Where is the best place to retire? My last post,http://notjustforboomers.blogspot.com/2013/07/where-is-best-place-to-retire.html ,pointed out that the United States is not necessarily the best place to retire. According to one recent survey, the US fares no better than 19th. So, where is it that people do like to retire? At least some Americans are choosing one of our neighbors to the South. And no, it is not Mexico. It is Costa Rica.
According to an article in today's Wall Street Journal Market Watch, "Retire Here, Not There", the author points out that about 50,000 US retirees now live in Costa Rica.http://www.marketwatch.com/Story/story/print?guid=400B10B2-E366-11E2-ACAD-002128040CF6 The article discusses the opinion of some researchers that Costa Rica is one of the happiest countries on earth.
Interestingly, Americans can assume residency status in Costa Rica if you can show that you have at least $1,000 per month in retirement income.One potential benefit of residency is that you can enroll in the Costa Rican public health care system for as little abs $55 per month.
Not everything is cheap there. Housing in some of the beautiful beach towns can run as much as $4000 per month. The article discusses several of those beach communities and includes several beautiful photographs. It is well worth a view.
Showing posts with label best place to retire. Show all posts
Showing posts with label best place to retire. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Where is the Best Place to Retire?
Many boomers are asking themselves "Where is the best place to retire?" No, I'm not talking about the best city or state in the United States. What I'm referring to is the best place in the world. And no, it is not the United States as most people probably think. According to the Natixis Global Retirement Index, the best place to retire in the world is Norway! The United States is not even in the top ten, according to that study. It ranks 19th in the world, behind countries including the Czech Republic and Slovenia. For those who are interested, of the 150 nations surveyed by Natixis Global Asset Management, S.A., the sponsor of the study, Zimbabwe ranked last.
Now, like most studies, this one is largely subjective, but the study did attempt to categorize the most important things most people are concerned about in retirement: health, material well-being, finances and quality of life. Here is what the study said about the U.S.:
HEALTH: The U.S. ranks 23d in this category. Although we have the highest per capita spending on health care, many other countries have greater access to care and the U.S. lags many of the developed countries in life expectancy.
MATERIAL WELL-BEING: This is a measurement of per capita income. Although per capita income is one of the highest, we also have a higher degree of income inequality than many nations, including Poland, Slovakia and Singapore. The U.S. ranks 38th in this category.
FINANCES: The U.S. ranks 28th in this category, largely because of questions about the sustainability of Social Security. Canada, Brazil and Mexico all are ahead of the U.S. in this category.
QUALITY OF LIFE: While Americans generally have expressed a high degree of satisfaction with life,, because of its lower scores on environmental measures, it ranks 26th in this category, behind Costa Rica and Belize, among others.
This survey raises some disturbing questions. Obviously, the United States is a great place to live and retire. This survey raises the issue of whether we can do better. Let me know what you think.
Now, like most studies, this one is largely subjective, but the study did attempt to categorize the most important things most people are concerned about in retirement: health, material well-being, finances and quality of life. Here is what the study said about the U.S.:
HEALTH: The U.S. ranks 23d in this category. Although we have the highest per capita spending on health care, many other countries have greater access to care and the U.S. lags many of the developed countries in life expectancy.
MATERIAL WELL-BEING: This is a measurement of per capita income. Although per capita income is one of the highest, we also have a higher degree of income inequality than many nations, including Poland, Slovakia and Singapore. The U.S. ranks 38th in this category.
FINANCES: The U.S. ranks 28th in this category, largely because of questions about the sustainability of Social Security. Canada, Brazil and Mexico all are ahead of the U.S. in this category.
QUALITY OF LIFE: While Americans generally have expressed a high degree of satisfaction with life,, because of its lower scores on environmental measures, it ranks 26th in this category, behind Costa Rica and Belize, among others.
This survey raises some disturbing questions. Obviously, the United States is a great place to live and retire. This survey raises the issue of whether we can do better. Let me know what you think.
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