Cost of living in Providence??

Do you mean the Isla de Providencia, which is an island which is part of the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina?

Here are some links that you may not have seen:

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/colombia/s … rovidenciahttps://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g29 … tions.html

You could visit for a maximum of 15 days but you can't live there.  Per the Colombian decree 2762 of 1991, the only people who can get a residency card to live there permanently must
1)  have been born in the Archipiélago de San Andrés, Providencia y Santa Catalina, and
2)  prove a minimum of 3 years continuous residency prior to the decree date, or
3)  have a valid marriage with a resident of the archipelago

The above per
https://www.radionacional.co/noticia/tu … san-andres

An informative link in Spanish about visiting the archipelago, listing many of the costs:
https://www.eltiempo.com/colombia/otras … ina-159498

As a visitor I think you are correct to assume that your maximum 15 day stay in the Archipelago would indeed cost most of your $1000-$1200 USD/month budget.  Although the archipelago is a tourist destination for Colombians too, so it's possible that budget could work, but you'd have to do some digging for bargains.

Cali does not have any beaches, it is true, but it does have a low cost of living, the people are friendly, and the weather is hot but bearable.  Like anyplace in Colombia there are parts of it that are dodgy, but overall it's a very livable city with lots of nightlife and restaurants and things to do and explore in the city and nearby.  Your budget would put you solidly in the middle class there with a comfortable lifestyle but nothing really luxurious except every now and then.

fixfireleo wrote:

I  had my heart set on early retirement in Philippines.  It has a lot of potential however there are some things I am not happy reading about so I want to make sure there isnt somewhere better.

Dear Rob,

Welcome to the Colombia forums of expat.com....

You may be right to hesitate before deciding to retire in the Philippines.

There are spots in South American that make it more Expat-friendly than the Philippines.

I traveled to various spots in the Philippines .. and while it had some appeal, I would not choose to live there.  I chose Quito, Ecuador, instead .. and have spent most of the past three years in the Coffee Zone and other parts of Colombia (not Cali, though).

The "English" is spotty in the Philppines, and that's putting it euphemistically.  Maybe in dangerous, traffic-clogged Manila some folks have mastered the English language, but -- in other places -- that was not my experience.

Three places I did visit for a week up to several months....

Cebu:  hot as hell, though the women there would not risk getting sun tans by swimming in the sea.

Baguio:  cooler but humid.  The months I was there were during rainy season and there was heavy rain, torrential rain, almost every day for 90 days.

Angeles:  A dusty town lined with hostess bars and the businesses that serve their existence.

----

Manila (really just passing through):  so dangerous that my Baguio friends, Filipinos, would not permit me to go there alone.  I spent an hour in traffic while inside a taxi during the one afternoon, traveling less than one kilometer in that hour.  Although I could have walked it faster, the heat and humidity ruled out walking .. as an option.  The air-conditioned taxi was still the better choice.

Unless you have already learned Tagalog or some of the zillion local languages of the Philippines, you could probably do better in South America.

cccmedia

Here are a few places in South America to consider....

Coffee Zone, Colombia:

    Mild weather, friendly people, decent shopping.

Highlands cities of Ecuador:

    1.  Cuenca is a world-class retirement option for Expats, with a host of Expat-friendly activities.

    2.  Quito, the capital, has everything you could ever need except the casinos, which were closed.  Mild weather .. the atmosphere is being cleaned up with better-fuel for buses and other vehicles .. great transportation hub .. excellent shopping.

    3.  Cotocachi, Ecuador:  small leather-making town that has been an Expat favorite since Gary A. Scott started promoting it over a decade ago.  Favorable weather.  Drivable to the big city of Quito.

   4.  Vilcabamba:  Great weather, large by-percentage Expat population.


Montevideo, Uruguay:

    Clean city with beautiful parks, lovely architecture and a European feel.

Lima, Peru:

    Great food, great shopping, lots of parks in Expat-friendly Miraflores sector.  Other popular sectors for new arrivals include business center San Isidro and artsy/Bohemian Barranco.  Right on the Pacific Ocean and a boon to seafood-lovers.  Live near the ocean to avoid the dicier air of inland factory zones and over-trafficked central Lima.

A city I plan to visit for a few weeks by the end of this year... Bariloche, Argentina.  FYI, the Argentine peso has slumped badly versus the dollar this year, a potential boon to dollarized Expats.  However, inflation has spiked in Argentina, reducing the buying power of dollar-heavy visitors, offsetting the dollar-to-peso effect.

Versus the Phillipines, South American cities have the additional advantage of being in the same time zones as North America .. and being a shorter trip from the Northern continent.

Also, there are many mild-weather places in the Andes Mountains.  The high-humidity and long monsoon-season of Baguio, the Philippines, rule that city out as a 12-month-a-year destination for most prospective retirees from North America.

cccmedia from Miraflores Sector in Lima, Peru

Man, I wonder why it is listed as one of the "top 10 places for expats to retire" then?  Oh well.  have to deal with what is not what I want it to be.  Thanks for the info.

Actually, Philippines is the 23rd nation for speaking English, especially in metro areas (not talking about Manila.)  But it definitely does have pros and cons.  Which of the cities you listed are the safest and most likely to speak English.  My Spanish is limited to "por favor, cueso and banos". 

These are all cities where $1000-$1200 would afford me a good lifestyle?  I intend to eat most meals out but not necessarily at expensive places.  I do want to travel a bit and if I'm in a hot climate I need my AC as well as internet and cell phone.

Rob

fixfireleo wrote:

Man, I wonder why it is listed as one of the "top 10 places for expats to retire" then?... Thanks for the info.

If you are referring to the Hobotravelers list of retirement places with perfect weather, the answer is that Andy Lee Graham probably visited Baguio outside the super-wet months of June-September.

Since publication of that list, I sent an email to Andy about monsoon season in that part of the Phils ... and he has somewhat corrected the listing in subsequent videos by referring to the raininess.

cccmedia

fixfireleo wrote:

Philippines is the 23rd nation for speaking English....
it definitely does have pros and cons.  Which of the cities you listed are the safest and most likely to speak English.  My Spanish is limited to "por favor, cueso and baños.

Since cueso* isn't even a Spanish word, you're down to two palabras, or maybe up to three if you just learned palabras.

Fortunately, there is a solution.  Start learning Spanish.  It's fun.

The reality is that you already know many Spanish words .. mañana .. taco .. gringo .. casa .. fiesta.. siesta .. hasta la vista (baby) .. doctor .. sexo .. agua .. cerveza .. sí .. no .. gracias .. buenos días.

....

You can find cost-of-living opportunities equivalent to the Phils in South America .. for example, in most of Colombia, much of Ecuador and in Peru except for the priciest of Lima's priciest sectors.

Being 23rd in English-speaking is not a prize-winning position when almost all the speakers Expats encounter in the Phils are ESL underperfomers in English.

In my experience, none of the cities I visited had more than a tiny percentage of folks who could speak and understand passable English.  My housekeeper/cook in Baguio was one.  Women at the nightclubs -- forget it!

Baguio was built by USA Americans in the early 1900's after the Spanish-American war, as a summer-capital alternative to super-caliente Manila for the hottest months.  But even in Baguio, passable-English-speaking folks are few and far between.

----

You mentioned "pros and cons" of the Philippines.

In your case, what are the pros and cons?

cccmedia

*Maybe you meant 'queso' which is cheese.

fixfireleo wrote:

if I'm in a hot climate I need my AC....

The high elevations of the Andes give one a mild-weather option in many Colombian and Ecuadorian cities .. that just doesn't exist in populated, potentially desirable places in the Philippines.

You can live comfortably at 5,000-feet elevation (examples:  Coffee Zone cities, Vilcabamba and many pueblos) without over-reliance on air-conditioning to make life livable.

Peru's coastal cities are in an arid zone cooled by the Humboldt current.  I have been here for over two and a half months on my current visit without ever using the room fan provided by my AirBNB host.  Only a few times have I even used the small battery-operated fan that I travel with.

cccmedia currently in Lima, Peru

You can live on that amout easily.............you can call me on my USA #*** and I will share more with you.  I just rented a beautiful 4 bedroom apt in San Cristobal, Medellin and will be renting a room fully furnished with Smart Tv and internet access and NETFLIX

Jaime . El Gringo Colombiano

AgroSurAmerica wrote:

You can live on that amount easily (up to $1,200).... you can call me on my USA # ---------- and I will share more with you. I just rented a beautiful four-bedroom apartment at San Cristobal, Medellin, and will be renting (out) a room fully furnished with Smart TV and Internet access and NETFLIX.

Jaime . El Gringo Colombiano

(above post lightly edited for grammar and clarity)

AgroSurAmerica aka Jaime aka El Gringo Colombiano strikes me as well-versed in living well in Colombia without overdoing it on spending.

You may want to contact him via PM message since the Home Office usually deletes private phone numbers for security reasons.

Personally, I would like to see El Gringo Colombiano do that sharing right here on the forum so that more folks can benefit.

cccmedia

AgroSurAmerica wrote:

I will share more with you....

Jaime, El Gringo Colombiano

For more on Jaime Burbano's explorations, visit www.pinterest.com/agrosuramerica/ .. including El Gringo Colombiano's takes on the search for cancer cures .. the wonders of Colombia .. and "the plant that can save the planet":  cannabis.

So, I have spent the entire day researching possible alternatives to Philippines and not a single place seemed to be "perfect".  The closest ones to perfect were just too expensive while others (such as Krabi Town and Phuket Thailand) have some facet that make them less desirable (box jellies in the case of my 2 Thailand choices.)

This is the summary of my research today.  See if you have any input on these cities please:

Cali, Columbia-
    Possible mafia violence
    High Murder rate
    Not very safe in many areas
    English ??
    Nice Climate
    Cost of living is similar or less than PH
    West Cali is place to be

Da Nang, Vietnam-
    Possibly lower cost of living than PH
    Similar weather to Florida
    Very safe
    Water looks clear, sand not as white
    Food? Probably OK

Bali, Indonesia-
    Beautiful country
    Beautiful water
    Cost of living similar to PH
    Visa issues?
    Not best healthcare
    2 terrorist bombings in past

Ljubljana, Slovenia-
    Ohio weather
    Pretty good English
    Pretty country and architecture
    Safe
    Water too cold for swimming except maybe summer
    Cost of living higher
        **3 month stay in summer??

Abruzzo, Italy-
    Beautiful city
    Beautiful nature
    Beautiful beaches
    Water cold for swiming
    Slow paced life
    Friendly people
    Food/utilites expensive
    Safe
    Too expensive, maybe vacation

Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica-
    Cost of living 15% higher than Philippines
    Safe
    Gay friendly
    Friendly people
    Nice weather
    Got around before on English
    Water is so-so

Mafra, Portugal-
    Not too crowded
    Safe
    25% cheaper than Florida
    Beautiful
    Access to Europe
   
Loja, Ecuador-
    Safer than Cuenca
    Beautiful weather, bit cold at night
    No beaches
    Good cost of living
    Some English, need to learn some Spanish
    Nice architecture
    Very Artsy

Ibarra, Ecuador-
    Very safe
    Very low cost of living, cheaper than Philippines
    Near ideal weather, not a ton of sun though
    Known for woodworkers
    Travel alerts all around this area...research

Pedasi, Los Santos, Panama-
    Small beach town
    Not a lot to do
    Gay life???
    Possibly inexpensive, more research needed
   
Phnom Penh, Cambodia-
    Beautiful city
    Too hot
    Maybe good for vacation
    Cost of living similar to Philippines

Krabi Town, Thailand-
    Possibly cheaper than Philippines
    Safe
    Beautiful beaches
    Night town markets
    Gay friendly
    Box Jellys

Phuket, Thailand-
    Beautiful beaches
    Gay friendly
    Cost of living similar to Philippines
    Box Jellys       


Given this data, I would intend to look more closely at Da Nang, Mafra and Ibarra.

I have spent the entire day researching ... and not a single place seems to be perfect.

  ----

The entire day!  This could take months!

It's the classic Expat Dilemma -- something or some things don't fit one's needs wherever you look.

The search is further complicated by the fact that you can learn only so much from Internet research.

And still further complicated by the tax laws in some places.

For instance, many Expats believe that Colombia stakes a claim to tax one's worldwide income -- with graduated tax brackets topping out at over 30 percent for some of those who are in-country for 183 days or more, regardless of visa status.  The whole tax deal in Colombia is so murky, ever-changing and subject to myriad interpretations .. that it is a morass, IMO.

Some of us have become two- or three-country snowbirds to protect our USA-income.

cccmedia

Dear Leo,

You have listed 13 places as possibilities.

For future reference, let's eliminate the ones where the weather is too hot.

You said Phnom Penh, Cambodia, is too hot .. and I agree.  It's in the high 80's or 90's Fahrenheit on a month-by-month basis for most months of the year.  That means that due to daily variations and global warming, it's in the 90's a lot.

Let's eliminate all the hot places you listed where the average daily high is in the high 80's and sometimes 90's for at least six months of the year.  I am disregarding possible ocean breezes in coastal places, monsoon seasons in some places and all other factors.  Just talking about places that are too hot by temperature.

Eliminated....

    Phnom Penh, Cambodia
    Bali, Indonesia
    Da Nang, Vietnam
    Pedasí, Los Santos, Panamá
    Phuket, Thailand
    Krabi, Thailand

-- cccmedia


www.weather-and-climate.com was the primary source for data used in this post.
Panamá weather courtesy of weather-atlas.com
The Bali, Indonesia, temperatures were those of Bali's capital city.

As a practical matter, since you are open to South American countries which almost all speak Spanish, let's eliminate the countries on your list where neither English nor Spanish is widely spoken.

If you moved to a non-Spanish-speaking country and didn't like the country, you might have wasted your time learning a language that doesn't transfer to other countries in the region.

However, if you moved to South America and didn't like a country, you'd have many other countries relatively close by where Spanish is widely spoken.

Thus, we eliminate the places you named in ...

   Italy
   Slovakia
   Portugal

  -- cccmedia

Let's eliminate Cali, Colombia, as well.

Cali is not Expat friendly.  Nobody on this Colombia forum lives in Cali.  Brother Archer has in-laws and family there through marriage but lives in the USA.

I have spent most of the past three years in Colombia cities other than Cali .. and Colombians widely agree that Cali is dangerous.

While Cali is not quite as caliente as Phnom Penh, it gets uncomfortably warm in the afternoons and is considered weather-undesirable by many Expats.

Despite there being a large population there, attempts to mount Expat events in Cali have a failed history based on the information that is readily available online.

If you want to consider Colombia, the Coffee Zone has a milder climate and is historically less dangerous than Cali.

cccmedia

From your list of 13, that leaves two cities in Ecuador -- Ibarra and Loja -- and a national park in Costa Rica.

Consider a trip to Ecuador.

FYI, the two cities in Ecuador with the highest percentage of English-speaking Expats are Cuenca and Vilcabamba.  The latter is just twenty-some miles down the road from Loja.

I believe anyone who thinks Cuenca is dangerous for Expats .. is misinformed.

Also, be skeptical of anyone who says that some out-of-the-way place in Italy or Slovakia has plentiful English speakers.

...

I lived full time in Quito, Ecuador, during 2013-16 (and still own a condo there).  Ecuador is a decent country for someone starting or in the early stages of his Expat project.

The people are generally hospitable, health care options are good, cost of living is reasonable depending on one's choices .. and the Ecuadorian government has been cleaning up the air for several years.

The climate in Quito and many other Andean cities in Ecuador is quite wonderful although the mid-day sun can be strong.

The currency in Ecuador is the U.S. dollar.

Ecuador is rebounding well from the coastal earthquakes, repressive past regime and oil-price plunges of several years ago.

It's safer than many places in Colombia, which is a country that is politically unstable these days.

I consider Ecuador to be tax-friendly to North American Expats whose income is derived in North America. 

cccmedia

By "all day" I mean just preliminary searching just to see if there are places I MIGHT be interested to start taking a better look at.   Think of it like looking at the pictures on the movie posters at the theater to see if anything looks good enough to go home and look up the trailer and read about so you can decide what your next movie will be.   I have already spent months researching Philippines and I havent even went there yet.  I had planned on going there at least twice for a month at a time before deciding if I were going to move there. 

I think you are right though, the more I look, the more it looks like I will spend up to a year in one place then go somewhere else.  Some places that I really want to go to (Italy for instance) are just a bit too expensive, so maybe I could do 3 months there and then move on.

It would be nice though to find somewhere that I would enjoy spending a few years, or as you say...go back to year after year.

I think English is widely spoken in Italy (although it is too expensive for anything more than a short stay) and Portugal.

Speaking of taxes in the other country, I will be living on savings (not 401K, just cash on hand)  plus rental income on my condo in Florida.  This is why my budget is so limited.  Do you know if I am subjected to taxes on savings?  I assume I will be subjected to taxes on my rental income, although how are they going to know since I wont be working?

cccmedia wrote:

Let's eliminate Cali, Colombia, as well.

Cali is not Expat friendly.  Nobody on this Colombia forum lives in Cali.  Brother Archer has in-laws and family there through marriage but lives in the USA.
cccmedia

By all means, stay away from Cali!  Cali is for caleños, let's keep it that way!  We don't want it turned into an expat enclave like certain other places that are overrun with people talking loudly in English to the locals, thinking they can make them understand...not that there's any chance of Cali becoming IL's destination du jour , but no sense encouraging the rabble...

Dear Leo,

You know you have the site's imprimatur when Brother Archer takes an interest.

cccmedia

fixfireleo wrote:

I will be living on savings plus rental income on my condo in Florida.  This is why my budget is so limited.  Do you know if I am subjected to taxes on savings?

Leo, you're a prime candidate for snowbird living -- no more than six months anywhere at one time.

The reason:  you can get three or six months on tourist stamps .. but have no apparent way to get a long-term visa.

There are ways around this, such as student visas or a work visa, if you are offered a job .. but that's a complex subject that varies from country to country.

Meantime, you're free to travel the world .. up to six months at a time!

cccmedia

fixfireleo wrote:

I assume I will be subjected to taxes on my rental income, although how are they going to know since I wont be working?

If you limit yourself to 180 days out of 365 in any country, you probably will have no income-tax problems in foreign countries where the income was not derived. 

It is unlikely that your savings account will be taxed, especially given the low saving-interest rates available en esta época.

cccmedia

cccmedia wrote:

Leo, you're a prime candidate for snowbird living -- no more than six months anywhere at one time.

I think this is not just good, but GREAT advice!  You have an interest in places that are widely and wildly different - better not to commit to a single place and find you don't like it until after it's too late to easily return...the more places you can visit for even a month or two at a time, the more you have to compare and contrast.

And cccmedia is the one to consult on the "gypsy" way of life - he's now visited more places in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru than probably 99% of expats, and he goes deeper than just the surface of each place he visits.  All in search of a casino, I think...

In the digital era, one man's gypsy is another man's snowbird.

Far from roaming from one roofless gypsy camp to another   .. my recent 18-month adventure in Colombia included extended stays in a total of three cities* -- primarily at hotels in Medellín .. Armenia, Quindío .. and Ipiales near the Ecuador border.

Nobody on staff here at my AirBNB digs considers me as living as a gypsy out of this 8th-floor condo apartment near the Pacific Ocean and John F. Kennedy Park.

cccmedia in Miraflores sector, Lima, Peru


*I have admitted to some brief adventures in Popayán, Colombia, on two separate jaunts.  One involved getting a windshield replaced after moto-bandits south of the city staged an otherwise failed attack on my moving car.  In the other incident, I was put under interrogation at the local office of the tax-collecting agency, La DIAN.  Lack of a cédula put a possible fine into play.  The matter was resolved in my favor.

Maybe you are reading about Providence Rhode Island..ha ha

Have you experienced the Malaysia / Philippine heat? I have not seen anything like that in Colombia (ctg) so far. I think most were correct, Colombia / Ecuador would treat you well.

I lived in Cali for 2.5 years. I never felt unsafe although I was held up (mainly my lad when going N to Sack of street cred) at the time. The traffic in Cali can be bad when going N to South. You can live ike a king on $1200 per month in Cali. I lived on $1000 very well. Look toward central to South areas of Cali like Miraflores, Tequendama, El ingenio, etc.

Cali has a lot going for it including affordable housing, Fincaraiz...??? good to learn but nothing beats walking / driving neighborhoods and writing down phone numbers. Often you can rent without a contract or such and most times the contracts can be done without having to do a long formal approval / gaurantee process.

Good luck.

Your information is correct. No beach in Cali. I've lived here for 10 years. The cost of living is OK and your budget would work here. Two things I don't like about Cali. Traffic and heat. I've been acclimated to cooler places i the U.S. such as northern Kansas and central western Pennsylvania so Cali seems hot at 85 F.

I have a very nice apartment in south Cali for $350 USD and I have excellent medical care. Monthly food costs for two run about $80 USD/month. My medical insurance is about the same and I get my medications for free or, if a special med, for $1 USD.

Utilities, electricity, water and sewer, run about $52 USD. Internet/telephone are typically $28 USD. Gas averages about $5-6 USD.

I use public transportation mostly because it's so cheap if you have time to wait for a bus. Otherwise there's taxis or Uber.

That pretty well sums up what I know about Cali cost of living. Hope that helps.