How Much is Enough Retirement Fund in Thailand?

[I_Love_Thailand]

How much fund does one need today in order to last him for life---for as many years as he can survive?

What is the amount of money that you think you'd need to retire in Thailand?

How would you invest this money so as to generate monthly income for your expenses?

How much expenses do you anticipate youself to have now, and in the future, in Thailand?

How would you ensure that your investments are hedged against the inflation in Thailand?

Which part of Thailand do you want to live in or retire in?

Would you keep your investment in Thailand or elsewhere? Where, and why?

[Richard Barrow]

Can I ask what the purpose of asking these questions are? Sounds like you are doing a survery.

Which part of Thailand do you want to live in or retire in?

If it is for yourself, then I think a few of these questions you can only answer yourself. For example, in this question, you should travel around Thailand unitl you find a place that feels like home to you.

As for the other questions, it depends a lot on your expectations on your standard of living. If you are willing to live like the average Thai then your expenses will be quite low.

[I_Love_Thailand]

Can I ask what the purpose of asking these questions are? Sounds like you are doing a survery.


If it is for yourself, then I think a few of these questions you can only answer yourself. For example, in this question, you should travel around Thailand unitl you find a place that feels like home to you.

As for the other questions, it depends a lot on your expectations on your standard of living. If you are willing to live like the average Thai then your expenses will be quite low.

It's for myself. I am asking because I want to know about how those who have been actually living there live.

[FaranginPhetch]

As Richard said, it all depends on you as to the amount that you spend.

You could live in a nice condo in BKK, go out every night looking at the sights and bright lights, eat only Farang food in nice resturants, maybe own a car, do the regular things tourists do and you could spend 100,000 baht per month.

Or you could live like a Thai,Live in a Thai style house in a village upcountry, eat Thai food, not own a car, Don't go out drinking or even drink at home as drinking is expensive and get along fine for 4000 baht per month.

We live in central Thailand in a village in Phetchabun prov, I have a wife and a 16 year old daughter, each one of us has their own computer with ADSL, UBC and 2 TV sets, 2 aircons, 2 reefers [one for Thai and one for farang] Deep freeze, nice washer, 2 motorcycles and a Honda Civic, imported beef in the freezer along with other imported foods, I eat farang, they do to mostly.
and we can get along on 20,000 a month, but we generally spend more, some months as much as, but rarely over 80,000 baht.

So you see, it is impossible to say what you would spend, you could get along on 4000, but you pobly wouldn't.

[paul_au]

I'm one of the few people who can live on zero baht, scrounging through garbage bins and living off my wits but as I can afford a little better, I don't.
If you are used to living a reasonable comfortable life and want to keep your life to a reasonable standard, don't have any dependence children or a car, want to live out side of Bangkok and Pattaya, you can live quite well on 30,000 baht per months.
If you invest around US$325,000 and live of 3% of that annually, you will have an income to live off for the rest of your life, so long as you have a diverse and conservative mix of growth assets, containing mainly of blue chip equities, with possibly a property trust and some bonds, if you are afraid of volatility, but you should always invest for the long term as cash can be eaten away by inflation.
About having funds in Thailand or internationally, I surgest you have a mixture. Western or developed markets are already developed so growth will be lower than in a developing country in the long term, but developed economies like the USA or Australia are more stable in the long term and give more stable returns. investing in developing Asian countries like China or Thailand will give you long term higher growth rates, but you may see times of more volatility, so timing in those markets are more critical, so the risk is higher, but diversification is what is important, don't put all you eggs in the same basket or country.

[Jerome]

2 reefers [one for Thai and one for farang]

Umm, what's a reefer?

[FaranginPhetch]

Refrigerator, ,ya know like reefer ships or reefer trucks,,I sure do not want all my grub to taste like Thai food, she put a bottle of milk in her reefer and we had to throw it out as it tasted like lemon grass and red curry.

But I imagine you have the same problem over there with some of the stinky little fish they so dearly love..

[I_Love_Thailand]

Can I ask what the purpose of asking these questions are? Sounds like you are doing a survery.


If it is for yourself, then I think a few of these questions you can only answer yourself. For example, in this question, you should travel around Thailand unitl you find a place that feels like home to you.

As for the other questions, it depends a lot on your expectations on your standard of living. If you are willing to live like the average Thai then your expenses will be quite low.

Hi Richard,
Thanks for your reply. I think yours is a good advice. I should settle down in Bangkok first, then explore the other places to find a place I love subsequently.

[I_Love_Thailand]

I'm one of the few people who can live on zero baht, scrounging through garbage bins and living off my wits but as I can afford a little better, I don't.
If you are used to living a reasonable comfortable life and want to keep your life to a reasonable standard, don't have any dependence children or a car, want to live out side of Bangkok and Pattaya, you can live quite well on 30,000 baht per months.
If you invest around US$325,000 and live of 3% of that annually, you will have an income to live off for the rest of your life, so long as you have a diverse and conservative mix of growth assets, containing mainly of blue chip equities, with possibly a property trust and some bonds, if you are afraid of volatility, but you should always invest for the long term as cash can be eaten away by inflation.
About having funds in Thailand or internationally, I surgest you have a mixture. Western or developed markets are already developed so growth will be lower than in a developing country in the long term, but developed economies like the USA or Australia are more stable in the long term and give more stable returns. investing in developing Asian countries like China or Thailand will give you long term higher growth rates, but you may see times of more volatility, so timing in those markets are more critical, so the risk is higher, but diversification is what is important, don't put all you eggs in the same basket or country.

I am sorry, but you seem to know little about investment? No seasoned investor would expect to get only 3% when even the risk-free rate offered by the government of USA (treasury bonds) is offering a much better guaranteed, default-free rate.

[I_Love_Thailand]

I'm one of the few people who can live on zero baht, scrounging through garbage bins and living off my wits but as I can afford a little better, I don't.
If you are used to living a reasonable comfortable life and want to keep your life to a reasonable standard, don't have any dependence children or a car, want to live out side of Bangkok and Pattaya, you can live quite well on 30,000 baht per months.
If you invest around US$325,000 and live of 3% of that annually, you will have an income to live off for the rest of your life, so long as you have a diverse and conservative mix of growth assets, containing mainly of blue chip equities, with possibly a property trust and some bonds, if you are afraid of volatility, but you should always invest for the long term as cash can be eaten away by inflation.
About having funds in Thailand or internationally, I surgest you have a mixture. Western or developed markets are already developed so growth will be lower than in a developing country in the long term, but developed economies like the USA or Australia are more stable in the long term and give more stable returns. investing in developing Asian countries like China or Thailand will give you long term higher growth rates, but you may see times of more volatility, so timing in those markets are more critical, so the risk is higher, but diversification is what is important, don't put all you eggs in the same basket or country.

I am sorry, but you seem to know little about investment? No seasoned investor would expect to get only 3% when even the risk-free rate offered by the government of USA (treasury bonds) is offering a much better guaranteed, default-free rate.

But 3% is approximately the rate we get for an inflation-adjusted investment.