any Americans who choose Latin American lifestyles are drawn by incredible landscapes, reasonable living expenses and low-cost health care. These benefits are made more tempting by steep government incentives and tax-free services. In addition, many Central American countries follow the lead of Mexico and Costa Rica, which, until recently, offered special relocation deals to attract American retirees.
Among these incentives is the “pensionado,” or pensioner, visa. These tourist visas allow a noncitizen to live in a Latin American country without paying income or property taxes as long as they show a minimum net income that can be as low as $500 a month, depending on the nation. Additional benefits such as discounts on airline tickets, medicine, electricity and common goods have made the visas an appealing resource for U.S. retirees.
“Baby boomers are just starting to retire, and retirement oversees will be an important alternative for them,” says Mario Vilar, president of Move to Panama Corp., a retirement relocation services company based in Houston. “If what they’re seeking is a new and different quality of life, then a foreign country is attractive as a destination.”
For Americans, three of the top 15 places to retire abroad are in Panama, Belize and Mexico, according to Modern Maturity magazine. There, income-conscious baby boomers can take advantage of a variety of low-cost services:
• Haircut: $1.50
• Steak dinner for two: $8
• Live-in maid: $100 per month
• One week in a hospital: $1,200 (including exams and medication)
“Retirees come down here because they want to live inexpensively on their retirement incomes,” says Gail Geerling, sales manager at Rancho Santana, a residential and resort development near Tola, Nicaragua.
Though unpaved roads and intermittent phone service play a role in Latin American living, the perks far outweigh the downsides. “It’s such an attractive destination,” Geerling says. “It’s not that expensive, the beaches are great, the weather is consistently beautiful and it’s peaceful.”
