Hi everyone, I have plans of retiring the next month. I have gathered up some income for the retirement period but I was keen on knowing the best ways of investing money during retirement. I know that are a lot of ways to invest as I have been watching on TV and hearing about them in the newspapers….but are these all beneficial??? What are the best among the various ways for investing…..please throw some light on this.

Hi it is a personal thing, depending on what you wish to do and your risk profile.
Normally you can put into Cash, Equities, Bonds, Properties. It is down to you.

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Hi Treads,

I have information for you on property in San Felipe in Baja. Foreigners can own there.

Given the current state of the stock markets, bonds and real estate investments may be your best bet. Since this is your retirement income, you would want to avoid high risk. For real estate you should be evaluating your investments based on 5 key factors:

Location, growth in the area, quality of the property, utilities, and price!

That is why real estate investing in Curacao is on the rise currently.

1. Location. Curacao is strategically located between Europe and the Americas with ideal harbor and air connections, and it is safely nestled outside of the traditional hurricane zone.

2. Growth. In 2007 the Curacao economy grew by about 3%, the highest in years. Real estate developments and tourism developments were a large part of the increased growth.

3. High Grade Property. No desert or swamp land. Curacao has good usable land. Many plots have spectacular views.

4. Utilites. The water, roads, electricity,gas, phones and ofcourse internet services on Curacao are well developed and available.

5. Priced Right. A comparable analysis reveals that property prices on Curacao are (still) significantly UNDER-valued compared to neighboring islands of similar size and economic development. And as mentioned on this forum before, buying at pre-construction prices is always the best way to go. The prices only go UP from there.

The best advice I can give you is that you should take your time and research the various options. In the end, it all depends on what your specific needs are, both short term and longer term. But as a soon-to-be retiree (congrats!), look for options with the best low risk/high stable income ratio. Hope this helps.

Perhaps you might want to relocate to Asia. Maybe Singapore might be too hectic a place for retirement, but its got great healthcare facilities if you ever need it. And there are great opportunities right now in the commercial and industrial property arena, as property rents are all heating up with no let up until 2010, that's when Singapore will be hosting the first Youth Olympics. Its also a great place to be that year.

But if you really like a relaxing place Phuket is fantastic. Nice beaches, slow pace of living (not like Singapore at all).
And in Singapore, if you want to invest in other financial instruments, you will be spoiled for choice, as Singapore's an investment and banking hub just like Hong Kong, London and New York.

Perhaps you might want to relocate to Asia. Maybe Singapore might be too hectic a place for retirement, but its got great healthcare facilities if you ever need it. And there are great opportunities right now in the commercial and industrial property arena, as property rents are all heating up with no let up until 2010, that's when Singapore will be hosting the first Youth Olympics. Its also a great place to be that year.

But if you really like a relaxing place Phuket is fantastic. Nice beaches, slow pace of living (not like Singapore at all).
And in Singapore, if you want to invest in other financial instruments, you will be spoiled for choice, as Singapore's an investment and banking hub just like Hong Kong, London and New York.

As ever some of the agents are'nt telling you the really vital stuff;

What happens to your money if you get dimensia - can other Brits sell it on your behalf

If you die how will your next of kin prove you paid the money into the country - it could sit in Government coffers for years whilst this is sorted

When you transfer the rent back to the UK what Tax will you pay in both countries and what are the fx risks


Honestly, you cant take risks with retirment money and there are many sharks out there who will relieve you of your cash in an instant, and that includes foreign lawyers.

Stick it in a high interest Building Society account and enjoy the interest of about 6.5%.

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Been investing abroad a few years. Always amazed people invest in places that produce just a few months rent per year

As for other countries outside Singapore, we have never encountered such issues before. But in Singapore, it's very transparent. Plus there is no estate tax. Despite having no estate tax involved it does not mean that you do not get a will done. Its so cheap to get a will done. It justs costs as cheap as S$80.00 it is so easily accessible to those that have limited funds.

Even there is an estate of S$100,000 having a will will help in expediting the release of funds. My sister-in-law who is a UK citizen passed away in UK. But she has some money in the government retirement fund - we call it CPF here in Sg.

Within 2 months after the relevant documents were sent over to the relevant government bodies in Singapore, the money was remitted to my nephew's account in London.

Becauase this happened in my family I can attest to the efficiency of the Singapore government in handling such issues. Because she only has one son and loves him dearly. We know that it would be useful in going to his wedding fund.

But I must agree that there are sloppy lawyers that do charge high fees. As like a good pair of shoes, you need to shop around. Top conveyancing firms are not always the best because of high fees. They will fleece you. So shop around.

As for FX risks - it exists in all overseas investments.
As for taxation - I will revert to you on that, specifically on rental income repatriation. I do not think that there will be double taxation. It might be different tax treatment in the US.

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You only get one crack at sorting your retirement and you really cannot afford to screw it up.

I really dont think property investing is appropriate for retirement funds unless you are an experienced investor and have a lot of market knowledge.
The problem with any property investment is liquidity.
generally your risk profile should narrow as you age so that by the time you retire your returns are derived almost exclusively from fixed income.

I have had lots and lots of expatriate clients asking me for help recently. The reason for this is that they have all their money tied up in their homes and have ran out of cash for whatever reason - business failure - downturn in economy - poor health.

But, unless thy can actually prove sufficient income thy cannot even release equity - unless they are 60+ and wish to utilise lifetime mortgages. This is unbelievably common and its a killer when there is nothing you can do to help someone other than suggest they put their home up for sale or for rent.

So, depending on where you wish to retire to, I would stick to very low risk liquid investments.
You can easily achieve 6.5% pa tax free if you are outside the UK.
If you can tie your money up for 12 months - 8% is available for expats. If you are really intent on property investment you need to be extremely cautious and only invest what you can afford to tie up.

Of course it is not wise to place all retirement funds into real estate investment. A prudent investment planner or financial planner should be advising you. Some funds must be put aside for emergency, living expenses as well as what I like to call "fun Fund". Its important that some funds be set aside for yes - FUN! like going on a holiday (for those that enjoy vacations), or people like my daughter that splurges her Fun Fund on tech toys and gadgets.
For me I prefer the former..suits people our age (semi-retired). The world now belong to the generation of our children.

But I have never thought that my daughter will support me (although I know she would until the day I died), but as parents we must make plans for ourselves just in case they can't take care of us for whatever reasons. We have to have some kind of back-up plan. I have always thought a home in a country where the cost of living is low, the pace of life is much slower is a great way to spend the final 5 - 8 years of my life. I'm not sure about you, but that's what I would like to do. Cost of living in places like Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand are much lower than UK and the United States. For Singaporeans like myself, its cheaper to live in Thailand - where it is even more economical even for us.

It always sounds like a great idea to me. It would be best if family members can be nearby would be of course the best.

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