In about 2 years time i should have about £200,000 if i sell my flat,car etc.etc.(i have just turned 40 now)

Do you think it will be enough to live off in thailand untill i get my post office pension at 60 which i would have payed into for 25 years and the state pension at 65 ?

If i just put it in a bank i would get about £8000 a year interest .

Its just i worry it might not be enough. plus if kids come along. I am married to a thai girl so the visa would not be a problem .

Thoughts anyone ?

Cheers Gary

quote:

If i just put it in a bank i would get about £8000 a year interest

That would give you I guess 6 tines the national average income.

Please bear in mind though, if you stop paying ni contributions in two years your pension will be drastically reduced.

Peter

IMHO...

Not really enough...

Are you going to run a business? Or just do nothing and live off the interest..?


Nick

quote:

Originally posted by gkp:
If i just put it in a bank i would get about £8000 a year interest.

Gary.

It is completely down to the sort of lifestyle you want.... if you want to live a totally farang lifestyle in Bangkok, Pattaya etc .... it probably wouldn't last very long.

If you want to live a farangish lifestyle out in the provinces, it would be more than adequate. That sum is roughly double my annual spend.... so you could have a lot more fun than me, and I have a really good time

One thing to bear in mind ..... where is your wife from? ... would building any property be expected?

Only the wealthy can afford to retire at 40yrs old. Selling all your assets to raise £200000 doesn't make you wealthy. You can't say what conditions in Thailand or your own situation or aspirations will be in 15-20years time, and if you had to come back to the UK that money wouldn't buy you a space in a caravan park.
Get real. If you don't get yourself some means of earning a living you're totally burning your boats

Hi Gary

Well, in 2 yrs time you will be a millionaire in LOS 14 times over, so that makes you very wealthy there!

If you have a Thai wife and are both thinking about kids seriously (at 42?!), then I doubt your missus will be to enamoured with you thinking along the lines of a typical 'Pattaya/farang' sort of lifestyle.

A net £200k, I too would like to go to LOS with, with pensions to follow and I do not see why that wouldn't be enough to buy a small property - outside the main centres/tourist jaunts or renting.

But I feel you may have to make a large portion of your assets work for you until your pensions kick-in, rather than just leaving it in a bank - but I am no financial advisor.

It goes without saying that if things go pear for you out there, and you have to come back to the U.K then all bets are off with that amount, but then again that wasn't your question.

If as I assume you and your wife are healthy and can do some sort of work, depending on your transferable skills/willingness to re-train, I would say YES go for it - you only live once.

regards

Alvin

That money is without any additional income I assume? Nothing stopping your wife getting a job or you getting some sort of income especially as you've got at least two years to plan it. If you have friends here you can trust then maybe a little import/export business of some kind. Do an O.U course & then teach English maybe. Work from the www. Tonnes of ideas. Once your abode is sorted out & you've furnished it then the rest is just monthly bills like food, elec, water & possibly health care etc.
What you gotta understand is that if you do move you'll almost certainly lose most of your 'capital' if you try to come back to the UK to live. Seen it a few times....big ideas, gonna do this, gonna do that...12 months later folk are back in the UK again broke. Really think it through, get the advice you may need & then if it's what you want go for it. You only get one shot at life...make the most of it! Good luck.

Firstly, You have to ask yourself honestly

,"Is our relationship built to last"

then

"What lifestyle do I need, Can I hack the heat. Do I need to build"

then

Go for it, I won't be far away myself, although I have been saying it for toooooo long now, just another project, just one more, oh maybe just one more,
I was gonna go after I sold the house that I have currently just built
But now I have just bought some more land and currently building a pair of semi's,
Just bought some land to build 28 apartments in Bulgaria, Looking at some land in France,
But maybe this will be my last few projects,
this time next year.... Maybe.

quote:

Originally posted by Casey Jones:
Seen it a few times....big ideas, gonna do this, gonna do that...12 months later folk are back in the UK again broke.

That's the key.

If you have grand ideas, you need enough money to try and make them succeed with enough money to live as an addition.

I'm not going to start another 'isn't Isaan great' debate I hope, but if you ask any of the ex-pats around here, 30k Baht a month buys you a very good lifestyle (some require more, you see them in the gold shop every month)

Mellowsailor - glass half empty
Alvin - glass half full

No insults in that, just making a reference.

I was a 'half empty' person in the UK (no short jokes please) in LOS I've done a complete 180.

Yes, something could go seriously wrong and I could be forced to return to the UK, that will not be pleasant, but that event is yet to happen, if ever.

The way I viewed it two years ago I had a few choices. I could have stayed in the UK and carried on working my nads off and possibly dropped dead before I got to 65 (that would have been nice) Do what I'm doing now or make it to 65 and have enough cash to sort out any problem I may encounter over here.

I chose the middle ground. Why, well obviously the first one wouldn't have been my first choice, and if did the third one and made it to that age without any health problems I would be kicking myself around the rice fields for not trying it sooner

P.S. Start a small business for the wife, get her to pay the household bills, use your money for fun and emergencies.

I would say yes, as long as you don't have kids. Think about a house, £30,000 should be easily enough outside of the tourist traps, not that far outside either, say 30mins outside Pattaya for instance.

Don't forget a car every few years. Your wife will almost certainly want to have kids and will have aspirations to an International School. These cost a fortune.

I assume your pension is final salary and a 60ths scheme. ie you would get 42% of your final salary with some form of inflation proofing? Find out what your wife gets if you die before taking the pension (but don't tell her)

You then need to factor in inflation compounded over 20 years, you should reinvest about half your interest.

Think about a job such as teaching English after doing a TEFL course. That should net you around 20,000 baht a month, maybe 30,000 if you have a degree as well (any subject). This will rise as you gain experience.

Also think about buying a property in the UK and renting it out. Pick somewhere with a high demand for rental properties and do a buy to let with around 50% deposit. I personally wouldn't target a student area, I think the bubble will burst on University intake long term.

BigRed

quote:

Yes, something could go seriously wrong and I could be forced to return to the UK, that will not be pleasant, but that event is yet to happen, if ever.

P.S. Start a small business for the wife, get her to pay the household bills, use your money for fun and emergencies.

Re the above, done it got the tee-shirt and I agree with the latter top advice, BUT.....

I have remained a 'glass half full guy' and that is despite having to return to the U.K a bit cap-in-hand(ish), after having a stab at an alternative life-style in Spain 2002/2004, only for it to fail on several fronts :

mainly loneliness, relying too much on the not so fab ex-pat community, a lack of emergency fund money, too many debts to service in the UK, a bad business plan, and last but not least guilt pangs re young children in UK.

So I can sort of speak from a personal experience.

Gary if those boxes can be safely ticked as not being a major worry for you and your wife, then my view is 100% unaltered.

LOS with a loving partner, enough money if sensible should be a far more enjoyable, potentially richer new life for you and your family than Europe.

A bit older, wiser and richer I reckon wife and I are 2-5 years max away from joining you - so to speak.

alvin

quote:

It goes without saying that if things go pear for you out there, and you have to come back to the U.K then all bets are off with that amount, but then again that wasn't your question

at 40 you would need a back up plan if things go wrong for what ever reason out in thialand and having that flat would be a handy thing to fall back on.

in my opinion i would not sale the flat but rent it and use that money + any extra cash you can make out there ie: teaching english or something over the internet to live on.

if later on kids come along then you can leave it to them!

Thanks for the replys

A lot to think about.

Its just that i have 1 more year to pay for my flat(which is a 1 bed flat in SW16 London)and to move to any sort of house means borrowing at least another £100,000,which is £600 a month for 25 years.

Im not really a big drinker so thats not a big money issue, plus 3 big changs for 100 baht and im anyones lol.

My main worry is when we have kids(yes i know im 40 but the wife is just a little younger lol).im not sure about the price of schools in thailand plus if we stayed in england they would all be free.

Once again thanks for the replys

Cheers gary

quote:

Mellowsailor - glass half empty

Fair enough, but my point still is that if you don't have something to fall back on you could have a miserable and uncomfortable few years, at least until your pensions kick in - and how much will they be worth in 25 years time? And why do so many people assume that just because you can speak English you'll either enjoy or be competent at teaching it overseas?
I've committed the bulk of my savings to having a house built in Thailand which in the final analysis becomes the property of my wife. There have been many posts on this Forum to the effect that you don't commit any money to Thailand that you can't afford to lose. But I'm quite happy to give this security to my wife and have the prospect of a comfortable retirement in Thailand on my pensions in 3 years time because I will retain the security of a house here which will provide us with extra income and a nest-egg for my kids.
Start by seeing how much you can rent your flat for and then work out how much extra income you need to have a decent life in Thailand, and how you're going to earn it. That's what I would do if I was 40 years old - if only....

quote:

And why do so many people assume that just because you can speak English you'll either enjoy or be competent at teaching it overseas

i don't think people assume. it's just that teaching english is an option and it doesn't have to be in a school or private language school it can be home based or could even be on a voluntary basis for a local school or charity to keep busy during the day and/or give something to the community.

I have read the comments with interest It would be interesting to hear from people living in Thailand long term.I am sure it is possible to live on 8000gbp pa (approx 4% pa net)although if you have to spend 40/50,000 on a house and transport your income would be nearer 5/6000gbp per year alternatly if you rent both house and car you would need about 20/25000bht per month extra which is around 4000gbp per year leaving you around 4000gbp to live on and keep your wife and family.Thats around 5/6000bht per week and I hear of people living on this amount although I personally dont know any.What I do know is that if you factor in things like medical insurance (BUPA) etc service costs/utility charges you would soon be living on 4000bht per week which must be very near the poverty line for a farang. As I see it your only chance is to start a buisness in Thailand and hope you make a profit although now doesnt seem the best time to invest in Thailand. I would say you are about 100000gbp short to come to Thailand and live on your investments in UK

In about 2 days time I should have about Minus£7000 if I sell my bicycle, old DVDs etc. etc.(I have just turned 40 now).

Do you think it will be enough to live off anywhere until I get my next pay cheque?

Its just I worry it might not be enough. Plus two kids have come along. I am married to a Thai girl so the bills are definitely a problem .

Thoughts anyone ?

-----------------------

I am NOT taking the p!

I'm just saying that whatever comes along (and the above are my true circumstances!), you can still be happy!

And you might well be happier skint in Thailand than skint in the UK!

quote:

service costs/utility charges you would soon be living on 4000bht per week which must be very near the poverty line for a farang.

Ahh .... I remember you Athens.

What was it.... 6,000 B a month electricity bill because you have two fully air-con houses, one in BKK and one in Pattaya, 300 B for breakfast every day, because you and your wife are too busy working a twelve hour shift a piece and therefore too busy to cook.

You cut your cloth

200K in an offshore account could give you around twice as much interest as a bank.

If you are feeling brave put some of it into the stock market and you can get more. Even some of the low risk funds are returning 15% pa. at the moment.

It may be wise to use some of the capital to purchase property in Thailand to counteract price rises there.

Sounds like enough to me if you (and your wife) don't expect a lavish lifestyle.

Hi Gary.
I say just go for it, If you bank £150,000 that would give you £6,000 per year =420,000TB about 35,000TB per month,enough to live on. Take £50,000 with you= more than 3 1/2 million BT enough for a nice Bungalow and a pick up,and still more than 1million in the bank for the rainy day, If you can teach and earn 20,000BT per month you will be quite well off, Thai people have to have a very good job to earn 35,000TB per month, just do it, I am just waiting to sell my house,then we are gone to Khon Kaen.
The very best of luck. fredro.

Thaddeus That wasnt the question!My lifestyle by comparison with others on board would seem to be excessive although most of the people I know spend simular amounts every month.What I said was health care utilities and services need to be factored in and I included about 4000bht a month for that which is surely not excessive!

quote:

Originally posted by athens:
Thaddeus That wasnt the question!

You didn't phrase it as a question. you phrased it as a statement (which one is it, sic or QED... I often get them mixed up)

quote:

Originally posted by athens:
I said was health care utilities and services need to be factored in and I included about 4000bht a month for that which is surely not excessive!

No it isn't.... but it's about 2,000 lower than your electricity bill alone from previous posts.

Try to tell the same story every time.... or at least take notes

quote:

Originally posted by Marcus:
In about 2 days time I should have about Minus£7000 if I sell my bicycle, old DVDs etc. etc.(I have just turned 40 now).

Do you think it will be enough to live off anywhere until I get my next pay cheque?

Its just I worry it might not be enough. Plus two kids have come along. I am married to a Thai girl so the bills are definitely a problem .

Thoughts anyone ?

We are in the same boat! Let's be "glass is half-full"-kind of guys together.

First of all - why retire to Thailand at the age of 40 or 42???!!

OK, it may be paradise but if your plan for retiring at this age is just to enjoy life in a stress-free environment then I cannot help but think that this is going to be very boring? Surely, at this age you should have some kind of vocation?

Secondly, ...... well, I can't think of a second point just yet really.

I guess us less privileged guys will always have Thailand as an objective/memory/fantasy rather than as a present day reality. For now this is good enough for me - I still have to go through quite a few mental adjustments before I can truly live there, I think.

My plan for a few years down the line is to work maybe 3 months on...three months "off".

That way I'd still have valuable £££'s coming in...and keeps the old grey cells ticking over...

I think if i just sat around all day I'd die of boredom...Or become an alcoholic...

I'd have to have something to keep me "mentally" stimulated..



Nick