If you didn't live in Thailand, had a high income then were else would you live in Asia?

[RichardThailand]

Asking for a client who has a yearly income that's around £200K ($260K) coming in from the UK and who has no need to work in Thailand other than work out in the gym.   The guy has a wife but no kids is over 50 and is looking for ideas on where to live. He initially focused on Thailand but asked me to try and come up with some suggestions where else in Asia might be a better place to live.  

 

If you had that income, no need to work then would you live in Thailand or some other place in Asia (must be Asia) and if so where?  When answering please also consider that it would need to be a place where he and wife could legally stay for an extended period of time. 

[BestB]

All depends what you wanted out of life.

 

penang in Malaysia is as laid back as it gets. No hassles with visa or much else for that matter. Food is questionable in my opinion.

 

vietnam always gets good reviews.

 

main question that I have why someone with such high income would want to live in south east Asia ?

[Jingthing]

Why limit it to Asia?

They have so many options.

How about Montenegro? Malta? Panama? 

 

[AtoZ]

I love Vietnam, my gf (Thai) as well

 

We go there every year, but stay in Thailand majority of time. At least one of us is local here.

[GinBoy2]

Singapore, or if really really have money central Tokyo

[Jingthing]

14 minutes ago, GinBoy2 said:

Singapore, or if really really have money central Tokyo

Which points out the big question, what is their goal?

They could afford to live in either of those places but their wealth wouldn't be particularly powerful there.

Or pick a lower cost place and be closer to the top level.

 

[manarak]

OP, you need to tell us more about your client's preferences and lifestyle.

 

With that income, your client could live anywhere in Asia, and Asia is pretty big, stretching from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Russia, India,  until Japan, Philippines...

[Dick Crank]

another high income troll thread...

[Puwa]

Singapore

Pros: Clean, safe, sane, central

Cons: Daytime climate is hot and humid year-round, nights ok; boring, grumpy people

 

Bali

Pros: Great climate, beautiful spots, Balinese culture, money goes a long way

Cons: Overrated, dirty, you think Thai roads are dangerous?

 

Malaysia

Pros: Reasonably modern, good food, great value

Cons: Hot and humid, slight f* you attitude towards westerners

 

Japan

Pros: Clean, modern, safe, superb food and culture

Cons: Not cheap, typhoons and earthquakes

 

If it were my choice, I'd go for Japan.

[BarnicaleBob]

Hawaii, has all the resources one needs to enjoy life, the best year around weather, they all speak English (well mostly lol), and Maui, Hawaii would be the best island to live on.  

[manarak]

7 minutes ago, BarnicaleBob said:

Hawaii, has all the resources one needs to enjoy life, the best year around weather, they all speak English (well mostly lol), and Maui, Hawaii would be the best island to live on.  

not in Asia...

[KhunFred]

Singapore. First world but close to all the other interesting places in Asia.

[fxe1200]

Definitely the South of France, for the climate at the Mediterranean , the great food and cooking, affordable wines.

[SpeakeasyThai]

Australia

[OneMoreFarang]

The big questions is obviously if he wants to keep his wife or exchange her for a pretty young local girl (or two). ? 

 

[SpeakeasyThai]

21 minutes ago, fxe1200 said:

Definitely the South of France, for the climate at the Mediterranean , the great food and cooking, affordable wines.

Since when was France located to Asia?

[BritManToo]

If I were 'high income' with a wife, why would I come to Asia?

I'd probably live in the Florida Keys, or San Francisco.

 

Asia is a place men go looking for sex.

[Ulic]

French Polynesia or the Cook Islands. I know not Asia but the waters are clean.

Cheese,  wine, meats all available. Friendly people. 

[connda]

He sounds like he's cut out for Singapore, well, if he like sterile.  Stay here long enough to see the junta's vision implemented then Thailand will truly be "As fun as an Army base but without the ambiance."  Singapore has been there for awhile.  Or maybe Hong Kong, although your friend will 'just be scraping by' on 200K quid in HK. 

[gearbox]

It is hard to say really without knowing what is important for your friend. For me it is access to a good beach (open water swimming), good cycling, good food,  good healthcare,  warm all year round,  good flight connections to travel around, reasonable cost of living.  Different places have different merits. I've chosen Thailand, but Vietnam gets a lot of ticks too. Penang was also a strong contender, I liked it a lot, but the beaches there are mostly unusable for swimming. Singapore is a nice clean place but not much Asian buzz there.

 

I also won't be able to pull $260k per year once I move to Thailand ?

 

[Puwa]

6 hours ago, Puwa said:

Singapore

Pros: Clean, safe, sane, central

Cons: Daytime climate is hot and humid year-round, nights ok; boring, grumpy people

 

Bali

Pros: Great climate, beautiful spots, Balinese culture, money goes a long way

Cons: Overrated, dirty, you think Thai roads are dangerous?

 

Malaysia

Pros: Reasonably modern, good food, great value

Cons: Hot and humid, slight f* you attitude towards westerners

 

Japan

Pros: Clean, modern, safe, superb food and culture

Cons: Not cheap, typhoons and earthquakes

 

If it were my choice, I'd go for Japan.

 

Seoul gets an honorable mention, but bitterly cold in winter.

Hong Kong used to be great, but pollution has made it unlivable. 

[bergan]

16 minutes ago, connda said:

He sounds like he's cut out for Singapore, well, if he like sterile.  Stay here long enough to see the junta's vision implemented then Thailand will truly be "As fun as an Army base but without the ambiance."  Singapore has been there for awhile.  Or maybe Hong Kong, although your friend will 'just be scraping by' on 200K quid in HK. 

There are no countries in the world where you will 'just be scraping by' on 200K quid a year. There are, however, countries where it will be less comfortable than others ?

[Catkiwi]

33 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

If I were 'high income' with a wife, why would I come to Asia?

I'd probably live in the Florida Keys, or San Francisco.

 

Asia is a place men go looking for sex.

Just looking? Actually that's not always the reason for living in Asia, although it can't be ruled out I guess. 

Eastern Malaysia has some really nice locations, Labuan for example, a duty free island with nice beaches, golf courses, good infrastructure, medical centers etc. Much more laid back than peninsular Malaysia. Only draw back is there are no direct flights from any where other than KL. Foreigners can also own land in Malaysia.

[fxe1200]

43 minutes ago, SpeakeasyThai said:

Australia

...you're right mate, the best place for piss, barbecue and outdoor sports.

[smotherb]

9 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Why limit it to Asia?

They have so many options.

How about Montenegro? Malta? Panama? 

 

Oh, maybe because the OP specified Asia.  Some people prefer Asia; I prefer Southeast Asia. I have lived and worked in and out of SEA most of my adult life. Most of my friends and relatives live in SEA. If I had upwards of $20k/mo to spend;  I'd do whatever I wanted, a bit like I do now.

[gamini]

Silly post. Most of us live in Thailand because we love the people and the country why would we want to live anywhere else in Asia if we couldn't live in Thailand. 

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, smotherb said:

Oh, maybe because the OP specified Asia.  Some people prefer Asia; I prefer Southeast Asia. I have lived and worked in and out of SEA most of my adult life. Most of my friends and relatives live in SEA. If I had upwards of $20k/mo to spend;  I'd do whatever I wanted, a bit like I do now.

Yes, perhaps so. 

However, in the case of the OP I read it differently than you.

I felt an implied implication that the wife of the couple might not be eligible to live long term anywhere else than in Asia.

But that is almost definitely not true.

It does depend on their priorities. Do they want a world class city, golfing, a lively art scene coherent to westerners, spectacular housing that they can afford?

At their wealth level they can be a lot more choosy than most of us.

[abrahamzvi]

9 hours ago, BestB said:

All depends what you wanted out of life.

 

penang in Malaysia is as laid back as it gets. No hassles with visa or much else for that matter. Food is questionable in my opinion.

 

vietnam always gets good reviews.

 

main question that I have why someone with such high income would want to live in south east Asia ?

With that sort of income and assuming they have enough capital to buy a condo or a house, the first choice should be Singapore. Apart from the tropical climate, it is an ideal place from many points of view. In this respect, I would refer your friend to the recent survey by InterNations (see note on today's issue of Thai Visa regarding cost of living for Expatriates -Thailand attractive). Singapore offers a pleasant western style of life. It is expensive, even compared to western countries.

[verticalift]

Singapore...!!!

As a Canadian Expat employed as a pilot, I’ve worked in Abu Dhabi and lived in Phuket for the past 20 yrs. Using S’pore as a “Base”, tops my list. Getting on a flight to Bali, Vietnam, or T’land for a short break, is easy.

[smotherb]

4 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Yes, perhaps so. 

However, in the case of the OP I read it differently than you.

I felt an implied implication that the wife of the couple might not be eligible to live long term anywhere else than in Asia.

But that is almost definitely not true.

It does depend on their priorities. Do they want a world class city, golfing, a lively art scene coherent to westerners, spectacular housing that they can afford?

At their wealth level they can be a lot more choosy than most of us.

Yes, you did read it differently. Perhaps I was overly influenced by what the OP said, "He initially focused on Thailand but asked me to try and come up with some suggestions where else in Asia might be a better place to live.  If you had that income, no need to work then would you live in Thailand or some other place in Asia (must be Asia) and if so where? "