Retiring in Ecuador on a fixed income from the USA.

joint2joint wrote:

Yet, after reading numerous articles, talking with people and hours of research, I've come to the conclusion that retiring to a country that makes you jump through hoops to get residency... is not a good option.

Dear Joint2Joint,

Welcome to the Ecuador forums of Expat.com .... I see that you became a site member almost exactly one year ago, although this is your first post.

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I wouldn't presume to talk you out of your apparent thumbs-down decision on Ecuador.

However, you bring up an evergreen topic -- reasons not to live in Ecuador -- that is worth further discussion.

First up... Jumping through hoops to get residency.  Ecuador is probably somewhere in the middle of countries Expat retirees consider when it comes to the visa-process hoops.

Fortunately, for those who understand why, hiring a visa specialist (or, for the more well-heeled, an immigration attorney) can smooth out the process and put someone on your side for when the inevitable curveball arrives. 

Nearby Colombia doesn't require as much paperwork.  The trade-off is that for many Expats, Colombia's potential tax on worldwide income can be a deal-breaker.

For single retirees with even a modest Social Security income, Ecuador's minimum requirement for income is a low barrier to entry via visa.

cccmedia in Quito

joint2joint wrote:

I've come to the conclusion that retiring to a country that makes you jump through hoops to get residency, has an unreliable (or) non-existent mail system... is not a good option.

Bingo, Gringo.  Your research was thorough.  You found the Achilles heel -- the lack of mail service.

At my condo complex in Centro Histórico a few days ago, the entrance guard acknowledged that nobody in the building (about 80 condo units) gets any mail delivered.  The last time I received a bill, a letter, a magazine, anything .. it was 2019. 

The current Situation only made it less likely that Correos del Ecuador will be resurrected any time soon.

Getting packages delivered has been a nightmare for me lately.  I won't belabor it, but I have had plenty to say on the currently-active Shipping thread.

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Anyone who must depend on mail service or reliable package deliveries could be entering a world of troubles by moving to Ecuador.

cccmedia

joint2joint wrote:

I've come to the conclusion that retiring to a country that makes you jump through hoops to get residency, has an unreliable (or) non existent mail system, spotty healthcare, not to mention a very high crime rate towards expats, is not a good option.

Ecuador's government-run systems -- public healthcare and the IESS program -- no doubt have a spotty recent history, to put it mildly.  The fact that the ex-hospital administrator who recently assumed the vice-presidency is leading an effort to rework the systems .. does not mean they will be great in the near future.

However, the above doesn't tell the whole story.

If one lives in Quito or Cuenca, finding excellent health care is possible.

My primary-care physician, Dr. Karina Aguirre, is excellent.  Her English, her ability to deduce and address potential problems, deal with pre-existing conditions and order proper testing, is superior.

My dentist, Dr. Freddy of Clínica SUD, is highly skilled .. and does it all, from cleaning to root canal.  His work is consistently as good as I ever had in the U.S.

The local lab can get me same-day blood-test results and (me being an IESS subscriber) gives me discounts every time I go there.  The results can be picked up or emailed to me and/or my doctor.

Hospital Metropolitano in Quito is a world-class facility.  Dr. Aguirre has her 'consultorio' in one of the Metropolitano towers.

Hospital and healthcare costs are a minor fraction of what one finds in the U.S., provided the comparison is out-of-pocket costs for a patient not covered by insurance.

cccmedia in Quito

High crime rate toward Expats?

Before I moved to Quito (2013) and became Ecuador-alert, I had various encounters with thieves and bad actors.

It's not a problem any more.

In my experience, nobody who bothered me carried/showed a weapon.

One time as a visitor to Quito, while I was shooting baskets in Parque la Carolina, El Gordo's socio distracted me and the inebriated fat-boy made off with my gym bag.  I easily ran him down and he surrendered the bag without a physical challenge.

The worst incident was when I walked into the wrong neighborhood (Loja Street in 2010) and was too slow leaving the area upon realizing my mistake.  Two guys summoned two other delincuentes and they made off with my bag and $55 in cash.

They missed the fact that I had several hundred additional dollars in twenties hidden on my person.

Long ago, a kid on the crowded Ecovía transit line in Mariscal sector pickpocketed my cheap flip-phone.  This year I got careless once at La Marín and somebody lifted a newly-purchased $4 pillow.  It was my fault -- I violated the 'no dar papaya' rule;  I knew better.

The crime problem in Quito is not really an issue for alert Expats, at least it's not for me en esta época.

cccmedia in Quito

As for the language barrier, I have accepted the challenge of Spanish-language learning as the price for amazing cost-of-living benefits.

By 2015, after two years of concerted study -- primarily with a TV, recording-capability, a pause button and wordreference.com -- I was language-capable enough that Expat.com asked me to start a Spanish-language-teaching thread on this forum.

Most retirees who find the concept of learning Spanish objectionable should probably move to Cuenca or Vilcabamba .. or just forget about Ecuador altogether.

cccmedia

Thanks all for your gracious insight.

In terms of the visa process, my perspective is a little different.

I married my wife in October 2020. She is from Ecuador, & we married down there (in Guayaquil to be specific). Immediately our concern was with the visa process...and whether she should live in the US, or whether I should live in Ecuador.

I can say in my personal experience, the process of obtaining a marriage visa in Ecuador is faster, less expensive, & less difficult than the same thing for the US.

Damon.