Tell me about your "Dream Plan"

[JimmySTLOUIS]

Question for you old timers on here

RedClay and I have spent hours if not days going over our "dream plan"
I have also talked to Ray on this subject some what

Just like a lot of you guys I am 43 and JLO is 26 and I have this plan to "retire" to Peru

I cant find a suitable place that keeps me close enough to Lima to be close to everything - but far enough away to be away from everything (get my drift)

Lima is a huge city that is hard to get an expressway out of - for example in St Louis you can be in the country in an easy 45 min on the freeway - 45 min in Lima gets you no place

I have a nice mini van and have dne a few trips out and about but still cant lock up "the place"

Have any of you guys put together your "dream plan"?

in Colombia can you guys find your Shangri-La?

are places like BAQ someplace you could live year around? Cartagena?

In Lima you have beach communities were prices have sky rocketed in the last few years and even in those you have the dreaded Humboldt curse (winter fog)

maybe some of you are already living the dream ......?

our much missed Pete E was living the dream before he passed - I know some of you old timers had been to his place and I always thought of that as a good time and the way I would like to go out (with my boots on - or at least a rain coat on

TE AMO PERU!

Jim

[Alabamaboy!]

I have the idea of "semi-retiring" to Colombia within the next 5-7 years. I am currently applying for a spousal visa and cedula for myself. I am doing it for a couple reasons. One of which is that the cost of living there, especially when you factor in health insurance, is much lower. And the second reason is that the dollar has been tanking and looks like it will continue to do so. Third reason is that property in Colombia (and Peru I imagine) is a fraction of the US. Fourth reason, very low property taxes.

For example a beachfront condo in Rodadero with 3BR/2 Bath goes for about $150K USD. But in San Diego, CA it would cost about $3.0 million USD.

A top notch condo in a high rise in Medellin with the best appliances and fixtures  will run about $160K right now....with unbelievable city views, perfect all year temps, no need for AC or heat, world class city. In most "world class" US cities you would expect to pay about 10x as much again.

If you wanted the modest country life in a small finca outside of Medellin, you can get it for about $50K USD. In Minca, near Santa Marta even cheaper.

And if you go further off the gringo trail the prices continue to drop.

I am heading to Colombia again in a few weeks and expect to wrap up my Colombian spousal visa, obtain the cedula, and look at some more properties in Minca, Rodadero, and Santa Marta proper.

[raycjs]

Jimmy
 
we have spoken about this and my plans are to buy a home in one of the small towns within 20 to 30 min of BAQ and living there for 4 to 6 months during the winter no different then my neighbors or older family members who have a home in south Florida and go there for the winter months to get away from the snow and ice... if all goes well and my plan i have put together continues on course ( that it is on now) i will buy a home in the next 2 to 3 years and retire with in the next 8 to 10 years. i do not want to live in the city it is not me... i also do not want to live in a condo or apartment so a small home will be just perfect.. i looked at 3 or 4 the last time i was there and they all would work and the price was 40k to 75k US.
 
i like this topic and would like to here from others.....
 
 
 
 
Ray

[Alabamaboy!]

Raycjs, Are you looking on the coast? If so, more toward Santa Marta or the other direction toward Cartagena? Or something inland? What are the names of the towns?

[AndyLee]

yeah, I like this topic, too. It's been on my front burner since 2007 when I first started looking in Latin America for the place to land my parachute. I started by visiting Costa Rica a couple times and never felt welcome there. Then I met a Colombiana in the US who sold me on the idea of visiting her country. I came to Colombia for 5 weeks in 2009 and then moved here full time.
My plan was to live in each of the major regions for a month or more to get a good feel for them then decide where I would settle. I'm still in the search phase but I've narrowed the target area.
I'm like Ray, not a city person but that's where 80% of the attractive women are so I started in the cities first. I tried Bogota, too big and cold but some of the smaller cities outside Bogota are really nice and at a slightly lower elevation so the weather is not as frigid.
Then went to Bucaramanga for a month and was fairly impressed. It's a big city over 1 million, but lots of parks and green space and easy enough to get outside the city. In 15 minutes you can be in the country and there are some really delightful villages within commuting distance.
I spent a month in Barranquilla. Hot but acceptable. I like the northern part of the city near Buena Vista. It's easy enough to find a place that is quiet and hospitable. While I lived in BAQ I traveled to Cartagena a few times and there are places near Cartagena I could live.
Then I went to Medellin for 3 months. While I was in Medellin I went to several of the pueblos up around the airport. La Ceja, Rionegro, El Retiro, Santa Elena. Beautiful country up in the mountains. A little colder at night than Medellin but the air is cleaner and less traffic and congestion and the people are friendly.
From there I went to Pereira and Armenia. Pereira is about 1 million people and Armenia is about 300,000. There are hundreds of pueblos scattered around the coffee region that are delightful places. I currently live in a village of 8,000 people about 1.5 hours by bus from Pereira. I've been here 9 months and I think about leaving sometimes but don't seem to have a lot of energy to get up and get going again. I guess I'm resting here while I continue to improve my Spanish and learn more about the culture.
From this village I have traveled all over the country by bus and by car and I've had girlfriends from other cities visit me here at the finca I'm renting. So its not like I'm cut off from civilization. My dating life is pretty active and I've met a lot of beautiful women and had some very interesting experiences.
After all this traveling around I've decided I'm not really a city or beach person so the North Coast or Bogota is definitely less attractive to me. I'm happiest here in the coffee region. So I've focused my bride search here. That's not to say I wouldn't date or marry a woman from another region of Colombia, or even one from Peru or Ecuador, but that I would probably want to settle here in the coffee region in one of the villages just outside one of the small cities.
I've owned properties in the US for 40 years with all the upkeep and costs and headaches so I don't feel any great urge to own a house in Colombia. The rents are so cheap I don't see much advantage in owning. And by renting I can pick up and move to a new village in one or two days if the notion strikes me.
Right now I'm renting a beautiful 2400 square foot executive style home with gorgeous mountain views and no close neighbors for the equivalent of $150 USD per month yet I'm only minutes from the village. There is a bus to the city every 1/2 hour from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. so I'm remote but not isolated.
This same house in Medellin or Bogota would rent for about $800 USD month. The bus ride to the city from here is scenic and always interesting and costs $4 each way.
Normally I ride to the city a couple times each month to get my city fix and take care of business. All the food is available from 3 little supermarkets here in my village so the only things I buy in the city are miscellaneous.
I find it is no problem to get women to come and visit me here at the finca so I'm never alone unless I want to be. Or, I can grab a bus to the city and go visit them whenever I want. The women love to visit me here because it is so quiet and peaceful and beautiful. They get a vacation from the city and I get a charming house guest for a few days.
My plan is to continue visiting the different regions and meeting more people, until I find the woman that I want to settle down with. When I meet her and we decide to live together then we will decide together where we want to live.

[Alabamaboy!]

Andy, you are doing exactly what I would do if I did not have school age kids right now. I bet that is a great feeling to be free like that and learning about the culture, exploring new areas,  at the same time dating some incredible women.

Is the house you are renting the one from your travel blog? With the terrific views in the mountains? You should try to post some pics here on the site because it is absolutely amazing at what you can rent or buy for such cheap prices when you get off the gringo trail a bit.

[AndyLee]

Here's a picture of my village and of my house.
My annual budget is $11,100 to live in Colombia full time based on todays exchange rate of 1815. The rest of my income is set aside for travel abroad and future rainy days.
Rent includes electric and water 335,000
Internet 58,000
Health insurance 66,000
Inner city travel 50,000
Dating 400,000
In Country travel 300,000
Food & beverage 400,000
total 1,675,000

[Alabamaboy!]

Now that is living the dream to me......beautiful pics. Thanks.

[AndyLee]

I think it is worth noting also that I live this way by choice, not because I have to live this way on a low income. I lived in the cities for 6 months and could easily afford it but didn't want to stay in the cities.


When I lived in Medellin for 3 months I lived in a 13th floor 3 bedroom 2 bath unfurnished. I paid
800,000 rent
300,000 servicios (cable, telephone, internet, gas, water, security)
500,000 food and beverages
and so forth
If I rented a house in Medellin that is as nice as the one I live in here in the village the rent alone would be 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 and the servicios would be at least 300,000.


Another thing, what are the trade offs for living the good life out here in the sticks? Well, there is the question of being close to medical facilities. We have a local hospital but for major treatment most people get stabilized here then ambulanced to Pereira. 
We don't have a big shopping mall, but who the [snip] cares? I can get everything I need at one of the three supermercados or any one of a couple dozen tiendas here in the pueblo. What I can't get here in the village, like a new MacBook I can pick up on one of my twice monthly forays to the big city of Pereira which boasts several fine malls and 1,000,000 population.
We have a casino (6 slot machines in the back room of the billiard hall) and we have 4 discos, each about the size of a basketball court. When the discos are hopping the eye candy is popping, I can assure you. These campesinas REALLY know how to fill out a peasant blouse and a pair of tight jeans! Here's an example

[Kiltboy1]

We are retiring outside of Quito next to the Equator Park( Mitad De Mundo) in my wife's recently paid for 4 BR condo which gave us cash flow and we purchased 2 acres of oceanfront land in Puerto Lopez , central pacific coast 8 months ago to build a nice home on to Vac and live when we want as it is 65-82 year round with low humidity. Hands down Ecuador is the least expensive place to live well in SA when all is considered. Timeline-10 years when I will be 56 .
 
KB

[robert angel]

There is such good stuff here--I wonder if you guys would mind if some it ends up copied on the new 'Cost of living overseas' thread under the 'Off Topic Items' heading?

[JimmySTLOUIS]

I agree - some great stuff here

thanks for the responses

Andy - I want to punch you in the face! I am so jealus!!!!   

We drove up into Ecuador and I think I could live there vs Peru - I like Banos Ecuador
but Lima is where the family is at

JLO finishes shchool and my dream (not so much hers) is for her to get a job at the US Embassy in Lima - the clerk jobs pay 30k and dont even require the full degree JLO will have

that plus my passive investment income = 

if I could find a place I love to live on 11k I would pee my pants!

I think the Colombia guys have it better in this regard - Housing in Lima has skyrocketed and beach property is way up too

SanBartolian where are you ....?


TE AMO PERU!

Jim

[AndyLee]

There is such good stuff here--I wonder if you guys would mind if some it ends up copied on the new 'Cost of living overseas' thread under the 'Off Topic Items' heading?

RA feel free to copy any of my stuff and move it to your new thread......or post the link to this thread.......

[fathertime]

Question for you old timers on here

RedClay and I have spent hours if not days going over our "dream plan"
I have also talked to Ray on this subject some what

Just like a lot of you guys I am 43 and JLO is 26 and I have this plan to "retire" to Peru
 
Jim

im sorta living my dream plan at the time and i'm just living in the states here...when i hit a time when i'm not working much anymore i don't know that i would move to s. america...from MY perspective i see more negatives than positives, UNLESS i was single...then of course there is EXCELLENT reason to live like andy & dennis and others are planning.
 
Fathertime!

[beginthebeguin]

One year two months and counting. Provided the economy doesn't crap out in the meantime. Now how does one convice a colombiana that the economy in the EE.UU. is and will be still viable in order for ex-pats to retire to their country?

[Jeff S]

Fabulous place you have there Andy

[euforia51]

Now that is living the dream to me......beautiful pics. Thanks.

DITTO! I'm in awe! 

[utopiacowboy]

My wife still has her apartment in Medellin but I would never live there. I'm thinking about getting a house on the beach in Uruguay and a ranch in Saskatchewan, Canada. We would spend six months in each place.

[Researcher]

           Great stuff Andy, I don't blame you a bit for not wanting to live in the city.My wife and I have talked some about where we would like to retire but I am 10 years older than her and I'm pretty sure I will retire before she does. She told me that she would like for us to move back to where I am from when I retire, that's here in the states. I could move to Colombia, no problem, but it isn't that expensive to live where I am from so I don't see much advantage to leaving the US. I've seen some great places in Colombia though and the more I read here the more I am considering Colombia.

         My wife and I spent our honeymoon in Santa Marta. I liked it there and I love the beach.It's no where near as pricey as Cartagena so I would consider it.When I was in Guadalajara Mexico I visited Chapala. Alot of expats there who seemed to love living there.

         Researcher

[robert angel]

It really gives me pause for thought when I see what a sweet set up AndyLee has going in Colombia and yet how he wants to possibly spend six months a year there and the other six in lovely Virginia--and parts of Virginia are indeed very nice.

 
I sort of figured I'd live overseas and maybe come back every year or two for a couple months--that I wouldn't miss the things I don't like about my life in the USA and would be happy as a clam in the sand overseas.

 
 But I've never actually LIVED abroad for truly long, extended periods, so my perception is based basically on my visits abroad for weeks at a time, where I had a blast. The more I read, the more I notice guys who've actually done or are doing it long term, like coming back to their native countries more than I expected. Not all of them, and not just people who can't acclimate themselves well in different places. (that's definitely not A.L. from what I see)

 
I think it takes a while, but besides the sheer novelty wearing off, maybe other things, such as differences in the food, water, sanitary conditions, the health care and some cultural elements, might wear on a person after a while and make coming back to the homeland for a while, for at least a good bacon and cheese burger, sound pretty good.

 
I guess I need to be pretty thoughtful before selling the house, cars, cashing in all my chips, saying good bye to my sons and other family. It'd basically mean moving abroad long term, with the understanding that while I might be able to live decently on my cash out overseas,  if I had to come back to the USA full time, I wouldn't enjoy nearly as comfortable a lifestyle--that I might even feel impoverished and end up working in really low paying job to support my new 'low rent' lifestyle, back in the USA.  Or otherwise feeling forced to stay abroad, possibly feeling progressively worse about a decision I hastily made. The grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence, even if it does seem very interesting for a while!

 
Be careful what you wish for!

[Chris F]

Hello Andy!
 
Thanks so much for sharing the wonderful pics of your village home. I am sure you are very happy!!
 
I have a few questions for you if you do not mind?
 
1. Besides meeting and dating  women, what else are you doing to fill your day on a daily basis?
 
2. How old are you and how old are the women you are dating?
 
3 Living in a rural area, do you ever feel you could stand out and therefore could be a target for someone with money?
 
4. What is your opinion of the women you dated in Medellin compared to the women in your village?
 
Thanks in advance for your feedback!!

[AndyLee]

Hello Andy!
 
Thanks so much for sharing the wonderful pics of your village home. I am sure you are very happy!!
 
I have a few questions for you if you do not mind?
 
1. Besides meeting and dating  women, what else are you doing to fill your day on a daily basis?
 
2. How old are you and how old are the women you are dating?
 
3 Living in a rural area, do you ever feel you could stand out and therefore could be a target for someone with money?
 
4. What is your opinion of the women you dated in Medellin compared to the women in your village?
 
Thanks in advance for your feedback!!

Chris I'm happy to answer your questions, thanks for asking.

Meeting and dating women takes up a chunk of time.....I spend 1 or 2 hours every day on Cupid and another 1 or 2 hours chatting with women on MSN. Then I spend a few hours writing each day. I'm working on a guide book for international internet dating.
I also spend 1 or 2 hours each day studying Spanish. Taking care of my house and cooking and cleaning takes a chunk of time. I walk in the coffee farms and in the mountains 1 or 2 hours a day several days each week, and I do yoga for an hour a few days each week.
I hang out in the village and drink coffee or beer with my friends. Not every day, but several times each week. On Wednesdays I teach two English classes.
For the past few months I've been traveling quite a bit; Bogota, Bucaramanga, Armenia, Medellin, Manizales. Lately though I've stayed pretty close to home.


I'm 62 and in good physical condition and young at heart. I've dated as young as 32 and as old as 58. My preferred dating age range is 38 to 50. My current girlfriend is 48 and she is in great shape, she exercises an hour every morning and her favorite sports  are kick boxing, hiking and fishing.


I don't really stand out here in the rural area. This region of Colombia was settled by Paisas from Antioquia about 150 years ago so there are lots of white people here, along with indigenous and mestizos. I spend a lot of time in the sun and have a good tan and I dress like the Colombian men so I only stand out as a gringo when I start talking.
Many of the people in the village know me by name, the rest just call me gringo. Every day I am amazed and delighted at the sheer friendliness of the people here. They always have a smile and words of greeting for me. The kids follow me around and practice their English. Most of them can say "Hello, how are you, I am fine, thank you, good bye". I hear that several times each day and always with a smile and a giggle.


So, no, I never feel at risk or feel like a target here. In one year there has been one murder in this village, during a robbery. No kidnappings and no gringos chained to trees in the coffee fields


My opinion of the women in Medellin compared to the women of the village is probably what you would see if you left Baltimore and traveled to a farm town in Nebraska. It is terribly difficult to make sweeping generalizations. But, at a quick glance, the women of Medellin are dressed better, have better hair dos, often are better educated, often have good jobs and they have opportunities for lots of boyfriends.
Here in the village the women are dressed more naturally. I see fewer women with dyed or bleached hair. I don't see many indications of plastic surgery. I see more women with a little spare tire around their waist. I think that's related to diet, they eat a lot of rice, potatoes, plantains, frijoles, yucca and fried foods.
One thing that is noticeable is that the good looking and intelligent boys and girls migrate away from the village soon after graduating from high school. Some of them come back after university, but most don't.
So, my opinion of the women in Medellin versus here in the village is that I only need one woman and she could come from a village or a city. If she is right for me and I am right for her then that's the perfect match I'm looking for. She could be a campesina or a socialite, but more likely she will be a woman somewhere in the middle class with a good body and good looks and intelligent, compassionate, interesting and interested.

[Chris F]

Thanks again for your detailed feedback Andy. I really enjoy reading your posts about your life there.
 
Take care!!

[chameleon]

I'm young compared to most of you guys. Ideally, I want to make bank as an expat for 5-10 years and retire to south america. Well... Maybe not retire, but live there. i'd probably start or buy some sort of business once I was there to keep myself occupied.


Now I've visited, but never lived there. i live in a word-class city right now, but most of the time i feel fairly isolated and alone. What I've observed in trips to south america was very different from what things are like here. It seems like the sort of place I could enjoy living, even without all the creature comforts I'm used to. All i need to be happy is good food, good wine, books, nice scenery, and a beautiful loving wife.


I suppose that my plans will get more specific as i get older, but that is the rough outline. Marry a latina, expatriate to a place where i can make big bucks and pay no tax for 5-10 years, and then move to south america once my financial future is secured.

[Dan Las Vegas]

Wow Andy, great set up you have there!!!   I have been thinking seriously of living in medellin, but now want take a look at some other options!
Thanks for the photos!
 
Dan LV