Have you heard of the term “geoarbitrage”? It involves moving to a place with a lower cost of living without changing your income. This could involve retirement income, savings, self-employment, or a fully remote job!
It’s easy to forget how dramatically different costs to live in different countries. I have a friend from high school who grew up in Michigan but now lives a wonderful life in Kenya. The top 1% of net worth in Kenya is only $20,000. It’s not TOO hard for someone in the US to acquire $20K of assets then be in the top 1% in Kenya!
The cool thing about investing returns is you can take them anywhere! If you have $1M invested, according to the “safe withdrawal rate” that would produce about $40K of annual income without putting your $1M at risk. In the US, that’s a pretty modest income to live on. In other parts of the world, you could live like a king!
Sometimes people ask ME why I live in San Diego, which has one of the HIGHEST costs of living in the world. The answer is because I want to! I’m rich and the point of being rich is being able to do what you want! But San Diego isn’t for everyone and I’m sure there are some places on earth that have better weather for a tenth of the cost.
What YOU do is up to you. Just don’t forget to follow the two rules.
As always, reminding you to build wealth by following the two PFC rules: 1.) Live below your means and 2.) Invest early and often.
-Jeremy