Where Would You Move Outside of the US? - Part 2

[quote] their decades ago

I’m of Greek descent, so I would move to Greece. Have just begun to look into having dual citizenship. Just in case.

From CNN Travel news, an outline of considerations for Americans thinking of moving abroad.

Couple moves to a Malta to stretch their social security.

^^^Not for long!

Why not for long R5?

With the value of the dollar tanking, and the danger of us having our SS payments cut back or losing them altogether, I wouldn't count on other countries lusting after US dollars for too much longer.

It's not outside the US but don't move to Alaska right now. They had an earthquake today and have been watching a volcano that they think will erupt soon north of Anchorage.

Message to Americans, as unpalatable as it is - you’ve made your bed, now you lie in it.

This is incredible. An Australian woman, moved to Japan, a place called Wakayama. BOUGHT A HOUSE FOR US$13,000. Granted, not new or huge but three bedrooms. She posted a more recent video showing the renovations. Sure, not to my taste but the basic bones are there. I would never think of Japan as being an affordable place to buy a house.

[quote] I would never think of Japan as being an affordable place to buy a house.

It's a big thing in Japan, R10. Houses of a certain age are considered obsolete, almost worthless, and a difficult sell at any price. Foreigners are often the buyers.

A listing service for cheap old houses in Japan

I think it's a little late in life for me to study Japanese.

And, since I can get the NHK channel OTA on my antenna, to me, their culture seems a bit -- odd.

But hey -- different strokes, etc.

[quote]I think it's a little late in life for me to study Japanese.

Japan isn't at all for me either, but with respect R13, there are other people with other perspectives and information about other places on this thread.

Dear god, some of those houses are FREE.

Now this is just nuts: newly remodeled—pristine!!—4 bedrooms, 2 levels, walking distance to supermarket…$62,000 in “Gunma”.

[quote]Not too far from Tokyo in the northern Kanto area, Gunma Prefecture (群馬県, Gunma-ken) can be described as an adventure playground of sorts - skiing, snowboarding, hiking and canyoning (in the Minakami area) provides adrenaline seekers things to do year-round

and

[quote]Gunma Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture in the Kantō region of Honshu, Japan. It has a history of horse breeding, silk production, and political incidents.

You won’t be bored.

...political [italic]incidents?[/italic]

Hmmm.

I would move back to Chicago.

With Pritzker as Governor, and Mayor Brandon Johnson, it is the best solid Blue State in America.

California is a bit expensive, and I most certainly do not trust NYC with a Trump Lackey for Mayor.

And Brandon Johnson looks like he could be related to Princeton Professor Eddie Glaude.

[quote]And Brandon Johnson looks like he could be related to Princeton Professor Eddie Glaude.

Has there ever been a better reason for moving house?

France.

I forgot to post the link for the Gunma, Japan house

If you move outside the big cities of Japan, or even the suburbs, prepare to learn Japanese- most of the population does not speak English. And if you're not white, they can be xenophobic.

I always heard that Japan was one of the most xenophobic countries in the world.

They want you to visit, but they don't want you to live there. Unless it's in a house they feel is so defiled that no Japanese will live there. Then you're fine. I guess.

I'm in Ireland. Live minutes from the sea. I am self-employed and would be interested in doing a house swap with a DLer in the U.S. (East Coast or West Coast). It might be a good way for those of you eyeing Ireland as a potential new home to test the waters.

France has everything I could want and there are dozens of beautiful smaller cities and towns which are surprisingly affordable.

For those who like the idea of remote living in a lovely setting with few neighbors...

The Japanese houses are pretty cool. I have never lived in a post 1970-home in my life. But I know the trials and costs of fixing roofing 4 times, removing mould, pumping water from an underground creek flowing beneath the foundations, replacing sewage pipes.

I’m an elder millennial and my renovation days are over!

R27: I've never owned a house or apartment less than 100 years old, and more than half of those required substantial renovation or restoration. It comes down to comfort level and the ability to size up the scope of work necessary to make a place what you want of it. Without a sound plan, without good professional advice and estimates, without patience and a flexible budget the things you describe can overwhelm. It's newer housing (anything WWII and after) that scares me because it's a much different range of potential problems and a different set of expectations for the longevity of a building.

Many first time renovators and restorers quickly abandon the idea of careful preservation and scrap everything in favor of all new guts in an old shell. They become so obsessed with over-restoring that they leave almost nothing old behind.

Buying cheap houses that need substantial work --in Japan, Ireland, Italy, etc-- isn't always the most economical, quickest, or easiest route.

I hope you all in Spain and Portugal are OK.

R24 interested! Westchester County New York here, hour commuter train to Grand Central

R22 why would anybody move to a non-Anglophone country not knowing the language?

Is Puerto Rico expensive? It’s affiliated with US and they probably need my rent money.

R32 believed it when they (too politely) said "there is no such thing as a stupid question,"

R32 Puerto Rico is a constituent part of the USA. I know this and I am not even a citizen of the USA. How do you even need to ask?

Spain. If I could pull off obtaining a residency permit. I’ll be starting to look into this perhaps later this year if I travel back there again.

Or possibly any number of Latin American countries. Speaking of, could anyone recommend any Latin American countries that could work well? I know that much of it will still be more affordable than Spain/Western Europe. I’ve studied and practiced Spanish on and off for half my life and am currently on a daily practice regimen and have been for over a year - so I’m at a halfway decent intermediate level of Spanish.

Brazil could be great too but I know next to nothing of Portuguese thus far.

R35, I’d you know Spanish you know half of Portuguese.

If instead of I’d.

R35: Residency visas for Spain are relatively easy in the form or renewable education visas, digital nomad (employment outside Spain by a non-Spanish company) and non-lucrative visas (demonstration of income by financial self-sufficiency.) These require full private insurance, normally €80-100/month with 100% medical coverage; some existing conditions can reduce the number of options but reasonably priced public coverage is available when private insurers are not.) There is endless info available.

If I had to pick from Latin American countries, Argentina would be my choice for the ease of obtaining residency and for the richness of Buenos Aires.

R35 "Speaking of, could anyone recommend any Latin American countries that could work well?"

Ecuador, particularly Cuenca, has a great expat community. The official currency is the US dollar so there is no ongoing concern with currency fluctuations. It's gay friendly/American friendly. There are 2 or 3 interviews with Mike (gay senior). Another couple, Amelia & JP, do videos on Ecuador (straight couple in their mid-50s, but allies).

I've spent time in Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, along with shorter visits to Uruguay and Brazil. Cuenca is fairly pleasant - you have modern supermarkets, it's walkable, feels safe (not all of Ecuador does, especially the coast and the Guayaquil area). I found it a little boring and isolated for a long stay - but I am not retirement age. If you are and you just want a peaceful community with other expats around, you might like it. Ecuador has had a few incidents in recent years that would give me pause - countrywide strikes, blackouts, etc. But is anywhere really 100% stable? As we can see, even Spain can have blackouts. Political unrest can happen everywhere, too.

Argentina would be my top pick in SA if not for the wild economic swings...things have become extremely expensive since Milei took office. You never know if things will stay the same price for the next week, let alone months, years, etc. Chile has a stable economy and many nice towns/cities (have not visited them all), but it's not the cheapest. Still more affordable than most of the US. I don't know what visa options are there for long-term residency.

Brazil is challenging as nobody speaks English there. It's also no longer visa-free for American tourists.

Now that I have citizenship Canada. If we have to go probably Vancouver since that is what my wife would prefer and it’ll be more upsetting for her to move than me.

That's great, EL! I think Vancouver would be a great place to live. The climate is supposed to be wonderful.

Thanks SL. I hope we don’t have to go, but it seems like it would be a good place.

Are you in Panama already? Have you sold your Florida home?

Sadly, still waiting for the visa. It's been four months, and they told me 2-6 months, so... I wrote my lawyer (again!) asking for the status, and I haven't heard back. They already got my $, so what can I do? I suppose I won't hear anything more until the visa is ready, but at this rate, I'm starting to doubt even that. Perhaps Panama could still deny it...? I don't know.

I tried to call the Panama Consulates in 1) Tampa, and 2) Miami yesterday; can't get through to either one of them. Miami says to leave a message, which I did (ha!) and Tampa has no more room for messages. I'd drive/ride over there, but neither my truck nor my motorcycle is running well enough to undertake the 2 hr. (one way) trip to Tampa.

And on top of all that, my back tooth (as well as its accompanying cheek lump) is [bold]still[/bold] hurting when I had it pulled almost three weeks ago! Bah. I don't see the dentist again until next Monday. By then, I'll either be better or dead, I guess. [Insert my sister's lecture about how a tooth infection can get into your brain and kill you [italic]here[/italic].]

But it's only going up to 84 today, and there was a bit of rain yesterday and the day before that, so it's not all bad.

Thanks for asking!

Now that Pritzker is on the front line, the move back to Chicago is looking even better.

Good luck R44! Waiting and not knowing is so frustrating.

Fingers crossed SL.

[quote]Mayor Brandon Johnson

He will be replaced in 2 years. His polls numbers are about 14% favorable, for very good reasons. He's completely incompetent. But other than that, Chicago is getting warmer and we are sitting on the shore of a body of fresh water that looks like an ocean but is drinkable, in theory.

Chicago has either corrupt, in competent or Women Mayors.

[quote]Fingers crossed SL.

Sierra Leone?

^^^This isn't me.

Just sayin'.

I was getting senior lesbian and ElderLez confused for a while. I knew senior lesbian mentioned not wanting the drama of a relationship (partner) at this point in life. Later, I saw ElderLez mentioning her wife. That's when it struck me that these were 2 different old lesbians.

Elder not old

I'm considering a couple of different options in countries where I've travelled/worked/volunteered in Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador. There are many beautiful places but you have to consider the community that you're moving to. As in, who are you going to be to your neighbors and how you will fit in to the culture/how many people will you employ/who will protect you? Don't move to poor town and put in a built in pool just because you can afford it.

To me, these factors are more important than a visa, which is easier to obtain when you're already there.

For anyone who's interested in sampling another country:

^You wouldn't believe how many rich people have homes in Greece, and other fabulous places, that need caretakers for their pets.

Totally different people.

ElderLez has a Cavalier King Char;es spaniel.

seniorlesbian has a Chihuahua mix.

Thanks Sylvia.

Canada only requires proof of vaccination for dogs.

[quote]You wouldn't believe how many rich people have homes in Greece, and other fabulous places, that need caretakers for their pets.

Absolutely, R55.

I've met several older gay men who kept tiny little apartments somewhere who they rarely visited, and otherwise moved about in fashionable watering holes. They were educated and cultured, responsible, and vetted in their social circles to look after houses (and only occasionally pets). They had their pick of assignments, usually two or three months at a time, off-season or when the owners had different plans. They coordinated schedules are were "busy" the year round. The sitters befriended neighbors and friends of the home owners which placed them in even higher demand. People want a house sitter who is responsible and capable. The "jobs" were always done as "favors" and include an account for food (often with a cook coming in to prepare multiple meals for a few days or a week in advance), and there was usually some cash for personal incidentals as well as an account to pay for any unforeseen maintenance or other expenses.

The sitters were men of professional backgrounds but men who never earned large suns in their working years, but they lived very well later in life by their social connections.

But even middle class people will shell out money and living arrangements for the comfort of knowing their house and maybe their pet is well looked after while they are away.

Now is the winter of our discontent

Made glorious summer by this sun of York

What's it all about ALfie?