| Retirement communities, which are referred to as “silver towns” in Korea, offer assisted living. Some Korean American retirees consider moving to Korea and living out their twilight years in such places, which provide higher-quality services, health care and meals than those in the U.S. at more affordable prices. gettyimagesbank |
By Dami Kim
DALLAS ― With birthrates hitting an all-time low and life expectancies getting longer due to extensive yet affordable health care in Korea, serving seniors has become big business in the country.
Major conglomerates like Samsung and Lotte have built or are in the process of building retirement communities, which are also called “silver towns” in Korea.
Silver towns are communities designed specifically to cater to the elderly.
Koreans like Choi Hee who are nearing retirement say silver towns are not for everyone.
“They're made for the top 1 percent of Korea. My husband and I did quite well for ourselves, but we still don't think we'd have enough to enter a luxurious silver town with our retirement funds. Not to mention, there are waiting lists for a lot of the popular communities,” Choi said.
As Choi mentioned, having sufficient funds is not the only requirement. There are usually waiting lists and these lists average anywhere from six months to a whopping five years for top-tier silver towns. That is some serious competition.
But Koreans should brace themselves for even more competition in the following years as there is a new interested party in the world of luxurious retirement spots: Korean Americans.
Retiring in an assisted living senior community in the U.S. is very costly. Genworth, a long-term care financial company, reported that seniors wanting to reside in an assisted living facility with around-the-clock nursing staff are spending anywhere between $3,500 and $10,500 a month per person.
High monthly costs, quality of care, language barriers, convenience, outdated living spaces and food choices are some of the many reasons Korean American seniors like Jason Hong are looking forward to entering a silver town in Korea.
| Jason Hong, right, and his wife, who are Korean Americans, pose during their trip to Scotland in this undated photo. The couple is contemplating where to settle after retirement, with Korea as one of the options. Courtesy of Jason Hong |
“We'll be in our mid-70s in five years, so we plan to move into a silver town then,” Hong said. “Right now, we are able to drive ourselves around and we have the energy to travel throughout the year, but we figured around then we will want to slow down.”
As to his biggest reason for wanting to move into a Korean silver town, Hong said, “Convenience. We don't have to drive in Korea. We can easily navigate the public transportation system or simply take a taxi to get anywhere we'd like. Also, our taste buds lean more toward Korean food than American food, so that's another big plus. Not to mention, the food served in American senior communities were more along the lines of processed foods and Korean silver towns serve more fresh-made food and delicacies.”
Hong added, “My wife and I get by fine in the U.S. with our English, but we know we'd struggle with medical terms when it comes to discussing our health with health care providers. So that's another reason. And ultimately, the price for the quality was a big factor. In America, it costs about $5,000 per person to enter a facility that we felt was on par with the Korean silver town we had in mind. While that silver town requires a big lump sum deposit, it costs about $5,000 for the both of us. With so many more pros to retirement in Korea, we thought we should go to Korea to fully retire when we're tired of traveling.”
However, interestingly enough, when asked which country he preferred overall, Hong said he finds himself more comfortable and at peace in the U.S.
“In Korea, people care too much about others' lives and sometimes I feel they care too much about the area you live in and school ties when it comes to meeting new people. Also, I wish the Korean government would spend more time working for the country and its citizens instead of wasting time taking sides and picking fights with each other. A lot of times their own interests seem to be prioritized over those of their citizens, which is unfortunate,” Hong said.
However, Hong explained that these factors don't affect his decision to live in a silver town in Korea much.
Like Hong, many Korean-American seniors who are nearing retirement are contemplating where they will call home in their golden years. Among those individuals are people like Hyun Yoo who are torn between the U.S. and Korea for sentimental reasons.
Yoo spent his years in America working hard to achieve the American dream and it's safe to say he has achieved it. After the successful operation of numerous bed and breakfasts throughout the state of California, he is ready to leave it behind for his home country. Yoo says one of the biggest reasons he began to consider a Korean silver town was that he missed the country he grew up in.
“Sure, the affordable luxury living is great, but for me loneliness is big. It's simple. I feel that the older you get, the more you yearn to be with people that are like you. I came here when I was an adult, so while I've found my place in society here, I miss the cultural connections that come so easy when I'm in Korea,” Yoo said.
Yoo added that he immigrated to the U.S. in the 1980s and the Korea he remembers was a lot different from what the country is today.
“Korea has advanced so much. I don't just mean economically, but 40 years ago Koreans were so busy just trying to make a living and survive, so at times it felt lawless and we lacked manners in many aspects. Today, Korea is a different country. For example, dining out culture. I am so much more satisfied dining out in Korea than I am in the States. The people are so kind and go out of their way to help you while in America we have tip culture that goes beyond tipping 20 percent these days and there are many times where I've felt very dissatisfied with the service I received,” Yoo explained.
However, Yoo is still a bit on the fence. After all, he has called the U.S. home for more than 40 years. Residing in Orange County, which is home to the second-largest Korean population in the U.S., is one of the reasons he is hesitant.
“Korean seniors now make up 60 percent of the senior community in which my in-laws spent their remaining years, so my wife and I thought we wouldn't mind being in a place like that. However, senior communities in the U.S. can be quite pricey, especially for what they offer. I can't help but compare it to Korean silver towns. Also, there are a lot more activities to do in Korea in your free time and the food. The food is so much better, at least for us. There is good food everywhere you go in Korea,” Yoo said.
Yoo is definitely leaning more toward retiring in a silver town for many reasons, but most of all he misses and longs for the culture in which he was born and raised.
The desire to retire in Korea has become a widespread phenomenon for many Korean American baby boomers.
However, it is vital that a Korean American goes about retiring in Korea in a respectful manner to that of their home country.
Those considering retirement in Korea should first and foremost apply for an F-4 visa, which is a long-term visa that allows individuals of Korean descent to live and work in Korea. This visa will also allow them to be automatically enrolled into the national health insurance plan that the Korean government provides. Depending on the individual's income, there will be a set monthly amount that needs to be paid to the plan and the individual will be eligible for the same health care benefits as those afforded to a Korean citizen.
In addition to approaching retirement correctly and respectfully in their home country, Korean Americans should prepare themselves for a different Korea from what they may remember.
Korea has developed at a rapid speed in the past few decades, and living costs are at an all-time high. This is something Korean Americans will have to consider on top of bracing for how much the country has changed.
To some Korean Americans, their home country may be unrecognizable and almost foreign.
Dami Kim (dami.kim91@gmail.com) is a freelance journalist based in Dallas.