Posted on 08/13/2010 4:26:50 PM PDT by cll
Jason and Elizabeth Pearce moved from Canada to Belize three years ago. They bought a piece of property on the sea. A year later, they built a house. Today, they live in a beautiful Santa Fe adobe-style home with gardens all around.
The pair lives very comfortably, without wants or financial worries. They've had no trouble making friends in their new community because the folks in Belize speak English. They eat out three or four times a week. They barbecue lobster and filet mignon at home. They have reliable Internet to keep them connected to the outside world.
By choice, they do not have a television. "I used to think that the news was important," Jason explains. "But not anymore." The retired couple has a maid and a gardener, each of whom visit once a week. And here's the best part. Jason and his wife are living on their Social Security income alone.
In fact, they're living on Jason's Social Security income alone. Elizabeth's Social Security check goes into savings each month. Everyone's spending habits are different, but here's a sample monthly budget for a couple living a comfortable expatriate lifestyle in Belize:
--Rent: $300
--Utilities, telephone, and Internet: $500 (Your biggest expense in this country.)
--Groceries: $150
--Health insurance: $50
--Entertainment: $100
--Car expenses: $300
One of the most appealing things about Belize as an overseas retirement choice is that it can make sense even if you're nowhere near conventional retirement age. Through Belize's Qualified Retired Persons program you can establish foreign residency as young as age 40. Belize is a beautiful little country. It's a peaceful, eco-tourist retreat home to more than 540 species of birds, 4,000 species of flowering plants, and 700 kinds of trees.
(Excerpt) Read more at finance.yahoo.com ...
In spite of its natural beauty, Belize is an impoverished nation. If you're into third world living then this might be the place for you.
The place I’m retiring to can beat that all day long:
http://www.LivingInThePhilippines.com
BTW, there are already quite a few FReepers living there...
Have you ever seen the HGTV show “House Hunters International”? They’ve had several shows on Americans buying in Belize, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Seems to be a trend.
” Violent crime, especially in areas of Belize City, remains a serious concern. Read the Department of State’s Background Notes on Belize for additional information.”
State Dept site.
“The place I’m retiring to can beat that all day long:
http://www.LivingInThePhilippines.com
BTW, there are already quite a few FReepers living there...”
Count me in on that My wife is planning our place there now.
I always wanted to visit there. We share Spanish colonial ties and what they endured during WWII and what the Filipinos did for our POWs during that time and many other reasons. I also have quite a few Army buddies who are from there.
Thanks for the link.
the place is third world but the way things are going in the states it make look better in a few years, can i take my firearms?
Me? I'm retiring in England, I hear the health care is great!.:=)
All of this is swell until some Marxist thug takes over the country. Of course, that could be said about the US too.
...The upbeat tone this article reminds me of an intro to an episode of “Locked Up Abroad”.
I’ve been to Belize, and I would never go back.
All of the nicer houses have bars on the windows and/or barbed wire fences around them.
The local museum has not a single work of art by a local artist; just Mayan artifacts and press clippings about famous hurricanes.
Thirty years ago I got an investment newsletter written by an American expatriate living in Belize. The newsletter ended suddenly when the author was murdered by some Belizeans who lured him out in the country to inspect a piece of real estate.
Think of the worst place to live in the USA, and it’s probably nicer than Belize City.
Who can get health insurance for 50 bucks/month?
I am sure it is some real quality coverage </sarcasm>.
“and at times it seems as if there are no rules for anything”
That pretty much sums up life in the Caribbean...
You hear the healthcare is great in England? ... So, you’re already deaf. That explains some of it, anyway.
“BTW, there are already quite a few FReepers living there”
I am now past 18 months here, and there is no amount of money
that would get me to go back to the USSA.
I spend a total of about $700 per month, but can get by on as little as $500 for two of us. That is for rent, food, wine, internet, and travel.
I am 100 ft. from the beach.
ROFLOL!
What area are you in that it’s so inexpensive?
Fine for some, buy I say move to Appalachia- it’s cheaper, and safer.
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