The best place in S. America to retire (beach, communities, retired)
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Ecuador has some very enthusiastic former US residents per my viewing of YouTube.
They frequently discuss the benefits of a varied climate depending in which area you decide to live, the cost of living and the cost and quality of healthcare.
Costa Rica's health care has consistently rated higher then the US' on UN surveys. It seems to have a stable economy, more than any other Central American country. You might consider posting in the Latin America forum, to find out about safety and other questions you may have.
Ecuador's highlands have a stable year-round temperature of around 70 degrees. The main expat retiree communities are in Cuenca, Vilcabamba and Cotacachi. There's a good hospital in Cotacachi, and a modern Western-style public market that the expats rave about, built with USAID money. They have a very popular mayor who served for 12 years in the 90's/2000's, and is back again. Very low-corruption guy, doing a lot of projects with non-profits in the villages, improving the QOL for the Native people. He got some intensive anti-corruption grass-roots democracy training in a US project.
Ecuador tends to go through Presidents like people go through socks, though. Although that hasn't fazed the expats; they're still there. The water supply in the highlands, especially in the rural area, has been dwindling, due to a drier climate --a radical change in the rain regime--sine the 90's if not earlier. You could ask about this, if you're seriously considering it, and make contact with expat communities down there.
Ecuador has some very enthusiastic former US residents per my viewing of YouTube.
They frequently discuss the benefits of a varied climate depending in which area you decide to live, the cost of living and the cost and quality of healthcare.
There's a regular poster on City-Data who retired to Ecuador and has posted about it. I'll alert her to this thread.
There's a regular poster on City-Data who retired to Ecuador and has posted about it. I'll alert her to this thread.
That would be me. Everything Ruth said about the other mountainous areas is true. We are on the coast in an affordable beachfront place. You could google "Canoa" for an idea.
I've said before, our healthcare system is only $80 for us as a couple (and I've used the ER 3 times, free) and property taxes are $45 a year. We don't need a car. Temp is 75 to 85 all year around. Just those 3 bit-ticket items leaves lots of money on the table for discretionary spending.
I got a complicated, innovative operation down here to fix the hip replacement done wrong in Texas. For a tenth the U.S. price.
They like to protest, but have been civilized about it for a very long time. It does not reach the level of "unrest" (ie, nothing as bad as recent unrest in many US cities). I don't know what the healthcare "index" in your link means. I know some Argentinian physicians (as in know them professionally), and they seem normally competent.
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