A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

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hhfarang
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A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by hhfarang »

IMO this is the best article I've read about the cost options of retiring in Thailand. We lived there (as a married couple with 2 dogs) on a $3200 per month and it wasn't quite enough for the lifestyle we wanted (so we eventually spent through our savings). We liked to eat out several times per week and I enjoyed wine and international food (from Villa Market) often. We travelled frequently in Thailand but did not have enough in our budget for any international travel. We owned 2 cars and I nearly always needed A/C in the room I was in. We paid out of pocket for any healthcare expenses. I played golf once or twice a month. We had a full time gardener and a part time maid for about half the time we lived there. That lifestyle ran us between $3500 and $4000 per month. I would have travelled more and played more golf if we had a bit more disposable income.

The article briefly covers lifestyles on $1000 per month to $5000 per month.

BTW, we live fairly comfortably now in the U.S. on about $4000 per month, but still not enough for golf or international travel, so our costs are pretty much the same in either country.

"How Much Money Do You Need to Retire in Thailand?"

http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pe ... yptr=yahoo
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by brianks »

Excellent article. Good cost examples of how to expand or trim back your spending to suit your income or needs.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by handdrummer »

The biggest savings comes from staying out of Villa, Bluport and Bangkok. Now, if I could just convince my wife.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by RCer »

I was fine until the buyer/renter backed out on the deal for my house in the US. Anyone want a house on land in the desert of AZ?
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

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RCer wrote: Sat Jun 03, 2017 6:20 pm I was fine until the buyer/renter backed out on the deal for my house in the US. Anyone want a house on land in the desert of AZ?
For free? Sure!
:)
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by Spitfire »

Tbh, if you aren't sending kids through a good high school or university, then you have opulence issues if you can't survive on US $2500 -2700 a month...that's like 85-92k baht a month.

Understood that Hua Hin is one of the more expensive place to retire to in Thailand...but decent beach resort towns always are. Should still be good-to-go on that amount though.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by heartofmidlothian »

This debate always appears on forums and is really a waste of time. Everyone spends different amounts on their chosen lifestyle. I can understand that many people try to work this out in advance of retiring and moving here but the only way to work it out is to come here for a long holiday and do your own investigation. Thailand is the perfect place to live cheap if you have a mind to, but like anywhere, you can get through the money quickly if you have expensive habits, or you can't survive without having staff to do your cleaning or gardening. Great place to live assuming you like hot weather and the local foods.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

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heartofmidlothian wrote: Tue Jun 06, 2017 1:12 pm This debate always appears on forums and is really a waste of time. Everyone spends different amounts on their chosen lifestyle. I can understand that many people try to work this out in advance of retiring and moving here but the only way to work it out is to come here for a long holiday and do your own investigation. Thailand is the perfect place to live cheap if you have a mind to, but like anywhere, you can get through the money quickly if you have expensive habits, or you can't survive without having staff to do your cleaning or gardening. Great place to live assuming you like hot weather and the local foods.
hot, humid weather and can deal with all the difficulties inherent in not speaking the language, different culture in every way from the west and lack of accustomed amenities. if one has never lived in a foreign country and asia in particular, day-to-day life can be quite challenging.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

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and a single man with moderate tastes can live amazingly inexpensively here and remember that if seeking companionship--- rent, don't buy.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by hhfarang »

^ Yeah, unfortunately it's not like renting vs buying a house. Don't expect an increase in value over time if you buy and you don't build up recoverable equity... :D :D :D
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

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hhfarang wrote: Fri Jun 02, 2017 9:00 pm IMO this is the best article I've read about the cost options of retiring in Thailand.
Has anyone seen a sample budget. I will be coming in May to check out Hua Hin but we won't retire until January 2019. And we won't move until our home in Texas is sold. Right now my planning has a budget based on what I expect to get from Social Security plus monthly checks from my retirement plan. I am only budgeting with 75% of the total funds expected because I will have to pay taxes each year.

My spreadsheet is predicting about 125K baht per month to budget with but does not include what I get from the sale of my house which will be rolled into an additional retirement fund. I expect to get between @200-250K (6.4-8.0 million Baht). So I don't believe money will be an issue since that will be invested and hopefully growing even as I am taking money out.

Right now I am hoping to find a 2-3 bedroom furnished condo/villa with pool and gym.

I will investigate in Hua Hin in May but that is also a vacation so I don't want to spend all my time checking things out.

My current assumptions are:

Housing: 15-25K baht
Food: 15-20K baht (both groceries and eating out - 500 per day total)
Utilities: No idea but I suspect we will be on the high end due to AC
Entertainment: 2-5K baht per month (weekly movies, concerts, etc.) - Pure Guess here
Medical: No idea but I will look back at my spending this year and use that as a starting point.

I also plan on bringing a dog so I will have to figure out those costs as well.

But what I would like to see is a real budget by someone who is already settled in Hua Hin. If someone would like to help but doesn't want to post personal stuff here - PM me and I will provide you with my email and/or Facebook account.

Thanks in advance.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by RCer »

komments wrote: Thu Dec 14, 2017 1:09 am
My current assumptions are:

Housing: 15-25K baht

Medical: No idea but I will look back at my spending this year and use that as a starting point.

I also plan on bringing a dog so I will have to figure out those costs as well.



Thanks in advance.
Change rent to 25k and up.
No condo if you want your dog.

Check out medicare supplements. If you want direct billing, you'll need to contact the billing drpartment of the hospitals, don't believe the insurance company.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by handdrummer »

Generally, my wife and I live on 50,000 to 70,000 baht a month. 15,000 for rent of a 2 bd., 2 bath, fully furnished house, with owner supplied gardener, in a compound that includes a pool and workout room. 1800-3000 for electricity, depending on use, 50 baht a month for water, and the rest for food, clothing, trips to Bangkok, eating out etc. The added expenses come from dental, twice yearly for each of us and glasses for each. All in all we live comfortably within our budget. Also we don't drink or smoke and don't go to bars. There are few concerts that interest me so we don't spend much on entertainment. We're probably not typical but there it is.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by Pagey »

Your rental budget should be OK if like Handdrummer you live in a compound with a shared pool. If you want a villa with a private pool then RCer is nearer the mark IMO.
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Re: A pretty realistic article about Thailand retirement cost

Post by Homer »

komments wrote: Thu Dec 14, 2017 1:09 amHas anyone seen a sample budget.
Try googling:
"my cost of living" thailand
plus one of the following: wordpress or blogger or blog
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