secure your deposits are safe), reside in another (where you pay no tax), run your business in a third (where entrepreneurs are respected and incentivized) and hold a passport in another. If possible, hold a second passport.
I didn't invent this strategy, of course, It's written of often, as the Five Flags plan. It's about organizing both your time and your money (that is, planting your "flags") to your greatest advantage.
Plant your flags based on your current circumstances and agendas. But don't plant them in concrete. You might want to be able to move them around from time to time.
Kathleen Peddicord P.S. What else this week?
- At what age should you think about retiring overseas?
It's almost never too late...or too early.
Laurie Norton and Paul Jewitt, two easygoing Canadians, low-key and modest, started their new lives in Belize four years ago, as young 30-somethings.
As Belize Correspondent Ann Kuffner explains, "Laurie and Paul are part of an emerging trend. Move over, Baby Boomers! An increasing number of adventurous 30- and 40-year-olds are making their mark on the local San Pedro Town scene here on Ambergris Caye. They're making their way down here to La Isla Bonita with small savings and pockets full of dreams, and they're starting small businesses so they can stick around. - "Laurie and Paul, for example, had vacationed in the Virgin Islands, Hawaii, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Florida. Each time they returned to Toronto, they were more determined to escape the winters. Laurie kept pushing Paul to make their move sooner rather than later..."
- "'Do you have any regrets about moving to Belize?'"That's the question we're probably most frequently asked, both by our neighbors here on Ambergris Caye and also by friends and family back home in the States," writes Belize Correspondent Anne Kuffner.
"Without hesitation, my husband Mike and I answer, 'No. No regrets. Not a one.'
"The folks back home often find it baffling that we could be as happy--in fact, happier--living here in little San Pedro Town than we were living in the San Francisco Bay Area.
"Initially, we invested in property on Ambergris Caye because of our love for the Caribbean Sea and the laid-back tropical lifestyle on this island. Even today, years later, we're still thrilled to be surrounded by so much beauty, color, and nature.
"But there's another attractive aspect of daily life on Ambergris Caye that kept drawing us back to this low-key Caribbean retreat: The people and the strong sense of community we perceived here from the start. I'd never experienced anything like it before. In a big metropolitan area, like the San Francisco Bay Area, one can easily feel lost in a sea of bodies. It's difficult to get to know your neighbors..."
- "As I've explained, Vicki and I considered canceling this trip to Chiang Mai," continues Intrepid Correspondent Paul Terhorst, picking up where he left off yesterday.
"On the Thursday before we planned to travel, Switzerland, Brazil, the UK, and Australia raised their travel advisories to: Do not travel to Thailand. These four countries joined 14 others already making this recommendation, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Spain, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Taiwan, Germany, Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands, Israel, Belgium, and New Zealand.
"We came anyway. We flew into Chiang Mai, 700 kilometers north of the main violence in Bangkok.
"I've written that unrest comes with the territory these days. Terrorists, natural disasters, riots, strikes, and more make our world a dangerous place. We need to deal with these problems on the ground and within the context of our own real-world experience. More often than not, it's a bad idea to run away. That was my first tip.
"Here are two more..."
PLUS: From Global Real Estate Investing Guru Lief Simon:
How much does it cost to build a house overseas?
As my wife, Kathleen Peddicord, likes to say when people ask her how much it costs to live overseas, "I have no idea...and neither does anyone else."
It depends where and what you're building. Not only in what country but where in that country. And not only whether you're building big or small but also how you're finishing, fitting out, etc.
A friend is building a small house in the interior of Panama. He is acting as the general contractor and hiring local laborers. He can do this because he has years of experience building in this part of this country.
It's a small house, so he's buying materials retail. And it's basic. Nothing fancy.
His cost for this small guesthouse, once it's completed, will be US$30 to US$35 per square foot, including the cost of the enclosed space and the covered exterior space.
That's an appealing number; US$30 a square foot is absolutely (as opposed to relatively) cheap.
So, if someone were to ask me what it costs to build a house in Panama, I could reply, "About US$30 a square foot."
And I'd be telling the truth. I could provide the invoices to back it up (with my friend's help).
But I wouldn't be giving the full story.
At that price, you're building what I refer to as "local housing." A simple structure that serves the basic purposes. There's a basic bathroom, a basic kitchen, a small bedroom, maybe a small sitting area. No fancy fixtures, no high-end tiling (maybe no tiling at all), no closets, no laundry room, etc. This kind of "local house" can be comfortable and certainly livable, but it is not the quality of construction and finishes you would expect to find in a middle-class U.S. neighborhood, for example. And it probably doesn't meet the expectations of the typical retiree considering building a home in another country.
Jump up to the next price level--to say US$50 to US$60 a square foot--and you're building what I call middle-class local housing. This is probably closer to the kinds of structures you'd expect to find in a middle-class neighborhood in the States--except for the finishes. Still, these won't be what you're used to. Windows, faucets, door hardware, and lighting fixtures, for example, will be what you'd likely consider very low-end.
Go up to US$90 a square foot, and you're in the ballpark for high-quality construction and finishes. You can spend as much as you want when it comes to finishes, and this is where the cost of construction can really increase. In the US$90-a-square-foot range, you're buying very good quality stuff.
So, again, how much does it cost to build a house in Panama? As much as you want it to cost, within a very broad range (US$30 per square foot to US$90 per square foot or more), depending on the kind of house you want to build.
This is the case almost everywhere. In some countries, you can't build at the really super cheap end of the range, because of construction regulations. This is the case in much of Europe. Still, even in Europe, for example, you can spend as little or as much as you want on finishes.
I was reminded of all this by a reader who wrote yesterday to say that he believes he could build a house cheaper in the States than in either Costa Rica or Panama. I guess that could be true--some places in the States, for some kinds of construction--though, frankly, I find it hard to believe. Not when you compare apples to apples--comparable kinds of construction and comparable levels of finishing.
