If George, Hyta, Gerald, Jonathan, And Rodney Can Do It…You Can Do It, Too
We receive hundreds of emails every day, many from readers writing in to share the good news of their own overseas adventures. For example…
George G. writes:
“Last July I retired from the Miami-Dade County government after 33 years of employment. In August, I flew to Panama. I’d been there only once before, but I had done research via your email newsletters.
“On Oct. 2 I moved into a marvelous mountain cabin some 7.5 kilometers up Volcan Baru.
“I plan to be here for at least the next six months and maybe to base myself out of this paradise while I travel the world over the next five or six years, spending six months each year in the cabin and six months elsewhere.
“I also happen to be a 56-year-old single man. I am pursuing this adventure solo (unless, of course, some charming young lady would like to tag along!)…”
Hyta F. writes:
“I am a single (divorced) retired female, 62, from Texas, who is currently living in Belize on Ambergris Caye. I retired here at the beginning of August and plan to live here at least until the end of January. Following your advice, I took out a six-month lease to see if this is ‘where I want to grow up…'”
Gerald L. reports:
“My evolution has been from survival retirement at age 62 to what has become the most fun and rewarding part of my life today, 10 years later.
“In that time, I have developed successful tour and home construction businesses in Costa Rica. I have built a network of expats and Ticos who are working with me to accomplish more than any of us could have dreamed possible…”
Jonathan P. writes:
“My wife and I retired in 2003 at the ages of 54 and 53, respectively. We moved to San Antonio Tlayacapan on Lake Chapala in Mexico in 2005, where we learned quickly that we would have to find a place to escape the cohetes (mortars) that are blasted up to 16 hours a day for up to 15 days at a time during fiestas! We stabbed our fingers at a map and came up with La Manzanilla del Mar on the Tenacatita Bay, north of Manzanillo. It was love at first two-week visit.
“We began spending more and more time in ‘La Manz,’ including house sitting for people who became friends. Two years ago, we bought a house just a three-minute walk from the beach. It is now our primary residence.
“Meantime, we have kept our US$320-per-month, two-bedroom, two-bath rental in Chapala. We sublet the house to an American snowbird for 6 1/2 months a year. The rent covers more than 10 months of our costs each year.
“About the middle of July, the beach at La Manzanilla starts to get oppressively hot and humid. That’s when we head north and lakeside. We then have three or four months of delightful weather during what qualifies in this region as the off season, which is our favorite.
“We think that we are living the ideal life, splitting our time between the ocean and the largest lake in Mexico…”
Rodney B. writes:
“I never believed that living abroad could be so cheap as it really is. When I retired, I felt that living in the United States was becoming rather expensive for the value of what you get. So we researched options. We ended up buying a home in Brazil near the shore. Our average monthly bills in the United States were US$2,234 a month. Here, the total is US$644. That’s for home payment, food, and going out every Friday night for dinner and a show. We live that life for six months of the year. The other six months we are back in the United States. The cost to live six months of the year in Brazil makes the money go much further back in the States.
“In Brazil, the culture is great, the people are wonderful and friendly and we live like royalty while we’re here. We are now in the middle of deciding if we wish to make the move permanent.
“I would recommend to all my fellow readers that if you’re tired of struggling with life in the United States or if you just want life to be better, then take a look at what so many other countries have to offer. You just have to make a choice to have a better life and enjoy your golden years as they were meant to be…”
Kathleen Peddicord
P.S. Live and Invest Overseas is celebrating a birthday. This month marks our sixth anniversary. And we recognize that we never could have gotten this far or grown this big this fast without you.
Therefore, as a gesture of thanks for your loyalty and your custom, we are making our flagship publication, the Overseas Retirement Letter, available to you for US$1. This weekend, you can take advantage of a limited-time 7-day trial subscription offer allowing you to join the ranks of my Overseas Retirement Letter readership for a dollar.
If George, Hyta, Gerald, Jonathan, Rodney, and the many, many thousands of others we’ve heard from over the years can reinvent their lives in retirement overseas…you can do it, too.
My Overseas Retirement Letter is the tool you need to get up and get moving. And, right now, you can become an Overseas Retirement Letter subscriber for just a buck.
I really encourage you to do just that—right here, right now.