Chances are, at least some of your clients have dreams of whiling away their golden years on a sandy beach or exploring a museum in a European capital. It's also a good bet that they have their own short list of countries they'd like to visit.
Live and Invest Overseas has published its index of the best countries for retirees. The index is based on the experiences of expats who live in the areas on the list, as well as their scores in 12 categories: climate, cost of living, English spoken, entertainment, environmental conditions, existing expat community, health care, infrastructure, real estate, residency options, safety and taxes.
"These represent the most important criteria that retirees must consider when shopping the globe for the best place to retire," according to the report.
However, it acknowledged, "not every country, as a whole, is a perfect fit. A country can be vast, diverse and offer lifestyle choices on all extremes. For this reason we focus our efforts on the individual locations that offer the best options."
The new report makes room for some new, lesser traveled cities and regions by knocking some familiar retiree hotspots like Ecuador off the list. Here are its eight top picks:
Crete, Greece
Crete was the No. 1 city for low cost of living, the report found, including rent, groceries, electricity, water, gas, cable, internet, telephone and entertainment. A retired couple can expect to spend about $1,090 a month on a mid-range apartment.
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
The report estimates there are more than 10,000 foreigners living in Playa del Carmen, about 7% of the total population. Americans and Canadians are the majority, although many Europeans, Argentinians and Venezuelans relocate to the area, the report found.
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
The city on the northwestern coast of Malaysia and the capital of the Sabah state has historically low crime rates, the report found.
