Nemises

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If there is a God why would he allow this to happen What do you mean by “a” God? That makes no sense because a Google search will quickly tell you that there are over 10,000 Gods.

Pics or it didn’t happen.

There are plenty of mainland beaches that look great, but when it comes to going onto a mainland Thai beach, it is usually an uncomfortable experience both on the unbearably-hot sand with a humid, non-cooling breeze …and in the ridiculously shallow, non-refreshing warm water. Yuck.

It’s called a refrigerator. They are found in most houses. They make chilled water (and ice). The chilled water (and ice) is then placed into the water tank of the cooler delivering air up to 10 degrees cooler than room temperature. No one is saying these things work better than an air conditioner in humid conditions. But… in a smaller area and for perhaps as a temporary, cheap solution… using an air cooler with chilled water is a lot more cooler and comfortable than a fan… even in Thailand.

Thanks for the well-wishes. PM sent!

Like Grain said if you tick all of those boxes then no need for an agent …unless you couldn’t be bothered doing it yourself…. which is me! My agent was great, they dealt directly with the TGF. I did nothing Have their details if you choose that path. I’m in Sydney. The TGF arrives next week for her 3rd holiday here - and is also booked for her 4th - in a year!

An air cooler works perfectly in a small area if you replace the room-temperature tank water with chilled water. Doing this often also ensures there can never be any breeding ground for mosquitos.

Feel sorry for the farang who chose to “live the dream” there. Sad really.

According to this Australian report, 4% drawdown is the rule. — We’re living longer, so is the 4% rule a safe guide to retirement spending? by Janelle Ward 11 February 2024, 12:29 am An annual report from financial services company Morningstar puts the spotlight on retirement savings and a safe withdrawal rate. It specifically looked at the ‘4 per cent rule’ and whether it was still sound in the face of increasing longevity. Back in 2022, Annika Bradley, Morningstar’s director of manager research ratings-Australia, told YourLifeChoices that it was time to abandon this retirement spending rule of thumb. She said the 4 per cent rule, which applies to a hypothetical portfolio with 50 per cent stocks and 50 per cent bonds, was convenient and fitted neatly into Australia’s financial planning infrastructure, but that it was too simple. “It doesn’t optimise for a retiree who may: live for a shorter or longer period than 30 years (longevity risk); wish to spend more in the early years of retirement; is unable to stomach market ups and downs, or holds significant levels of home equity.” So what is the thinking in 2024? The State of Retirement Income 2023, written by Christine Benz, John Rekenthaler and Amy Arnott, was released by Morningstar late last year. It had this to say about the 4 per cent rule. “My co-authors and I estimate that retirees drawing down income from an investment portfolio can now afford to withdraw as much as 4 per cent as an initial spending rate, assuming a 90 per cent probability of still having funds remaining after a 30-year time horizon. “That figure is the highest safe withdrawal percentage since Morningstar began creating this research in 2021. (The highest starting safe withdrawal rate based on similar assumptions was 3.3 per cent in 2021 and 3.8 per cent in 2022.)” So, does that mean all retirees can withdraw 4 per cent? Your time horizon matters Not necessarily, says Ms Benz. “Time horizon is super important when thinking about this. In our base case in this research, we assume a 30-year time horizon. So, we’re assuming, say, a 65-year-old who thinks that they will live until, say, age 95. And in that case, when we look at that 30-year time horizon, a 90 per cent probability of not running out of funds over that 30-year horizon, we come up with 4 per cent when we plug it all into our Monte Carlo simulations. “But if you have, say, a shorter time horizon, maybe you’re a 75-year-old retiree and you’re thinking of more like a 20-year time horizon. In that case, you can take about 5.5 per cent according to our research. If you’re a young retiree, say, a 55-year-old with maybe more like a 40-year time horizon, you’d need to be more conservative. You’d need to take more like 3.3 per cent. So, think about your time horizon.” She also says predictability of cash flows must be considered. “If you’re someone who wants a very steady pay cheque equivalent from your portfolio, which is kind of what we assumed in our base case, that generally points to needing to be more conservative in terms of your withdrawal, your starting withdrawal percentage. If you’re someone who is comfortable with more variability, you can arguably take more from your portfolio initially.” Equity exposure Withdrawal rate also depends on equity exposure. Someone who is comfortable with more variability in terms of income stream would probably want to favour more growth assets, more equity assets, the study’s authors say. The highest safe withdrawal percentage corresponds to portfolios that have between 20 and 40 per cent equity exposure, they say. Someone who is comfortable with more variability in terms of the payday would probably want to favour more growth assets. An added dimension to the research was data on how retirees actually spend. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the finding was that people tend to spend less as the years go by, but surprisingly that trend was maintained across income bands. Ms Benz says: “So, when we plug in the extent to which spending tends to actually trend down and we assume that natural downtrend in spending, we see a nice elevation in starting spending patterns. “So, you can get the starting withdrawal rate over 5 per cent. You just have to be okay with that trade-off that further on in retirement, you have to spend less. “But for a lot of people with tight plans who really want to maximise their retirement consumption, their enjoyment in those early years of retirement when they’re feeling good and they have pent-up demand to do fun things, they should take a look at that.” What do others say? The Motley Fool says that blindly following a formula without considering whether it’s right for your situation could lead you to either run out of money prematurely or be left with a surplus that you could have spent on the things you enjoy. It summarises the pros and cons of rule as follows: The rule is simple to follow. You’ll have predictable income. However, it says: It isn’t dynamic enough to respond to lifestyle changes. It doesn’t react to different market conditions. It is somewhat outdated and can no longer guarantee that your funds won’t run short. SuperGuide says the 4 per cent rule and Spend Your Age rule (when you draw down a percentage that is the first digit of your age) are handy tools in the absence of detailed information, but have limits. “For starters, they are based on population averages and you’re not average. Some, like (William) Bengen’s 4 per cent rule, are based on overseas experience. Also, they are based on historic returns, so they won’t tell you with any certainty how the future will unfold.” Of course, if the bulk of your retirement funds are in super, there are minimum drawdown rates based on your age. So the 4 per cent may need no further consideration.

“Thai policeman jokingly reminds a couple of NZers about the All Blacks Rugby World Cup loss to South Africa by one point last October…”

“Some 38% of U.S. men were using some form of DIY hair color, whether permanent or temporary, a 2021 report from research firm Mintel found—up from 34% in 2019” If good enough for American men ….

I’m all in for this.

webfact: “Large crowds gather at Suvarnabhumi Airport to farewell two Swiss guys and Bob”

Gout?

I’m also very patriotic about the homeland. Continue to subscribe to their online newspapers, radio shows and cable TV. Still thoroughly enjoy watching all my preferred homeland domestic sports and cheering at our international sports events etc. But keeping an option open to ever live there again?! OMG absolutely never again and absolutely no reason to. An annual 2 week holiday back there every year to see my family, friends and medical check up with my Dr is 13 days too long!

- some of the most dangerous roads in the world That’s why I drive a BIG truck. - endless bueracracy Doesn’t affect me. Never experienced it any worse than in the homeland - for me anyway. - visa issues Never had an issue. Very easy to obtain - for me anyway. - daily discrimination ( depending on where you live ) Not where I live - shocking air quality That’s why I use purifiers and stay inside on days with poor air quality. - language that's difficult ( but no impossible ) to learn English is spoken everywhere where I live, no need to learn Thai. - banking regulations Have 2 Thai bank accounts. Never had a problem with any “regulations”. - abissmal education system Maybe to some, but irrelevant to me. Should i continue? Yes please

Lots of bored, lonely, bitter guys living in villages. It gives them something to do.

We agree about being able to relocate elsewhere if SH, but I say not necessarily back to your home country. Hence why I was questioning this post: I also think it is a poor decision to move away from a home country without an option to return

And many have not made bad choices. And many have not lost everything. Many have a marvellous life here in Thailand, with warm year-round weather, good health cover, a beautiful house, a gorgeous wife, lots of quick travel to an abundant amount of other countries, cleaning maids, gardeners, investment income streams and more money than they can ever spend after liquidating their assets back home. They have no reason whatsoever to “keep an option to return home”.

Why?

You don’t know 💩. I checked your profile, you live in Nakon nowhere…where you belong 🤣

Or a Laos national working nearby for cheap labour

Crossings with stop lights are just as dangerous - as proven on attached video: Look for the 23 seconds left on the clock to cross “safely” E5426DFB-36FA-4DF1-A1AC-C430B769C4FC.mov

Anyone know his address? I want to go and sit on the beach, one metre from his boundary.