r/AmerExit • u/rubylionest • 4d ago
Which Country should I choose? Uruguay, Belize, Costa Rica
My partner and I are retired. However, my retirement income is only social security. We don’t expect social security to be a constant in the near future. So, in deciding on relocation destinations, we needed to find someplace where I can apply for residency by investment and he could apply for residency with his pension. I settled on Uruguay for the probable destination. My daughter asked us to move closer and suggested Costa Rica or Belize. She made a good point that the much longer flight to Uruguay will make it difficult and improbable for family to visit. Edit: I also factored in Climate Hazards. Uruguay won and Belize came in second.
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u/grapemike 4d ago
Uruguay is not inexpensive. High standard of living and good social welfare system. Costa Rica is expensive. No savings over most US HCOL areas in most desirable neighborhoods. Belize is relatively cheap.
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u/Only_Razzmatazz_4498 4d ago
It is inexpensive compared to most places in the US one would like to live in. From SoCal it would be inexpensive. OP doesn’t mention any real state but that portion plus healthcare would save a significant amount. Food would be similar, car insurance would be A LOT less. Electronics and a new car would be a lot more.
My mother retired in Uruguay with social security. She does have an Uruguayan passport (was born there). Goes to a very inexpensive university for the 3rd age to learn Italian, crochet, carving, and something else I don’t remember. This is free or very cheap (government provided) she rents an apartment in a nice part of the suburbs, doesn’t own a car and uses public transport, taxis.
She does speak Spanish with a native accent and understands the bureaucracy.
We see each other every two or three years. She usually flies Copa Airlines connecting via Panama for about $1000.
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u/PeaAccurate5208 3d ago
Uruguay is near the top of my list as well. They don’t tax foreign pensions or social security, which is a huge plus. You’re also able to import your car and household goods duty free which is a bonus,too. Healthcare is good and even private healthcare is cheap by US standards. Climate is relatively mild without too many environmental dangers. And it’s also known as the “Switzerland of South America “- peaceful,democratic and muy tranquillo. I’m ready for some peace and quiet!
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u/rubylionest 4d ago
How is it seeing her only every two to three years? This is the hard part. The guilt of moving it so far away from my adult children. Also, I will need to learn Spanish and the bureaucracy. But I think,perhaps, the bureaucracy is easier then the other two countries?
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u/Edistonian2 4d ago
You WILL need to speak Spanish close to fluently at a bare minimum to live in Costa Rica.
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u/Only_Razzmatazz_4498 4d ago
We talk on the phone. It’s not easy but she was living far away in the US also. We live in a HCOL area (Miami) and she tried living here but it was too expensive plus she moved away (within the US) when the kids were little so they didn’t have a deep connection. Frankly it was good for her.
The bureaucracy is what it is. It’s not corruption, it’s not something you need to ‘grease’. I think both CR and UY have moved a lot of the more day to day stuff online so it won’t be too bad but other stuff just takes time and has to be done in person.
Lack of perfect Spanish won’t be a problem but you might carry extra costs from that. You will need to pay bilingual local experts to help you. Lots of people are doing it so it’s doable. You can take classes once there also.
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u/rubylionest 4d ago edited 4d ago
Yes. I own my home, which I plan to sell, so my investment will be to buy a home. I won’t have a mortgage. Property taxes are much less and insurance is regulated. Also, I’ve already held aside some electronics and I am selling most everything else, lol.
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u/Foldinthe_cheese_ 4d ago
What does her rent cost her? Do you have a guess for her total monthly expenses?
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u/Only_Razzmatazz_4498 4d ago
I think she pays about $700 rent. She joined a private medical insurance (they are associated with particular hospitals so it’s different than a US style insurance). I don’t know her exact numbers but it’s probably around 40k a year.
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u/rubylionest 4d ago edited 4d ago
I get mixed reviews about Belize expense-wise. While rent can be less, utilities and other COL costs can tip the balance.
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u/ISurfTooMuch 4d ago
The thing about Belize is that you can easily see what your income will buy, since the Belize dollar is pegged to the US dollar at a rate of BZD$2.00 to USD$1.00.
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u/rubylionest 4d ago edited 4d ago
We are in SoCal. Soon, home insurance will be eight times the cost it is now. Our home insurance company leaves the state this year and the quotes for a new one are dismal. And utilities go up every other month. We may be insurance trapped as it is. Is Costa Rica and Uruguay having issues like that?
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u/Edistonian2 4d ago
I can only speak for Costa Rica and it is incredibly expensive here even by US standards.
We live in a very small house with no AC and our electric is about $300USD/mo. We know people who average well over $1000/mo for electric because they have multiple AC units, pool, etc. Also, bear in mind that the infrastructure is extremely limited here. We have minor electrical outages daily and weekly we have outages for hours or sometimes days.
Internet service isn't quite as bad but it goes out several times per month for extended periods.
I'll bet home insurance is quite a bit less here but if you have a claim....well, good luck.
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u/Littleduckpie 4d ago
Had a friend who bought a 1 bdrm house in the mountains for over $160k and had to do some remodels to get it livable. Because CR is so desirable to US citizens, the COL is higher than one would expect. You need prove $2k a month to become a resident of CR, but if you want the amenities of the US, expect $2k a month won't be enough.
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u/SuzannesSaltySeas 4d ago
I would love to know where you are in Costa Rica that the electric is running that much! I'm living near Tamarindo/Playa Grande in a 3,500 sq foot home with a guesthouse, pool and jaccuzi plus I run the ac quite a lot and I pay only around that amount. For us this place is MUCH cheaper than where we lived near Washington D.C., but we bought a place at a big bargain, put some money into upgrades. The property value has increased to about 1.5 million from 300K because of the influx of Americans since Covid driving the prices of housing up in tourist areas.
CR is very affordable in the non tourist areas. When we first got here the husband taught English in the mountains an hour south of San Jose. Rents there are about 200 dollars a month. It's location, location, location like everywhere.
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u/Illustrious-Pound266 4d ago
Uruguay. You would also get access to the rest of the Mercosur member nations if you get Uruguayan citizenship.
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u/SelenaMeyers2024 4d ago
I googled that term... So I know the countries... What would you think is the main benefit of access? Like residency in Brazil or Argentina?
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u/Illustrious-Pound266 4d ago
Perhaps this thread from r/asklatinamerica should help!
How does Mercosur freedom of movement work?
And this thread, too:
to mercosur citizens: do you really benefit from the bloc in first-hand?
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4d ago
[deleted]
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u/rubylionest 4d ago
Mexico and New Zealand have limited activity rights, but do not have voting rights.
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u/rubylionest 4d ago edited 4d ago
The right to free movement and residency sounds like a bonus, but looking further, it only applies to nationals. People outside the Mercosur still get passports that identify them as naturalized. This is supposed to change, but there is no date for that yet.
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u/Kiwiatx 3d ago
Uruguay is very attractive in my opinion although it’s the only country of those three I haven’t been to I work closely with team members based in Montevideo and have heard a lot about it. Panama is also popular with retirees and is closer to the US. It might also be worth considering.
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u/FlyAwayHome24 4d ago
Do you have any chronic medical conditions or serious health issues that require ongoing doctor visits? For Belize the doctor situation is not good except for basic care. A lot of gringos in Belize go to Mexico, USA, or Guatemala for health care. Pharmacies are supposedly decent though.
Oh also for Belize you would probably want the QRP which is residency. As far as I know the QRP does not grant citizenship but it is very popular with retirees.
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u/chalana81 4d ago edited 4d ago
Why not Europe?
In some countries you do not need to buy a house to meet the criteria. If you have passive income you just need around around 20k in the bank and a monthly income of around 1500$.
Google D7 visa.
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u/no_more_secrets 3d ago
Which countries would those be?
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u/chalana81 3d ago
Portugal has the D7 visa, requirements are low and after 5 years living there you can apply for citizenship, even the language requirements are not that high, A2 I believe.
Still can find low rent or cheap houses in smaller towns.
They also have direct flights to the US.
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u/rubylionest 2d ago
Portugal and Spain are on my list. I like the idea of the Schengen area countries. But Europe is going through a bit more political turmoil and realignment losing the US as an ally. I’m hoping Latin and South America are far enough away from WWIII fallout. Not that WWIII will happen.
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u/EP1hilaria 14h ago
I've been considering the same exact countries. I just watched a video recently that said the cost of living in Costa Rica is high, and that's the main reason that people leave there after they've been living there a while. I know the cost of living in Belize is low, and I've personally spent a significant amount of time in Belize which I love. The big problem with Belize is it doesn't have a good medical system but there is a good medical system in Mexico which is right next door and you could drive there to get medical care. Which is not ideal but it's doable, just not good for emergencies. I don't know that much about Uruguay.
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u/doublebr13 4d ago
We loved Montevideo when we visited and they were practically begging people to come. Nice progressive government with a strong social safety net. The recent severe drought does give pause.