Domino

good friend of mine who was involved in the Romanian relief convoys some years ago liked Transylvania so much he bought property there and now lives there whilst letting a property for holidays. The views are breathtaking.

Azarel

I can vouch for that Domino. I live in the capital, which is handy for work and so forth, but the Transylvanian region is really breathtaking. It would be hard, however, to make a living there unless you worked in tourism (running house rentals, guesthouse, tours, etc) but if you really want to get away from it all it's a fantastic place. Main con for retirees would be poor access to decent healthcare.

A lot of the villages still don't have basic amenities like on-grid water (still use wells), sewage systems (sh1thouses are still the thing), and gas, and lots of villages will have nothing except maybe a small shop selling a handful of non-perishable and some bottles of beers (they also kind of double as the local) and so most villagers still live off their smallholdings, not in a Good Life back-to-basics kind of way, but just because that's what they've always done. On the positive side you can pretty much do what you like without getting bogged down in petty bureaucracy.

Villages nearer the big towns like Brasov, Sibiu or Cluj are generally modernized and have reasonable access to shops and so forth, but then you might as well live anywhere.

Life here doesn't suit everyone, but if you the kind of person who doesn't like their local government telling you how many sheet to use when wiping your butt or sticking their noses into everything you do, and don't mind getting your hands a bit dirty growing your own and can live without too many modern comforts (of course, everything is available at a price and with plenty of patience if you really need it), then Transylvania could be a good place to consider - beautiful landscape for hiking/riding, lots of fishing and hunting, ruined castles, mountains to climb, forests to explore, and so on.

Properties, however, tend not to be as cheap as, say, Bulgaria. A small ruined village house in need of complete renovation with about 1000m2 of land will cost about 10K Euro. You can get a fully-renovated place for about 60K, and there's everything in between. Go further north and further from major cities and you get the better deals. The buying process is relatively easy and fees normally come to about 2-5% of the buying price in total (notar's fee, tax, land registry fee). The main thing to be wary of is on-going property disputes, but any decent local lawyer will be able to sort that out (i.e., tell you to stay away from the deal).

Mike and Janet

Which part of Europe had you in mind???

tally71

I know many people who have happily retired to Turkey, sunny climate, milder winters and with great quality of food and cheaper lifestyle. maybe worth considering.

I can provide further local information around Fethiye area, where there is a good ex-pat community, or send me a pm.

steve01

Portugal,
Climate - superb & Varied - sunny and beautiful all year in the South, hilly and beautiful in the North, even ski-ing possible for a couple of months in the centre.

People - some of the nicest you'll ever meet.

The lowest cost of living in 'Sensible Europe' - some parts of Eastern europe really are only for the 'brave'.

Good transport links to the world, Faro,Porto and Lisbon connect to everywhere.

Healthcare good (still regarded as a caring profession here), Dentistry amongst the best in the world.

Legal system - accepts foreign wills, no death duties for immediate family - none of the nightmares of Spain etc.

We love it here

the troubadour

Republic of Northern Cyprus, Slovenia, Portugal, Malta are all interesting possibilities to me. Have only been to the latter to date but will check out the other two next year.

Asia still an option and have researched Ecuador but think South America probably not suitable in my case.

jamessmith29

According to me,London is the best place for retire.it is a best place for tourist attraction spot in the world.
Thanx

steviedeluxe

I live in London, and although I'd agree it's great for a tourist visit, or perhaps to persue a career in the media or in the city etc., I can't see that it's a good place to retire. Too expensive, too congested noisy and polluted. Only plus factor I suppose is the availability of top class hospitals.

jenninedinburgh

Hi there - I'll have to look into this. Does anyone here know what these islands are and whether one can just pack up and move there with a British passport?

jenninedinburgh

Thanks for the reply - Romania might be a little out of my comfort zone..but who knows, things change and they change rapidly, so who knows, it might be a consideration in the future.

jenninedinburgh

Am open really - needs to have good transport links to the UK, great health care available, low crime and in range of cultural activities, etc.

jenninedinburgh

Hi there, thanks so much. I haven't been to Portugal. Are there any small cities/villages that you recommend that are near the cities stated above?

jenninedinburgh

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. London however seems very stressful to me...I am looking for something a bit more chilled out and with much better weather

steve01

Hi Jennie,
North - Porto is lovely and the whole Duro valley is a beautiful place to live/visit
Central - Lisbon is a great city, Sintra and Cascais are very nice towns.
Alentejo coast - Setubal and Troia are great places.
This is where the weather becomes hotter and sunny year round.
The west coast from Setubal all the way down to the Algarve is georgous.
Algarve - probably the place you should invest - Great weather, one of the worlds best climates, a fantastic place for tourism, lovely people and lots to do.
Best thing you can do is come on a touring holiday its only about 6 hours from North to South.
p.s we have a perfect holiday home investment for sale in the Algarve at this moment - private villa, with its own pool and sea views off the roof terrace - great price.
send me a pm if you'd like more details

liveaboard

I think you'd have to list your desires and needs before you could answer this question; because many things we want are mutually exclusive.
like;
I want a vibrant social scene, but I want seclusion and privacy.
Cheap cost of living, but the possibility of finding work / income.
Lots of land but not too much work to do on it.
Plenty of water + low humidity
Lots of sun, not too hot
Good policing where I don't get hassled by police
A place I can build / renovate / modify, but I won't have to worry about over development.
plenty of shopping / low traffic
Access to good health care + emergency services of course.

Wherever you choose, you will get some of these things and have to do without some others; and everyone will have to decide for him / herself what important to them.
I like dry sunny cool weather, elbow room, and a sea breeze...