I'm retired gross income $15,000 per yr. considering on moving to Mexico or Philippines,where best $ value.???

Question

olso which country would be the saftest and the easys to get into and stay for long extended time......thankyou

Answer 1

I'm doing my research now to retire in Mexico at some point whenever my business sells. I'm leaning towards the Lake Chapala area. Mostly because of the gringo community that's already there--other people to ask who's a good dentist/doctor; etc.  Plus there are lots of benfits to being a member of the Lake Chapala Society--see the first link below.

There's a wide range of house prices.Click the second link and click SEARCH PROPERTIES to see if there's anything that looks good to you.

And there's good webboard on Chapala.com to get answers about living there.  See the third link below.

But the thing you should really think about doing is taking a trip o Mexico to check it out and explore different areas.  I've been there about 24 times and travelled through 18 of the 31 states.  The first decision you need to make is: do you want a coastal town or a mountain town.  A costal town is pretty hot in July and August. Whereas a mountain town is pretty temperate throughout the year, but you may need a electric blanket for two weeks in January.  You can drive across the border and check out many towns if you get 180 days on your FMT (tourist visa).  Leave your money at home and hit the ATM as you need pesos.  this will give you an idea as to whether you would like living in Mexico.

A good book to read before you go is: The Plain Truth About Living in Mexico: The Expatriate's Guide to Moving, Retiring, or Just Hanging Out.  See the fourth link below.

If you have any more questions, feel free to email me anytime.  I've been researching my move for two years now.

Answer 2

I would say Mexico. You can live confortably with 15000 a year.

Try the American and Canadian community around Chapala lake in Jalisco. Ajijic, to be more specific.

Answer 3

well.. i know that $1 (canadian) equals 48-50 pesos in Philippines... somewhere around there. i don't know the exact.

Answer 4

To legally retire in Mexico with an FM3 visa, you must have provable income of about $1200 a month.  It is quite possible to live modestly, but decently on that.  However, if you choose to live in a touristy city or one of the huge gringo retirement communities like around Lake Chapala, or Ajijic, you will find those places to be VERY much more expensive...most people in these areas  are of a higher income and prices are higher where there are many gringos.  There are many areas where expenses are much lower than in those places.

Answer 5

ok, my friend`s father is also retired and the safest bet is that Mexico is more cheap than the philippines. Although im not sure if you would be interested in moving to Panama or someplace like Colombia where time extension is not a problem, specially in panama.

Answer 6

Sorry,  not sure but have you thought about Thailand?  I have a father in law that has lived there for about 3 years.  Think about it.