Where in South America??

[Jingthing]

38 minutes ago, Eindhoven said:

 

Huh? What? Depends where you live. I took a penthouse and various other properties in Miraflores. I walked to and around the surrounding districts.

Though of course if there is a perception, then you feel might uncomfortable anyway. I walked everywhere day and night and didn't feel uncomfortable, even when walking through what looked like low income areas.

But then I specialise in exploring interesting areas.

Cannot say I had a problem with the weather, even though it is strange. You think it's going to rain but it never does. 

Filthy? Not where I visited.

 

 

Yes I stayed in Miraflores. If sitting at a Cafe you need to attach any bags to the furniture. Of course it's among the safest districts there. The beach in Lima was filthy when I visited. Maybe they cleaned it up.  Rents there are also expensive by South American standards.

 

Anyway happy to hear that you enjoyed it. Personally I couldn't picture myself living  there. Everyone is different about places that click or don't click for them. Kind of like relationships. 

Edited March 15, 2021 by Jingthing

[Jingthing]

20 minutes ago, cheshiremusicman said:

After watching Anthony  Bourdains travel programmes ( No reservations) I would choose Uruguay - low crime rate, nice climate and decent hospitals etc.

Be careful about copying the life of Bourdain too faithfully. That was a good episode. I recall he particularly related to a certain melancholy temperament among the people. 

[Jingthing]

58 minutes ago, moontang said:

Was actually born in Miami... there is more South American culture there, than many places in South America. My old hood is all Venezuelans.  

Yeah I get the feeling that South Americans particularly wealthy ones consider Miami to be part of South America.

[moontang]

Since we did stray off a little with comments on other destinations in Latin America, any comments on Cuba?  Cigars, pretty girls, nice beaches, chicken and rice... is it even thinkable?  And that reminds me of bad Internet.. which countries are notably good and bad for Internet? 

BTW, thanks to everyone for being interesting and informative.  

 

[wpcoe]

6 hours ago, Jingthing said:

About Argentina and yes I've been there I think there are good reasons why it isn't very popular with retired expats. For examples too much bureaucracy with the visa process, overly restrictive banking regulations for foreigners, and a history of swinging between predictable financial crises.

One time I visited Argentina the financial crisis, including foreign exchange rates, was so bad I couldn't use an ATM to withdraw funds from my USA bank.  The peso was dropping so fast that a bank would lose money in the time it took to get the approval from the USA bank and the time the transaction actually cleared between the two banks.  Granted, that's not normal, but it can (and did) happen.

[rms499x]

On 3/14/2021 at 8:16 PM, bwpage3 said:

You use to surf and got robbed every single time? And you kept going?

Then you claimed to live in many countries in South America?

Yet recommend Curacao and Grand Cayman as places to retire not having a clue how expensive they are? Curacao is more expensive than the US. Grand Cayman: over 100% more expensive than in most European countries and the United States.

There are awesome affordable places to retire in South America that they love expats. Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Argentina, Ecuador.

Amigo, they have great waves and I was there for surf only.

I had been in many places in the Caribe, they are by far better than any place in south america, if budget is the problem, go to paraguay then.

 

[marc26]

On 3/14/2021 at 1:10 PM, Iron Tongue said:

Argentina, no question.  Cost of living in Beunos Ares is very compatible with large cities in Thailand, and it is a European city in feel.  Plenty of good steaks and wine and activities.  City living, open spaces and clean air when you travel.

If the question includes Central America, then I'd throw in Costa Rica for consideration.

In Central America

I would move to Tulum, Mexico tomorrow............I absolutely love it.

I would say it's the best food city I have been to in the world

The higher end(but casual) western/Mexican restaurants on the beach road are amazing. Most cook with wood burning grills. They are pretty expensive though.

Then you have the local restaurants in the downtown area, plus the taco stands!!

 

 

I would also consider Casco Viejo neighborhood in Panama City, one of the coolest areas I have ever stayed in. Tons of nightlife.

 

And lastly, some of the smaller beach towns in Costa Rica

Spent some time in Samana............small dirt road beach town but with a lot of French/Italian expats so some great restaurants 

[Jingthing]

On 3/14/2021 at 11:08 PM, Airalee said:

I’ll take what KPMG tells me over some “how to expat YouTube channel”

That's fine. Up to you.

I'm going to update my comments on the Colombian tax situation for expats based on further research.  (Take it or leave it.)

A consensus that I've gleaned on this subject is that it really does depend on the individual, the type of visa you're on, and your involvement in the Colombian banking and credit card system.

Pretty much everyone says that all expats should seek local professional advice to assess their specific situation. 

That said, my specific narrow focus has been Colombian retirement visa status. If I did move there, that would be the only visa option for me. Other than that you can stay there for six months as a tourist in which case you wouldn't need to worry about Colombian tax residence at all.

The financial requirements for the Colombian retirement visa are very low. It's always shifting based on a multiple of their minimum wage and FX, but still very very low. Pretty much all Americans with a social security check would qualify.

Now if you're only claiming social security income there is a minimum income that would trigger needing to file in Colombia. Many on social security are under it which is why I incorrectly said that they don't care about foreign pension income.

Now for the retirement visa and the required national health care system (which is done via private insurance companies) a typical expat would claim their pension. They would qualify for the visa with that pension and their health insurance payment would be based on that. 

Now if you've got a lot of OTHER income, wealth, or assets in addition to the pension, immigration isn't interested. It's based on your pension. 

So I think people can see where I'm going with this. If you choose to "keep it clean" and claim your pension as income, have documentation for that pension in a non Colombian bank account, either don't have a Colombian bank account or use it sparingly, then if your pension is over the threshold your Colombian tax can be based on that.

If you can't live with that sort of "ambiguity" and you've got significant other income, wealth, or assets outside of Colombia, then more than likely you will be rejecting Colombia as an option for tax reasons. 

Frankly I'm not thrilled with that situation either.  I do consider the tax situation a negative for Colombia although I've explained how it is commonly dealt with by retired expats there. People with that concern would need to weigh the positives of Colombia (there are many) with that and other negatives (as with any country). 

 

 

I will add that there is a possible deal breaker for me for Colombia. Their food. It's too bland! When another choice is Mexico, one of the top food cultures in the world and spicy as well, that's not nothing. 

Edited April 4, 2021 by Jingthing