Retirement at 50? Maybe in Taiwan

That’s a great endorsement but I’m not I’m brave enough to tempt fate. :grinning:

I lived in Wanhua for a couple of years and didn’t mind it at all. My wife had no problems either.

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How worried should someone be about the China situation in terms of retiring in Taiwan?

It’s definitely something my wife & I talk about a lot. We’re still 8 years at most away from retirement but we both think the situation will be dealt with in the next 2 years. Xi will do something before his term is up. If we were retiring tomorrow, I would have no problem living there but I would keep most of my assets somewhere else and just put in the minimum down payment for a house.

Whoa! I realize the post I’m quoting is from 2018, but if I plop-down 200K, could I get an investment visa nowadays? I’m currently in the US and am willing to do just about anything to get the heck out (except work… haha)! Does anybody know whether investment visas are being granted to overseas applicants in the current Red China virus environment?

For me, this could suffice as a Plan B escape plan in case vaccinations prove to be ineffective or delayed for quite some time.

I’d been dreaming about retiring in Taiwan for a long time… That is, until last year – spending the entire summer in Taipei burst my bubble – the heat and humidity was very unpleasant…

What about retiring in another city in Taiwan?

Try down south!

Do you know about the change in the Chinese constitution in February/March 2018? No more term limits! Xi is in for life!

In his recent trip down south to Shenzhen he ordered the PLA to be prepared for war.

My guess is they’ll start with SCS then Taiwan followed by India.

Now that the UN has ratified the treaty to outlaw nuclear weapons I hope WW3 is no longer on the horizon for the sake of the planet.

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Safer from Crime by far but also 50x more likely to be run over by a car, bus, truck, scooter, Taxi, a drunk driver, a drunk taxi driver than a Western country. So In the end the death/injury rate might be the same or worse here. I once took a taxi here in Taipei and the driver was completely wasted, must have had 4-6 drinks ran 4 red lights on Minquan E road before I GTFO

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I wasn’t aware of that.

I did worry in Taipei when I saw that some of the taxis did not have working seat belts for all seats. And some of the taxi drivers did make me nervous. Do you know where I can find some actual statistics?

It depends. I would (and do) have a backup plan, and a backup to your backup. Our plan #1 is Taiwan, backup is Malaysia, and backup to backup is Mexico or Ecuador or Thailand. All are very doable, but we want to live in Taiwan. It is home.

It depends on how much you buy into fear. Is it possible that China invades/attacks Taiwan? Yes it is possible, but very unlikely. If you can’t live with that possibility, then don’t move to Taiwan - choose a different location.

On a side note, when we first moved to Taiwan in 1998, it was heated between China and Taiwan. There were missiles shot into the strait by China right around the time we were traveling, and people thought we were crazy - we had no issues, and loved our time there. I think the tension level is about the same now.

It all depends upon comfort level.

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I don’t see why not. It is a resident visa, which afaik, are still being processed.

Why on earth would you buy in Taiwan??? Just rent and keep all of your money elsewhere. That is what we are doing; the rental market is so affordable comparably speaking.

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I can think of many reasons to buy and not rent!

  1. For investment reasons

  2. For peace of mind: Nobody, especially when they’re old wants to move against their will. Say, if the landlord wants to sell.

  3. Finding a place to rent is harder for elderly tenants. Landlords do not want someone passing away in their apartment! (Very cultural)

Don’t get me wrong- renting is great, but maybe not forever, especially in the autumn of one’s life.

That’s interesting. Is it common to die in your own home in Taiwan? In the U.S. I feel like most people die in nursing homes.

It’s uncommon as it greatly affects the value of a property. Nevertheless, the chances of it happening are obviously higher, the older one gets.

That’s an interesting difference between U.S. and Taiwan. In U.S. no one would know if someone died in the property. In Taiwan, how does that information get out?

I can understand #2, for sure, but I have never really heard #3 (though I could see it being possible). I have quite a few friends over 60 in Taiwan, all of whom rent, and without issue. But I could understand it being an issue I suppose.

#1 is an absolute no go for me - Taiwan’s real estate market is hyperinflated for the most part, thus why renting is such a good deal. This may be less so in smaller areas, where buying makes some sense on the investment side of things.

Regardless, it is not that I am 100% against owning real estate in Taiwan (close though), it is more that as a foreigner, and even moreso in response to the question about a Chinese invasion, etc , I would rent. But that is just me.

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