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We fly TPA-IAH-GDL with United and the connections are pretty good...we fly to FL next week, leave GDL at 8AM and arrive 3PM TPA.
When we were in between homes here and coming down for short (2 week) visits, we would drive from St. Pete area to Orlando (leave car there) and fly non-stop to GDL on Volaris. There is also a non stop from MIA to GDL nowadays, I've been told by other Chapala Floridians.
So you still keep 2 homes? One in FLA and on in MX? What about crime? Cars and related insurance.
So you still keep 2 homes? One in FLA and on in MX? What about crime? Cars and related insurance.
Yes have a cream puff of a house in Gulfport, one block from Boca Ciega Bay. Cute funky artsy town.
Owned a home here 2008-2012, and again since last year...no issues with crime at either.
Cars...when we lived in Ajijic 2008-2012 we owned a restored miner's cabin (c. 1913) in Bisbee AZ (another funky artsy town). Drove a US (AZ) plated car to Bisbee once a year to do our medical/dental stuff..stayed 5 weeks usually (pre Medicare).
Now, as Residente Permanentes (think Green Cards), we have to own a MX plated car. In either case, whether it was a US plated or MX plated car, our insurance is/was always very cheap in MX...much cheaper than US, especially FL!! You do not have to become a Permanente; you can become a Residente Temporal and keep a US plated car.
Last edited by dothetwist; 01-29-2018 at 09:29 AM..
Our friends moved to Costa Rica and built a house. They love it down there and we hope to visit them some day. I could see buying a beach condo down there, but to live there full time? Not for me thanks. I'd miss the snow too much.
Not all countries in Europe require you to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in order to retire there. Spain, for example, just requires a modest monthly pension or other income and proof of healthcare.
You are right. People bring up this issue over and over and it's not correct, at least not for retirees.
You are right. People bring up this issue over and over and it's not correct, at least not for retirees.
Yes, but the health insurance coverage (Spain requires proof of in-country policy before your arrival), can be the deal breaker. It was for us. We consider ourselves healthy but have pre-existing conditions that make policies extremely costly.
We corresponded with the Spanish consulate in Miami when we thought of applying for a pensioner's visa.
Yes, but the health insurance coverage (Spain requires proof of in-country policy before your arrival), can be the deal breaker. It was for us. We consider ourselves healthy but have pre-existing conditions that make policies extremely costly.
We corresponded with the Spanish consulate in Miami when we thought of applying for a pensioner's visa.
We are US citizens, no EU passports.
This is a show stopper for most of us. Best to choose a country that associates National Healthcare with Residency.
This is a show stopper for most of us. Best to choose a country that associates National Healthcare with Residency.
Or lets you self-insure. That's what we do. We joke about it, but we have put aside enough savings to cover hefty medical bills at private hospitals here. Enough for each of us to fall and break both hips and get them replaced; and enough for each of us to have quadruple heart bypass.
We were DINKs with good careers/business. Retired at age 50. Now 65.
I'm strongly considering SMA in MX, perhaps less so Ajijic, but that's just on research, have yet to visit. (I have a very elderly parent here.) I have no kids & not much family here, most relatives are in Europe who I do have a good relationship with, visit for several weeks every year or two & they stay with me over here regularly. Through ancestry I have EU citizenship, but they live in an expensive, cold & damp place.
Theoretically MX would be a first choice due to location & abundance of US expats but in reality flying to Spain/Portugal destinations from here is actually less total travel time & I have the cousins "nearby" & EU citizenship so I'm leaning to there. I have lived in a number of states as an adult so moving again isn't as big a deal as it might be for others, but I don't kid myself about the culture shock of uprooting to a different culture & becoming a permanent "minority" at this point in life, having to relearn so many little things that I take for granted here.
I suspect that it would take a year or so of renting a place in country that would confirm if I was sure about such a big change. I visited Lisbon last year & loved it but I realize that a summer "romance" is different once one moves & commits.
I've always been curious about how they feel after making the move to another country. Do they ever miss America? Are they glad and relieved to be elsewhere? Do they contemplate returning? What was the primary impetus that caused them to leave it in the first place.
I moved to Denmark 22 years ago for a 2 year job in my field of work, and stayed. I'm very glad I did. I don't miss "America", but New England memories are on my mind a lot. I do travel back to the US every year. The trips and great; coming back to Denmark is great.
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