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May 2, 2024 – There’s a much cleaner look at Topretirements – there are no more Google ads on our pages. Since the site started in 2007 we have relied on the ads from the search engine giant for the bulk of the revenue that allowed us to produce this…
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Category: International Retirement
May 2, 2024 -- Unintended consequences - they come with the best of ideas. Spain's Golden Visa program, where foreigners could get extended resident visas for purchasing real estate worth at least 500,000 Euros, is now ending. Over 14,000 people from non-European countries had taken advantage of the program. Spain joins Portugal in shutting down the real estate portion of its Golden Visa programs (Portugal modified its last fall). Greece is modifying what it offers, increasing the investment to 800,000 Euros from 500,000 in Athens and on popular islands like Mykonos.
The unintended consequences are similar to what is happening to real estate all over the world. Many buyers from China and Russia and other countries took advantage to launder some of their money, evade taxes, invest a hot real estate market, and gain long term residency in an attractive country. The result was to drive up property prices in the most desirable cities and areas, making them unaffordable for residents of the host countries. Affordable housing became harder to get, and governments realized that the advantage of attracting capital was not worth the harm to its own citizens. The residency programs were unpopular among the Portuguese population.
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Category: Health and Wellness Issues
April 25, 2024 — We expected that walking would be your favorite physical activity – but not by the margin this margin. Almost half (47%) of people taking our poll chose walking for how they like to stay active. After that it was a toss-up, with swimming, pickleball, biking, and…
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Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
April 20, 2024 -- The Dow Jones average is up over 10% in the past year, and the S & P 500 could hit its all time high of 40,000. If you have investments in the stock market that has probably been sweet music for you. But you might be wondering what will happen next - will the market continue to go up, sink like a stone, or just stay the same? Should you buy, sell, or just hold on to what you have? Here are some thoughts for retirees or those approaching retirement.
Safety is important. First, recognize that your investment decisions now have a different weight than they were when you were younger. You now have fewer years to recover, should something go wrong. So protecting your retirement funds should be your first priority. That means rash decisions - like selling everything or going all in - should be avoided at all costs.
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Category: Health and Wellness Issues
April 15, 2024 — Sitting is the New Smoking. Have you heard that one? Nothing seems truer these days, as more and more experts (like Dr. Sanjay Ghupta) say that physical activity is the number one prescription for staving off aging. Not to mention the health benefits of regular exercise…
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
April 13, 2024 -- When it comes to learning about the best places to retire in the Southeast, it turns out there is no better source than the faithful Members of Topretirements. A few weeks ago we wrote about Brian's where to retire quest. Immediately the comments and suggestions started rolling in, and they were both interesting and helpful. They were filled with details that you just can't find anywhere else.
So to help Brian, and anyone else struggling to find a place in the eastern part of the country that has mountains and outdoor life opportunities, here is a recap of the suggestions made in Comments to the original article. Feel free to pile on with more Comments at the end. Note: we did a little editing for brevity's sake.
One Editorial Comment:
One thing we have noticed lately is an uptick of retired people who are changing their plans. This comes not only from the comments we received here, but among our circle of friends. More folks seem to be deciding not to be snowbirds any more - because they want to travel more, or sometimes health concerns. A few appear to be capitalizing on their appreciated real estate. Are any of you seeing this?
Carol:
I am a New Englander but spent 6 years in Chattanooga. If you like the outdoor life AND cultural things to do (theater, music, TN Aquarium), along with a vibrant business energy, you definitely should check out Chattanooga.
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
April 10, 2024 – Last week we posed a situation for a hypothetical couple, eager to leave California for an active, outdoor lifestyle in the West somewhere. After thinking about it we suggested 4 very popular towns in as many states that might fit the bill, and asked our Members…
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Category: Real Estate Listings
what the NAR real estate settlement means
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Category: Work and Volunteering
April 6, 2024 -- Flo Williamson has been a wonderful volunteer site moderator here at Topretirements for a very long time, at least since 2016. Yesterday, we finally met in person for at the Funky Rooster Coffee House and Wine Bar on Key West's Caroline St. Just as I expected, she is a warm and interesting person. It was a fun visit.
Flo and her husband Jerry were in town on a short trip with friends. They have been hitting some of Key West's best restaurants, like 7 Fish, Belmar, and Louie's Backyard, along with the other sights. We had a good visit and short walk around town.
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Category: Adventurous retirement
April 3, 2024 - When you were a lot younger, could you ever imagine someone in their 80's, even 90's, who was still skiing? Well get over that, because the slopes in some resorts have plenty of octogenarians gracefully coming down their trails. Some ski areas are welcoming them with deals and events too.
One of those is Aspen, Colorado. Although a daily lift ticket can approach $300 on holiday weekends, it offers a senior season pass to skiers over 70 for $799. Alta, the longstanding resort in Utah, offers a season pass to people over 80 for a $50 admin fee (but years ago it was available to people over 75). It even has a seniors ski club, the Wild Old Bunch, with many members in their 90s. Other resorts offer substantial discounts for 70+ skiers too.
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