Older Americans repatriating to the USA -- where is good?

[craigt3365]

Palau is paradise for a scuba diver. But not very developed, and a loooooong way from anywhere. You'd have to be willing to live in a very basic style. But in paradise!

[Jingthing]

This thread is intended to be ONLY about destinations in the U.S.A. There are other threads to discuss other alternative nations to Thailand, and of course ... Thailand. Please respect the clear LIMITATIONS of this particular thread. Thank you.

[IAMSOBAD]

Thais who work around farangs become jaded fast, fast, fast - ditto for farangs, esp. Americans living here for long stretches and being bombarded daily by tons of negative sh*t by the Brits about LOS. Its rare at Thaivisa to see a postive comment about our HOST. I count only 6 thus far.

My my my how quickly we forgot our reasons for loving this place!!!

And now, having become soooo jaded, we're going back to the boring sh*thouse we call HOME. You won't last a month, if that. If you cut all ties with your "happiness-quotient-base" aka LOS you will die slowly, a little or a lot every fc-in week.

Its NOT meant to be an easy solution - think about the fact that stateside if you mention you live in LOS and how great it is, you're looked upon as "out there" = they don't see it, never will, its asking too much of them to understand this way of life.

But combine America with a 3rd world country and now you're getting the power of America as the base of the pyramid. Plug in LOS in place of the 3rd world cuntry and you've got sheer magic.

Tried many including Bali, Goa etc. (+USA) = nothing touches LOS.

Jaded = exotic of yesteryear is lost

Circular motion with the right hand!

You made me stop and think very hard. Great post! Thank you.

Have a nice day...

[spidermike007]

Jacksonville area has real ocean beaches.

Beautiful beaches. Clean beaches with no one pumping sewage into them. Fairly calm water and warm water.

But beaches aren't my thing, and one goal in leaving LOS would be to ditch the heat and humidity.

Six of those places on the list are in Florida. Having lived in Florida, I would say it is an experience I would not want to have to repeat. Devoid of culture, flat, featureless land, crazy hot and humid about 7 months of the year, and generally not a place I would choose to spend my life, if I could help it. So much of that list is based on climate. How important is that to you? And with those climate models they are using, they are obviously not taking into account heat and humidity, or they are attributing too much positivity to heat and humidity. Anyway, Florida is not a state I would wish upon you, so use this list with a grain of salt. One of the aspects of life I would put on my list would be the level of fulfillment most of the local population enjoys. If I had to guess, I would say the average American enjoys a low level of daily fulfillment. I know I will be criticized for saying this, but the quality of life in the US has dropped so dramatically in the last 10 or 20 years, for all but the wealthiest people. And that manifests itself on a daily basis. I see it everywhere I go there. Dour, unfulfilled people, with little joy or humor.

If I had my choice, I would choose NOT to live in the US. Health coverage cannot be enough of a reason to choose a country to live in, can it be?

Spidermike

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[spidermike007]

Kona is a latitude as central Thailand..

I have some land at 4000 ft. above the airport..Aloha

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I have never gotten the attraction to Hawaii. I have a lot of friends who have chosen Hawaii. Granted it is pretty. But, what has always turned me off was a combination of how incredibly unfriendly the locals were, along with the extreme lack of culture, how expensive the place is, and how uninteresting and vanilla the place is. Was I missing something? Never lived there, but have visited several times, and was bored out of my mind with the place. The whole aloha thing seems like a search for the local culture that is not really there.

Spidermike

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[JLCrab]

As a long-term but not native resident of Florida, I will say that the natural springs in the Florida State Parks are some of most beautiful natural spots I have yet seen on this planet:

[AfterLOS]

Here it another aspect to this of the USA vs. other countries for older retired expats choosing to leave Thailand:

what about EMPLOYMENT?

Supposing you want (OR NEED) to continue to do some work in your older years?

If you've been retired in Thailand a long time, it's quite likely you're completely UNEMPLOYABLE in the USA. Firms generally don't even look at resumes now with six month gaps. Try over 10 years and have a good laugh! Not even considering age discrimination which is real even in great economic times.

False! AfterLOS = retired since age 39, but LOS-wise retired 10 years, totally out of the work world, therefore a 10-yr gap in resume like you stated, agewise old like you stated. Always broke because capital always fully invested in the financial markets, live off profits generated.

Notwithstanding the above premise, I can pick up the phone and call any stateside company's sales division and get hired 90% of the time over the phone itself or if an interview is reqd., within 15 minutes into the process. Did it in Jan 2011 with one phone call to the only surviving (after 2008 crash) water conditioning company in So. Calif. - hired over the phone within 10 minutes and asked to drive over to pick up the sales kit and book and fill out the employment application with SS# bla bla. When asked for resume by the owner, my standard response, "you're lookin at it" A big smile, told me my par cost and hired as an indep. sales contractor.

Company had 22 other indep. reps all under 35 years of age. Here comes retired therefore supposedly slooooooow, old, unemployable AfterLOS and flogs the young uns with relative ease and knocks down a nett commission of $10K in the very first week. And so it went on and on, none of the young uns could compete and within a year, the owner wanted me to teach the crew how to close - I declined.

Broke 2 historical records for the entire water conditioning industry between 2011 - 2014 - crossed the 3k per deal nett commission earned, a record since 1956 in the USA. Record number 2 was breaking the sales price barrier of $8,500 for an entire home water treatment system. Not only did I cross 10k, one deal hit $14.5K (with an airpurifier unit included that cost me a mere $900)

I love being back in the game as a CLOSER soooooo much that I go back to America whenever I want to and feel like HUNTING again. This keeps me sharp and in the WILD even in the golden years.

That's why I said in earlier posts here in this thread

LOS + USA = match made in Heaven. God bless my sweetheart LOS and my powerbase USA!!!!!! May they both live long lives and thrive.

[AfterLOS]

Here it another aspect to this of the USA vs. other countries for older retired expats choosing to leave Thailand:

what about EMPLOYMENT?

So you might be interested in starting a small business then.

Well, the USA would generally be a very HIGH COST place to do that.

That was one reason I was looking at countries like Nicaragua (which has a long list of negatives as well). It seems to me you could start a small business in such a place with much less capital than the U.S.

Of course this thread is about USA choices. Just mentioning it as a possible negative to go back there for those interested in making income.

Starting a business stateside, as in the quote above. Answer below but is a continuation of the concept from previous reply ......

This is the business I started in late 2013 all in my name, all entirely mine. Got financing for my customers from 8 finance companies. Read to rock and roll bigtime whenever I want to HUNT

http://www.californiaconservation.org/

Website still needs a bit of work, which Godaddy will do for me once I return.

[AfterLOS]

Here it another aspect to this of the USA vs. other countries for older retired expats choosing to leave Thailand:

what about EMPLOYMENT?

Supposing you want (OR NEED) to continue to do some work in your older years?

If you've been retired in Thailand a long time, it's quite likely you're completely UNEMPLOYABLE in the USA. Firms generally don't even look at resumes now with six month gaps. Try over 10 years and have a good laugh! Not even considering age discrimination which is real even in great economic times.

So you might be interested in starting a small business then.

Well, the USA would generally be a very HIGH COST place to do that.

That was one reason I was looking at countries like Nicaragua (which has a long list of negatives as well). It seems to me you could start a small business in such a place with much less capital than the U.S.

Of course this thread is about USA choices. Just mentioning it as a possible negative to go back there for those interested in making income.

>>>>>>> Well, the USA would generally be a very HIGH COST place to do that. <<<<<<<

False! Total costs for setup were:

California Contractor School Course fees = $1,000

CA certification test and license fees = $under 500, don't remember.

Website with Godaddy = $1,000

Storage place at US Storage centers for all new equipment = $99 per month

1-800-BOOZE number $30 per month or some such ridiculously cheap amount, paid in advance for 2 years

Bought 20 complete systems in advance and put them in the storage shed = $20k. There is no need to do this as all manufacturers are willing to give you one system at a time when you sell.

that's about it

[hhgz]

Jacksonville has an extensive public bus transit system and, if you're over 60, it's free.

[craigt3365]

Several off topic and troll posts have been removed from view. If you can't stick to the topic and post something constructive, then please don't post.

[craigt3365]

Health coverage can be a big deal. I've been taking care of my parents for about 10 years now. My father had all sorts of problems. He was in the hospital every 3-4 months for something or another. I'm sure over a 6 year period he racked up about $1 million USD in bills. All paid for by the VA. He use to get a dose of something....can't remember....that took all day and cost $10k per dose. He had probably 15-20 of these.

My mother is now 98 and has zero health problems. Other than Alzheimer's, which is something we just deal with. But no hospitalization required. So my mother is OK living here. If she was like my father, I would have never brought her here.

Met a guy last night who had a 3M Baht medical bill here. That would really hurt my finances!

[gk10002000]

Well, coming back to the USA, if money is no object I would go with the weather and things to do. Southern California, somewhere between Los Angeles and San Diego are nice. If money is tight and if taxes are a considerationg (they are to me) then I would suggest Florida where I live. FL has no state income tax. Getting Social Security taxed by the Feds is bad enough, don't need the State taking some back either. Some states don't tax Social Security. Some of the cities along the FL coasts are pretty pleasant being near the water. Of course other state tax free states such as Washington, Nevada, Texas etc. might appeal also. Healther care in Florida, I live in N. Palm Beach is pretty good, although with obamacare, things are changing.

[craigt3365]

I just read this article. Some interesting info on housing costs:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/04/business/affordable-housing-drives-middle-class-to-cities-inland.html

[JLCrab]

I just read this article. Some interesting info on housing costs:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/04/business/affordable-housing-drives-middle-class-to-cities-inland.html

I lived in Oklahoma City for several years and the in the article above the NY Times chose not to mention the following:

http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-05/was-oklahoma-city-tornado-worst-ever

[craigt3365]

An off topic comment has been removed from view.

[jmccarty]

Having never lived or contributed to SS in the US, if I went back there with savings alone, I would no doubt run out of money before I died or end up sick or injured with no way to pay for it. I think the only real way is to take 8 viagra and go up and down walking street until the ticker fails from over-use. Die with dignity, or at least with a smile on your faxce!

[Jingthing]

Having never lived or contributed to SS in the US, if I went back there with savings alone, I would no doubt run out of money before I died or end up sick or injured with no way to pay for it. I think the only real way is to take 8 viagra and go up and down walking street until the ticker fails from over-use. Die with dignity, or at least with a smile on your faxce!

Good point. Every situation is different. I worked long enough in the U.S. to be eligible but it won't be much!

[retiredusn]

Lake Havasu, AZ

[craigt3365]

Lake Havasu, AZ

A bit hot in the summer. And can be extremely windy. Avoid spring break, unless you are young. And then it's pretty good! 5555

[Jingthing]

Least educated city in America? I'm in!

[craigt3365]

Least educated city in America? I'm in!

You've obviously not been to Mississippi! 555555

Havasu is hi-so! 555555

[isawasnake]

There are only a couple of options for me. Along the California coast seems to be too costly for you. That leaves Yuma, Arizona. Really though, a place like Phoenix or maybe somewhere in New Mexico would appeal for the scenery, dry weather and isolation. I have not been to Albequerque, and Las Cruces really isn't that great, but the state has great ambiance I think. Think breaking bad. The problem here is really the humidity. I don't ever remember being this miserable in Arizona, and swamp coolers work there. My vote is for a bad and thus cheap neighborhood in Imperial Beach, or Albequerque, maybe Denver if you can handle cold.

[RKASA]

Reno - good bus system shopping, and food - nite life and affordable. Even cold winter days have sun. Summer is great and the heat index is far better then Thailand. Might need lotion for dry skin. Sometime some wind but always things to do. Lots of Med. options and SF is a long day trip or overniter.

[Jingthing]

Haven't been to Reno in ages but it seemed to me a haven for alcoholics ...

Edited August 6, 2014 by Jingthing

[RKASA]

Haven't been to Reno in ages but it seemed to me a haven for alcoholics ...

I was thinking that was many places in Thailand or anywhere else a bar is open.

[Jingthing]

You know, this article isn't directly about the topic in question, but I think a lot of the issues it touches on are indeed relevant to anyone choosing a place to live in the USA:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/21/magazine/will-portland-always-be-a-retirement-community-for-the-young.html?_r=1

As the superstar cities have become unattainable, the middle class is increasingly finding refuge in places like Philadelphia or Nashville, Denver or Charlotte, N.C. An example of “the people who are getting killed,” Renn said, “is the old traditional blue-collar Queens person who’s now getting squeezed with taxes and with housing costs. It’s clear they don’t fit into the vision of the city. They’re basically realizing, Hey, I can go to Charlotte and live like a king on a truck driver’s salary.”

Portland’s story is slightly different in that many of its immigrants have come in search of a different kind of wealth. Most people, after all, can’t willingly up and move to a new city for — rather than a job opportunity — some ephemeral or lofty ideals about homesteading and locally grown kale. But quite a few Portlanders have done so.
...

Edited September 17, 2014 by Jingthing

[thailiketoo]

Now the voters have added another reason to move to Oregon. When is Neversure going to get on here and tell us what the change is like?