Retire Like Royalty in a Foreign Country

I've talked before about the idea of retiring in style south of the border -- how you can often live like a king or queen in Central and South America for a fraction of what it costs to live in the United States. For those people who will be well short of the needed financial resources at retirement, and there are a lot of them, this is a very viable option.

Consider these benefits of retiring in a foreign country from Money Central:

The answer for a growing number of Americans making the leap into early retirement is moving to a country with a lower cost of living. The U.S. State Department estimates some 4 million Americans live abroad, not counting military and embassy folks. About a quarter of those are estimated to be retirees.

Poke around on the Web, and you'll find a whole industry devoted to retirees looking to live like a despot on $15 a day -- usually under tropical skies with daily maid service and umbrella-bedecked drinks thrown in for good measure.

But it's not all fun and games. This option really works best for the right kind of people. What kind is that? According to Money Central, here are the qualities that will make someone a good fit to live in a foreign country:

• You're willing to make new friends
• You're open to experiencing a new culture
• You're not a Type A personality
• You're willing to do some research
• You have an exit strategy

I can only claim to have three of the five traits mentioned here, so I'm not so sure that this option would work for me. In addition, I'm well on my way to saving for a great retirement here in the States, so I don't really need this solution to make retirement work for me. That said, I wouldn't mind a tropical sky with daily maid service and umbrella-bedecked drinks thrown in for good measure. :-)

Comments

[Andrew K.]

Panama is where I'm headed when I get "old" enough... its the next Costa Rica, and SO beautiful (not to mention cheap).

[Hmmm]

$$$ will go to dogs and Other currencies will climb in next 20 years. Artificial dominance of the US through military geopolitical axis will definitely subside and will come to an end! So stop counting chickens before they are hatched, make barbecue of it when sun shines instead.

[Tara H.]

Panama isn't cheap. Their currency is the US dollar and their prices are similar to the US. Costa Rica is quite cheap, as is Nicaragua. In fact, Nicaragua is cheaper and is being developed for eco-tourism in hopes of being the "next Costa Rica."

[JD]

This comment is to Hmmmmm, who are you calling dogs? Just because other people may not be anglo english like americans it does not mean they are dogs. You are the dogs you racist scums. All countries in the world are foreign to other countries so stop being so negative to other human beings. On the day of judgment God will judge who the dog is, it is people like you. This website is about living like a king/queen in a foreign country which is cheaper than the country that you live in with the money that you make won't get you much where you are but will get you alot elsewhere such as maid service, very low cost living, and much more. So don't be scared, mean and negative to spend your money in another country.

[Chosen One]

JD: You who wrote, "who are you calling dogs?" You are as angry as you are undereducated. Hmmm wrote that the US dollar will go down the toilet, become worthless, be useless, go to the dogs. It is an expression. No animals or people were harmed! Hmmm was actually putting Americans down and pointing out that our dominance is mostly via hype and military bullying. JD, you're just full of good ol' hate and venom. Take a pill.