Pattaya must rate as one of the most popular places in the world for retirement, certainly among expatriates from the United Kingdom. The weather, the lifestyle, the amenities, the relatively relaxed visa requirements all contribute to making Pattaya and its environs an attractive retirement location. The downside for a number of those who decide to ‘live the dream’ and retire to a warm tropical country usually centres around financial worries. Inflation and variable exchange rates can eat into pension income.

Added to that is as we grow older medical costs increase and it can be daunting to face health issues without sufficient funds. Due to these and other issues, some retirees are even faced with the prospect of having to return home. Yet sound financial advice is just a short step away.

Asia Pacific Pensions is a recently formed company located in Jomtien. The company was set up to assist UK expatriates (mainly) with maximising their UK pension assets. Although Asia Pacific Pensions is a relatively new company, the founder – John Howarth – has over 26 years of experience in the financial planning industry and has been advising expatriates across the globe for the last 16 years or so. Although the company name says ‘Asia Pacific Pensions’, John is at pains to point out that the company also offers advice on offshore bank accounts, expatriate tax planning, and investment portfolio creation. More localised advice can range from house/condo purchases and rentals to mortgages and writing wills and setting up trusts. All clients have 24/7 access to all their portfolio data via a secure website, so they can track activity and changes at any time and from anywhere.

“We are Holistic Financial Planners, operating a bit like a general practitioner (GP), bringing in selected specialists as and when required,” notes John. For much of this year, however, a lot of his business has centred around UK retirees and the like. John says,