International Living has just named Cuenca, Ecador its Best Retirement Haven for 2009. The cover story, in the September issue of the magazine, outlines why Cuenca beat out the competition as the best place for expat retirees. They describe the city, Ecuador’s third largest, as “a place of old world beauty.” The colonial city is a UNESCO World Heritage site with cobbled streets and gorgeous examples of colonial Spanish architecture. It’s also inexpensive, with monthly costs for a couple to live well under $1500/month. Retirees enjoy some special benefits in Ecuador, including discounts on transportation, utilities and cultural, sports, artistic and recreational events.
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Their second choice is Merida, Mexico, on the Yucatan peninsula, where real estate prices are still considerably lower than some better-known expat havens like San Miguel de Allende.
Coronado, Panama also makes the list, as do Punta del Este, Urugay and Calitri, Italy.
Find out more at their website.
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For your information, Cuenca, Ecuador is NOT the second largest city in Ecuador. Guayaquil is the largest with 3,000,000 population, Quito is number 2 at near 2,000,000 population, and Cuenca is number 3 at about 400,000 population.
Larry, you are absolutely right. I have corrected the article, and I thank you for pointing it out to me.
FutureExpat,
I am considering retiring to Cuenca in the next 18 months. I have checked Larry Marler’s blog and got a lot of good information. The only information not posted (at least I didn’t see it) is what is the tax situation for an expat splitting time between Cuenca and the US? Can you point me in the right direction?
Doug, in which country (if either) would you be earning an income?