Ecuador tops Global Retirement Index for lifestyle and cost of living

The remote South American country of Ecuador has, once again, topped one of the most popular retirement destination surveys. International Living’s 2013 survey again places Ecuador at the top of their list of 22 retirement havens.

Reasons given by respondents included a cost of living at approximately 50 per cent less than in the USA, UK and most of Europe, friendly locals and all-year round good weather. According to the reports culled from the survey, Ecuador’s major cities offer top-class hospitals with reasonable charges for surgery and other treatments and well-trained medical professionals at all levels.

Expat residents can join the country’s health care system for an inexpensive monthly fee. Eating out is cheap compared with Western countries, and it’s possible to work without having to jump through endless official hoops.

Ecuador sits along the equator, giving hot, year-round weather along its coastline and an endless warm, spring-like climate in the towns on the lower slopes of the Andes mountain range. Real estate is comparatively cheap, whether for rent or for sale, with beachfront villas coming in at an affordable rate.

For those attracted by the simple life, homes in rural towns in the hills are even cheaper, and retirees can bring in their household effects duty-free. Senior expat residents are eligible for refunds of sales tax and discounts on entertainment and travel costs.

According to most reports, Ecuador is one of the safest countries in South America, and is attracting ever increasing numbers of expats from the USA and Europe. Although nowhere on the planet is perfect, for those welcoming new experiences and a totally different culture this naturally beautiful corner of the world has a lot to recommend it.