Best Places to Retire

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The Eight Best Places To Retire In 2013

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The Eight Best Places to Retire |

2013

The Eight Best Places To Retire In 2013 From the Editors of Live and Invest Overseas Published by Live and Invest Overseas Altos del Golf, Loma Alegre, Los Tulipanes St., House #B1, Panama, Republic of Panama Republic of Panama Publisher: Kathleen Peddicord Copyright © 2013 Live and Invest Overseas

All rights reserved. No part of this report may be reproduced by any means without the express written consent of the publisher. The information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Any investments recommended in this publication should be made only after consulting with your investment advisor and only after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

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Table of Contents

Most Turnkey, Expat-Ready Place To Retire: Coronado, Panama........................... 5 Best Place To Retire #2: Medellin, Colombia ........................................................ 12 Best Place To Retire #3: South of France.............................................................. 17 Best Place To Retire #4: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia ................................................. 20 Best Place To Retire #5: Cayo District, Belize ....................................................... 25 Best Place To Retire #6: Cuenca, Ecuador ............................................................ 29 Best Place To Retire #7: Chiang Mai, Thailand ..................................................... 32 Best Place To Retire #8: Granada, Nicaragua ....................................................... 36

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The Eight Best Places To Retire In 2013
Cheapest, safest…best weather, best infrastructure, best health care…most tax-advantaged, and most foreign-resident-friendly. Not to mention most romantic, beautiful, exotic, historic, and adventure filled… We sent our scouts around the world to find the best, the most comfortable, the most affordable, and the most convenient locations for retirement in 2013. And the winners are: Coronado, Panama; Medellin, Colombia; the South of France; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Cayo District, Belize Cuenca, Ecuador; Chiang Mai, Thailand; and Granada, Nicaragua. Each of these places has its drawbacks, of course. No place is perfect. But, all things considered, these six locations offer the greatest opportunities for enviable overseas retirement living in 2013. To help launch your thinking, we provide here an introduction to each of these eight top retirement havens. We’ll continue this conversation, with more on the world’s top choices right now for living and retiring overseas, in your free e-letter dispatch, the Overseas Opportunity Letter, which you’ll be receiving from us each day.

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Most Turnkey, Expat-Ready Place To Retire: Coronado, Panama
Monthly budget: $1,800 Monthly rent: $600 For the potential retiree or foreign resident, Panama offers big and unequaled advantages—warm weather and lots of sunshine, a low cost of living, a foreign-resident-friendly tax system, one of the best banking systems in the world, a stable political situation, a bright economic outlook, and the world’s best program of discounts and perks for foreign retires…better than the famed pensionado program that operated in Costa Rica throughout the 1980s. Panama makes more sense now than ever. Panama has effectively sidestepped the recession that has crippled much of the rest of the world and continues to enjoy solid economic growth and a positive future outlook. Since taking office July 1, 2009, President Ricardo Martinelli has made ground-breaking changes…most of which forward Panama further along the path of progress and of political and economic stability. Is Panama Right For You? Still, Panama is not for everyone. Panama City is often compared with Miami, and the similarities are many. You’ve got to remember, though, that Panama is the developing world. Devout Europhiles argue it’s the Third World. It depends on your perspective, but, bottom line, life is going to be different here than you’re used to. Maybe more different than you’re ready for. Don’t come to Panama if you’re bothered by barking dogs in the middle of

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the night, blaring boom boxes at all hours, or the constant honking of car horns. Don’t move to Panama (especially not to Panama City) if you don’t want to own a car or if you’re an avid walker. This is not a city for strolling. The infrastructure may be the best in the region, but the sidewalks can be so cracked and broken that you’ve often got to tip-toe your way down the street. The only reasonable way to get around is by car. Yet, as the city’s population continues to expand, so does the number of vehicles on its streets. Some days it seems like rush hour extends from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. On this front, relief could be forthcoming. The government is constructing a metro system that should ease traffic headaches and make getting around Panama City much easier. If all goes according to schedule, the new metro should be completed by the end of 2013. Until then, be prepared to brave the chaos every time you cross town. For A More Peaceful Retirement, Look To Coronado Your cost of living will be much lower, and your quality of life could be better (depending what, for you, qualifies as “quality”), if you’re willing to live outside Panama City. Most of Panama’s small interior towns offer a laid back, affordable lifestyle. The beach town of Coronado, only an hour from Panama City, offers many amenities you’d expect from a larger city. Indeed, Coronado offers the most turn-key, most expat-ready ocean-front lifestyle available in Panama. Foreign retirees living in Coronado have already paved the way, leaving you little to do for yourself to create a familiar, comfortable, English-speaking atmosphere. Moreover, in a town like Coronado, not only your rent, but your transportation costs, as well, and your monthly entertainment bills, too, will www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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be lower, maybe significantly so, than in the capital. It's fear of the unknown that keeps many people from making the move overseas. In Coronado you can rest assured you'll find like-minded folks, all living out their dream retirements on the beach, ready to mingle and welcome new neighbors. For many years, Coronado's main purpose was to serve as the vacation getaway and weekend home for those who could afford a retreat outside the capital. Over the past few years, though, as Panama City has grown busier, dirtier, noisier, and generally harder for many retirees to take day-to-day, Coronado has transformed into a full-time retirement community. On the Pan-American Highway at the turnoff to Coronado, three new shopping centers have sprung up, along with a number of restaurants. This area today has everything the retiree could want or need, from a medical clinic to a brand-new gym, from three major supermarkets to a dry cleaner, from a Mailboxes Etc. to a golf course, even an equestrian school and three international schools. And, remember, you're only an hour from Panama City, with its Johns Hopkins-affiliated hospital, 18-screen movie theaters, nightlife, shopping, and casinos. Some of the homes on the beach are magnificent. Some are old-fashioned and have been around for many years, while some others are modern, fancy, even slightly futuristic-looking. Something for everyone, including smaller homes in the US$250,000 range. If you're willing to look on the outskirts of town, even right across the street in the hillside town of Las Lajas, homes can be found for less. No matter where you go in Panama right now, you’ll find better real estate prices than we’ve seen in a few years. Though the ongoing global recession has had only minimal impact in this country, it has served, indirectly, to deflate the ballooning property market. Boquete is another place where owning in Panama has become more appealing than it’s been in years. The sometimes super-inflated prices of yesteryear are no more, and Boquete is more within the financial reach of would-be expat retirees today than it has been in a long time. www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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Note that Panama is the one of a few Latin America markets where it’s possible to borrow locally as a foreigner for the purchase of real estate. You will have to jump through some hoops, but if you’re willing to push through the bureaucratic red tape, and you qualify, you can be rewarded with up to 80% LTV financing. Note, too, that Panama’s banking sector is stable and solid. Furthermore, Panama is one country that rolls out the welcome mat for foreign retirees. With a monthly pension of just US$1,000, you can qualify for a pensionado visa and all the rewards that come with it, including discounts from 15% to 50% on everything from movie tickets to in-country airfares, even closing costs on your real estate purchase. Why else does Panama make sense? Specifically, Panama offers: • Affordable First-World health care Panama’s health-care facilities—built to U.S. standards ever since the U.S. ran the Panama Canal—are the best in Central America. You’ll find nearly every health-care service you could need, at a fraction of the cost, and with a level of personal service (remember house calls?) you may have forgotten ever existed. • Generous incentives for investors • The world’s best program of discounts and other benefits for foreign retirees  As a Panama pensionado, you save on almost everything, including incountry airfares, hotel stays, restaurant meals, prescription drugs…even closing costs when buying a home. • First-world infrastructure Panama offers the most reliable Internet in the region, not to mention the best cross-country road system, domestic flights, reliable water and electricity supply, satellite TV, four cellular service providers competing www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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against each other, and, it seems like every day the Martinelli government is announcing even more ambitious plans, like the Panama City Metro, highway expansions, new domestic airports, and easier residency programs. • Great shopping Thanks to its position as one of the world’s premier trading centers (and its canal), you’ll find anything you might want in this country—everything from Benetton and Burberry to the latest electronic gadgets, and any American comfort food you could name. • One of the world’s biggest international banking centers Panama is one of the world’s few remaining offshore tax havens. • A U.S. dollar-based economy (since 1904) Americans face no currency-exchange risk. • Favorable tax legislation for foreign residents Foreign residents pay tax in Panama only on money earned in Panama. When it comes to taxation, this is as good as it gets for the foreign resident or retiree. • A stable political system Panama’s government is as stable as it’s ever been and President Martinelli wants Panama to compete on an international level. He’s weeding out the corrupt politicians of yesterday, and replacing them with people who want to work for a better Panama. • A fast-growing economy and a bright economic outlook • Safety and security Panama is one of the safest places in Central America. There are poor areas and a definite division between the “haves” and the “have-nots,” but there is little random violent crime. Panamanians are friendly and they welcome foreigners, both as tourists and as residents. And, after eight decades of American involvement in the running of the Panama Canal, they’re well-accustomed to Americans among them. www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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The family circle is important in Panama, much more so than in the U.S., as is religion. • A natural wonderland The world doesn’t know it yet, but Panama is a natural wonderland. Its expansive rainforests are among the richest and most complex on the planet. It’s the only country where jaguars and pumas prowl only a short drive from the capital. It’s also the only country where you could wake up over a cup of fresh coffee and a Caribbean sunrise and unwind later that same day with an ice cold cervesa Panama and the sun setting of the Pacific. Panama’s vast, road-less jungle are home to more than 940 recorded bird species and 105 endangered species, including the Central American tapir, the American crocodile the scarlet macaw, and many species of eagle. Off Panama’s shores are some of the best diving, surfing, boating, deep-sea fishing, and snorkeling anywhere. The advantages for the would-be retiree, expat, entrepreneur, and investor in this country right now are too many and too great to ignore. Further Information on Panama: Panama Starter Kit – Our ever-expanding and comprehensive Panama publication package. Note that a subscription to the Panama Letter (below) includes free access to the entire kit. The Panama Letter – The comprehensive monthly Panama e-zine in which we bring you the real Panama…warts and all. The Panama Letter brings you the real Panama, warts and all. This is your chance to discover what it is really like to live in this country, without the sugar coating. This is the good, the bad, and the ugly, brought to you by a team of insiders, with, among them, decades of firsthand experience living, investing, and doing business in Panama. Understand, with their help, the opportunities that are right for you in the world’s top retirement, lifestyle, investment, doing-business, and embarking-on-a-new-adventure haven. Each monthly issue spotlights a different top choice in Panama, from Panama City to Las Tablas, from Santa Fe to Boquete. Glossy magazines and websites tell you the best of Panama; the Panama Letter introduces you to www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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all Panama. Live and Invest in Panama Conferences – The only way to truly experience Panama…to determine if it’s a place you could call home…or a place to invest. The Panama Circle – The premier hand-holding VIP service we offer in Panama. Includes real estate vouchers of up to $3000, free conference attendance for life, a personal trilingual assistant, access to all of our Panama publications for life, and much, much more. Our Panama Country Page – Maps, photos, and general demographic, tax, and government information. For a complete list of publications and services, visit our Live and Invest Overseas Online Store. If you have general Panama-related questions, you can reach our editorial team at: [email protected]. Recommended Resources For current real estate opportunities in Panama and the surrounding beach areas you can get in touch with our preferred Panama real estate agency, Inside Panama Real Estate. To view listings or schedule a real estate tour, get in touch here. Attorney Rainelda Mata-Kelly in Panama City is our number-one resource in this country, not only for legal issues, but also for all questions related to visas, residency, citizenship, taxes, property purchase, holding structures, corporations, banking, and investment incentives. You can get in touch with Rainelda here.

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Best Place To Retire #2: Medellin, Colombia
Monthly budget: US$1,700 Monthly rent: US$500

Colombia’s city of springtime and flowers offers a superior quality of life for far less than you’d expect. Medellin makes a good impression immediately and on many levels. Architecturally, this city is lovely. Built almost entirely of red brick, with most every structure topped by a red clay tile roof, the place is pleasing in its consistency, especially when viewed from some height. It appears a sea of red clay tiles and red brick buildings interspersed regularly by swatches of foliage and flowers. The effect is calming and peaceful. Medellin is impressively green, with trees, plants, and small gardens everywhere, and, as it’s remarkably clean. In the central neighborhoods, you see no litter. The metro, a point of pride for the local population, is spotless and like new. Medellin is a pretty, leafy city, a safe, peaceful, welcoming place. That’s a good starting point. But would this city with such a troubled past be a good place to chart your own course, an appealing place to plan to spend time in your retirement? What is it about this city? Here are some things you should know about this area. First, real estate in this country is priced in pesos, meaning you have to remember the exchange rate, which fluctuates daily. The U.S. dollar has been strengthening against the peso for the past few months, but who knows where the exchange rate will stand in the future. Also note that exchange controls and other bureaucratic restrictions are in place. As an early expat in Colombia, you would need to be prepared to www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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navigate the system. This market is still in what I refer to as the “workaround stage.” There are pensionado and rentista visas available, if you qualify. The pensionado visa requires a guaranteed pension income equivalent to three times the Colombian minimum wage monthly (about US$1000 at the time of this writing); the rentista requires a guaranteed income equivalent to 10 times the Colombian minimum wage (about US$3000 at the time of this writing). Note that the required monthly income amounts fluctuate with the exchange rate. If you don’t qualify for the pensionado or rentista visa, your options are an “Executive” or an “Investor” visa. To qualify for the Investor Visa, you must invest a minimum of US$200,000 in real estate or US$100,000 in a non-real estate investment. To acquire full-time legal residency without investing that much money, your option is to set up a corporation outside Colombia and apply, as the owner of that corporation, for an Executive Visa. As I’ve mentioned, this is a bit of a workaround and may or may not be a good idea for you. Note that it does not give you a work permit, only a residency visa. Medellin makes sense both for full-time living…and part-time If you’re not up for the hassles, the current uncertainties, and the risks involved with working around the system to acquire legal full-time residency, consider part-time retirement to Medellin instead. Plan to spend up to six months a year in this City of Flowers…and the other six months at the beach maybe, in Panama, say, or Nicaragua, or Belize. Another big plus is the climate, which is temperate year-round, and is nearperfect. As it’s situated on the side of a mountain, the altitude of Medellin ascends from around 1,500 meters to 1,800 meters. The surrounding mountains rise to more than 2,500 meters. Temperatures range from 16 to 30 degrees Celsius (60 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit). The rainy season is during the second half of the year, but it’s mild (that is, prolonged rainy

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periods and flooding are uncommon). Next, Medellin is culturally and recreationally rich and diverse. Living here, you'd never want for something fun and interesting to do. On any given day, you could go hiking or bike riding. You could visit a museum or one of the many shopping malls. You could see a tango show or an opera (in season). Come evening, you could dance the night away (tango is a national pastime) and sample the local rum in one of the bawdy nightclubs or enjoy a fine meal and white glove service at one of the many international-standard restaurants. Day-to-day costs in Medellin are on par with those in Panama City, which is to say they’re not ultra-bargain basement. A bottle of water in a corner shop, restaurant meals, taxis, and movie tickets all cost more or less what they'd cost in the Panamanian capital. The difference, of course, is that the cost of everything fluctuates in U.S. dollar terms every day. Bottom line, the cost of living here would be greater than in Ecuador, for example, or Nicaragua; on par with that in Panama City; less than in Argentina. One notable cost savings living in Medellin would have to do with utility expense. Thanks to the climate, you could live here with neither heating nor air conditioning, meaning your utility costs could be almost negligible. This could reduce your overall monthly budget by as much as US$200 or more. However, the real cost advantage of Medellin has to do with real estate. This market today is like the Panama City market about a decade ago. That is, it qualifies as a screaming bargain. El Poblado is the top end of the market, for both renting and buying. Here you're looking at US$1,000 to US$1,500 per square meter to purchase resale (sometimes furnished); US$1,500 to US$2,000 per square meter to buy new; and US$1,000 (for a one-bedroom) to maybe US$3,000 (for a luxury-level penthouse) per month to rent, furnished. Again, that’s the top of the market. In less recognized, more local neighborhoods, those prices can fall in half and more. Right now, for example, you could rent a one-bedroom apartment in the Laureles neighborhood (a neighborhood that we found to be safe, pleasant, and up-and-coming…a very good budget choice compared with more central and more discovered El Poblado) for as little as 850,000 pesos a month, maybe less. In the more local middle-class Florida Nueva neighborhood, you www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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could rent a two-bedroom apartment for 650,000 pesos a month, or, again, maybe less. The general consensus among expats in Medellin is that a retiree needs between 1.5 million and 2 million pesos to live in this city comfortably. That’s a budget for living a comfortable lifestyle. You could probably live on less, if you’re willing to go completely local. And you certainly could spend more, two or three times as much, to live like a king, as they say. One of the appealing things about Medellin is that this is a place where a luxury level lifestyle is available if you’re interested in pursuing and paying for it. This isn't true of all places we recommend. The current cost of renting or of investing in your own second or retirement home in this city is an absolute (as opposed to a relative) bargain. Bundle this with the quality of life on offer in Medellin, and you understand why this city is near the top of our cheapest places to retire in 2012 list. Further Reading To find out more about living and retiring in Medellin, Colombia, have a look at the full report we’ve published on this beautiful City of Flowers and Springtime. For maps, photos, and general demographic, tax, and government information, check out our Colombia Page on the Live and Invest Overseas website. In addition, stay tuned to your daily Overseas Opportunity Letter dispatch from Publisher Kathleen Peddicord for specific opportunities and regular updates on Medellin. Recommended Resources For all legal matters, including thinking through which residency options might work in your situation, we recommend Juan Dario Gutiérrez, one of the partners in the firm Gutiérrez Márquez Asesores. You can reach him directly here. Rich Holman, a native of Texas who established a real-estate agency in Medellin five years ago, is the first person to visit when you want to rent or

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buy property in this city. Get in touch with him here. To find out more about this beautiful country join us at our annual Live and Invest in Colombia Conference. Colombia is one of the countries we feature in our How To Retire Overseas Kit, a brand-new first-ever two-part kit to help you, first, consider all the world's current top options at once (20 destinations in total), while arming you with the practical support you'll need to make your retirement dreams come true as easy and hassle-free as possible. Get in touch here for more information.

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Best Place To Retire #3: South of France
Monthly budget: $2,000 Monthly rent: $800 France is a land of superlatives. Its capital has been named the most beautiful, most romantic, and most touristed city on earth. Its wines, cheeses, restaurants, shopping, castles, gardens, parks, beaches, museums, cafes, galleries, vineyards, country villages, medieval towns, art, and architecture are all among the best that the world has to offer. The typical concern for anyone who has ever dreamed of a new life in France is that it's too expensive for the average guy or gal to consider seriously. Not so. Paris isn't cheap, but elsewhere in France you can find realistic options even if your retirement budget is modest. Specifically, for retirement in 2013, I'd recommend the "other" South of France. Not Provence (which, yes, is pricey), but west of there, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region, between Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur to the east, the Midi-Pyrenees to the west, and the Auvergne to the north. Spain is a few hours' drive to the south. Not everyone is cut out for life in the Tropics or the developing world. If you prefer Old World living, this is perhaps your best option right now. This region is colorful, eclectic, always changing, never following a formula, and very open to retirees. This is wine country, with a long history and a lot of heart. After scouting options in the Americas from Mexico to Costa Rica to Panama for a year, Lucy Culpepper and her family decided that life in the New World was not for them. Instead, they sought out the traditions, charms, and culture of life back on the Continent. When they decided to focus on Europe, they could have settled anywhere. They chose France, specifically the village of Cessenon-sur-Orb in Languedoc. The “other” South of France is a region www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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of the country that Lucy and her husband found to offer all the best of French country living at a very reasonable cost, even for their family of four. This unsung part of France delivers an extraordinary and hard-to-match quality of life for every euro invested. Languedoc is historic, colorful, eclectic, always changing, authentically French, and, at the same time, very open to retirees. Villages here date from prehistoric times, but the feel of this part of France is medieval. The living is simple and traditional while still offering all the services and amenities of the 21st century. My second France-beyond-Paris pick is a corner of the country so tucked away that even the French find it hard to place on the map. The Béarn region, in the southwest of France, has everything the would-be retiree interested in Continental country life could be looking for. From the Romans to the Renaissance and the Belle Époque to Art Deco, there's history to be enjoyed at every turn. This area also has gorgeous scenery, rolling wooded countryside, and friendly people. The majestic mountains of the Pyrenees dominate the views and beautiful beaches are just a short drive away. How big, exactly, would your budget need to be to afford a new life in France? You could live in Paris on a budget of 1,500 euro per month, not including the cost of housing. But you could call one of my favorite French country regions home at a cost of about 1,000 euro per month, again, not including housing. If you’re looking for a French country renovation project as part of your retirement plan, in the current market, this is an almost irresistibly tempting and realistic idea. You could purchase a cute and cozy old farmhouse for around 70,000 euro. Of course, some renovation work would be required. How much is a matter of perspective. Maybe you’d be happy with basic but quintessentially French living quarters or maybe you’d want to do your French country house up more elaborately. In places like Cessenon-Sur-Orb,

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Cazedarnes, and Villespassans, you could own a little townhouse of your own for the equivalent of US$100,000 or less. And France is one country where it's a relatively straightforward process for foreigners to borrow locally for the purchase of real estate. France is not only perhaps the best place in the world to live, thanks to its food, wine, architecture, history, museums, parks, gardens, and cultural and recreational offerings, but it's also, thanks to its reliable tourist trade, one of the best places to think about parking some capital. A rental property in France is about as recession-proof a real estate investment as you're going to find. France is the world's best example of getting what you pay for. There are reasons France sees more tourists than any other country in the world, almost 80 million of them annually. To accommodate all those tourists, the infrastructure of this country, from the airports to the train system, from the restaurants to the hotels, has to be top notch and it is. Further Reading France Starter Kit – a one-of-a-kind bundle of resources intended to help you to experience France, not as a tourist, but with the help of long-time residents. You can access full reports on France and other retirement havens here. For maps, budgets, photos, and general demographic, tax, and government information, check out the France Country Page of the Live and Invest Overseas website. France is one of the countries we feature in our How To Retire Overseas Kit, a brand-new first-ever two-part kit to help you, first, consider all the world's current top options at once (20 destinations in total), while arming you with the practical support you'll need to make your retirement dreams come true as easy and hassle-free as possible. Get in touch here for more information.

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Best Place To Retire #4: Kuala Lumpur,

Malaysia
Monthly budget: US$1,250 Monthly rent: US$500 Malaysia is a tropical paradise. Beautiful islands and beaches, cool mountain retreats, great food, a diverse and multiethnic culture, excellent shopping, and a low cost of living...Malaysia has it all. Plus, the infrastructure and health care are modern and efficient. English is widely spoken. Entertainment ranges from street celebrations to casino gambling, from amusement parks to mountain climbing, from jungle trekking to championship level golf, and from Formula 1 racing to world music festivals and philharmonic orchestra productions. World-renowned diving and snorkeling destinations are never more than a few hours away. And here's the cherry on top: The Malaysian government makes it surprisingly easy to live long-term in this hard-to-resist Shangri-la. Malaysia makes it easy Unlike other countries in Southeast Asia, Malaysia actively encourages foreign residents to relocate here. Excellent incentives are available if you qualify for the Malaysia My Second Home Program. And, even without attaining this special immigration status, Malaysia is an easy country to live in less permanently. Most westerners arriving in Malaysia receive a Social Visit Stamp upon entry. www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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This is not technically a visa, but it permits you to remain in the country for up to 90 days. To stay in Malaysia longer than 90 days, you could, as many people do, take a short trip into a neighboring country for a day, then return that afternoon, receiving a brand-new 90-day Social Visit Stamp upon reentry. Many foreigners have lived in Malaysia this way for years. Here's your better option: Apply for the government-sponsored initiative called the Malaysia My Second Home Program, or MM2H. About 12,000 foreign residents are already participating and enjoying the benefits. Unlike in many Asian countries, Malaysia's MM2H program is available to foreigners of all ages. It gives you a multiple-entry visa good for up to 10 years, allows your spouse, children, and parents to reside in Malaysia along with you, and, under certain conditions, even allows you to hold part-time employment or to have a business in the country. Perhaps the biggest benefit of MM2H status is the tax status it gives you. As a MM2H resident in Malaysia, all your foreignsource income, including pension, interest, and dividend income, as well as foreign earned income, is exempt from Malaysian taxes. Note, though, that income from employment or business within Malaysia is taxable. Kuala Lumpur—steeped in history and tradition Life in Kuala Lumpur is different than it is in the West. Unlike so many places in Asia, foreigners are genuinely welcomed in Kuala Lumpur. Language isn’t a problem—almost everyone speaks adequate English. It is taught in the schools and is the primary spoken language for many Malaysians. In some Asian cities, it’s easy for a foreigner to feel something akin to a walking wallet. Not so in KL. Here, foreigners pay the same prices as the locals. People want to know you. Health care is first-rate, public transportation is modern and efficient, and the tap water is safe enough to drink. Beautiful beaches are just a short drive or flight away, cool mountain retreats can be reached in less than an hour, and the thriving city-state of Singapore is easily accessible in a few www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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hours by car, train, and bus or an hour by plane. It’s an easy city to stay in for a few weeks…or even a lifetime. Although KL is more expensive than rural Malaysia, it is marvelously inexpensive by Western standards. You can realistically expect to cut your living expenses by a third and still enjoy a lifestyle comparable to what you are accustomed to now. Kuala Lumpur is one of the most affordable, modern cities in the world. Regardless of your interests, you can always find something fun to do in Kuala Lumpur. As the cultural, financial, and political center of Malaysia, KL attracts ambitious and creative people and enterprises from throughout the region. Galleries, concerts, and museums abound. Parks are carefully planned and maintained. Sports and athletic venues, both indoor and outdoor, are scattered liberally throughout the city and many more attractions can be found within a short drive of the city limits. KL is a gastronomic nirvana. From cutting-edge fusion cooking to centuries-old traditional fare, you could eat at a different—highly regarded—place every day and never get to the end of the list. If you live in KL, be assured you won’t run out of things to see, eat, or do. Kuala Lumpur has seven golf courses and several more in the near vicinity. The upscale KL Golf and Country Club offers excellent golfing for members and nonmembers alike. Senior members can enjoy nine holes for around US$25, and younger non-members will pay about US$67 during the weekdays. The many markets throughout the Klang Valley can’t be missed. Indoor flea markets offer almost every item imaginable, from kitschy statues of Mao Tse Tung to old LP record albums and collector comic books. The indoor (and airconditioned) Pasar Seni (Central Market) offers wide selections of handicrafts, food, and art. The discerning shopper with good bargaining skills can pick up prized items at very reasonable prices. Outdoor markets are part of the KL experience, too. A visit to the huge Chow Kit Market or one of the dozens of smaller morning and evening markets are great opportunities to purchase good-value produce, meat, fish, household items, and clothing.

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Unlike many other Asian countries, the sheer diversity of Malaysian culture guarantees that there is a very good selection of food for all tastes. Hundreds of restaurants catering to local tastes offer up a delicious array of Malay, Chinese, and Indian food. You can eat very well in KL on a very low budget, with meals at these restaurants generally costing under US$3. If you really want to eat “on the cheap,” try one of the many excellent vendors selling food in the outdoor markets. Here, fresh char kway teow (a noodle and shrimp dish similar to Pad Thai) is prepared as you watch, stirfried in a hot wok and served steaming hot for about US$1. A chicken drumstick served with rice, green beans, peanuts, and soup will cost around US$1.25, and a plate of delicious fresh curry puffs will cost US$1 or less. KL supermarkets are well stocked with both local and imported goods, all at reasonable prices. When you first move to Malaysia, or to any foreign country for that matter, it’s advisable to rent for six months to a year before you purchase property. English-language newspapers, such as The Star and the New Straits Times, have large classified sections with many rental listings. Since English is widely spoken throughout Malaysia, English-speaking foreigners can often simply call the property owner and make a viewing appointment. Rent in KL is surprisingly affordable. Unfurnished two-bedroom condominiums of 1,000 square feet and larger, in attractive parts of town, start around 750 RM per month. If you prefer a fully furnished condominium, expect prices to begin at around 1,500 RM per month. Modern, twobedroom and three-bedroom fully furnished condominiums in upscale neighborhoods will generally start in the neighborhood of 2,500 RM. People who love living in the city but can’t afford the price tag that generally comes with an urban lifestyle will want to consider living in Kuala Lumpur. With so much to do in the city, and its convenience as a transportation hub to almost every place in Asia, active retirees will find more than enough opportunities to experience the wonders of this part of the world. People hoping to live cheaply, yet still enjoy modern conveniences and products from their country of origin will be pleasantly surprised with KL. Malaysia’s welcoming immigration policies makes living long-term here easy. Exceptional health care, widespread use of English, and advanced infrastructure makes life easy. From mountains to beaches, busy malls to

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tranquil parks, fine imported foods to tasty street cooking, it’s easy to see why so many people find that KL has it all. Further Reading For more nitty-gritty details on living, investing, and doing business in Malaysia, access our country reports here and the Country Page on our website. For specific opportunities, remember to stay tuned to your daily edition of the Overseas Opportunity Letter. Recommended Resources For more information on the Malaysia My Second Home residency program, go here now. Mike Soo, our trusted residency and real estate resource in Malaysia, can answer all your questions about living, retiring, and investing in this country. Get in touch with him here. Malaysia is one of the countries we feature in our How To Retire Overseas Kit, a brand-new first-ever two-part kit to help you, first, consider all the world's current top options at once (20 destinations in total), while arming you with the practical support you'll need to make your retirement dreams come true as easy and hassle-free as possible. Click here for more information.

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Best Place To Retire #5: Cayo District, Belize
Monthly budget: $1200 Monthly rent: $600 Belize is a quirky country. Belize City's roadways are built around a system of roundabouts (thanks to her British colonizers), but shops alongside them sell rice, beans, and tortillas still ground by hand. Everyone you meet speaks English (it's the country's official language), but this belies the stories of their origins. The 350,000 people populating Belize today are descendants of migrants from Britain, but also, more so, the surrounding Central American countries. You've got Mexicans, Guatemalans, Hondurans, and Nicaraguans mixed with current-day generations of the Maya who originally inhabited this land, the pirates who came later, the Mennonite farmers who began arriving on the scene in the 16th century, the British who ruled until 1981, and each other. Belize is a country of freedom-seekers. The pirates came to ply their pirate trading out of view. The Mennonites came from Germany and the Netherlands so they could be Mennonites without anyone bothering them. The British came to do their banking in private. And the folks from the surrounding countries have made their way across Belize's borders over the decades in search of safety. The early English in this part of the world were under such constant pressure from Spain that they were reluctant to establish any formal government to manage Belize for at least a century. From the beginning, as a result, Belizeans had to be self-sufficient. These two founding characteristics remain the driving forces behind Belizean culture today. The country has always attracted expats who value independence and freedom. Today a new population of freedom-seekers is finding its way to these shores: American retirees.

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Belize is a nation of independent thinkers and doers, a country where you make your own way and where, while you're doing it, no one is making any attempt to thwart your efforts, including the Belize government. This is a poor country. The government doesn't have enough money to get up to any real trouble. And, if they tried, the Belizeans wouldn't allow it. The focus here is on very local-level government--addressing the crime problems in certain southern sections of Belize City, for example, or trying to dissuade the Guatemalan banditos who occasionally wander over into Belize in search of a couple of good horses to steal. Arriving in Belize, stepping off the plane, and walking across the tarmac to the one-room arrivals hall of the airport, you have a sense of leaving the rest of the world behind. Belize and her people operate according to their own rules and mind their own business. The troubles, uncertainties, and worries that seem so all-consuming stateside and elsewhere in the world right now fade away here. You're faced with a land that remains a frontier, undeveloped and oozing potential. Belize is also one of the most user-friendly places in the world to establish foreign residency, and a place where a retiree could enjoy a back-to-basics lifestyle on a modest budget. You could buy a building lot in a planned community for as little as $25,000 and build your own home for as little as $100,000. Belize is also a top choice if you’re interested in a “sustainable life” or “resilient living”–an opportunity to live off the grid, completely self-sufficient. Good friends in this country have been living the sustainable life for more than three decades, since long before it was a fashionable idea. In 1977, Mick and Lucy Fleming traveled from Great Britain to Belize. They had but US$600 in their pockets. For Mick and Lucy and Belize, it was love at first sight. They fell in love especially with the country’s Cayo District, a region of rain forest, rivers, mountains, and Mayan ruins. As soon as they could scrape the money together, Mick and Lucy bought a remote piece of property in the Cayo, on the Makal River. And they lived off the land. The only way in to their property back then was on horseback or by canoe, up the river. www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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That was more than 30 years ago and, today, Mick and Lucy have developed their Chaa Creek property into the most impressive and most applauded rain forest eco-resort in the country, rated the Best Eco-Resort in all the Caribbean by Caribbean Travel & Life four years straight. A visit to Chaa Creek qualifies as a luxury experience these days. However, it’s still very possible to have the back-to-basics, off-the-grid experience that first attracted Mick and Lucy to this part of Belize so many years ago. Today, the Cayo District, is the fastest-growing area in the country. The lush tropical rain forests you find here, the abundant freshwater rivers, the largest underground cave system in the Western Hemisphere, and the fertile Belize River Valley once supported hundreds of thousands of Maya. Today, they support 21st-century adventurers and environmentalists looking to escape to a simpler, sweeter life. Easy retirement residency In 1999, Belize created an incentive program for retirees called the Qualified Retirement Persons (QRP) program, offering duty-free concessions and other benefits for official residency. Minimum requirements were established in order to attract more retirees to Belize. The applicant must be 45 years of age, show a monthly income of US$2,000, and provide some basic documentation, such as identification, background check, and medical examination. The concession allows the retiree to import all personal household effects including a vehicle, boat, and aircraft duty-free.

Further Reading Belize Starter Kit – a one-of-a-kind bundle of resources intended to help you to experience France, not as a tourist, but with the help of long-time residents. You can access full reports on Belize and other retirement havens here. For maps, budgets, photos, and general demographic, tax, and government www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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information, check out the Belize Country Page of the Live and Invest Overseas website. Belize is one of the countries we feature in our How To Retire Overseas Kit, a brand-new first-ever two-part kit to help you, first, consider all the world's current top options at once (20 destinations in total), while arming you with the practical support you'll need to make your retirement dreams come true as easy and hassle-free as possible. Get in touch here for more information.

www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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Best Place To Retire #6: Cuenca, Ecuador
Monthly budget: US$1,300 Monthly rent: US$500 Ecuador is one of the most affordable places in the world to retire. Also to buy or rent a home. It‘s very accessible from the U.S.—you can fly direct from both Quito and Guayaquil to Miami, Atlanta, Houston, New York, and Atlanta. Temperatures are constant year-round, as is the length of each day. In Ecuador you can count on 12 hours of daylight 365 days a year. In the mountains, temperatures are cool and comfortable, spring-like, 12 months a year, in the range of 50 degrees Fahrenheit in the evenings, to 70 degrees in the daytime. Health care is excellent in the cities, particularly in Quito and Cuenca, which boast hospitals with state-of-the-art equipment and specialists in all fields. A visit to the doctor can cost just US$20; a specialist charges US$25. An added bonus: Ecuadorian doctors spend 30 to 45 minutes with each patient. As a general rule, health care costs are 10% to 25% of those in the U.S., and local in-country health insurance is available for a fraction the cost in the States. Enjoy Special Benefits if You Are a Foreign Retiree Foreign retirees in Ecuador are eligible for discounts:      50% off all public transportation 50% off national and international airfares 50% off all cultural, sports, artistic, and recreational events 50% off electricity, water, and telephone service A special discount on property tax

As a foreign retiree you also receive relief from Ecuadorian income tax and, www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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best of all, you never have to stand in line; seniors always go to the front. Cuenca and its colonial splendor Cuenca‘s large colonial historic center lies just a short distance from the airport. I‘m always impressed by its wealth of colonial homes, their interior courtyards, thick adobe walls, and iron-railed terraces looking down onto the street. Residents and visitors alike enjoy the beautiful plazas, magnificent churches, and cobblestoned streets, whose first traffic pre-dated the arrival of the Incas. But expat retirees want more. Besides treasuring the city‘s rich culture and colonial charm, they want to take advantage of a cost of living that‘s among the lowest in Latin America...real estate prices that are unheard-of in a city with such a rich quality of life...an unbeatable retiree benefit package...and a thriving expat community surrounded by a warm and welcoming people who make you feel like you really belong. If you‘re coming to “try Cuenca on for size,” you‘ll need a furnished rental. There‘s no better preview of what it‘s like to be a resident. You can expect a modern, luxury furnished rental to cost between US$500 and US$850 per month, varying with the size, location, and length of stay. In this case, I would plan on spending around US$1,200 per month. However, you could live in Cuenca for less. You could rent a “local-style” apartment for about US$100 a month. For this, you’d get maybe 600 square feet in an older building with no doorman or garage. Alternatively, invest in a home of your own in Cuenca, an apartment or one of the charming colonial houses the city is known for, and you can live on a monthly budget of US$700. The Spanish spoken in Cuenca is crisp, clear, and relatively formal, making it a great place to learn the language. In fact, language- learning is a thriving business in Cuenca, with international students in residence all year. www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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If you‘re not already a fluent Spanish-speaker, I‘d strongly recommend attending one of the excellent language schools in town, such as the renowned CEDEI or Abraham Lincoln cultural centers. If you don‘t learn Spanish, you‘ll be able to get by. But you‘ll be confined to (and dependent on) a small circle of English-speakers and miss much of the rich, cultural experience that the Spanish-speaking expats enjoy every day. When you consider all that Cuenca has to offer the overseas retiree —and what it costs to live here—you’ll agree that, for many, there‘s no better deal out there. Plan a trip, have a look, and get ready for an exciting life in the Andes. Further Reading We published a full report on this little Andean gem, which includes an overview of the real estate market and comprehensive information on what to do in the city and how much the cost of living is. You can access it here. For maps, photos, and general demographic, tax, and government information, check out our Ecuador Page on the Live and Invest Overseas website. Also, for ongoing coverage of Cuenca and elsewhere in Ecuador, be sure to read the daily Overseas Opportunity Letter by Kathleen Peddicord. Recommended Resources For help with legal issues you can Bruce Horowitz (e-mail: [email protected]), while our correspondents Mike Sager (email: [email protected]) and David Morrill (e-mail: [email protected]) are on call for anything real estate-related. Ecuador is one of the countries we feature in our How To Retire Overseas Kit, a brand-new first-ever two-part kit to help you, first, consider all the world's current top options at once (20 destinations in total), while arming you with the practical support you'll need to make your retirement dreams come true as easy and hassle-free as possible. Click here for more information.

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Best Place To Retire #7: Chiang Mai, Thailand
Monthly budget: US$1,100 Monthly rent: US$400 Thailand is arguably the cheapest place on earth to live well. Our friends Paul and Vicki, on-and-off residents of the country for more than two decades, have long been teasing and tempting us with tales of US$1 Pad Thai lunches and US$11-a-night hotels (including breakfast and free WiFi)… Thailand has three very distinctive areas. The capital, Bangkok, located roughly in the center of the country, is the largest city. Fascinating in many ways, it‘s worth seeing at least once—if you‘re traveling to Thailand, you‘ll almost certainly have to pass through its airport. Farther south, extending for nearly 600 miles along a narrow peninsula, lay hundreds of idyllic beaches, dense vegetation, and tropical islands. Many foreigners choose to make central or southern Thailand their home, but probably more people end up settling around Thailand‘s “third country,” Chiang Mai. Across Thailand, the standard of medical care is very high and costs are extremely reasonable. This has helped to make the country a popular destination for medical tourists, who find it much less expensive to fly to Thailand and receive treatment there, than it would be to have the same procedure done in their home country. Exotic living on a budget—Chiang Mai The city of Chiang Mai, with a current population of nearly 240,000, has existed for over 700 years. The heart of Chiang Mai lies within its old city walls. Here, dozens of ancient and modern Buddhist temples coexist with public and international schools, residential and commercial neighborhoods.

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Street markets and festivals occur almost nightly, and a huge array of restaurants catering to all tastes can be found within walking distance of almost anywhere in the Old City. Chiang Mai has grown beyond the ancient walls, though, and extends for several miles in every direction. Large shopping complexes are located along the superhighway, a multi-lane, controlledaccess ring road that circles the outskirts of the city. Several “mega-malls” and huge multi-national grocery and department stores line the access roads to the Superhighway. Chiang Mai is an inexpensive place to live by almost any standard. With housing prices so low, it’s no wonder so many expats have chosen to make Thailand their permanent home. Unlike some cities, foreigners here are more likely to integrate with the locals and live in any area in and around Chiang Mai. One popular area is the neighborhood near the trendy Nimminhemin Road. Upscale condominiums are conveniently located near excellent restaurants and a good foreigner infrastructure, close to English-speaking dentists, internationally accredited hospitals, and within a short walk of the Old City. With an abundance of restaurants, offering a huge array of Thai, Oriental, and Western cuisines, you won‘t go hungry around Chiang Mai. Along the main streets of the Old City are rows of mainly inexpensive restaurants catering to Western palates. Everything from fine Italian food to Greek gyros, fresh sushi, vegetarian wraps, Indian food, German cuisine and English fishand-chips are easily found, as well as excellent Thai and Chinese food. Along the banks of the Mae Ping River, not far from the Wororot Market and just across the Nawarat Bridge, are many higher-end restaurants with loyal expat followings. Scattered throughout the city and shopping areas are restaurants in all price ranges, many serving fine international cuisines. You can buy a comfortable expat-standard house in Chiang Mai for as little as US$100,000; however, as a foreigner, you cannot hold title to the land, only www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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to the construction. Alternatively, you can rent a furnished house in the city for around US$400 per month. If you own your place, the estimated monthly expenses you’ll incur will be of around US$650, and of US$940 if you rent. For a long time, the Thai city of Chiang Mai has been luring expats from the West. Some come for the weather; others are attracted to the low cost of living. High-quality health care and health-related services are important draws for retirees. Housing prices are very affordable, and foreigners rarely have problems purchasing condominiums or, in some cases, real property. Whatever the reason, at least 17,000 foreigners have chosen Chiang Mai as their home. Could you be next?... Further Reading We’ve published a full report on Chang Mai, which includes an overview of the real estate market and comprehensive information including cost of living and activities. The report is available here. For maps, photos, and general demographic, tax, and government information, check out our Thailand Page on the Live and Invest Overseas website. Thailand, as well as other top destinations in Asia, are covered in our Around Asia package, available here. Recommended Resources Real Estate Chiang Mai Properties (sales and rentals) Tel. (Gai) +66(0)89700 2261; e-mail: [email protected] Tel. (Nai) +66(0)89700 1368; e-mail: [email protected] Chiang Mai House (sales and rentals) 2/7 Serm Suk Road, T. Chang Puek, A. Muang, Tel. Office: +66(0)5340 4035 Mobile: +66(0)89756 8137 Satihoga-Tropical Homes (sales and rentals) 79/157 Moo 2, Chiang Mai-Doi Saket Rd. T. Taladkhuan, A. Doi Saket; Tel. +66(0)89953 4981

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An attorney we recommend is Rene-Philippe Dubout, whom you can contact by e-mail at [email protected]. Thailand is one of the countries we feature in our How To Retire Overseas Kit, a brand-new first-ever two-part kit to help you, first, consider all the world's current top options at once (20 destinations in total), while arming you with the practical support you'll need to make your retirement dreams come true as easy and hassle-free as possible. Get in touch here for more information.

www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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Best Place To Retire #8: Granada, Nicaragua
Monthly budget: US$1,300 Monthly rent: US$500 Nicaragua is a beautiful country with loads of sunshine and two long coasts. It is a land of lakes and volcanoes, of cloud forests and tropical jungles, of cattle ranches and Spanish colonial cities, of rare orchids and white-faced capuchin monkeys. It is also very affordable, not to mention safe. You‘ll find most goods and services in Nicaragua cost significantly less than in your hometown. Regular public transportation (buses and taxis) amounts to about US$20 a month. Eating out twice a week (and avoiding the Dom Perignon) will dent the wallet approximately US$100 a month. A furnished one- or two-bedroom house rents for about US$500 a month; water charges are US$7; and it’s US$2 for garbage removal. Allow US$100 for basic food staples...and your reasonable budget adds up to US$877 a month. For maid service, add another US$60. Special legislation benefiting retirees In August 2009, Nicaragua became an even more enticing destination for the foreign retiree. The Nicaraguan government passed a new residency law (Law #694) that increased the tax exemptions and other benefits for foreign retirees. Specifically, the new law allows foreign residents to bring up to US$20,000 worth of household goods and personal belongings into the country duty-free; to pay no duty when importing a car valued up to US$25,000; a tax exemption of US$50,000 of the VAT (value-added tax) of construction materials to build a house to live in; and to pay no taxes on out-of country earnings. The minimum age for eligibility is 45. The minimum www.liveandinvestoverseas.com

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income requirement to qualify for the resident program is US$600 for retirees and US$750 for people with private incomes (income from investments, stocks, rents, etc.). Add US$150 for each dependent. Granada The Spanish first landed in Nicaragua in 1522. Two years later the Spanish Conquistador Francisco Fernandez de Cordoba founded Granada, which considers herself the oldest city in the Americas. She was intended, by the Spanish, to be a statement of elegance and a reflection of the original Granada in Spain. The new Granada, on the shores of Lake Nicaragua, has suffered a long cycle of destruction at the mercy of buccaneers and earthquakes. Yet this old girl continues to dust herself off and re-right her crown, and today she shines. Granada is home to hundreds of expat retirees, from North America and Europe, who’ve been at work fixing up the city’s old haciendas and opening taverns and eateries in the town center for the past dozen years. They’ve added a new and appealing dimension to life in Granada. Granada's current renaissance is thanks to private and public funding. Spain has restored some of the major thoroughfares with palms and paving. The rest of the rehabilitation is being carried out by wealthy Nicaraguans and retiring expatriates from the world over. The bandstand in the park has been painted, and the park itself is clean and inviting. There's a new hospital nearby, donated by the Japanese. How much to live here? All things considered, a budget of US$1,200 to US$1,400 per month should keep you nicely, including rent of about US$500, which should be enough to afford you a comfortable, high-end home. HOA fees are not commonly paid by apartment renters, as they are in Ecuador. This would buy you an expat-standard life; as anywhere you could live like a local for considerably less.

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One of the key attractions for Granada, along with its super-low cost of living is its classic-style Spanish colonial architecture. Today, thanks to the collapse of Nicaragua's property market in recent years, real estate prices in Granada, as in Cuenca, are below the magic $1,000-per-square-meter mark. That is, today, you could buy one of Granada's old colonials for as little as $50,000. You could spend much more, of course, but, whatever your budget, you'll have lots of options. The city boasts lots of inventory of some of the most impressive Spanish-colonial structures in the world. Their center courtyards are typically open-air and often contain swimming pools. Granada has most of what you’d need right in town, and it’s a city laid out for walking. You could live here without investing in a car. For longer distances, buses and taxis are easy to come by and cheap. Here’s how an average budget for retired life in Granada would break down: US$500 a month for rent; US$50 a month for transportation; US$20 a month for gas (used for hot water and cooking); US$20 a month for telephone; US$30 a month for Internet and cable TV (which come bundled); US$360 for food; and US$200 for entertainment. Add US$180 a month for full-time houshold help if you want it. If you invest in your own home, you won’t have rent, but you will have an HOA fee (if you buy into a private residential community; count on about US$75 a month), property taxes (US$50 for a large house in the city), and the expense of homeowner’s insurance (US$95 for that same property). Your budget overall as a homeowner would amount to about US$900 a month. Again, add US$180 a month for full-time household help. Nicaragua is another place where it can be affordable to keep a car. You’ll pay US$12 a month for your registration; US$70 a month for insurance; US$50 a month for maintenance; and US$60 a month for fuel (depending on use). Note that Nicaragua’s currency is the córdoba, which normall underperforms the greenback. So, while a falling dollar can erode the buying power of the U.S. expat abroad, the faster-falling córdoba can normally be counted on to offset that in Nicaragua.

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Further Reading You can access full reports on Nicaragua and other retirement havens here. For maps, budgets, photos, and general demographic, tax, and government information, check out the Nicaragua Country Page of the Live and Invest Overseas website. Nicaragua is one of the countries we feature in our How To Retire Overseas Kit, a brand-new first-ever two-part kit to help you, first, consider all the world's current top options at once (20 destinations in total), while arming you with the practical support you'll need to make your retirement dreams come true as easy and hassle-free as possible. Get in touch here for more information.

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Further Live and Invest Overseas Resources Overseas Retirement Letter
Top 2011 Retire Overseas Options Revealed In Full Cheapest, safest, friendliest...best weather, best infrastructure, best health care...most tax-advantaged and most foreign resident-friendly... Plus most beautiful, romantic, exotic, historic, and adventure-filled…Find out more here.

Overseas Retirement Circle Membership
Members of our Overseas Retirement Circle are part of an inner circle working together, with full support from us and complete access to our extensive Live and Invest Overseas resources. Find out more here.

44 Things You Must Know Before You Relocate, Retire, Or Invest Offshore
The nuts-and-bolts support you need to live, retire, and invest overseas with confidence. Find more here.

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Top Health Insurance Options For The Retiree Abroad
Health insurance is a top priority for anyone considering a move overseas. Within the pages of this two-manual kit, learn the difference between local insurance and international policies. Find more here.

Global Property Investor's Marketwatch
As founder of International Living's Global Real Estate Investor, Lief led his readers to a number of remarkably profitable investments in markets from Croatia to Mexico...from Argentina to the coast of Spain...from Romania to Honduras... Now he shares his unique and extensive experience with members of his Global Property Investor's Marketwatch. Before you take off for your new life in Paradise overseas, let us show you...find here more.

Live and Invest Overseas Live Events
The best way to consider the best options for your new life overseas. Our live events introduce you not only to our key overseas experts for each country, including local attorneys, insurance providers, bankers, real estate professionals, tax advisors, residency consultants, and more, but also to expats and friends who’ve already launched new lives in the world’s top havens…and who can tell you, from firsthand experience, of the advantages and the disadvantages, the pluses and the minuses, the distresses and the delights…and why they’ve never looked back! Go here now to review our entire calendar of events.

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A Publication of Live and Invest Overseas

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