One of the hardest personal battles that some people encounter when they’re planning a retirement abroad is the one involving thoughts about how an international relocation will inevitably result in them losing touch with friends and family back home.
I say ‘inevitably,’ because a move of anything more than 10 miles down the road generally means it’s harder to see people as often as you once did – therefore a move that potentially spans continents and hundreds or even thousands of miles is going to make it that much harder to stay in close contact with those you hold dearest in life.
The thought of losing contact can actually put some people off making the move abroad in retirement altogether…however, that’s more than just a shame because making such a decision could restrict not only your happiness, but potentially your health and your wealth as well. In this report we’ll discuss retiring abroad for happiness, health and wealth reasons – but focus also on how you can ensure you stay in touch with home so that you don’t miss your nearest and dearest once you’ve relocated.
Can Moving Abroad Make You Happier?
This is a question that can only ever produce a very personal answer, individualised to the would-be retiree in question. You see, for some people, living in the UK in the surroundings they do makes them less than happy. Perhaps they live in a less than favourable area, one plagued by crime or poverty for example. Alternatively, for some people, just the fact they live in an urban area makes their home less than favourable for them in retirement.
Other people know that the sunshine available in many countries abroad could make them positively glow with happiness and wellbeing, or that the cost of living overseas will make their pension income go further and therefore, offer them a better quality of life. Naturally, this could promote a greater feeling of happiness.
However, despite the fact that you may be well aware that moving abroad could bring you greater personal wellbeing, perhaps the very real thought of losing touch with your children, grandchildren, friends and neighbours is putting you off making the commitment to relocate. If that’s the case, you could also be restricting your own happiness by failing to see that actually, you can stay in close contact if you relocate abroad.
How Can You Ensure Your Move is the Right One for Everyone?
The one thing that has to be uppermost in your mind if you continue to examine your options of a move abroad is accessibility. Investors who buy property abroad to let to the tourism rental market are acutely aware of a single fact, and you need to be too – that is, that people don’t want to have to travel more than an hour to and from the nearest airport when they go abroad. So, when looking for a place to live overseas in retirement, look for a home that is accessible to decent infrastructure – whether that be road, rail, boat or plane links.
The better the access is between your new home and your old home, the easier it will be for you, your friends and your family to pop back and forth for regular holidays. Whilst now you may see your friends once a month for a coffee and a catch-up, when you move abroad, while you may only see them in person once every 3 – 6 months, it will be for an intense period of time such as a long weekend or even a fortnight. So, whilst the visits may be less frequent, they can be regular and extended and ensure you remain as close, emotionally speaking, as you ever were.
Will Retirement Abroad Make You Wealthier?
People find it very odd to think that actually, despite the fact they’re perhaps on a limited retirement income, they can make that money go further abroad. We must admit that it is now harder to make your money worth more just by moving abroad, if your money is denominated and valued in pounds – that’s because the British pound is being hammered as the rest of the world sees what a poorly state our economy is in in the UK! But, that said, it can still be a reality that your wealth can go further abroad.
For example, perhaps you can sell your home in the UK and trade up/down/sideways into the property of your dreams abroad and have money left over in the bank. Additionally, maybe you’ll move to a nation where you’re taxed less or even not at all on your pension income – naturally, if you remove tax from the equation you’ll be up to 50% wealthier from April this year! Other ways you can save include if you move to a country where the cost of living is fundamentally lower, where everything from groceries to utilities and fuel are cheaper.
You can also potentially do more with your retirement income and your lump sum savings and investments if you embrace the world of offshore saving, banking and investing – that’s something to explore with an expert adviser before you go or once you have arrived. Use our expatriate financial services enquiry form to find out more.
With the thought in mind that you can perhaps be not only happier, but wealthier as well if you relocate abroad – to then think that you will be restricted in seeing friends, family and loved ones is absolutely a myth you need to dispel in your own mind otherwise you will be restricting your own life.
How Can You Maintain Day to Day Contact With Home if You’re Abroad
I once moved to a nation where it took 2 years and plenty of bribes to get a telephone line – naturally enough, I bought a mobile phone! However, even if you’re on a local tariff, calling home can cost a fortune! Which is why we thank the Lord for the invention of Skype! Whilst there are other VOIP (voice over internet protocol) services out there, Skype is probably the best well known – because if the person you’re calling is also on Skype, it’s free to talk!
You need a computer and you need an internet connection – you can take one with you and you can get the other in place in most countries relatively easily. And even where the infrastructure is poor, you could think about investing in a satellite internet connection, either individually or as a collective with nearby residents.
Skype literally allows you to call home all day every day, you can talk for free, use their instant messenger for text/email type chat with friends and you can set up a webcam and have video type calls. It’s brilliant! It’s also very easy, very intuitive and there are people all over the world who will help you get your computer set up right so you can stay in touch.
So, Will a Retirement Abroad Bring You Enhanced Wellbeing?
Some people really do find that living in a warm dry climate makes them feel better – the damp and cold in the UK can certainly exacerbate conditions such as arthritis, rheumatism and asthma, so if you suffer from any medical conditions that could perhaps be improved by living in a better climate, the answer is ‘yes’ you could potentially enjoy an enhanced sense of wellbeing by living abroad. However, perhaps the thought of losing out on regular contact with your family may counteract this benefit – so you have to make a concerted effort to have regular contact.
Is it possible for you to schedule phone calls via Skype – that way you know when you will be catching up on all that has happened back home, you will know when you can hear the dulcet tones of your loved once and you can ensure you have plenty of contact with your nearest and dearest. When you find a home overseas, make sure it has a decent sized guest bedroom, and keep it as a room that people can stay in whenever they want to – the nicer your home, the nicer the room, the more accessible your home and the nicer the climate and place you’re living in, the more often you will find you’re playing host to friends and family from back home!
Another tip is putting money aside into an account that is your travel account – this money can be used by you once or twice a year to get back home and catch up with all those you’re missing. You know, with the fact that you’ll likely be living in a nicer nation, perhaps in a better home, with better views, enjoying an enhanced lifestyle on every level and that you will have very regular contact with your friends and family may actually be the icing on the cake for you! You may well find that you can be healthier, wealthier, happier and ‘closer’ to your loved ones just by embracing your dreams of a retirement abroad!
