Difficult decision for me. I do enjoy most parts of living in Taiwan but probably miss parts of my āWestern lifestyleā a little too much to stay forever. I think one of the other main factors has got to be the vastly overpriced property prices. A place, just a few floors above me, recently sold for 23 Million NT. I think I would prefer a Villa in Spain with a Sea view for that figure.
The rent revenue for the high season (3/4 months) would probably be more than for a whole year ( same value house) in Taiwan. I do understand itās a level playing field in Taiwan but find it hard to see the value for money here.
Have to decide soon. 
Donāt think so. Crime is bad here so you need to live in a very secure community which coyld change at any moment as incompetence rules here. You need a car for anything as public transport is non-existent or decrepit. KL is super inconvenient. Canāt walk ftom area to area, but not enough parking so even doing something simple can take hours. You also need to plan everything to not coincide with morning, lunch, and evening rush hour.
Internet is expensive, slow and censored. Services are generally first world priced and third world in delivery. A common headache is for someone to finish 90% of the job and then make you wait months for the finish.
As DD said, there is a creeping Islamification going on, with a resulting brain drain, and you simply have no idea what is going on here with the lack of media freedom.
Malaysia is a very repressive place.
Oh and just wait till you fly into KLIA2 on Air Asia. Most incompetently built airport ever.[/quote]
Other areas of Malaysia might be a better option for retired expats, right? Value for money, nice scenery and environment, safer etc?
You still have the problem of traffic, lack of public transport, safety and if you are in the countryside of poor services and little English.
Itās also bloody hot here, with afternoon storms near daily , and unrelenting traffic so you canāt just get up at 10 and say I think i will go to theā¦
I am getting used to leaving at 6am for hikes and literally planning trips to the mall (so I donāt have to spend an hour looking for parking), planning mid-afternoon doctor appointnents (so you hit that sweet spot between lunch and after-work rushhoyr traffic), and working with a culture where it is perfectly acceptable for someone coming to deliver or repair something to just not show up, promise a time tomorrow and again not show up, and so on, but it is annoying and i wouldnāt want to be old here.
Same in the ol country. yet we have awesome weather, beautiful landscapes in our advantage. 100 thousand old retirees cannot be wrong. Lots of British retire there.
But the cost of living is simply ridiculous. And medical care is way too expensive or nonexistent. You have a really clear M society, that is where all problems come from.
Malaysia has some lovely spots though, langkawi and Sabah (although the towns arenāt great of course) are two that I have visited. Seemed fairly relaxed and safe from the perspective of a quick visit.
I did the opposite and there is no single day I regret it !
- Better air
- Better internet
- Better food
- Better healthcare
- Cheaper and better rent
- Easy administration
- ā¦
Yeah, I donāt really care about any of that, but I live in a second tier city and the air, rent and stuff arenāt so bad (the figures are about pollution are about the same as Taiwan where I live). Food, I donāt really give a shit: I travel and cook and anythingās available if you pay. I have decent health insurance and stuff. I meet a lot of fun people here and get paid a ton more in my industry, so itās worth it.
Admin is funny here. My cleaner chucked out my landlordās rent tax receipt and I had to get the office to put an ad in the local newspaper to say Iād lost it before theyād issue a certified photocopy.
Love Taiwan, but pay is shit and jobs are dead-end for people like me (uni English teacher, see Duckedās threads, Jesusholyshite) and Taipei is dead (see āWorkpermits for foreign performersā threads).
You can make a comfortable life in either place, but thereās more $$$ here for the waiguoren. Thereās the evil repressive government thing, but, well, Iām British anyway.
I have a family, a young kid, a second one to come, here it is also just better to be honest when you have a family. I lived 6 years in Beijing and a year in Dalian, I had a great great time. The time where living in China was nice with no internet censorship, no visa issues, could get a job easily doing anything without visa, 1kuai for a bottle of Tsingtao, could drive scooter with no license, rent a 2 floor rooftop for 5000 yuan with a view inside the 3rd ring in Beijing, could buy a car AND register it, NOOO traffic jam ! On the last two years I was in Beijing it was deteriorating fastā¦ I would say it started to change after the Olympics like 2009.
Yeah, the air in the north is awful. Iāve been wrecking my lungs in Bangkok, Taipei and Oxford (among the worst traffic pollution in Europe!) for years, but if I had kids I might think differently.
Itās really chilled and lovely where I live. No scooters, cheap-ish, green. Iām enjoying it but I guess it depends where you are in China and what you do. And I like my holidays!
China is not nearly as bad as it used to be, and many smaller cities and towns are actually far and above nicer places than their Taiwanese equivalents with wide sidewalks, orderly rows of shops, no scooters, and yes, clean streets. Was in Lhasa last week, and lo, it does not smell of pee anymore.
But the air and water are pretty awful and there is way too much back door stuff going on. Most of the Lonely Planet authors I know in China have left or are looking for an exit strategy and health is a major concern.
Given that it is China though, major changes could be possible in the next 5 years. I wouldnāt mind spending a year or two there but with my fiancee and I looking to start a family it probably wouldnāt happen.
I guess we will just bide our time in the authoritarian-lite atmosphere of Malaysia for a while.
You failed to mention the massive fail that is ācustomer serviceā in China, the unprofitable and poorly run government-owned enterprises, the shocking lack of human decency (by Han, not Western standards) in many milieus, and the simultaneous death of religion and humanism some 50 years ago.
I meet a lot of good people in China and I like doing occasional projects there, but I would not live there unless I had no other choice or it was very temporary.
If you want nice digs for the money, get out. Seriously mate. The ONLY reason to by a nice pad in Taiwan is if you want to be here for other reasons.
The places I could buy in Seattle, Austin, San Diego, Boulder, Upstate NY, Melbourne, Brisbane, even frickinā Norcal for what I paid hereā¦
Yep, a 3bdroom apartment in Taichung will still set you back minimum 300k
Usd in a nice area. Taichungās average income is about 30,000 ntd/mth (but plenty of rich folk too).
Taipeiā¦donāt even want to think about it. But there are cheaper deals in Taichung in less popular areas or just get a small pad to use as a base and keep funds for something elsewhere.
My impression of Chinese cities is similar to MM and like Erm I would much prefer to live in the South than the North, some beautiful spots like Guilin.
However their air is world beating terrible across almost all of China (I check the statistics and its a national thing), the people are also rougher edged and service like Tomas said is abysmal. Taking the HSR in China is always crowded and slightly unpleasant. Taking Taiwan HSR feels more than first world.
Itās impossible to just book a Ticket quickly , there are just too many people, nothing is very simple or easy. IDs for everything. The cities scale are too big too, like Shanghai or Beijing, they are just too Mofo big so itās a real drag getting from A to B! Mega cities suck, they are not compatible with good living.
Earning more $$$ is a big plus in China, otherwise itās a bit of a drag. Itās mainly seen as a place to make money and get out of, even by the locals.
Source from: Best countries for expats 2023 (according to expats) | Atlas & Boots (atlasandboots.com)
Taiwan dropped to No.5 of Best Countries for Expats 2023. It was No. 1 in 2021 (2 years ago!!!)
What happened? Can you believe Mexico is in No. 1. Are you agree with this poll?
Who cares about these things reallyā¦ the best country is the one you can be happy in.
Food wise, makes total sense.
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I think because most of the expats living in Mexico are Americans.
I suppose if most of the expats in Mexico were Taiwanese, they would not like the food
Bahrain on 9? Do the expats they asked even live there? Guess itās slightly better than any place surrounding it.
I spent a lot of nice weekends in Bahrain. Good location, safe, wealthy, nice weather, good food, very internationa, etcl. Itās a small island so not much in country traveling to do, but I looked into jobs there and Taiwan was a second choice (more jobs here)