Expatriate International Cost of Living

Generation Z / Net Generation / Dreamer Generation / Generation I / Generation @ / Generation 9/11 / 21st century generation

Relatively little has been established about this generation

Born: Roughly between the years of 1995-2010

Age: Between 1 and 16 they are the youngest generation, have older parents (late 20s to early 30s) and are being taught by older teachers (40s up). The youngest was born during the Global Financial Crisis of the late 2000s.

Education: They are the most formally educated generation in history, having started their education early and are projected to stay in education for longer than any other generation.  Despite being in day care facilities, many children have structured after school activities, this has reduced free playtime.  Parents help out more with homework and are becoming more like advisers to this generation.

These kids know how to multi-task effectively and place value on the speed of their work rather than accuracy. They are the most internet-savvy, technologically literate generation and have only known life WITH mobile phones, pc’s, the internet, and wireless networks.

Influencers: There major influencers are YouTube, Facebook, My Space, Wikispaces, and User Generated Content.  They are too young to remember the September 11th 2001 attacks other than through the media, but are aware of the threat of terrorism.

Family: The parents of Generation Z are working part time or are becoming stay-at-home parents so that their children are raised by them and other family members.  They have been born into older, wealthier families with fewer siblings, more entertainment provided for them rather than creating their own and much more technological options.

Money: Compared to the previous generation they are much more consumer-oriented.  Financially intelligent they make decisions on how to spend their money based on the latest trends and media mania.  They are the most financially capable generation in history, having as much purchasing power in the home as Gen Y kids.

Values: Self-directed, individualistic, and media mongrels

Motivation: They are motivated by instant gratification (we want it and we want it now!), instant connectivity, communication with peers via technology, they are a highly connected generation.  They have had lifelong use of media technologies such as mobile phones, instant messaging, MP3 players, the world wide web resulting in the nickname – digital natives.  These connective devices are now carried in their pockets with the internet available on mobile phones or iPads, making news, communication and homework easier and more adaptable to do anywhere, anytime. This Generation have been born into the mass media and technology revolution and have never known a life without it

Work / School: Described as a generation that lacks ambition in comparison to previous ones due to their parenting and instant gratification, and further described as impatient and instant minded.   As their attention span is much lower, with a high dependency on technology, as opposed to reading books and other printed material, there have been references by Psychologists of this generation having “Acquired Attention Deficit Disorder”.

They are a materialistic generation, that want more and more technology at their fingertips.  In the next  decade they will comprise 10% of our workforce,  and they will be entering the workforce in an era of declining supply i.e. there will be more people exiting the workforce than entering it.  This will result in a skills shortage, with an ageing population and a global demand for labor, Gen Z will have a greater chance of finding work.

Generation Alpha

Born: 2010 onwards

They will be truly the first millennial generation because they will be the first entirely born into the 21st century (some of the youngest members of Generation Z were born at the tail end of the 20th century).

Picture this. It’s 2024, and you have been retired for several years now. You are up early for a light breakfast and head out on your way to the golf course while your significant other heads for the mall. But the reality is that you work at the local pro shop, and your partner works in a bookshop in an effort to supplement your retirement funds and make the money last another 30 years.

If you are a Boomer (born between the end of WW2 and 1960) your challenge is to stretch a lifetime of savings and convert it to a stream of income. Poor investment returns in recent years, increasing life expectancies as well as rising medical costs mean those savings have to stretch further than ever before.

The bottom line is that if you’re a Boomer you would be wise to figure out how to retire overseas to a lower cost of living country or you are likely to be doomed to work for the rest of your life.

Where could you retire, and live comfortably in a safe, lower cost of living country?

We have come up with what we view as the top 5 most suitable for retirement, exotic, overseas places (i.e. outside the USA, UK, and Europe), based on having a low cost of living and a reasonable quality of life (i.e. excluding high and extreme hardship locations):

Asuncion in Paraguay, Central South America, is a place of contrast between wealthy and poor. Asuncion boasts upmarket suburbs, modern shopping malls and dazzling nightclubs contrasted with shanties, fever–carrying mosquitoes, polluting buses, heat and humidity.  Asuncion’s overall cost of living is 36.5% lower than New York City. Spanish and Guarani are the prominent languages spoken, while the major religion is Christianity.

Buenos Aires in Argentina, Southern South America, is a cosmopolitan metropolis with designer boutiques, stunning neighborhoods and parks and its share of downtrodden areas and tatty streets.  Buenos Aires cost of living is 36.1% lower than New York City. Spanish is the prominent language spoken, while the major religion is Christianity.

Castries in Saint Lucia, an island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, is extremely small and relies on tourism, banana production, and light manufacturing. There are approximately 40 hotels and many shops selling goods to tourists.  Castries cost of living is 35.8% lower than New York City. English (official) and French Patois are the prominent languages spoken, while the major religion is Christianity.

St John’s on the island of Antigua, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, is green. Two-thirds of it is parkland and sublime beaches, excellent for hiking and snorkeling. The environment is beautifully preserved, with limited development.  St John’s cost of living is 30.4% lower than New York City. English is the prominent language spoken, while the major religion is Christianity.

Victoria in the Seychelles, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar, has the feel of a small provincial town set against a backdrop of majestic hills that seem to fall into the blue sea.  Victoria’s cost of  living is 30.2% lower than New York City. English, French and Creole are the prominent languages spoken, while the major religion is Christianity.

These are just five possible locations that we identified. There are so many more places you could consider retiring to, with a much lower cost of living. For a detailed cost of living rank for all 300 locations click here.

Steven is Chief Instigator at www.xpatulator.com a website that provides cost of living index information and calculates what you need to earn in a different location to compensate for cost of living, hardship, and exchange rate differences.