Seaview homesites $30K
Bring yourself up to date on owning Baja real estate at El Dorado Ranch on the Sea of Cortez
Tomorrow nights webinar and dinner are very informative including current events on the border.
You will learn about the MEDICAL, Mexican ECONOMY, COST OF LIVING and CRIME.
You'll have a whole new prospective about out-living your money.
We do no selling at the webinar or dinner, but do have questions and answers at the end..
DINNER --Wednesday June 16 - 6:45 pm: Complimentary dinner seminar. China Palace in Stockton
Dinner is complimentary so call or email me for reservations.
IF YOU CAN'T MAKE IT FOR DINNER GO TO THE WEBINAR
WEBINAR --Wednesday June 16 - 7:30 pm: To join the online meeting,
click here or type in your web browser: Code 8579553# (copy this #)
https://rmac.megameeting.com/?page=guest&conid=Richswebmeeting Start 5 minutes early.
(If you don't have a computer, just listen on your telephone 888-272-8702 then 8579553# (copy this #))
Reservations or questons call me 209-473-0404 or e-mail: richards4@msn.com
Thank you, Tom Richards Calif. Real Estate Lic . #00759765
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Friday, June 4, 2010
Brewer to Obama: Come to Arizona, See the Open Border
In my meeting with President Obama yesterday, I personally invited him to visit Arizona and see our open borders for himself. Only then might he understand that border security is the mandatory first step in any real effort to battle illegal immigration.
Unfortunately, the President declined to commit to a personal visit.
He also declined my request to increase the National Guard commitment, did not commit to build and extend the fence, and refused to pay the federal obligations for incarceration expenses - over $750 million just since 2003.
While the meeting was cordial and respectful, and I appreciate the opportunity to share the deep concerns of our citizens, a continued lack of action is devastating to Arizona. Washington's continued reluctance to secure our border - with no political strings attached - only suggests the possibility of further violence, failures and delay. No more political two-steps! Now is the time to simply and honestly secure our international border.
It is my hope that the President has a change of heart and takes the time to personally meet in Arizona with our hard-working border enforcement agents, local law enforcement, border-region ranchers, and others who are confronted daily with Arizona's border crisis and see for himself their problems and their justifiable fears. Until operational control of the border by the federal government is achieved, Arizonans and indeed our nation remain at risk.
Following our meeting today, I'm encouraged that there may be a new and more open willingness for direct dialogue between the federal government and Arizona. However, as I have said before, illegal immigration will not be solved by the promises that have been made, but rather, by the tangible results on the ground.
The President should see for himself how a lack of enforcement has turned Arizona into the superhighway of illegal drug and human smuggling activity. My invitation to come to Arizona remains open.
Jan Brewer
Governor State of Arizona
Unfortunately, the President declined to commit to a personal visit.
He also declined my request to increase the National Guard commitment, did not commit to build and extend the fence, and refused to pay the federal obligations for incarceration expenses - over $750 million just since 2003.
While the meeting was cordial and respectful, and I appreciate the opportunity to share the deep concerns of our citizens, a continued lack of action is devastating to Arizona. Washington's continued reluctance to secure our border - with no political strings attached - only suggests the possibility of further violence, failures and delay. No more political two-steps! Now is the time to simply and honestly secure our international border.
It is my hope that the President has a change of heart and takes the time to personally meet in Arizona with our hard-working border enforcement agents, local law enforcement, border-region ranchers, and others who are confronted daily with Arizona's border crisis and see for himself their problems and their justifiable fears. Until operational control of the border by the federal government is achieved, Arizonans and indeed our nation remain at risk.
Following our meeting today, I'm encouraged that there may be a new and more open willingness for direct dialogue between the federal government and Arizona. However, as I have said before, illegal immigration will not be solved by the promises that have been made, but rather, by the tangible results on the ground.
The President should see for himself how a lack of enforcement has turned Arizona into the superhighway of illegal drug and human smuggling activity. My invitation to come to Arizona remains open.
Jan Brewer
Governor State of Arizona
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Mexico opens California office to provide IDs for illegals
By: Sara A. Carter
National Security Correspondent
June 3, 2010
The Mexican government is opening a satellite consular office on Catalina Island -- a small resort off the California coast with a history of drug smuggling and human trafficking -- to provide the island's illegal Mexican immigrants with identification cards, The Washington Examiner has learned.
The Mexican consular office in Los Angeles issued a flier, a copy of which was obtained by The Examiner, listing the Catalina Island Country Club as the location of its satellite office. It invites Mexicans to visit the office to obtain the identification, called matricular cards, by appointment.
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, a Republican whose district includes Catalina Island, said handing out matricular cards will exacerbate an already dangerous situation.
"Handing out matricular cards to Mexicans who are not in this country legally is wrong no matter where it's done," he said. "But on Catalina it will do more damage. It's a small island but there's evidence it's being used as a portal for illegals to access mainland California."
Rohrabacher added, "If there were a large number of Americans illegally in Mexico and the U.S. consulate was making it easier for them to stay, Mexico would never permit it."
Mexican officials with the consular office in Los Angeles could not be reached immediately for comment. The matricular consular identification card, is issued by the Mexican government to Mexican nationals residing outside the country, regardless of immigration status. The purpose is to provide identification for opening bank accounts and obtaining other services. But the cards are usually used to skirt U.S. immigration laws, since Mexicans in the country legally have documents proving that status, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.
In 2004 testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, FBI officials called the card an unreliable form of identification. The agency said that Mexico lacks a centralized database for them, which could lead to forgery, duplication, and other forms of abuse.
Officers with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said their agency was asked by Mexican officials not to enforce U.S. immigration laws on the island while the cards were being issued.
"It amazes me every time that the Mexican government has the gall to tell us what to do," said an ICE official, who asked not to be named. "More surprisingly is how many times we stand by and let them. This is just an example of one of hundreds of requests we've had to deal with."
In April, Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies seized a boat carrying large quantities of marijuana and detained three Mexican nationals who said they were being smuggled into the United States.
The island has a sizable Mexican migrant population. Most are undocumented low-income workers.
Follow Sara Carter on Twitter
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/Mexico-opens-California-office-to-provide-ID-for-illegals-95434969.html#ixzz0po5kukua
National Security Correspondent
June 3, 2010
The Mexican government is opening a satellite consular office on Catalina Island -- a small resort off the California coast with a history of drug smuggling and human trafficking -- to provide the island's illegal Mexican immigrants with identification cards, The Washington Examiner has learned.
The Mexican consular office in Los Angeles issued a flier, a copy of which was obtained by The Examiner, listing the Catalina Island Country Club as the location of its satellite office. It invites Mexicans to visit the office to obtain the identification, called matricular cards, by appointment.
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, a Republican whose district includes Catalina Island, said handing out matricular cards will exacerbate an already dangerous situation.
"Handing out matricular cards to Mexicans who are not in this country legally is wrong no matter where it's done," he said. "But on Catalina it will do more damage. It's a small island but there's evidence it's being used as a portal for illegals to access mainland California."
Rohrabacher added, "If there were a large number of Americans illegally in Mexico and the U.S. consulate was making it easier for them to stay, Mexico would never permit it."
Mexican officials with the consular office in Los Angeles could not be reached immediately for comment. The matricular consular identification card, is issued by the Mexican government to Mexican nationals residing outside the country, regardless of immigration status. The purpose is to provide identification for opening bank accounts and obtaining other services. But the cards are usually used to skirt U.S. immigration laws, since Mexicans in the country legally have documents proving that status, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.
In 2004 testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, FBI officials called the card an unreliable form of identification. The agency said that Mexico lacks a centralized database for them, which could lead to forgery, duplication, and other forms of abuse.
Officers with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said their agency was asked by Mexican officials not to enforce U.S. immigration laws on the island while the cards were being issued.
"It amazes me every time that the Mexican government has the gall to tell us what to do," said an ICE official, who asked not to be named. "More surprisingly is how many times we stand by and let them. This is just an example of one of hundreds of requests we've had to deal with."
In April, Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies seized a boat carrying large quantities of marijuana and detained three Mexican nationals who said they were being smuggled into the United States.
The island has a sizable Mexican migrant population. Most are undocumented low-income workers.
Follow Sara Carter on Twitter
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/Mexico-opens-California-office-to-provide-ID-for-illegals-95434969.html#ixzz0po5kukua
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
LIVE LONGER, HEALTIER AND HAPPIER-GETOUT OF THE U.S.
Want To Live Longer, Healthier, and Happier? Get Out of the U.S., Says InternationalLiving.com
Posted on June 1, 2010 by Dan Prescher
June 1: Baltimore, Maryland — Want to live longer and healthier? You can increase your chances if you move out of the U.S.
So says InternationalLiving.com in a survey of its editors and writers from around the world. Read the story here: Feel Younger, Live Longer: The World’s Healthiest Places to Live in 2010.
Experts say that optimism and purpose, a low stress level, a natural diet and an active lifestyle are three times as important as your genetic makeup when it comes to enjoying a long and healthy life.
It’s much easier to embrace those elements when you’re living in a place where they come naturally, as they do in InternationalLiving.com editors’ top picks for the world’s healthiest places to live: Costa Rica, Ecuador, New Zealand, Panama, and Sardinia.
In these five top locations, people tend to put great value on personal interaction and friendship, and that involvement keeps people actively and positively engaged every day. A slower pace of life—often coupled with a much lower cost of living—relieves the pressure and anxiety so widespread in the U.S.
And while the “locavore” movement—which advocates eating foods grown near where you live—is just gaining momentum in the U.S., in the places profiled by InternationalLiving.com the foods you find at the markets have always been fresh, local and organic.
Also in these destinations, the air is clean and the sun shines—so you tend to be outside more and therefore more active.
The combination of all these factors can have an immediate positive impact on health and wellness… as well as on your bottom line.
As American Lee Carper reported after a few months in Ecuador, “I haven’t felt this good in so long I can’t remember. I used to take pain medication, but here I rarely take an aspirin.”
But Americans aren’t going abroad just for healthier lifestyle. When it comes to the basic economics of professional medical care, Americans are saving money and in many cases getting better care abroad.
Says Suzan Haskins, Latin American Editorial Director of InternationalLiving.com, “Americans distracted by the health-care debate at home probably didn’t notice when 400,000 of their fellow citizens picked up their passports and left the country to seek treatment abroad. That’s the number who travel for health care each year, and for good reason.”
Nearly every standard medical procedure is available overseas today, says Haskins. And—depending upon the country and the type of treatment—you can save up to 85% of the cost of the same treatment in the U.S. without sacrificing quality of care.
dprescher@internationalliving.com
Posted on June 1, 2010 by Dan Prescher
June 1: Baltimore, Maryland — Want to live longer and healthier? You can increase your chances if you move out of the U.S.
So says InternationalLiving.com in a survey of its editors and writers from around the world. Read the story here: Feel Younger, Live Longer: The World’s Healthiest Places to Live in 2010.
Experts say that optimism and purpose, a low stress level, a natural diet and an active lifestyle are three times as important as your genetic makeup when it comes to enjoying a long and healthy life.
It’s much easier to embrace those elements when you’re living in a place where they come naturally, as they do in InternationalLiving.com editors’ top picks for the world’s healthiest places to live: Costa Rica, Ecuador, New Zealand, Panama, and Sardinia.
In these five top locations, people tend to put great value on personal interaction and friendship, and that involvement keeps people actively and positively engaged every day. A slower pace of life—often coupled with a much lower cost of living—relieves the pressure and anxiety so widespread in the U.S.
And while the “locavore” movement—which advocates eating foods grown near where you live—is just gaining momentum in the U.S., in the places profiled by InternationalLiving.com the foods you find at the markets have always been fresh, local and organic.
Also in these destinations, the air is clean and the sun shines—so you tend to be outside more and therefore more active.
The combination of all these factors can have an immediate positive impact on health and wellness… as well as on your bottom line.
As American Lee Carper reported after a few months in Ecuador, “I haven’t felt this good in so long I can’t remember. I used to take pain medication, but here I rarely take an aspirin.”
But Americans aren’t going abroad just for healthier lifestyle. When it comes to the basic economics of professional medical care, Americans are saving money and in many cases getting better care abroad.
Says Suzan Haskins, Latin American Editorial Director of InternationalLiving.com, “Americans distracted by the health-care debate at home probably didn’t notice when 400,000 of their fellow citizens picked up their passports and left the country to seek treatment abroad. That’s the number who travel for health care each year, and for good reason.”
Nearly every standard medical procedure is available overseas today, says Haskins. And—depending upon the country and the type of treatment—you can save up to 85% of the cost of the same treatment in the U.S. without sacrificing quality of care.
dprescher@internationalliving.com
A move to another country may make economic sense
Why retirees are fleeing the U.S.
A move to another country may make economic sense, especially for seniors who don't have enough savings to live in retirement without a dramatic cut in lifestyle.
By Scott Burns – MSN MONEY
Several years ago a Dallas couple approaching retirement disappeared. Well-known on the charitable-event circuit, the couple were in Dallas one day and gone the next. Phone disconnected. No forwarding address. No working cell-phone number.
Eventually, word spread that they were somewhere in Mexico. They had sold whatever they owned, packed their car and headed for the border. They were, conflicting reports said, living in small towns, the kind of places seldom featured in travel magazines.
We can only speculate on what happened. I think they were broke, had little or nothing in savings and knew they had to make a major change to survive on their Social Security income and minimal savings. Like millions of other Americans, their ship never came in. They got older. Work became harder to find. Suddenly, they realized their life was entirely unsustainable. They were heading toward a cliff.
They had to do something radical. Like live in an RV. Or leave the country.
The question is: Can a move to another country offer a cost of living so much lower than the cost of living here that moving is a positive solution? I believe the answer is yes. I also believe that thousands of older Americans will be crossing the border in the years to come.
To test the economic idea, I decided to use ESPlanner, the powerful financial-planning software I've used in other columns. I wanted to compare, in steps, what a couple could do by moving to Mexico. I wanted to see how much lower the cost of living abroad must be for a desperate idea to become a workable strategy.
So imagine this: You're 57. You're married. You make a reasonable but not glorious income of $75,000 a year. It isn't rising very fast. It may not rise much at all in the future. Indeed, you're wondering if management won't find a way to eliminate your job well before you turn 66. Worse, your entire nest egg is about $100,000 from the sale of your home several years earlier. It earns a safe 5.5%. Your wife doesn't work. The kids are grown.
Day after day, you have a dreadful feeling you are running toward a cliff. In fact, you are -- an income cliff.
Today, you are spending your entire $60,000 a year of after-tax income . You aren't saving. But if you are forced to retire at 62, your income will plummet. It won't be much more than your Social Security benefits -- about $18,000 for you and about $8,400 for your wife, a total of $26,400. (All figures are in dollars of constant purchasing power.)
That's a 56% reduction in your standard of living -- more than you can bear or imagine.
A BETTER STANDARD OF LIVING
Can you reduce the shock if you spend less today and save as much as possible, shooting for a level standard of living?
ESPlanner tells us yes. But with only five years to go, it won't help much. By saving about $30,000 a year and creating a bigger nest egg, you can increase your lifetime consumption from $26,400 a year to about $33,700 a year.
That's a hefty increase, but it would still feel like a crash. So, it's time to think about Mexico, Belize, Costa Rica or Panama.
Adventurous American seniors are settling in places such as Costa Rica and Nicaragua. But a life south of the border isn't for all retirees.
Suppose you can find a place where the cost of living is about 75% of the cost in the United States -- some beach town north of Puerto Vallarta or south of Manzanillo. What happens to your standard of living when you move to Mexico? It rises to the equivalent of about $42,400 in the U.S.
That's not bad. But then you notice a problem: You'll be living in Mexico, where you can't get Medicare services, but you'll still be paying for Medicare. If your premiums rise at the historical rate -- 4.6% a year faster than inflation -- the $3,200 a year you'll pay out at 65 will rise to a stunning $9,400 a year by the time you are 90. It would be a big hit on your standard of living.
Maybe it's time to blow off Medicare. What happens to your standard of living if you don't sign up for Medicare at 65? It goes up to the equivalent of $47,200 a year. Of course, you'll still have medical expenses, but perhaps you can make a better, less-expensive arrangement.
Could you do still better? Yes. Just continue searching for a low-cost area. If you can find a place where the cost of living is 60% of the U.S. cost, your lifetime standard of living, without Medicare expenses, will be the equivalent of $55,500 -- very close to the $60,000 you got to spend while working in America.
Questions about personal finance and investments may be e-mailed to scott@scottburns.com..
Published Dec. 5, 2007 -- MSN Money
A move to another country may make economic sense, especially for seniors who don't have enough savings to live in retirement without a dramatic cut in lifestyle.
By Scott Burns – MSN MONEY
Several years ago a Dallas couple approaching retirement disappeared. Well-known on the charitable-event circuit, the couple were in Dallas one day and gone the next. Phone disconnected. No forwarding address. No working cell-phone number.
Eventually, word spread that they were somewhere in Mexico. They had sold whatever they owned, packed their car and headed for the border. They were, conflicting reports said, living in small towns, the kind of places seldom featured in travel magazines.
We can only speculate on what happened. I think they were broke, had little or nothing in savings and knew they had to make a major change to survive on their Social Security income and minimal savings. Like millions of other Americans, their ship never came in. They got older. Work became harder to find. Suddenly, they realized their life was entirely unsustainable. They were heading toward a cliff.
They had to do something radical. Like live in an RV. Or leave the country.
The question is: Can a move to another country offer a cost of living so much lower than the cost of living here that moving is a positive solution? I believe the answer is yes. I also believe that thousands of older Americans will be crossing the border in the years to come.
To test the economic idea, I decided to use ESPlanner, the powerful financial-planning software I've used in other columns. I wanted to compare, in steps, what a couple could do by moving to Mexico. I wanted to see how much lower the cost of living abroad must be for a desperate idea to become a workable strategy.
So imagine this: You're 57. You're married. You make a reasonable but not glorious income of $75,000 a year. It isn't rising very fast. It may not rise much at all in the future. Indeed, you're wondering if management won't find a way to eliminate your job well before you turn 66. Worse, your entire nest egg is about $100,000 from the sale of your home several years earlier. It earns a safe 5.5%. Your wife doesn't work. The kids are grown.
Day after day, you have a dreadful feeling you are running toward a cliff. In fact, you are -- an income cliff.
Today, you are spending your entire $60,000 a year of after-tax income . You aren't saving. But if you are forced to retire at 62, your income will plummet. It won't be much more than your Social Security benefits -- about $18,000 for you and about $8,400 for your wife, a total of $26,400. (All figures are in dollars of constant purchasing power.)
That's a 56% reduction in your standard of living -- more than you can bear or imagine.
A BETTER STANDARD OF LIVING
Can you reduce the shock if you spend less today and save as much as possible, shooting for a level standard of living?
ESPlanner tells us yes. But with only five years to go, it won't help much. By saving about $30,000 a year and creating a bigger nest egg, you can increase your lifetime consumption from $26,400 a year to about $33,700 a year.
That's a hefty increase, but it would still feel like a crash. So, it's time to think about Mexico, Belize, Costa Rica or Panama.
Adventurous American seniors are settling in places such as Costa Rica and Nicaragua. But a life south of the border isn't for all retirees.
Suppose you can find a place where the cost of living is about 75% of the cost in the United States -- some beach town north of Puerto Vallarta or south of Manzanillo. What happens to your standard of living when you move to Mexico? It rises to the equivalent of about $42,400 in the U.S.
That's not bad. But then you notice a problem: You'll be living in Mexico, where you can't get Medicare services, but you'll still be paying for Medicare. If your premiums rise at the historical rate -- 4.6% a year faster than inflation -- the $3,200 a year you'll pay out at 65 will rise to a stunning $9,400 a year by the time you are 90. It would be a big hit on your standard of living.
Maybe it's time to blow off Medicare. What happens to your standard of living if you don't sign up for Medicare at 65? It goes up to the equivalent of $47,200 a year. Of course, you'll still have medical expenses, but perhaps you can make a better, less-expensive arrangement.
Could you do still better? Yes. Just continue searching for a low-cost area. If you can find a place where the cost of living is 60% of the U.S. cost, your lifetime standard of living, without Medicare expenses, will be the equivalent of $55,500 -- very close to the $60,000 you got to spend while working in America.
Questions about personal finance and investments may be e-mailed to scott@scottburns.com..
Published Dec. 5, 2007 -- MSN Money
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