On 4/6/2021 at 8:04 AM, Scouse123 said:

Cambodia seems to be a lot better on import taxes on goods than Thailand regarding food and drink but Healthcare I would not trust.

 

You can live in Isaarn on 45,000 baht a month if you don't go silly. Bearing in mind half decent accommodation will be 10,000 baht a month.

45k is plenty if one doesn't drink alcohol, smoke tobacco products or rent girls by the night. Always assuming one has the 800,000 permanently saved and can afford medical insurance seperately from the 45,000.

27 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

45k is plenty if one doesn't drink alcohol, smoke tobacco products or rent girls by the night. Always assuming one has the 800,000 permanently saved and can afford medical insurance seperately from the 45,000.

I do all3 of those dont,s.What now? 

Barely doable lower Sukhumvit and I own my place so I rented it out longterm and my 45k gets a huge boost and now renting cheap in Jomtein. 

I thinks it's doable if you pay rent  with electricity for 10 k or less and live on street food or food courts but forget about health insurance and partying and P4P 

7/11 Steps will become a second home but for many its still way better than living back in the west where your pension won't go far and loneliness will wear you down 

 

7 hours ago, Olmate said:

I do all3 of those dont,s.What now? 

Enjoy LOS.

On 4/6/2021 at 4:50 AM, CharlieH said:

Biggest single expense is the roof over your head.

If thats bought n paid for then yes 45k is do able. If you have to rent, then a big piece is gone before you start.

There are cheap places to rent @ 2000 a month, in the rural areas but I wouldnt want to live in one.

 

The govt guideline of 65k is about right for basic living standards I would say.

Depends entirely on your lifestyle.

Healthcare for me, it's a tough call

Spent almost 2m In the last 6 months.

 

I'm reasonably healthy now but worry about the future all the time now.

 

If I could get home, then I probably would, but I can't.

Wife's  father is in hospital so it's just not possible. 

You know, I had a blast the first ten years I was here   now I think I would have been better  off if I had stayed in Oxford England. 

On 4/6/2021 at 4:50 AM, CharlieH said:

Biggest single expense is the roof over your head.

If thats bought n paid for then yes 45k is do able. If you have to rent, then a big piece is gone before you start.

There are cheap places to rent @ 2000 a month, in the rural areas but I wouldnt want to live in one.

 

The govt guideline of 65k is about right for basic living standards I would say.

Depends entirely on your lifestyle.

 

If one took the price of buying here and invested it in their home country, returning around a modest 6% in a fund, then you may find the money earned more than covers the monthly rent on the exact same property that one was considering buying.  

 

No management fees, repairs, maintenance, upgrades, taxes etc are a bonus as a tenant, not to mention, the ability to move if you like, or ned to.

 

The western saying of "rent is dead money" is not applicable in Thailand.  

5 hours ago, Leaver said:

If one took the price of buying here and invested it in their home country, returning around a modest 6% in a fund, then you may find the money earned more than covers the monthly rent on the exact same property that one was considering buying.  

I make about 0.5% interest in the UK, would be interested in a 100% safe fund that paid 6%. 

1 hour ago, BritManToo said:

I make about 0.5% interest in the UK, would be interested in a 100% safe fund that paid 6%. 

Of course nothing is safe!  I get 6% on my bank savings account in Laos - it's a French-Belgian bank.  AFAIK, no bank in Laos has ever gone bust, despite online fake news to the contrary.

15 hours ago, ThaiPauly said:

Healthcare for me, it's a tough call

Spent almost 2m In the last 6 months.

 

I'm reasonably healthy now but worry about the future all the time now.

 

If I could get home, then I probably would, but I can't.

Wife's  father is in hospital so it's just not possible. 

You know, I had a blast the first ten years I was here   now I think I would have been better  off if I had stayed in Oxford England. 

 

Your thinking I believe is the same that many many expats have in later years in Thailand (and elsewhere)

I think the realization of true healthcare costs do weigh on a person....Also the benefits they could have had ++

 

Also your final sentence above is very true of many when the realization occurs that

they may have stayed at the party just a bit too long & could have used time better in prepping/setting up a bit elsewhere

 

Good Luck to you & I hope it all works out for you & yours

14 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I make about 0.5% interest in the UK, would be interested in a 100% safe fund that paid 6%. 

 

As another member said, nothing is 100% safe, but a balanced and diversified fund can return about 6% with not too much risk.

 

If you prefer traditional banking and interest, I know a couple of guys in Vietnam getting 5% to 6% in a bank, which is common there.

 

Here's Vietnam's main bank offering 5.30% on a term deposit.  

 

  https://portal.vietcombank.com.vn/en-Us/Personal/IR/Pages/interest-rate.aspx?devicechannel=default

I thought this thread was about "where do pensioners retire". Most posts are Thailand-related. NEVERMIND.

I myself have discovered that (compared to 20 years ago), "long-term-residency" has become harder to attain for the caucasian half-gods of yesterday. Globalisaition and the emancipation of the "third world countries" have thrown a "monkey-wrench" into many Farang dreams of "cheap-retirement" under a tropical sun.

Frankly, I have given up on dwelling on ever changing "Immigration-Rules" of some exotic retirement heavens.
I have decided that my home country remains my "home base". If I have the urge to travel (and stay longer in one place), my travel-agent is in the position to tell me exactly how long I can stay in any given country on a tourist-visa. Theoretically, I could hop from one "retirement-paradise" to the next, year round. Never having to deal with "Immigration-Officers".

Of course, only possible if there is no urge of the Farang to aquire any immovable "property" or having matrimonial plans in those "retirement-heavens". 

On 4/6/2021 at 7:09 AM, simon43 said:

[quote]

... Even if you can buy it...eventually at say 70-74 years of age it is going vertical in price.

[/quote]

 

Not necessarily true.  When I took out expat insurance at 57 years old, I obtained details of the age band charges up to 100 years old for the company's clients, (assuming that they joined the scheme without any medical conditions).

 

My current insurance premium at 62 years old is about $200 USD per month, and that will rise to about $450 per month at age 100!  That's still not a vertical increase in price ????

Reasonably priced health-insurance, I'd say. But the nearest international standart Hospital is still in Thailand.

 

Otherwise, like your style. Feet on the ground and head not in the clouds and this in Laos. More power to you. Keep it up!

On 4/12/2021 at 12:46 PM, simon43 said:

Of course nothing is safe!  I get 6% on my bank savings account in Laos - it's a French-Belgian bank.  AFAIK, no bank in Laos has ever gone bust, despite online fake news to the contrary.

Correction- no bank in Laos has gone bust SO FAR. Who knows what will happen next week. Ask the good citizens of Cyprus if they think their deposits are safe.

The problem with depositing funds into a Laos or Vietnamese bank is inflation and currency risk. It's okay if you intend to spend your savings in those countries but if you're hoping to make a quick 6% and then repatriate the funds, you will be disappointed.

On 4/11/2021 at 10:40 AM, madmen said:

Barely doable lower Sukhumvit and I own my place so I rented it out longterm and my 45k gets a huge boost and now renting cheap in Jomtein. 

I thinks it's doable if you pay rent  with electricity for 10 k or less and live on street food or food courts but forget about health insurance and partying and P4P 

7/11 Steps will become a second home but for many its still way better than living back in the west where your pension won't go far and loneliness will wear you down 

 

Lower Sukhumvit IMO is a good place for those on work permit who can't choose much where they can live. It is not a place for retirement. My requirements for a retirement location are either clean, good to swim beach, or high mountains nearby....Sukhumvit has neither of these, but has free air pollution ????

 

Back to the OP post,  he was asking specifically where one can live on a "meagre" pension, or if that pension still provides "good" life in Thailand. What is "good" life is hard to define, as it has different meaning to different people, but how many retirees on OAP do you know in Australia partying, using P4P and eating out regularly?

 

I still think Thailand provides good life for 45k/month,  but this will gradually change for the worse as Asia rises more and more. The retirees in the other countries nearby will be squeezed as well,  especially Vietnam.

 

So enjoy it while it lasts, today the Aussie is 24.22 baht , I haven't seen it that good since 2018. We can always go back, north of Brisbane is always warm, all you need is a small shed and a cartoon of beer ????

 

 

Some seem to believe, 45K/mo equals drinking on the steps at 7-11. Very funny. I'll take a cooler of beer on the beach any day over sitting in a bar. Not to say having a beer in a bar for conversation and catching up on goings on isn't fun. As far as food is concerned cooking at home is the best way to go for both quality of ingredients and money. Street food should be a sometime thing as a treat not a main staple.

 

In Rayong you can rent a beach front condo for 7,000/mo or a house a few minutes away from beach.

45,000/mo for a single guy is so doable. I don't know how a King lives but this is definitely second best.

On 11/04/2021 at 10:05 PM, ThaiPauly said:

Healthcare for me, it's a tough call

Spent almost 2m In the last 6 months.

 

I'm reasonably healthy now but worry about the future all the time now.

 

If I could get home, then I probably would, but I can't.

Wife's  father is in hospital so it's just not possible. 

You know, I had a blast the first ten years I was here   now I think I would have been better  off if I had stayed in Oxford England. 

Is it the financial aspect your finding tough?

 

On 4/15/2021 at 9:23 AM, georgegeorgia said:

Is it the financial aspect your finding tough?

 

No not at the moment, but a few more episodes like the ones I described  could knock anybody out

On 4/15/2021 at 8:03 AM, gearbox said:

I still think Thailand provides good life for 45k/month,  but this will gradually change for the worse as Asia rises more and more. The retirees in the other countries nearby will be squeezed as well,  especially Vietnam.

You are predicting a very different world to the one I see coming.

I expect a global financial meltdown, triggered by COVID which never goes away.

Countries will get poorer and recreational international travel will cease to exist.

The middle classes will be gone from the west, it will be the very rich, and everyone else struggling to survive.

 

But it's nice to see some people are still optimistic about the future.

And think it will be much the same as it is now, just a little more expensive.

On 4/11/2021 at 7:05 PM, ThaiPauly said:

Wife's  father is in hospital so it's just not possible. 

 

Why is that?

On 4/15/2021 at 8:03 AM, gearbox said:

The retirees in the other countries nearby will be squeezed as well,  especially Vietnam.

 

How so Vietnam?

42 minutes ago, Leaver said:

 

How so Vietnam?

IMO the Vietnamese are the one of the smartest around, they value hard work and education. Their country will move forward faster and as they get wealthier everything is going to be more expensive there.

10 minutes ago, gearbox said:

IMO the Vietnamese are the one of the smartest around, they value hard work and education. Their country will move forward faster and as they get wealthier everything is going to be more expensive there.

 

I agree, but I don't see it happening so quickly as to be a problem for retired expats.  

On 4/6/2021 at 1:12 PM, xylophone said:

Well you do much better than I do, however I do have some of life's luxuries (red wine) which I can't seem to do without, but only in moderation!!!

I would never have guessed you like red wine 

11 hours ago, BritManToo said:

You are predicting a very different world to the one I see coming.

I expect a global financial meltdown, triggered by COVID which never goes away.

Countries will get poorer and recreational international travel will cease to exist.

The middle classes will be gone from the west, it will be the very rich, and everyone else struggling to survive.

 

But it's nice to see some people are still optimistic about the future.

And think it will be much the same as it is now, just a little more expensive.

Agree.

I think we've barely begun to see the long term effects of lockdowns and other restrictions. It's not, IMO, going to be pretty.

As you said, the rich will be fine, as will anyone in their private security force, but the rest of us are going to be lumping it, IMO.

On 4/17/2021 at 8:44 AM, thaibeachlovers said:

Agree.

I think we've barely begun to see the long term effects of lockdowns and other restrictions. It's not, IMO, going to be pretty.

As you said, the rich will be fine, as will anyone in their private security force, but the rest of us are going to be lumping it, IMO.

 

The global health issues surrounding covid will be overcome in the next 2 to 3 years.  The financial issues surrounding covid will be around for decades, well into the next generation, or two.  

4 hours ago, Leaver said:

 

The global health issues surrounding covid will be overcome in the next 2 to 3 years.  The financial issues surrounding covid will be around for decades, well into the next generation, or two.  

 One might imagine, it was part of a plan...

 

I wouldn't though, as that would be one of those beastly conspiracy theories.

* Shudders*

 

"Give me control of a nation's money and I care not who makes it's laws" — Mayer Rothschild

On 4/19/2021 at 4:38 AM, faraday said:

 One might imagine, it was part of a plan...

 

I wouldn't though, as that would be one of those beastly conspiracy theories.

* Shudders*

 

"Give me control of a nation's money and I care not who makes it's laws" — Mayer Rothschild

 

Part of the plan, or not, the debt of many nations rose significantly, and still continues to rise.  It will take generations to pay it back.  

On 4/6/2021 at 4:50 AM, CharlieH said:

Biggest single expense is the roof over your head.

If thats bought n paid for then yes 45k is do able. If you have to rent, then a big piece is gone before you start.

There are cheap places to rent @ 2000 a month, in the rural areas but I wouldnt want to live in one.

 

The govt guideline of 65k is about right for basic living standards I would say.

Depends entirely on your lifestyle.

I think these 2,000 baht places are more for students not for somebody who wants to live here. 

We once lived in a house that was only 2 K, but now they're asking for 4 K.

I could have bought it 20 years ago for only 400 K, now it's worth more than a million.

 

 

On 4/6/2021 at 5:10 AM, Fat is a type of crazy said:

Aren't the english even worse off because there pension is frozen.

This was an interesting article and video from 2014 from Australian channel SBS. 

Not all British pensions are frozen, only the state retirement pension. I have 2 others, one military and one company pension that do continue to be incremented.

 

We live comfortably in rural Issan on around 58,000 THB per month. House is all ours, (hers!) we have 2 motorcycles but no car.

 

Madam Moon gets 40K a month and no questions asked. I know that we feed more than the two of us, but that does not worry me. Her family are dirt poor so a bit of charity does no harm.

 

The 3 most important factors in our lives are no debts, we're both in good health and we're well off the grid as far as Covid is concerned. Count your blessings I always say.