Where in this world??? retire?

Show all answers

OLGA C

You would do well to consider The Isle of Bute in Scotland. Totally unspoilt, plenty of Victorian villas overlooking the sea at a good price, or flats even cheaper. You could even get State housing at cheap rent. Health and Education courses are free, so is dentistry. You get a free ferry pass and a free bus pass for the whole of Scotland. from Wemyss Bay (the ferry port on the mainland) there are buses and trains (your pass gets you half-price) to Glasgow International and Glasgow Prestwick Airports. Prestwick has RyanAir cheap flights to London, Paris, Latvia, Poland etc while the Intermational has cheap Easyjet and lots of regular flights out. The trains and buses are really good and you don't need a car, in fact with the cost of petrol and the ferry charge having one is rather stupid. When the weather gets grim here you can take off to Crete or Spain or anywhere which out of holiday season is very cheap and has sunshine.
For the Isle of Bute read more on http://del.icio.us/RogerMortimer

Hilton Scouser

Why would you leave Canada?

Lyndsay G

New Zealand is AMAZING! Best of luck with your retirement.

jade

sunny and warm florida, but thats where i would like to live, but definetly some where with a warm climate, where you take things as fast or slow as you like and thires plenty to do and see if you wanted to,or you could just sit back and relax, hope you find somwhere lovleyXX

SteveN

First, congratulations on reaching the retirement plateau. You should be able to look forward to relaxing and enjoying the extra time off.

Keep in mind that many retirees find it difficult at first with all the spare time on their hands, and they decide to take up a part time job or a hobby just to keep active.

As for where you should retire, that is really a personal preference for you. The climate, the cost of living there, and the things to do in the area will affect how much you enjoy retirement in that community.

So here are some things to think about:

1) Do you want to be in a larger city so you have public transit, people to meet and do things with, and access to many things? Or do you prefer solitude, relaxing in a hammock on a veranda in front of a quiet wooded area or stream? Those images show the two extremes you can take. You need to determine which is better for you.

2) Are there any health concerns? Do you have a history of diabetes, heart conditions, or other diseases that may need to be treated on a regular basis? Even if you do not currently, you may want a home located within driving distance of a hospital and/or pharmacy for checkups and prescriptions.

3) Do you like certain sports or hobbies? For example, if you plan to take up golf and get a membership somewhere, you won't want to drive an hour or more to the course each day you want to play.

4) What can I afford? If you are getting 760 pounds per month as a pension, that works out to over CAD$1500 a month. If you are renting, that means that you need a place that is affordable so that rent, food, utilities (heat, electricity, water), and entertainment (TV, internet) are not going to be more than the money coming in. Don't forget annual taxes, such as income tax, school tax, water tax, and any other taxes that a community may charge in the area you select.

Even something simple like sales tax may affect you...Example: In Quebec, we pay a provincial 7% sales tax and a federal 6% goods and services tax. Add those taxes to many items you buy in the stores (except some items considered necessities). If you look at a place like Alberta, there is no provincial sales tax, just the federal one. And if you go to New Hampshire in USA, there is no state sales tax there...(one of five states that does not have a sales tax). If you buy $10,000 worth of items each year, a 5% sales tax would add $500 to your annual costs.

Best thing to do would be to pick a few places that you THINK would be great to retire to, then find out the costs and processes involved in retiring there to live.

tropicaltraveler

Well it rrally depends what you prefer. Weather, language, etc. cause I would say Panama. Its beautiful there. Lowest crime rate in all of Central and South America. Very "americanized" meaning you can get what you need. Big mall, starbucks, etc..
Houses are cheap, like a decent normal house. Especially in areas like Gamboa right off the canal. It does get really hot there but you could easily put in air conditioning. They take american so your money would be worth around 1,505.17 USD a month. I think you could easily live off that. Anyways thats where im headed one day..or at least going to buy a house and visit often.

http://www.movetopanama.com/

freeside49

victoria bc and surrounding areas (nanaimo, parksville, sydney) on Vancouver Isalnd.. popular retirement as weather mild.
so is the Okanagan Valley in BC Kelowna, Penticton etc... Osoyoos very popular. much drier than the coast/

Time travler

I'm retired myself and what I found is to retire in a place where you are close to everything. Since I'm from the U.S., I can't be specific, but somewhere warm is good too. I actually sold our regular home and moved to a 55 and older community in the Napa Valley. We have a beautiful swimming pool and hot tub(heated by underground geothermal hot springs), a club house for events and parties, lots of lawn that we don't have to take care of, and it is easy to walk to town. I am surrounded by vineyards and a mountain. It also does not snow here. So, come down here to the Napa Valley and join me in this beautiful place.

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: