The "Best Places to Retire" stories are always really weird to me whether they focus on the US or abroad. It seems to be that they are written by people that have absolutely no idea what they are talking about.
First of all, they don't seem to have a concept of what people do when they retire. If you read those articles, you would be lead…
The "Best Places to Retire" stories are always really weird to me whether they focus on the US or abroad. It seems to be that they are written by people that have absolutely no idea what they are talking about.
First of all, they don't seem to have a concept of what people do when they retire. If you read those articles, you would be lead to believe that retired people either sit on the beach drinking margaritas all day or get up, go out to eat, head to the museum, get ready to go to the symphony, followed by a evening out in a fancy restaurant for dining and dancing. Let me dispel that myth. What you do in retirement is mostly what you did pre-retirement minus going to a job. If you have not built a life outside of work, one will not magically appear when they send you home with your desk stuff packed in a box. All the daily stuff that you do outside of work will still be there. Cooking, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, taking out the trash, caring for pets, cutting the grass, and everything else still will need to be done. You just have a lot more time to do it as you don't have to go to work.
They talk about living somewhere for healthcare. Even given the decline in health that comes with age, if you are in need of constant medical care, you already have gotten those details figured out where you live. Otherwise, you can travel to whatever medical Mecca you need to get that specialized healthcare when you need it. Remember, you don't have a job to go to. They transport patients all the time if you can't manage to get there yourself. Besides, get busy getting yourself healthy and maintain it and you won't be dependent on having all that access to healthcare.
They like to bring up museums. Even if you lived close to a world class museum, how many times are you going to go see the same exhibits? If you are retired, you can take a trip to see as many different museums around the world as you can stand (and afford.) Remember, you don't have to go to work.
So, Social Security may run out. If you are dependent on Social Security for your retirement, you are pretty much screwed unless you want to move to somewhere without any modern conveniences where everyone lives in poverty. By modern conveniences, I am talking about things like running water, public sanitation, food safety, electricity, and such. Save your money to provide for yourself. If you are lucky and collect Social Security, just consider it a bonus.
The "Best Places to Retire" stories are always really weird to me whether they focus on the US or abroad. It seems to be that they are written by people that have absolutely no idea what they are talking about.
First of all, they don't seem to have a concept of what people do when they retire. If you read those articles, you would be lead to believe that retired people either sit on the beach drinking margaritas all day or get up, go out to eat, head to the museum, get ready to go to the symphony, followed by a evening out in a fancy restaurant for dining and dancing. Let me dispel that myth. What you do in retirement is mostly what you did pre-retirement minus going to a job. If you have not built a life outside of work, one will not magically appear when they send you home with your desk stuff packed in a box. All the daily stuff that you do outside of work will still be there. Cooking, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, taking out the trash, caring for pets, cutting the grass, and everything else still will need to be done. You just have a lot more time to do it as you don't have to go to work.
They talk about living somewhere for healthcare. Even given the decline in health that comes with age, if you are in need of constant medical care, you already have gotten those details figured out where you live. Otherwise, you can travel to whatever medical Mecca you need to get that specialized healthcare when you need it. Remember, you don't have a job to go to. They transport patients all the time if you can't manage to get there yourself. Besides, get busy getting yourself healthy and maintain it and you won't be dependent on having all that access to healthcare.
They like to bring up museums. Even if you lived close to a world class museum, how many times are you going to go see the same exhibits? If you are retired, you can take a trip to see as many different museums around the world as you can stand (and afford.) Remember, you don't have to go to work.
So, Social Security may run out. If you are dependent on Social Security for your retirement, you are pretty much screwed unless you want to move to somewhere without any modern conveniences where everyone lives in poverty. By modern conveniences, I am talking about things like running water, public sanitation, food safety, electricity, and such. Save your money to provide for yourself. If you are lucky and collect Social Security, just consider it a bonus.