If you moved to a different country, where would it be & why live there?

I've honestly done very little research. I've just heard a lot about how it was easy to obtain residency, that it's quite beautiful, and it's relatively inexpensive to live. I guess a lot of people got the message and maybe their government is now pulling back from encouraging it as much.

I've literally only spent 8 hours in Ireland and it would be on my list, too.

 

I have been fortunate to live many different places around the world and visit many others.

When you REALLY get down to it, there are not a lot of places that would be great right now.

I love the people and the culture in Mexico in Brazil. However, there is no way in hell I would like there, I don't think Americans or Westerners realize now volatile these places are and how weak and corrupt the government is. Same with all of South America. If you move, and you have kids, you are likely setting them up to live where you move long term as well... and the "good areas" in South America change rapidly, and can become dangerous quickly. There is also a lot of educational issues as well. It is too bad, because I absolutely love everything South of the US border.

Japan is safe and stable but there are a lot of social problems. They have seen property values plumet, and they have a very old population and that leads to long term problems. Also, you will never be viewed as Japanese and the social pressure to conform is staggering. I could live there though, but it would get lonely.

Canada - I could live her, but the weather sucks and it is like a crappier version of the USA when it comes to diversity and weather and food. I would feel safe there and the transition is not overwhelming. In general it isn't that bad.

UK - this is probably where I would end up unless I had endless amounts of money. The weather sucks (I like the sun), but the actual land is pretty, the people are friendly and the food has improved a lot over the last 20 years. I had property in Northern Ireland, and was there a lot. I really enjoyed it. I found that the worst parts is that they are worse about drinking and domestic violence than the USA. However they have a stronger sense of community and more "normal" than Americans. The food is overall okay, but it can be expensive.

Spain - Beautiful country, same with Portugal. However, it has a history of extremes when it comes to the economy of politics. Fascism is very real, and theft and petty violent crime exist. Plus you never feel completely safe.

Italy and France I group together -- they are awesome in some ways, better than anything in the USA or rest of the world on some fronts. However, you better have money and lots of it, because you will have to insulate yourself from a lot of problems in France and Italy.

Russia - Nope. Beautiful architecture but that is about it.

India - probably the worst place on the planet to be poor. There are actually some places in Northern India that would be very nice to live in the country, but again, you would need an insane amount of money and lots of land.

China - Nope. Never. China is huge, and there are parts that are stunning. However that is about all I can say positive about it. I do like a lot of the people, but it is like a junior college version of the USA - it takes all the bad parts of the US culture, amplifies them and then throws in some toxic parts of Chinese culture.

Australia - I like Australia. I could live there, but my wife would never agree. It isn't as perfect as some think, there is racism that is well beyond anything in the USA or Canada- and employment can be dicey.

New Zeeland - a lot to like, but no one ever discusses the bad part. I could live here though.

South Korea - havent spent enough time to have an opinion. I do like what I experienced.

If I had extreme wealth - I would likely split my time between Chicago (very safe and well organized, great food), UK (would own property in the country, likely buy several estates and spend 3 months there) or the French countryside in a manor. I would travel in Italy.

As for the Nordic countries. They are stable, their quality of food has improved, and they do a great job at meeting the bare necessities of their people -- but I did not like the weather, I did not really like the culture (it is very cold and reserved) and I did not find it great for those that had money, but were not insanely wealthy. I liked Poland more, but would not raise a family in Poland.

 

Portugal is not a great choice.

It seems great but I don't know a single American that moved there and stayed.

The country is really not made for immigrants.

 

I like Spain, since you mentioned it next to Portugal. However, I know some people that live there so that may be coloring my view. Could you expand on the issues? I have not been there in years, so my view of things may be a little dated.

 

Portugal's on my list of places to visit for sure. I know @Major went there a few years ago, I'd be curious what his thoughts are.

 

I've only been to Lisbon (and Madeira island) but I thought it was amazing. Super laid back culture, really affordable compared to other major European cities, and great weather and scenery. There isn't a ton of touristy stuff to do, but if you're moving there, that's obviously not an issue. I went in 2022 and it was the top destination in the world for American ex-pats (I think it still is), which has ruffled some feathers over there because Americans are buying up cheap property and raising costs. I know there was talk about making citizenship a bit harder, but not sure what came of that.

Madeira is stunning and even more absurdly cheap. We decided it would be an excellent place to ride out WW3 if needed because no one is likely to care enough to bomb it.

 

So that was post-2022 March Madness at Pluckers? That's the last time us+RM95 got together for all-day wings and hoops, right?

 

Indonesia, 1000$ per month
̶e̶n̶o̶u̶g̶h̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶ ̶y̶o̶u̶r̶ ̶p̶r̶i̶v̶a̶t̶e̶ ̶i̶s̶l̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶m̶a̶k̶e̶ ̶f̶r̶e̶i̶n̶d̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶o̶ ̶a̶r̶e̶ ̶r̶i̶c̶h̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶p̶o̶w̶e̶r̶f̶u̶
̶
, enough to have a lavish lifestyle for a normal sized family

 

It would have been literally the week after that! We went the last week in March - I was there during the 2nd weekend of March Madness.

 

Now March is soon
Been a while since hoops and wings
Make it happen

 

I’ve also only been to Lisbon but it is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. I also would like to hear nook follow up about problems. They are a bit backwards but it is super chill with great food and cheaper than comparable spots in Europe. My understanding is that there are tons expats there. I know panda bear lives there for example

 

If I could just move and be guaranteed a reasonable level of safety, security, health and so on? Probably a Caribbean Island.

 

This thread came around the last time Trump was in power. I am sure it is a complete coincidence.

 

Maybe yes, however, many places in the world offer pleasant alternatives to the states. To each their own and all that…

 

Been googling around on this subject for a bit...one of the suggested searches was "what countries are difficult for Americans to emigrate to?" The #1 pick was, shockingly...

North Korea

 

With Spain, a lot of it depends on where you live, how much money you have and how well you speak the language. There are also pressures to have a return to Fascism like they had under Franco. People forget, it was a fascist/dictatorship until about 50 years ago.

Also the economy in Spain isn’t good. Wages are bad and getting anything done like opening a bank account or license.

Housing in the nice areas is expensive and hard to get, and tends to not be very up to date. They are literally like 75 years behind. A lot of homes lack AC and heating.

It is all just dirty. Lots of people, pests, etc.

It is very charming though and has lots of things to like. I could make it work but it’s harder than UK- and we don’t even get into political instability.

 

Sure. Portugal is no longer affordable from a housing perspective, which is initially attracted Americans. We looked at property there after the last election.
Also the Portuguese don’t want immigrants, because it has caused the prices to go from very low in Europe to high. So a lot of Portuguese want Americans and English to leave.

Their healthcare sucks, their wages aren’t great, and taxes can be high.

Culturally you will need to learn Portuguese.

Could people make it work? Yes, and we are still talking about one of the better places in the world to move to - but it’s behind some other places. 10 years ago I would have had it higher because it was more welcoming and had a better tax situation… also, if you are over 40, the healthcare problem is legitimate.

 

this is my issue with a lot of otherwise great places. i don’t want to be where i’m not wanted… portugal, you are right that you will wanna learn the language as they don’t speak much english there. spain, france, and italy not much better in that regard. what shocked me in croatia is that pretty much all of them under 50 speak english surprisingly well. they don’t have that snotty latino arrogance i think, so they actually want to be able to speak it lol.

 

Thank you for the detailed response!