New Member looling to retire to Belize

Member since 16 January 2019

LormeyMember16 January 2019 20:59:49

Hello Everyone,
Hope you are all having a beautiful day in the sunshine there in Belize. I currently live in Northern Nevada (It's freezing right now) in Dayton Valley just down the mountain from Lake Tahoe. I have lived and worked here for 38 years. Since retirement is getting closer, my husband and I are very interested in retiring to Belize. I have been doing an enormous amount of research on Belize. Our short term goal is to purchase property, home or condo and then be able to earn a cash income from a vacation rental while we are still living in the states, and have an awesome vacation home for my family. We are planning a trip there at the end of this year, and I am hoping to purchase a house then. Long term goal is to be able to spend 6 months out of the year in Belize and 6 months in Tahoe. I love the idea that it is slower pace there, and the consumption waste is very low. As you probably know the US is the worst for consumption, Americans want everything, but really don't need any of it. I have become very conscientious to practicing conservation in my own life. We would love to get involved with the communities in Belize. My husbands profession has been in the construction industry and he literally is able to fix or build anything. My career has been in the Accounting field and I would love to help those in need with any accounting that may be needed. I would also love to be able to help the communities by helping with literacy and education. I also love animals and wonder how many sanctuaries you have in Belize for animals. I grew up in Southern California in Huntington Beach surfing and just having an awesome time growing up there, but by the time I graduated, I felt the need to move to a slower pace place, as California was then turning into a sardine box, and traffic was way to stressful. The move to Small town Northern Nevada was the best move for me and I do love it here, but the winters are becoming to much for me as the cold weather creeps into my bones. Northern Nevada has grown in leaps and bounds in population. I prefer less people!
Anyway, it will be nice to speak with all of you and get your expertize on living in Belize.
Have a beautiful day!
If anyone could tell me more about living, purchasing property, how well you can do with a vacation rental, the people, how safe is Belize, and please feel free to tell me anything about your experiences living in Belize, and the Cayo District, Ambergris Caye, Caye Caulker, Corozal, San Ignacio and Placencia, and Is it possible to buy a decent home or condo for under 200,000 usd? Can you recommend a trustworthy real estate agent or company that can help me with the purchase. Also a trustworthy Attorney.

Thank you, and I look forward to getting to know you all. PEACE!

See also

Retirement visa for Belize - Guide
Are expats/retirees happy in Belize? - 7 Replies
Retire to Belize with HIV - 6 Replies
retiring in belize - 6 Replies
New to forum and heading to Belize - 8 Replies
Looking to Retire in Belize - 8 Replies
Retired ..thinking about becoming Belize expat - 4 Replies

terrific Serial expat

Member since 11 August 2013

terrificSerial expat17 January 2019 00:24:18

582

well what you seem to want in the way of rental income would probably be in Ambergris caye which if you moved from Huntington Beach to loose the crowds of tourists is not what you want. There are few condos outside of the tourist/beach areas so probably need a house, which in many parts you can buy for less (sometimes a lot less) than $200k. I live in central Belize just outside the capital Belmopan, Real estate agencies in Belize are not nationally (or very well) regulated so most people prefer to find an agent they feel they can trust when in Belize. Most agents restrict themselves to one region only so you will need to do your exploration to discover where you feel you really will want your new home to be.
Standard advice is always rent for a fair amount of time before leaping into purchasing in Belize. It is easy to buy property in Belize, you must use a good lawyer as property tittles can be a little involved. If you then decide in a few years time you want to sell that can be a lot harder. Your altruistic ideas will be welcome but I am sure will not turn out just as you expect. Belize is a very different place, once you visit you can really start the planning.
By the way yesterday it was grey and mizzly rain and heavy showers all day in Belmopan. Sunshine back today

TUSK Member

Member since 19 July 2017

TUSKMember17 January 2019 05:22:00

You said "tittles".....

Will The Old Serial expat

Member since 11 October 2016

Will The OldSerial expat17 January 2019 09:30:07

418

TUSK wrote:
You said "tittles".....

Yes, it is now very popular here on the Placencia Peninsula since a new micro-distillery was built.

Google "Big Titty Rum" for more info...

Will The Old Serial expat

Member since 11 October 2016

Will The OldSerial expat17 January 2019 10:51:12

418

Greetings Lormey.

It is good you are starting early on your research. I suggest you thoroughly search through this forum for previous discussion on the many subjects you bring up. look for little magnifying glass at the top of most pages. Do take note of the age of the threads as things change. You are likely at the point of "not knowing what you don't know", so dont know what questions to ask, most of us have been there. That way you can ask more focused questions, and better answers can be given.

Belize is a small friendly country, but it is very diverse in geography, climate, logistics and the local culture. It is hugely different from where you are. Please don't be mislead by all the HGTV programs/videos as they tend to be glamorizing the great parts and ignoring the day to day realities.

There have been two HGTV camera crews filming diffrent shows along the beach about 400 feet from my place in the last three weeks. I see this a lot. Last week, I sat in Tipsy Tuna watching one crew for a couple of hours direct the family paddle up and down the calm water on rented paddle boards. When they took a break, I went over and chatted with the young father, and learned they were filming something called Island Hunters. They had just bought a small chunk (0.8 acres) of a local Caye 6 miles off shore. I asked him a few questions and could tell he knew little of what he is going to be getting into trying to build a house there. I did suggest he get a hold of his neighbor a friend of mine that owns several acres on the same Caye. My friend, a 5 generation Belizeion businessman has been working on his "Island" since 1997. My friend had a good laugh when I told him about this. His comment was I sure hope he has lots of money.

I came to Belize many times for a week or two at a time for about 7 years before I bought a place in Placencia when I retired about 3 years ago. Three years ago, I rented a car for a month and drove to many areas just to make sure Placencia was where I wanted to buy. My wife and I moved out of the busy DFW area to a condo on a lake in Texas, and when it gets too cold in Texas we come down here, when it gets too hot in Texas, we come down here, spending about 6 months in each area. (4 round trips last year).

I always suggest folks take a minimum of three trips, in three different seasons, of a week of preferably longer before deciding on a area. Then rent for a few months to see if it really is a fit. Often the things many folks like, are the same things others cant take and they leave.