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Taxes, Prices, Healthcare, Insurance, Banking, Beaches, Mountains, and the Price of Milk and Bread in Central America

By Jane Goodwin | June 14, 2007

U.S. News has compiled a list of the ten best places for the non-rich to retire abroad in comfort and style, rating everything from the country’s accessibility to and from the States to its tax benefits (or burdens) on a scale of 1 (poor) to 3 (tops.)

Here are the categories:

A. Accessibility
B. Climate
C. Cost of living
D. Fun quotient
E. Medical care
F. Real estate
G. Safety/risk
H. Taxes

And here are the scores:

Belize: 1;3;2;2;3;2;2;2
Costa Rica: 2;3;3;3;3;2;2;2
Honduras: 1;3;3;2;2;3;2;3
Nicaragua: 2;3;3;2;2;3;3;3
Panama: 2;2;3;2;2;2;1;3

People are retiring younger and healthier than ever these days, and most of them want not only rest and relaxation, but also adventure, excitement, and just plain fun. The combination is becoming more and more important in their choice of a retirement location. Compared to thirty years ago, over four times the number of retired Americans - three million or more - have chosen to live overseas.

Narrowing down the possibilities is sometimes difficult, because there are so many beautiful and desirable locations, but after taking into account taxes, real-estate prices, ownership restrictions, healthcare, insurance, banking, beaches, mountains, and the price of milk and bread, more and more people are choosing Central America.

It also happens that retirees choose their retirement location based on places they vacationed years ago, and fell in love with. It even happens that soldiers stationed in a certain place decide, years later, that that they were happier in that place than in any other.

And when they get older, they move there, forever.

The end.

Sphere It

Topics: Culture, Government Incentives, Recreation, Prices, Transportation, Friends and Family, Travel / Relocation, Real Estate, Destinations, Healthcare, Money and Taxes, Lifestyle, Retirement Overseas |

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