It pains me terribly to read posts reporting the terrible plight of those who are facing involuntary unemployment in the U.S. today due to the lack of jobs, especially for those older workers who, once laid off, may never be able to find another job. They are effectively being forced to retire. The majority do not have enough money saved to pay their daily bills, let alone to enjoy a pleasant retirement of travel and worry-free leisure that once was their dream.
Many workers in the U.S., have less than $2000 saved for their retirement and social security payments, which start to kick in at 62 years of age, will not even cover their most basic expenses to maintain a roof over their head and food in their belly. Some folks in that situation might be able to benefit from the visa programs for pensioners offered by some Central and South American countries, which allow those with a verifiable non-local income to live well on what would be a pittance in the U.S. One such country is Venezuela.
I am living well on under $300 a month, a fraction of what I spent before leaving my law practice and moving to Venezuela to teach English.
I am living well on a fraction of what I spent before leaving my law practice and moving to Venezuela to teach English.
No more $2600 a month mortgage payments. After buying a one third share in a three bedroom apartment here for less than $12,000, no mortgage payment at all. My gas, electric, water and internet bill is about $30.00 a month.
No more $500 a month medical insurance payments. No medical bills at all. Despite seeing 4 medical specialists in the last month and having full lab tests, an EKG, 2 sets of x-rays and specialized ophthalmological tests, plus two pairs of free glasses, there were no co-payments. All the foregoing medical care -- and I have had good medical care here -- is free.
No more expensive car insurance because I don't need a car. Buses here are about 25 cents a ride. They go everywhere and come every 5 minutes or so. A taxis is around $2.00 or $3.00. Gas for a car is 14 cents a liter, but with the traffic, letting a bus-driver worry about it while I read a book is much more pleasant.
I buy food at government subsidized mobile and open-air markets. My food bill, for this quasi-vegan, is about $50.00 a month. Many musical and cultural events are free, the others cost a fraction of what one would pay in the U.S.
The only relatively expensive purchases I make here are drugs from big (U.S.) companies.
I'm not yet receiving social security, but when I do, I'll be able to save more than half of it for travel and other extravagances.
Folks, moving to a socialist South American country may be your survival scheme of last resort, but it is absolutely wonderful to live in a country that cares about it people and sees that their basic needs are met. The U.S. has plenty of money for war. That money could be going to its citizens' needs too. Why isn't it?
No, Venezuela is not perfect. There is a lot of crime in many Venezuelan cities, but there was a lot of crime in many of the American cities I lived in. Here serious steps are being taken to hire more cops, increase their pay substantially and provide them with better transport and communications equipment. Community-based policing systems are being developed. Unlike the U.S., where so many police and fire personnel are being laid off, here more are being trained and put to work.
There is a lot of city traffic here too, because so many people have been making enough money recently to buy new cars, but hopefully the modern trolley-bus network which is being built and in partial operation will decrease that. The fast, quiet, and air conditioned trolley is free.
The U.S. needs to provide these same services to its citizens, until it does, you too can live here under Venezuela's pensioners visa program, with a documented non-Venezuelan income of $1200 a month!