According to a recent GfK (Growth from Knowledge) custom research survey, almost half of the oldest baby boomers have already retired. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico is one of the most popular destinations for retirees to live full-time or part-time in the world. The city’s American and Canadian population tends to be over the age of 60.
According to the survey, those born in the mid-to-late 1940s left their jobs at an average age of 60 for men and 57 for women. Over a quarter retired between ages 56 and 61, and 20 percent retired at age 62. Just over a third say the main reason they retired was because they reached retirement age and wanted to be free. But about half of retired boomers report they retired earlier than they originally planned.
Baby boomers currently working expect to retire at an average age of 69, and over a third hope to retire in 2012 at age 66. Working baby boomers say they are planning to delay retirement for a variety of reasons, they need to continue receiving a salary to pay for day-to-day expenses, they enjoy working, or they want to stay active. Even if people retire and move to Puerto Vallarta, many pick-up some part-time work.
Ron Sitarski, a real estate agent with Ron Morgan Properties, says he works because it keeps him in tune with his environment and keeps him active. “At the age of 50, I started receiving mail from the Social Security office telling how much I was going to receive per month once I retired,” says Ron. “I found out that at age 62 I would hit the maximum and after that, the amount would always be the same no matter how many more years I worked.”
Ron spent 18 years in the Florida real estate market and it was not what it used to be during the late 90s. When Ron discovered he was maxed out on how much social security he would be receiving, he decided to retire at 62. “The real estate market was going to hell,” exclaims Ron. “I already had a place in Puerto Vallarta, so I and my significant other, Liz, decided to move to paradise.”
The cost of living in Puerto Vallarta is a lot lower than a major metropolitan area in the US. Ron says the real estate taxes are minuscule compared to Fort Lauderdale and the car insurance costs about 50 percent less. Your dollar goes a lot farther here.
However, it did not take Ron long to get kind of bored so he started looking for a job and ended up at Ron Morgan Properties. “I bring a great deal of experience and enthusiasm to the office,” says Ron. “Selling real estate in Mexico is vastly different than selling in the United States but I still enjoy it and learning the complexities of Mexican real estate.” Ron goes on to say that he now makes a little extra money and it makes him happy.
