Comfortable on 65k baht?

[Daryle]

Everyone has a different idea of what constitutes 'a comfortable life-style.' For some, they need 250,000 a month. Others, 45,000.

Drink a lot of alcohol, pay a lot of bar fines, party 6 nights a week, eat Western foods for most meals... You'll need a lot of money.

Western foods and a party lifestyle raise the budgetary requirements tremendously.

Live 'Thai style' and you'll spend next to nothing once you've established yourself.

My wife and I prefer to spend our evenings at home. We usually cook dinner ourselves, but eat breakfast and lunches out. We live in a comfortable 5-room apartment in a building with a nice pool, restaurants, good security, close enough to walk into the Old City when we wish to, yet not in such a busy area that we can't be on the road and out of town in less than 10 minutes. We take 4-5 day trips away from Chiang Mai every few months when we feel the urge, and don't seem to feel as if we are denying ourselves anything.

We do this living comfortably on the budget you've mentioned.

There is an important point in the above post..."...once you've established yourself".

I have been involved here long enough that I have a lot of things already established and paid for. House, farmland, rental apartments, truck are all free and clear.

I have one small vehicle payment here (2nd truck for the daughter to "sell something in the market") which will be cleared in a year, one vehicle payment in USA that will be paid off after 2015 Federal taxes are done (February or March), and a mortgage on a rental property in USA that I will be selling to my tenants within the next few years.

When I am done working for a salary and we are living on my retirement funds + US Social Security + the wife's income here from rentals and farms, there will be no payments to be made. Any expenditures in general will be small enough to pay cash.

Being on a pension and making vehicle and/or mortgage payment would strain things greatly.

With the utmost respect your balance sheet comes across as to much maybe for me.! But whatever works for you.

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[Liquorice]

Why Chiang Mai?

Lovely smog from the annual burnings stuck up your nostrils for a couple of months.

Not to mention the issues at Chiang Mai Immigration.

Lots of other nice places to consider (Pattaya and Phucket excluded).

[Scouse123]

Yes, you can live comfortably on 65K baht per month in Chiang Mai.

Thank you TheAppletons,

I love to hear that. I've just about convinced myself to take the plunge. I'm hoping to be in Chiang Mai by the end of the year.

You will live very easily on 65K as a non drinker who enjoys cheapy food. You will have change from that depending on your housing costs.

Edited January 18, 2016 by Scouse123

[bazza40]

OP, 65K and single you can definitely live in CM on that. Of course, it depends on how much you spend on the ladies here.

If you have the resources, it's probably better to have 500K baht on deposit for medical emergencies here. After all, medical insurance companies are adept at weaseling out of claims.

Depending on your preferences, you can rent anywhere between 5K and 15K baht/month. Many landlords are desperate for good long-term tenants. Whatever you do, DON'T get tempted to buy.

You can get a good secondhand scooter with low mileage for 20-25K baht. Try bahtsold or Thai Visa classified. The only way to get around CM proper.

Plenty of ethnic cuisines to choose from here. Good luck.

[bazza40]

yes four retired foreigners who ended up in there over the weekend figuring they'd never had a motorcycle accident, slip-and-fall at home, heart attack, etc and thus didn't have insurance and now are wondering how they'll pay the hospital bill and have other issues, like their visa extension expires next week, no one is looking after their dog and their girlfriend has run away with the truck, only it really isn't his truck because it was registered in her name.

This must be a country and western song ............

I crashed my motorcycle,

slipped down the stairs and had a heart attack

My dogs all alone,

And mah woman ran off with mah pickup truck .........

Another sterling contribution to the topic.........

[Daryle]

Money won't be a problem, but I think you will get bored with street food. Personally, I had 3 years of eating South East Asian street food 3 times a day every day and one morning I woke up and swore never to eat it again. That was 5 years ago, and I honestly haven't had Thai food since - I'm able to do that because I cook every day, but not everyone shares my love of cooking.

My only unique advise to you is don't burn your bridges back home. Not straight away, anyway. I've lived in a lot of different countries so know a bit about it; once the novelty wears off, and it will, you may find that you don't like it that much after all. 'Back home' has a lot of pull for some people, even people who don't expect it to. You aren't talking about a holiday, you're talking about for good. What if you don't like it or develop a serious illness which needs intensive care? Short time, 24 hour care is cheap here compared to back home, particularly if you're from US, but a stroke or Parkison's or MS? Could be years of assisted living, could be for the rest of your life, could be not as good as in US, could be just as expensive without the things you're used to around you. Hopefully that will never happen, but if it does and you want or need to go back, you will be a lot better off ifE you have something to go back to.

I strongly recommend that If you own your own place now, rent it out if possible or if you need to sell, buy a small apartment as an investment so that you aren't locked out of the property market should you decide to go back at some stage in the future. Once you're out you will likely never get back in at your age. Living in a developing country isn't for everyone, just like living in a city or living in the countryside isn't for everyone. Until you try it, you don't know so it's a good idea to keep your options open. Even if you don't go back, it should be a good inflation-proof investment as long as you're not in a bad area.

Not burning your bridges is particularly important for you as you are relatively young. We were 43 and 44 when we retired 8 years ago, and while I'm happy to potter around in the kitchen, and read all day long, Mr K occasionally gets bored and more particularly, misses the social interactions of being in a workplace 5 days a week. He's just left for a 3 day trip, hired a big bike and away he goes (hiring one once a month for a couple of days is better than buying one in a lot of ways; it isn't sitting in the garage most of the time because riding around town on anything but a scooter is not practical, no maintenance costs, no up front costs, a different new or newish bike every time you go, no depreciation or trouble selling it, being a regular customer he is able to tag along on any arranged tours the bike shop has (despite the comment in an earlier post, he loved the ride to Laos with half a dozen others last year), the list of reasons for not buying goes on). Every now and again though, he gets a dreamy look in his eyes and talks about going back to Melbourne or maybe to the mines in Western Australia and is quite serious about it until I talk him down. We've been together for 36 years so can bounce off each other which stops us being truly lonely; many of the people we know enjoy their lives here but despite having many friends are very lonely and very bored, although very few people will admit it. I have no doubt some would go back home tomorrow but it isn't financially viable for them, even though they don't have any possessions to dispose of or any other material reasons to stop them or hold them up.

I've always said to people don't look at it as moving to a new country, look at it like it's a long holiday. Almost 30 years ago we left England and went for a long working holiday in New Zealand and a couple of years later when we decided it wasn't for us we went for a long working holiday in Australia and since then we've had long holidays in Malaysia then Thailand - we're still on one in Thailand, 6 years and counting. If it's a holiday, you have something to go back to and there's no embarrassment of those people - you know the ones I mean - saying 'I knew you couldn't hack living there'. Have a long holiday here then a long holiday in Cambodia then a long holiday in Vietnam and before you know it you'll be older and wiser and can either choose which country you like best or continue to have long holidays in different countries or different parts of those countries. It keeps things fresh, you'll make friends in each of the places you go to and going back to see friends is always good. We're based in Chiang Mai but spend a lot of our time going for (short) holidays to visit some of the friends we've made along the way.

It's already been mentioned, but please make sure you have an insurance policy, and make sure that includes medivac. It probably won't be cheap, but insurance is always a waste of money until you have to make a claim.

Most importantly though, enjoy your life. I'm sure you'll enjoy being in Chiang Mai, and maybe you'll enjoy being in Saigon or Penang or the islands down south or those in the Philipines. Pack a bag of clothes, a good pair of walking shoes and a full Kindle (you can buy everything else when you get here) and go for it.

You sound like a lovely person. Your husband is fortunate. But he is probably a good guy.

Agree, please euthanasia if life ever gets that boring.

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[Oscar2]

Hi. Just butting in on the conversation. With regards to health insurance... Any advice on which one anyone would recommend?

Bangkok Insurance Company (Maya Mall, etc)

100,000bht per accident insurance for about 3,000bht/year.

Health insurance costs a LOT more.

Avoid foreigners selling insurance, they aren't allowed to do that in Thailand.

LOL 100K THB insurance would be used up in one night - as in the accident I was in. i forget how much the MRI was but it was a LOT of money. one needs at least a million THB insurance.

[Oscar2]

OP, 65K and single you can definitely live in CM on that. Of course, it depends on how much you spend on the ladies here.

If you have the resources, it's probably better to have 500K baht on deposit for medical emergencies here. After all, medical insurance companies are adept at weaseling out of claims.

Depending on your preferences, you can rent anywhere between 5K and 15K baht/month. Many landlords are desperate for good long-term tenants. Whatever you do, DON'T get tempted to buy.

You can get a good secondhand scooter with low mileage for 20-25K baht. Try bahtsold or Thai Visa classified. The only way to get around CM proper.

Plenty of ethnic cuisines to choose from here. Good luck.

why would you encourage anyone to buy a motorcycle?? that is really irresponsible.

[MadMac]

why would you encourage anyone to buy a motorcycle?? that is really irresponsible.

For transport?

[rhodie]

Money won't be a problem, but I think you will get bored with street food. Personally, I had 3 years of eating South East Asian street food 3 times a day every day and one morning I woke up and swore never to eat it again. That was 5 years ago, and I honestly haven't had Thai food since - I'm able to do that because I cook every day, but not everyone shares my love of cooking.

My only unique advise to you is don't burn your bridges back home. Not straight away, anyway. I've lived in a lot of different countries so know a bit about it; once the novelty wears off, and it will, you may find that you don't like it that much after all. 'Back home' has a lot of pull for some people, even people who don't expect it to. You aren't talking about a holiday, you're talking about for good. What if you don't like it or develop a serious illness which needs intensive care? Short time, 24 hour care is cheap here compared to back home, particularly if you're from US, but a stroke or Parkison's or MS? Could be years of assisted living, could be for the rest of your life, could be not as good as in US, could be just as expensive without the things you're used to around you. Hopefully that will never happen, but if it does and you want or need to go back, you will be a lot better off if you have something to go back to.

I strongly recommend that If you own your own place now, rent it out if possible or if you need to sell, buy a small apartment as an investment so that you aren't locked out of the property market should you decide to go back at some stage in the future. Once you're out you will likely never get back in at your age. Living in a developing country isn't for everyone, just like living in a city or living in the countryside isn't for everyone. Until you try it, you don't know so it's a good idea to keep your options open. Even if you don't go back, it should be a good inflation-proof investment as long as you're not in a bad area.

Not burning your bridges is particularly important for you as you are relatively young. We were 43 and 44 when we retired 8 years ago, and while I'm happy to potter around in the kitchen, and read all day long, Mr K occasionally gets bored and more particularly, misses the social interactions of being in a workplace 5 days a week. He's just left for a 3 day trip, hired a big bike and away he goes (hiring one once a month for a couple of days is better than buying one in a lot of ways; it isn't sitting in the garage most of the time because riding around town on anything but a scooter is not practical, no maintenance costs, no up front costs, a different new or newish bike every time you go, no depreciation or trouble selling it, being a regular customer he is able to tag along on any arranged tours the bike shop has (despite the comment in an earlier post, he loved the ride to Laos with half a dozen others last year), the list of reasons for not buying goes on). Every now and again though, he gets a dreamy look in his eyes and talks about going back to Melbourne or maybe to the mines in Western Australia and is quite serious about it until I talk him down. We've been together for 36 years so can bounce off each other which stops us being truly lonely; many of the people we know enjoy their lives here but despite having many friends are very lonely and very bored, although very few people will admit it. I have no doubt some would go back home tomorrow but it isn't financially viable for them, even though they don't have any possessions to dispose of or any other material reasons to stop them or hold them up.

I've always said to people don't look at it as moving to a new country, look at it like it's a long holiday. Almost 30 years ago we left England and went for a long working holiday in New Zealand and a couple of years later when we decided it wasn't for us we went for a long working holiday in Australia and since then we've had long holidays in Malaysia then Thailand - we're still on one in Thailand, 6 years and counting. If it's a holiday, you have something to go back to and there's no embarrassment of those people - you know the ones I mean - saying 'I knew you couldn't hack living there'. Have a long holiday here then a long holiday in Cambodia then a long holiday in Vietnam and before you know it you'll be older and wiser and can either choose which country you like best or continue to have long holidays in different countries or different parts of those countries. It keeps things fresh, you'll make friends in each of the places you go to and going back to see friends is always good. We're based in Chiang Mai but spend a lot of our time going for (short) holidays to visit some of the friends we've made along the way.

It's already been mentioned, but please make sure you have an insurance policy, and make sure that includes medivac. It probably won't be cheap, but insurance is always a waste of money until you have to make a claim.

Most importantly though, enjoy your life. I'm sure you'll enjoy being in Chiang Mai, and maybe you'll enjoy being in Saigon or Penang or the islands down south or those in the Philipines. Pack a bag of clothes, a good pair of walking shoes and a full Kindle (you can buy everything else when you get here) and go for it.

A great reply with a good information for everyone. Thanks.

[canarysun]

If you don't drink or smoke then you can live on an " ALL IN " perfectly well on 15,000 baht a month!!!!!

Regards to all our viewers,

Canary sun ( your lovable Thai Visa friend... ) ? x

[gk10002000]

you can make it, but after a very short while you may not like it. You want to hole up in you small local rental and just walk around? Can be done. But real world needs or desires take over. You want a girl friend or boy friend? Entertainment expenses add up. Partying drinking, an occasional go-go? You want to travel a bit and see some of the country? Hotels add up. You want real legitimate medical? Put those premiums in your monthly budget. Falang food desire creeps in. For example in Pattaya area, I love the Wiener schnitzel, fried potatoes, salad, some sushi occasionally, not to mention the Thai barbecue you cook at your table in Big C. Personal deep dish pizza supreme while reading the newspaper at pizza the hut, etc.. Keeping any ties to the USA? cost of travel to and from there (yearly?), mail forwarding, credit cards, debit cards, banking, taxes, drivers' license from some state etc? One piece of good news is if you are out of the USA you can be exempt from Obamacare.

[puukao]

I have many friends there now...

the complain about:

1. people

2. traffic

3. weather

4. sex tourists

*NOTE: None of these answers are , "lack of funds"

[F4UCorsair]

It all depends how much you are going to spend on renting a place,

but you could have a very nice life style on 65K,especially as you

don't drink.

regards Worgeordie

You could do a long/ish term deal with a reasonable 3 star hotel, Chiang Mai Gate comes to mind, or Sawasdee Guest House, and still have a great life on B65K a month.

Good luck.

[bkk6060]

you can make it, but after a very short while you may not like it. You want to hole up in you small local rental and just walk around? Can be done. But real world needs or desires take over. You want a girl friend or boy friend? Entertainment expenses add up. Partying drinking, an occasional go-go? You want to travel a bit and see some of the country? Hotels add up. You want real legitimate medical? Put those premiums in your monthly budget. Falang food desire creeps in. For example in Pattaya area, I love the Wiener schnitzel, fried potatoes, salad, some sushi occasionally, not to mention the Thai barbecue you cook at your table in Big C. Personal deep dish pizza supreme while reading the newspaper at pizza the hut, etc.. Keeping any ties to the USA? cost of travel to and from there (yearly?), mail forwarding, credit cards, debit cards, banking, taxes, drivers' license from some state etc? One piece of good news is if you are out of the USA you can be exempt from Obamacare.

Yours is one of the more realistic responses. Yes, it can be done, even for less. But what quality life?

I don't want to live in a lousy place.

Getting a massage occasionally, going to the movies, meeting people, dating, food, transport, travel, etc.

I would need about 150k to have a happy life.

55 is still young I think and at some point minimal living wouldl probably get boring.

[MaeJoMTB]

55 is still young I think and at some point minimal living wouldl probably get boring.

Some people seem to confuse the words 'minimal' and 'wasteful'.

[gk10002000]

After two years living in Bangkok, I stopped eating street/Issan food. I was constantly having stomach issues and not feeling well. Now the only thai food I eat is in a nice restaurant with nit noi phet. Never felt better.

Haven't any of you wondered or noticed how they wash the dishes? Garden hose and cold water. What do you think happens to the leftovers? Stored at room temperature overnight usually. Ever watched one of those food carts that sell doners close down at night or open in the morning? Where do you think the ketchup, dressing, bottles go? Stored at room or outdoor temperature overnight. Might be chilled down the next night, but the damage is done. Fresh street food can be great but many, I won't say most need a little scrutiny

[chiang mai]

Many people, as they grow older, rarely stop to checkpoint their lifestyle and spending habits, after all why should they, they have enough money and have spent at their current levels for many years and of course they have money in the bank after working hard for many years. But more often than not a person reaches a point where they stop and say, wait a minute, do I really need to spend at these levels, is it sensible to do that in these uncertain times and/or, is it even necessary. When you reach that point and you take an objective look at how you spend money and on what, it's a lot easier to adopt a sufficiency approach to spending and lifestyle, a sort of, "I have the things I need and I can control my impulse to just buy stuff for the sake of it".

Today we can get by quite happily on under 65k a month, ten years ago we would have spent double and frequently triple that amount each month but we no longer need that sort of lifestyle. Looking back at what we used to spend each month, the most embarrassing part of it all was the waste involved, today we have a very comfortable lifestyle and really don't want for anything but at a third of the cost of ten years ago. 65k a month? Not a problem whatsoever.

[F4UCorsair]

It all depends how much you are going to spend on renting a place,

but you could have a very nice life style on 65K,especially as you

don't drink.

regards Worgeordie

You could do a long/ish term deal with a reasonable 3 star hotel, Chiang Mai Gate comes to mind, or Sawasdee Guest House, and still have a great life on B65K a month.

Good luck.

That should have been Sawasdee Chiang Mai Guest House, house south of the northern canal. Sam, the owner, a retired Bangkok exec, will offer a deal for a longer stay.

[NancyL]

Avoid foreigners selling insurance, they aren't allowed to do that in Thailand.

I can think of at least three native English-speaking foreigners who are active in the Chiang Mai market working for Thai-owned insurance companies. Their companies are independent insurance agencies and can discuss multiple insurance comprehensive health insurance options from very well-respected international companies with you. These men have work permits and a good history of interfacing with the underwriting companies if there is any problem with their clients getting pre-approval for a procedure for a procedure and in getting claims paid.

We buy our health insurance, from Health Care International, thru one of these three men and our annual bill is charged to our credit card directly by Health Care International from the U.K. It's a policy with a high deductible, but high ceiling, coverage all over the world (except the U.S.), and won't kick us out as we age, although the rates will go up. We know others with the similar policies from the same insurer/agent and they have had claims well in excess of 3 or 4 million baht paid.

[1FinickyOne]

Hi Ak -

Lots of good info to sort through above - as everything else in your life, you will benefit by taking your time and weighing your decisions. I assume when others talk of not burning bridges, they are talking of selling homes. I had a lovely cottage next to a crystal clear mountain stream with small waterfall in the woods. It was a keeper but as my life tilted this way, I eventually sold and have not regretted it. Renting or even a trusted house sitter can be great or a disaster. One thing I found out, though luckily not the hard way was that if my house was left unoccupied for more than 60 or 90 days, it would be considered abandoned and my insurance would not cover anything.

Good luck with your move, keep your common sense and you should be fine. If you want any CM specific advice, where to stay etc.. please feel free to send me a personal message. Glad to help out if I can.

[NancyL]

Yeah, good point above about how long your home in the U.S. can be unoccupied before your homeowners insurance considers it abandoned. We had friends who would go to Florida every winter and leave their adult daughter to look in on their place. She wasn't very faithful about the chore. One year the furnace failed pipes froze and there was major water damage -- major damage. Their insurance didn't pay.

The guy that was victim of this worked for us part-time in the summer at our nursery greenhouse/business nearby. When it came time for us to move to Thailand we hadn't yet sold the property, a 20 acre "farmette" that had once been a much bigger farm sold off for suburban development, with the pretty outbuildings, stately barn and old-style farmhouse remaining with some farmland and a 10 acre wood lot. We had sold and removed all equipment related to the former greenhouse/nursery operation, so it was suitable for someone looking to to become a hobby farmer and keep their day job. (and it was zoned to permit livestock)

It our case it would have been stupid to hold onto this property and try to rent it out. As it was, we keep the nursery/greenhouse business alive on paper for the IRS so we could continue to pay the guy (whose house had been the victim of the frozen pipe and couldn't afford to go to Florida that year) to come to our place EVERY day to walk thru ALL the buildings, looking for signs that people had entered, animal damage, broken pipes, etc. And he had to mow the grass and keep the drives clear of snow so the place looked like it was occupied and easy for the real estate agents to show it. Fortunately, he was good at this task, but we paid him nicely to do it. For us, we still would have had to pay someone like him to serve as a manager if we'd tried to rent it and people don't want to rent this type of property. Or if they do, they just want to pay the market price for the house and not the other associated stuff, which they'd still want to use.

We came over here just ahead of the global crash in 2008-2009 so it took a few price cuts and time to sell the property but it's nice to be done with it. And it's nice to follow the antics of the young family who bought the place on Facebook, home schooling their pack of kids, raising goats, pigs and various vegetables that they sell at local farmers markets. (I wonder how much academic time those kids get?) with dad constantly building and adding on to outbuildings and mom always baking in the nice kitchen. It's good to see a family in the place.

[Bill97]

OP, 65K and single you can definitely live in CM on that. Of course, it depends on how much you spend on the ladies here.

If you have the resources, it's probably better to have 500K baht on deposit for medical emergencies here. After all, medical insurance companies are adept at weaseling out of claims.

Depending on your preferences, you can rent anywhere between 5K and 15K baht/month. Many landlords are desperate for good long-term tenants. Whatever you do, DON'T get tempted to buy.

You can get a good secondhand scooter with low mileage for 20-25K baht. Try bahtsold or Thai Visa classified. The only way to get around CM proper.

Plenty of ethnic cuisines to choose from here. Good luck.

why would you encourage anyone to buy a motorcycle?? that is really irresponsible.

What is really irresponsible is encouraging anyone to move here to live.

[Bill97]

OP, 65K and single you can definitely live in CM on that. Of course, it depends on how much you spend on the ladies here.

If you have the resources, it's probably better to have 500K baht on deposit for medical emergencies here. After all, medical insurance companies are adept at weaseling out of claims.

Depending on your preferences, you can rent anywhere between 5K and 15K baht/month. Many landlords are desperate for good long-term tenants. Whatever you do, DON'T get tempted to buy.

You can get a good secondhand scooter with low mileage for 20-25K baht. Try bahtsold or Thai Visa classified. The only way to get around CM proper.

Plenty of ethnic cuisines to choose from here. Good luck.

why would you encourage anyone to buy a motorcycle?? that is really irresponsible.

It is really irresponsible to encourage anyone to move here to live.

[buzzah]

Avoid foreigners selling insurance, they aren't allowed to do that in Thailand.

I can think of at least three native English-speaking foreigners who are active in the Chiang Mai market working for Thai-owned insurance companies. Their companies are independent insurance agencies and can discuss multiple insurance comprehensive health insurance options from very well-respected international companies with you. These men have work permits and a good history of interfacing with the underwriting companies if there is any problem with their clients getting pre-approval for a procedure for a procedure and in getting claims paid.

We buy our health insurance, from Health Care International, thru one of these three men and our annual bill is charged to our credit card directly by Health Care International from the U.K. It's a policy with a high deductible, but high ceiling, coverage all over the world (except the U.S.), and won't kick us out as we age, although the rates will go up. We know others with the similar policies from the same insurer/agent and they have had claims well in excess of 3 or 4 million baht paid.

[mgjackson69]

OP, 65K and single you can definitely live in CM on that. Of course, it depends on how much you spend on the ladies here.

If you have the resources, it's probably better to have 500K baht on deposit for medical emergencies here. After all, medical insurance companies are adept at weaseling out of claims.

Depending on your preferences, you can rent anywhere between 5K and 15K baht/month. Many landlords are desperate for good long-term tenants. Whatever you do, DON'T get tempted to buy.

You can get a good secondhand scooter with low mileage for 20-25K baht. Try bahtsold or Thai Visa classified. The only way to get around CM proper.

Plenty of ethnic cuisines to choose from here. Good luck.

why would you encourage anyone to buy a motorcycle?? that is really irresponsible.

Why do you say that is irresponsible?

[buzzah]

Avoid foreigners selling insurance, they aren't allowed to do that in Thailand.

I can think of at least three native English-speaking foreigners who are active in the Chiang Mai market working for Thai-owned insurance companies. Their companies are independent insurance agencies and can discuss multiple insurance comprehensive health insurance options from very well-respected international companies with you. These men have work permits and a good history of interfacing with the underwriting companies if there is any problem with their clients getting pre-approval for a procedure for a procedure and in getting claims paid.

We buy our health insurance, from Health Care International, thru one of these three men and our annual bill is charged to our credit card directly by Health Care International from the U.K. It's a policy with a high deductible, but high ceiling, coverage all over the world (except the U.S.), and won't kick us out as we age, although the rates will go up. We know others with the similar policies from the same insurer/agent and they have had claims well in excess of 3 or 4 million baht paid.

Thanks. That's interesting to hear. I suppose there is really no difference in getting insurance done there or before we get there then as it seems you are paying it in the UK? So, international cover is the best? I just wondered whether there was a Thai specific insurance that you could get in Thailand?

[FolkGuitar]

OP, 65K and single you can definitely live in CM on that. Of course, it depends on how much you spend on the ladies here.

If you have the resources, it's probably better to have 500K baht on deposit for medical emergencies here. After all, medical insurance companies are adept at weaseling out of claims.

Depending on your preferences, you can rent anywhere between 5K and 15K baht/month. Many landlords are desperate for good long-term tenants. Whatever you do, DON'T get tempted to buy.

You can get a good secondhand scooter with low mileage for 20-25K baht. Try bahtsold or Thai Visa classified. The only way to get around CM proper.

Plenty of ethnic cuisines to choose from here. Good luck.

why would you encourage anyone to buy a motorcycle?? that is really irresponsible.

Why do you say that is irresponsible?

Some people live their lives trying to avoid anything that might be considered 'dangerous.' And there is no question about the fact that riding a motorcycle can be dangerous, especially here in Thailand. As a rider for almost 50 years, I'll be the first to say that Thailand isn't the place for an inexperienced rider. But for someone who knows what they are doing, the safety factor increases exponentially. However...

... there is a limit... a line to draw... where 'safety' competes with 'enjoyable living.' Just how much 'living' does one need to give up before life loses its value?

Don't ride motorcycles, don't eat street foods, don't venture off known roads, don't eat red meat, don't eat soy products, don't buy foods from local Thai markets, don't swim in local lakes, don't do this, don't do that.... all in the name of "security."

There was a very famous woman... She was blind, she was deaf, and she was fearless.... her name was Helen Keller. And she said:

"Security is mostly a superstition. Security does

not exist in nature, nor do the children of men

as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no

safer in the long run than outright exposure.

Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."

And ain't that the Goddamn truth!

[NancyL]

Avoid foreigners selling insurance, they aren't allowed to do that in Thailand.

I can think of at least three native English-speaking foreigners who are active in the Chiang Mai market working for Thai-owned insurance companies. Their companies are independent insurance agencies and can discuss multiple insurance comprehensive health insurance options from very well-respected international companies with you. These men have work permits and a good history of interfacing with the underwriting companies if there is any problem with their clients getting pre-approval for a procedure for a procedure and in getting claims paid.

We buy our health insurance, from Health Care International, thru one of these three men and our annual bill is charged to our credit card directly by Health Care International from the U.K. It's a policy with a high deductible, but high ceiling, coverage all over the world (except the U.S.), and won't kick us out as we age, although the rates will go up. We know others with the similar policies from the same insurer/agent and they have had claims well in excess of 3 or 4 million baht paid.

Thanks. That's interesting to hear. I suppose there is really no difference in getting insurance done there or before we get there then as it seems you are paying it in the UK? So, international cover is the best? I just wondered whether there was a Thai specific insurance that you could get in Thailand?

Yes, there is Thai-specific insurance you can get in Thailand, but Thai-based companies have a reputation for dropping customers once they reach a certain age.

There are international insurance companies that cater to expats. You can do some on-line research before you leave and get quotes directly from the companies. The one we selected just happens to be U.K.-based. Another very well-known one is based in France. These companies tend to offer more comprehensive policies and, of course, cover globally, so you don't have the hassle of getting travel insurance every time you leave Thailand like you would if you just had a Thailand-based company.

[rsokolowski]

Thank you all. Love to here more please chime in.

cyberfarang, luckily I'm not on a "just enough money budget" I just want to get by on my monthly retirement check so I don't have to dip into my savings. If social security is still available I'll collect that at 62.

From my research I believe I'll be able to fund a decent studio apartment, eat well, lite travel around Thailand & health insurance and a little extra to boot. All on my retirement check alone 65k baht.

I hope I'm not wrong and can leave my saving alone.

I'm leaning on renting my house out just in case.

If you are referring to USA Social Security, I would advise waiting until full retirement age (67 for those of us born 1960 and later) to start collecting, if that fits your plans.

Starting the benefit at age 62 results in ~ 30% reduction vs collecting at full retirement age.

Yes that is true, but the $90,000 you make between age 62 and 67 is a lot. And if you pass away before age 67 taking the benefit early will be the smart move. For me social security will be a relatively small part of other retirement income (military retirement, government civilian pension, 401K, and social security). Not sure what I will choose but I am leaning on taking social security as soon as I am eligible due to future uncertainty of the program given the U.S. governments crazy national debt and never ending deficit spending habits.