Live and Invest Overseas
The Best Places To Retire In 2025

FREE REPORT: THE BEST PLACES TO RETIRE IN 2025






    We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.
    • Home
    • Countries

      Top Destinations:

      Whether you’re looking for fun and sun, a peaceful retirement, or the chance to earn some extra income, you’ve got a real world of opportunity open to you… In short, we’ve done our best to narrow down your best options, but only you can decide the right country for you.

      • Spain
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • Colombia
      • Cyprus
      • Mexico
      • France
      • Montenegro
      • Browse All Countries

      Best For:

      • The Best Places To Retire
      • Health Care Abroad
      • Cost Of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Establishing Residency
      • Gun Laws In The World
      • English-Speaking Countries
      • Safest Places For Retirement
      • Best Places In Latin America
    • Budgets

      How Much Will It Cost You To Live Overseas?

      The only honest answer is, we have no idea. And neither does anyone else. The only one who can answer that question is you. Here’s the most important thing to understand about budgeting your new life overseas…

      Super Cheap

      • Chitré, Panama
      • Santa Marta, Colombia
      • Phuket, Thailand
      • Dumaguete, The Philippines

      Cheap

      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Kyrenia, Cyprus
      • Hua Hin, Thailand
      • The Algarve, Portugal

      Affordable

      • Valencia, Spain
      • Cascais, Portugal
      • Las Terrenas, The DR
      • Pisa, Italy
      • La Rochelle, France
      • Mazatlán, Mexico

      Luxury

      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Kotor, Montenegro
      • The Panama City Beaches
      • Paris, France
    • Resources

      Global Living

      • Living & Retiring Overseas
      • Raising A Family Abroad
      • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
      • Offshore & Diversification

      Making Money

      • International Real Estate
      • Banking
      • Employment
      • Investing

      Follow Us:

      • Meet Our Experts
    • Real Estate

      Join our Weekly Newsletter
      Overseas Property Alert

      Sign up for our weekly newsletter to receive expert insights on the best international real estate investment opportunities.






        We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

        Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

        • Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

        Explore Our Latest Posts

        • Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

        Go To The Overseas Property Alert Site

        • How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams
      • Conferences

        Upcoming Events

        • Explore Our Events Site

        International Property Summit

        Caribbean Virtual Conference

        Live and Invest In Spain Conference

        PANAMA CITY, PANAMA

        June 18-20, 2025

        VIRTUAL

        July 17-19, 2025

        Valencia, Spain

        Sep. 17-19, 2025

        LEARN MORE
        LEARN MORE
        PRE-REGISTER
        LEARN MORE
        PRE-REGISTER
        • MORE EVENTS

        Contact Our Events Team

        Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
        1 (888) 627 8834
        From Outside North America:
        1 (443) 599 1221
        Working Hours
        Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

        Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

      • Store

        Unlock The World

        • Access Your Library

        Overseas Havens Reports

        • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

        Conference Kits

        • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

        Lahardan Books

        • Titles on living and investing around the world
        • Explore Our Store
        Your passport to a life well-lived abroad

        Services

        overseas living letter offers affordable retirement guidance
        The Simon Letter Wealth Protection Insights
        Global Property Advisor Global Investment Opportunities

        Our Customer Service team is here to assist with any questions or concerns CustomerService@LiveandInvestOverseas.com

      • My Library
      Live and Invest Overseas
      • Home
      • Countries

        Top Destinations:

        Whether you’re looking for fun and sun, a peaceful retirement, or the chance to earn some extra income, you’ve got a real world of opportunity open to you… In short, we’ve done our best to narrow down your best options, but only you can decide the right country for you.

        • Spain
        • Portugal
        • Panama
        • Belize
        • Colombia
        • Cyprus
        • Mexico
        • France
        • Montenegro
        • Browse All Countries

        Best For:

        • The Best Places To Retire
        • Health Care Abroad
        • Cost Of Living
        • Investing in Real Estate
        • Establishing Residency
        • Gun Laws In The World
        • English-Speaking Countries
        • Safest Places For Retirement
        • Best Places In Latin America
      • Budgets

        How Much Will It Cost You To Live Overseas?

        The only honest answer is, we have no idea. And neither does anyone else. The only one who can answer that question is you. Here’s the most important thing to understand about budgeting your new life overseas…

        Super Cheap

        • Chitré, Panama
        • Santa Marta, Colombia
        • Phuket, Thailand
        • Dumaguete, The Philippines

        Cheap

        • Medellin, Colombia
        • Boquete, Panama
        • Kyrenia, Cyprus
        • Hua Hin, Thailand
        • The Algarve, Portugal

        Affordable

        • Valencia, Spain
        • Cascais, Portugal
        • Las Terrenas, The DR
        • Pisa, Italy
        • La Rochelle, France
        • Mazatlán, Mexico

        Luxury

        • Ambergris Caye, Belize
        • Kotor, Montenegro
        • The Panama City Beaches
        • Paris, France
      • Resources

        Global Living

        • Living & Retiring Overseas
        • Raising A Family Abroad
        • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
        • Offshore & Diversification

        Making Money

        • International Real Estate
        • Banking
        • Employment
        • Investing

        Follow Us:

        • Meet Our Experts
      • Real Estate

        Join our Weekly Newsletter
        Overseas Property Alert

        Sign up for our weekly newsletter to receive expert insights on the best international real estate investment opportunities.






          We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

          Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

          • Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

          Explore Our Latest Posts

          • Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

          Go To The Overseas Property Alert Site

          • How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams
        • Conferences

          Upcoming Events

          • Explore Our Events Site

          International Property Summit

          Caribbean Virtual Conference

          Live and Invest In Spain Conference

          PANAMA CITY, PANAMA

          June 18-20, 2025

          VIRTUAL

          July 17-19, 2025

          Valencia, Spain

          Sep. 17-19, 2025

          LEARN MORE
          LEARN MORE
          PRE-REGISTER
          LEARN MORE
          PRE-REGISTER
          • MORE EVENTS

          Contact Our Events Team

          Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
          1 (888) 627 8834
          From Outside North America:
          1 (443) 599 1221
          Working Hours
          Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

          Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

        • Store

          Unlock The World

          • Access Your Library

          Overseas Havens Reports

          • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

          Conference Kits

          • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

          Lahardan Books

          • Titles on living and investing around the world
          • Explore Our Store
          Your passport to a life well-lived abroad

          Services

          overseas living letter offers affordable retirement guidance
          The Simon Letter Wealth Protection Insights
          Global Property Advisor Global Investment Opportunities

          Our Customer Service team is here to assist with any questions or concerns CustomerService@LiveandInvestOverseas.com

        • My Library
        Live and Invest Overseas
         Moving Out Of The U.S?

        THE 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE IN 2025

        the 10 best places to retire in 2025

        PLUS: A SPECIAL BONUS DESTINATION

        Simply sign up to receive the FREE daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we’ll immediately email you our editors’ latest research report… absolutely FREE






          We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

          Home Family

          The Truth About Retiring And Living Abroad With Children

          Years Of Psychotherapy Was My Greatest Fear

          by Kathleen Peddicord
          May 22, 2022
          in Family, France, Ireland, Lifestyle, Panama
          0 0
          Family having fun outdoors on Mykonos streets

          Adobe Stock/travnikovstudio

          Just back in Paris after two weeks traveling on the island of Cyprus with our family… including our 2-year-old granddaughter… Lief and I are reminiscing about our experiences over the past two-and-a-half decades living and traveling around the world with our kids.

          Our daughter, Kaitlin, age 8 at the time, cried herself to sleep every night during our first year living in Waterford, Ireland. She was fiercely opposed to leaving her grandmother, her cousins, her friends, and her school in Baltimore behind, and she made sure we were aware of that fact every single day.

          “You’ve ruined my life!” she’d sob night after night as she ran from the dinner table to her bedroom and slammed the door.

          Lief and I, of course, thought we were doing precisely the opposite. We believed we were enriching Kaitlin’s life and expanding her horizons. But I have to admit, some nights I’d lie awake wondering if maybe Kaitlin weren’t right. Maybe launching a new life in a foreign country at age 8 would translate into years of psychotherapy down the road.

          Our first year in Paris, it was Kaitlin’s little brother, Jackson, age 4 at the time and born in Ireland, who struggled through the transition.

          “Give him six weeks,” his preschool teacher advised me every morning when I dropped him off. “At this age, he’ll adapt very quickly. In six weeks, he’ll speak French, and he’ll be fine. You’ll see.”

          Meantime, every morning, as I’d turn to leave, Jackson would wrap his arms around my ankles, crying. “Please don’t make me stay here,” he’d plead. “They don’t have an English voice, and I can’t find my French voice.”

          I’d pull myself free and race out the door and down the street, fighting back tears myself and wondering, again, if moving around the world with kids was really such a good idea.

          Six agonizing weeks later, though, and voilà, seemingly overnight, Jackson spoke French as well as all the other 4-year-old Parisian kids in his class. He’d adjusted; he’d made friends.

          In truth, our lifestyle has been easier for Jack to handle than Kaitlin. While Jack was born into it, Kaitlin might say she was yanked. On the other hand, it was Kaitlin’s idea to move from Waterford to Paris.

          Kids in Ireland take what is called a “gap year” at age 15, between what would be their freshman and sophomore years of high school in the States. For this year, many study or take internships abroad. As they approached their gap year, Kaitlin’s friends began making plans to attend school in the United States, Britain, and elsewhere. Kaitlin decided she’d like to spend her gap year in Paris.

          We’d been enjoying Irish country life, but by this time we were wanting for more cosmopolitan distractions. We took Kaitlin’s suggestion, therefore, as an opportunity for another family move. In the essay Kaitlin prepared as part of her admissions application for St. John’s College in Annapolis three years later, she wrote: “I fought against my family’s move to Ireland and resisted life in that country completely. But, if not for Ireland, I probably wouldn’t have gone to Paris. And now I can’t imagine not having had the chance to live in Paris.”

          Today Kaitlin is grown and married and working as our Live And Invest Overseas Europe Editor. She, her husband, and their baby daughter are living in Paris… about a 15-minute walk from where I write.

          Meantime, Jackson is in his senior year at NYU. He’s studied in Shanghai, Paris, and New York… and interned in Portugal, Panama, and Belize…

          Today, both Kaitlin and Jackson speak English, French, and Spanish fluently… and Jackson’s Mandarin is better than passable.

          All along the way I’ve worried that my children might suffer as a result of the globe-trotting lifestyle their parents chose for them. Now, with some perspective gained from the passage of time, I’m more confident than ever that the life we’ve lived these past 25 years with our 2 children has done them much more good than harm.

          The advantages of raising children abroad are many, from a second (or even third) language to a second passport. Children raised overseas are generally self-confident, open-minded, and resourceful. They learn to make friends easily and adjust quickly to change. I make all these points based on now two-and-a-half decades of experience raising two children across four countries.

          Start Your New Life Today, Overseas






            We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.
            A world full of fun, adventure, and profit awaits! Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we'll send you a FREE report on the 10 Best Places To Retire In Style Overseas In .

            Things To Consider Before Moving Abroad With Children

            -Schools

            That’s not to say raising kids in another country is easy. If you’re considering making an international move with children, they—specifically, the options for their education—become your priority. Moving to a new country with children also means that you must move full-time, or at least that you must schedule your part-time life in your chosen haven around their school calendar.

            The fundamental education choice you must make is whether to send your child to a local school (where, unless you’re moving to Belize or Ireland, for example, he’ll need to learn to speak the local language fluently), to a bilingual international school (where he’ll have the opportunity to learn the new language but will take classes in his native tongue as well), or to an American or British school (where he’ll be largely insulated from the local culture and community).

            Just as we’ve chosen to go local with our lifestyles overseas, we’ve also gone local with our children’s education. Why drag the kid to a new country only to enroll him in a school that could as easily be located in any U.S. suburb?

            We considered this question head-on in Paris, where the American School of Paris was one of our options for Kaitlin’s education. Kaitlin and I visited together, and we both had the same reaction. The American School of Paris could be the American School of Any American Town.

            Every student is from the States, as is every member of the faculty. English is the only language spoken. The curriculum, the calendar, the special events, the extracurricular activities—everything about the school is as it would be Stateside. Nothing wrong with this per se, but it seemed a shame to us for Kaitlin to miss out on the chance to learn French, to make friends from all over the world, and to become part of the Paris teenager scene.

            -Health Care And Kid-Friendly Opportunities

            In addition to schooling options, when you’re moving with children, you also must consider health care and local kid-friendly opportunities. Are there parks, playgrounds, private tutors, and places where the child could go to, say, study the guitar, learn to dance, take karate lessons, or join a basketball team?

            -Residency Options

            Likewise, you should also think about residency options. With a child, you can’t easily reside under the radar or come and go so as not to exceed the time-in-country restrictions of a tourist visa. I don’t recommend residing overseas without proper papers under any circumstances, of course, but over the years, I’ve known expats in France, Panama, Costa Rica, Thailand, and elsewhere who’ve never gotten around to legalizing their stays. Often this is not a big deal.

            With school-aged children, it can be more difficult. This restriction, especially, can take a number of countries off the list of options, as it would be difficult or even impossible to organize legal residency for you and your family.

            Children’s Ability To Adapt To A Move Overseas

            Moving abroad with children, you might be concerned about their ability to adapt and to adjust. This has been my biggest worry. Having now moved my then 8-year-old daughter from the States to Ireland, then my then 14-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son from Ireland to France, and then, most recently, my then 8-year-old son from France to Panama, here’s what I can tell you:

            Your children will be fine. The truth is, their move will be harder on you than it will be on them. They will learn the new language quicker than you will, they will make new friends more easily, and they will assimilate more readily.

            Our first six months in Paris, Kaitlin would sit at the dining room table after dinner doing her homework—all in French. Before our arrival there, she’d never studied the language. Then, overnight, she was studying in the language, doing high school math in French.

            The work would take her hours, after which she’d retire, exhausted and nearly in tears. Then she’d have to get up the next morning to return to school, where, again, all lectures, presentations, and course materials were in French. This shouldn’t be so hard on her, the mother in me couldn’t help but observe.

            I made an appointment to meet with her adviser at school, who said this: “Kaitlin is struggling, yes. But you must let her struggle. It is good for her.”

            This is the last thing a child wants to hear and the hardest thing for a parent to accept. But I tell you now, it is the right thing, the true thing. After six months of exhausting effort, Kaitlin was bilingual. She retains this asset, and already it has opened doors for her. During her first year of college back in the United States, it was her overseas experience and her second language that helped her to land a part-time job in a chic photography gallery.

            Having school-aged children is not a reason not to reinvent and relaunch your life in a new country. I say: Go for it.

            Don’t worry how your children will adjust. Worry how you’ll survive the adjustment period.

            Sincerely,
            Kathleen Peddicord signature
            Kathleen Peddicord
            Founding Publisher, Overseas Opportunity Letter

            Tags: 'France''Ireland'ChildrenLive abroadlive overseasmove overseas with childrenPanamaParis
            Share157Tweet95
            Kathleen Peddicord

            Kathleen Peddicord

            Kathleen Peddicord has reported on opportunities for Americans to live, retire, and do business overseas for 40 years. She has traveled to more than 75 countries, invested in real estate in 24, established businesses in 7, renovated and built properties in 6, and educated her children in 5.

            Kathleen has moved children, staff, enterprises, household goods, and pets from the east coast of the United States to Waterford, Ireland, then to Paris, France, and finally to Panama City, Panama, where she has based her Live And Invest Overseas business. Peddicord and her husband, Lief Simon, now divide their time between Panama and Paris.

            Peddicord was a partner with Agora Publishing’s International Living group for 23 years. She opened, staffed, and operated International Living publishing and real estate marketing offices in Waterford, Ireland; Panama City, Panama; Granada, Nicaragua; Roatan, Honduras; San Miguel de Allende, Mexico; Quito, Ecuador; and Paris, France. Peddicord launched Live And Invest Overseas group in 2008 and has built it into a successful multimillion-dollar business. Today, she shares her firsthand experience of expat life with more than 500,000 readers of her publications, including Overseas Opportunity Letter and Overseas Living Letter.

            Kathleen has been featured often in The New York Times, MSNBC, AARP, CNN, Bloomberg, CNBC, and more and writes monthly about expat matters, international real estate, and offshore diversification for Forbes and U.S. News.

            Kathleen has written several books including the memoirs “At Home In Ireland” and “At Home At Los Islotes” and her latest title “At Home Abroad,” all published by Lahardan Books. Her best-selling "How To Retire Overseas: Everything You Need To Know To Live Well (For Less) Abroad” was published by Penguin Random House in 2018 and her “Buying Real Estate Overseas For Cash Flow (And A Better Life)” was published by Wiley in August 2020.

            Start Your New Life Overseas Today!
            Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we'll send you a FREE report on The 10 Best Places To Retire In 2025.

            We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.
            Our Expertise Unlocks The World

            quick links

            • Best Places To Live
            • Best Places To Retire
            • Finding A Job Overseas
            • Real Estate

            LIOS Resources

            • New To LIOS
            • Ask An Expert
            • Media Center
            • Contact Us
            • FAQs
            the 10 best places to retire in 2025
            Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and get your FREE REPORT: The 10 Best Places To Retire Overseas In 2025






              We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

              As seen in

              US Media Logos

              © 2008 – Live and Invest Overseas™ – All Rights Reserved.

              About Us / Contact Us / Privacy Policy / Terms / Unsubscribe
              Facebook-f X-twitter Youtube Linkedin-in Instagram

              Welcome Back!

              Login to your account below

              Forgotten Password?

              Retrieve your password

              Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

              Log In

              Sign up to receive the FREE daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter and we’ll immediately email you our editors’ latest research report…

              BEST PLACES TO RETIRE 

              FREE REPORT:






                We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

                Sign up for FREE and learn how to live the good life on a modest budget, find bargain property, and more. Plus, check out our free report on the 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE.

                RETIRE OVERSEAS AND LIVE LIKE ROYALTY






                  We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.
                  HOME

                  Top Countries

                  • Spain
                  • Portugal
                  • Panama
                  • Belize
                  • Colombia
                  • Cyprus
                  • Mexico
                  • France
                  • Montenegro

                  Best For:

                  • Health Care Abroad
                  • Retirement Living
                  • Cost Of Living
                  • Investing in Real Estate
                  • Establishing Residency
                  • Gun Ownership
                  • English Speakers
                  • Safety
                  BROWSE ALL COUNTRIES

                  Budgets

                  How Much Will It Cost
                  To Live Overseas?

                  Super Cheap

                  • Chitré, Panama
                  • Santa Marta, Colombia
                  • Phuket, Thailand
                  • Dumaguete, The Philippines

                  Cheap

                  • Medellin, Colombia
                  • Boquete, Panama
                  • Kyrenia, Cyprus
                  • Hua Hin, Thailand
                  • The Algarve, Portugal

                  Affordable

                  • Valencia, Spain
                  • Cascais, Portugal
                  • Las Terrenas, The DR
                  • Pisa, Italy
                  • La Rochelle, France
                  • Mazatlán, Mexico

                  Luxury

                  • Ambergris Caye, Belize
                  • Kotor, Montenegro
                  • The Panama City Beaches
                  • Paris, France

                  Resources

                  Global Living

                  • Living & Retiring Overseas
                  • Raising A Family Abroad
                  • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
                  • Offshore & Diversification

                  Making Money

                  • International Real Estate
                  • Banking
                  • Employment
                  • Investing
                  Meet Our Experts

                  Real Estate

                  Overseas Property Alert 

                   

                  How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams

                  VISIT SITE

                  Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

                   

                  Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

                  READ MORE

                  Explore Our Latest Posts

                   

                  Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

                  EXPLORE

                  Conferences

                  INTERNATIONAL PROPERTY SUMMIT

                  PANAMA CITY, PANAMA June 18-20, 2025
                  LEARN MORE

                  CARIBBEAN VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

                  VIRTUAL July 17-19, 2025
                  LEARN MORE
                  PRE-REGISTER

                  Live and Invest In Spain Conference

                  Valencia, Spain Sep. 17-19, 2025
                  LEARN MORE
                  PRE-REGISTER
                  MORE EVENTS

                  Contact Our Events Team:

                  Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
                  1 (888) 627 8834

                  From Outside North America:
                  1 (443) 599 1221

                  Working Hours
                  Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

                  Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

                  Store

                  Overseas Havens Reports

                  • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

                  Conference Kits

                  • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

                  Lahardan Books

                  • Titles on living and investing around the world

                  Services

                  • Overseas Living Letter: Affordable Retirement Guidance
                  • The Simon Letter: Wealth Protection Insights
                  • Global Property Advisor: Global Investment Opportunitites
                  VISIT OUR STORE

                  Free Report

                  THE 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE IN 2025

                  FREE REPORT: The 10 Best Places To retire in 2025

                  Sign up to receive the FREE daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter and we’ll immediately email you our editors’ latest research report…






                    We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

                    LIBRARY

                    Follow Us:

                    © 2008 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.