Where In World To Live When You Have Passive Income?

[OutsourcedMyLife.com]

I've been working hard to generate a passive income. Fortunately even thought my income isn't 100% passive yet, it IS 100% free of geographic requirements / ties. I've been able to accomplish this in large part due to my utilization of outsourcing work to virtual assistants (http://www.outsourcedmylife.com/).

In a nutshell I can live anywhere in the world and my income will remain the same.

So, here is the question: Where should I live? I'm open to living anywhere in the world.

My requirements:

Relatively Inexpensive: No reason to move from where I am (California) if it isn't going to be cheaper to live.

Family Friendly: I've married and have two kids in elementary school. I need to ensure that my family feels happy and safe and that my family will get the education and social interaction that will prepare them for the rest of their lives.

Stable Political Structure: Some areas in the world are cheap, beautiful, etc. but the political issues may not be very stable. Related to the above, I don't want to pull my family somewhere that isn't going to be friendly / safe.

Decent Climate: Living in California has spoiled us. We'd love to live somewhere with a moderate climate... (we're more sensitive to extreme cold, i.e., not big fans of lots of snow).

So, any suggestions? In this huge world we have and my flexibility to move wherever I want regardless of income, where would you suggest?

NOTE: I did open this discussion up to the whole world, but don't feel the obligation to think only outside of the US. If there are wonderful places in the US that meet these requirements I'd love to hear them! Speaking of which, this is a great tool for finding places in the US to live based on various criteria: http://www.pfbestplaces.com/default.asp?pageAction=Search

Looking forward to your replies!

[20money]

thats a good question. u should try delaware its tax free shopping pretty safe weather is okay , doesnt get too many big storms. how much is ur tmi ?

[DaveCraige.com]

props on your success!

if I were you I would just do a hell of a roadtrip. stop in some of the highest rated places in America rated by Forbes and other magazines.

internationaly, Costa Rica is great. Haven't gotten to Argentina or Chile yet, but I hear they are quite good too.

Bruges Belgium is an amazing place. Italy has some really awesome elements to it. (well most of Europe seems to just enjoy life at a different pace than Americans)

I recently met a family in Dominican Republic that was working down there for a year and their kids got a chance to experience a different culture and learn Spanish. It seemed like a really good thing for everybody involved.

yea, keep us posted.

[placeshifter]

In the Southern Hemisphere, Uruguay, Argentina, and Southern Brazil could be interesting for a family man like yourself.

In Asia, quite a few people like the Philippines, although they tend to be single men besotten with the local women.

In Europe, SE Europe (Croatia) or even Portugal/Southern Spain if you're into the Latin thing.

But ultimately, I'd focus more on which cultures interest you and your family feel drawn to, and that may require some recon abroad.

[Matthew Connors]

Come To the mid north coast of Australia

We have the best beaches and climate in the world

If you live onthe coast yearly temps range from 21 C to 32 C

If your earning in US dollars we are only worth 62 Cents at present so your spending power doubles...

We have very stable political, social and cultural environemnts

Hard to contemplate finding anywhere better to live actually.

We dont have all the big city cnvieniences but we have evrything we want and need..


Id recomend port macquarie 60,000 , coffs harbour 60,000 south west rocks 20,000 populations .... Crescent head 4000 if your a surfer, but has employment and schools in nearby Kempsey and Port Macquarie

Definitely worth a prolonged visit

Also Byron Bay in Australia is a nice spot to spend 6-12 months

[David-Andrew]

Im having my first mini-retirement now in Curacao, were we will be for a month. I was born here so I know allot of the "to sees" and its being great.
- people know English
- close to the US
- special 2% tax e-zones for your muse
- good wheather!

[OutsourcedMyLife.com]

Hey everybody! I met Tim at a recent conference (http://www.outsourcedmylife.com/) and thought I'd revisit this thread.

It sounds like Arnold will be raising the sales tax in CA yet again. It keeps getting more and more expensive to live in California and having an income and life that isn't really geographically tied to anywhere makes me kinda antsy to find alternatives.

So, any other ideas on great places in the US or abroad to move to for better value while maintaining a good lifestyle / standard of living?

[officer_dibble]

I might consider Malaysia - at least for an extended vacation. Most people speak good English and are generally friendly/interested in foreigners. It is a good introduction to Asia and far less of a tourist trap than say parts of Thailand - relatively hassle/crime free and moving out of developing world status quite quickly. You can also reach other Asian countries quite easily from there.

Heat and humidity aside it is family friendly. In fact you'll probably find your children will open doors for you that would be impossible as a single man.

It is a real melting pot as there are big chinese and indian communities as well as Malay and other indigeous peoples.

Foodwise - I reckon it's one of the best places in the world to eat well and cheaply. And outside of very rural areas - you do not generally need to worry about the water/sanitation.

Politically it is very stable - practically the same government has been in power since independence 50 odd years ago. And that is in a way - one of it's downfalls. The Government is Malay dominated - which means Muslim.

So culturally it is quite conservative (but we are not talking Saudia Arabia here) - but interestingly there are different rules/laws for different groups. For example - Muslims would get into trouble for drinking alcohol - but other ethnic groups are free to do so (and alcohol is easy for them to obtain). As a foreigner you would be expected to respect local customs eg relaxing by the pool in a swimming costume if you are a woman would be OK but walking in the street in a sleeveless top probably would attract stares (even if you see other - probably chinese - women doing it).

[OutsourcedMyLife.com]

officer_dibble, thanks for your thoughts! I hadn't even considered Malaysia, and you raise some good points!

For some reason I feel terribly drawn to India. I think it is primarily because of all the virtual assistants I've used and their amazing hospitality and warmth. I just fear that India would be maybe too much culture shock for my family.

[MrAmjad]

malaysia is good the main thing you have to realise is its not your country so you have to keep to the customs and respect the laws and customs of the people. I have heared many a gripe about this and that country being whatever
what people dont realise is this is not going to be the same as home and if you dont like dont whinge and moan get on with it or get out! Overall malaysia is best my from my analysis and all round is a good bet! :D

[Bohemiana]

As a fellow Californian (southern) I completely understand how important climate is in your decision. I've lived overseas in Japan and Eastern Europe and climate was the main factor in my leaving each of those places--too hot & humid in Japan during summer and too cold in most of Europe in the winter.

I've considered:
New Zealand
Australia
Greece
S. of Spain
Cypress
Malta

Of these, I think only Cypress and Malta have tax benefits. But, for me & my husband, sunny warm, non-humid days are more important that tax havens.

We are getting ready to leave in January for a 1-yr. mini-retirement traveling all over. We have some passive income but not enough to really make a move so we're just going to travel for a while and check out places where we might want to live in the future. Why not take a mini-retirement and go to several places to see what you like before making a big move? (I guess this would mean home schooling your kids on the road for a while.)

[OutsourcedMyLife.com]

Bohemiana, thanks for the reply!

My sis is in socal and you're weather is probably even better than we have up here.

A mini-retirement isn't a terrible idea. Maybe even do a summer of traveling so we don't interrupt the girls' schedules... at least not until we decide to make a move.

There are just so many factors to consider when looking at a place to live and it becomes exponentially harder when you have kids. Hopefully websites and tools will continue to get better to give objective views of the pros and cons of different places around the world.

I hope you have a fantastic trip. Please do keep us posted during your travels, it would be great to know which places are good for vacation and even possible long term living!

[luiscongdon@msn.com]

I've been working hard to generate a passive income. Fortunately even thought my income isn't 100% passive yet, it IS 100% free of geographic requirements / ties. I've been able to accomplish this in large part due to my utilization of outsourcing work to virtual assistants (http://www.outsourcedmylife.com/).

In a nutshell I can live anywhere in the world and my income will remain the same.

So, here is the question: Where should I live? I'm open to living anywhere in the world.

My requirements:

R


You should add something else to your requirements. I believe that the choice will be easier when you add: What will this place give to me.

For example: I would move to Colombia (not suitable for your requirements, but since I was born there it is very safe for me).
-Dance lessons
-Language lessons (more writing than anything else).
-Gorgeous women ;)
-Very friendly people
-Can teach English for fun
-People love me there
-Everything is way cheap for me so I can take many types of lessons (instruments---flute/piano lessons).

Another place would be: italy (not so cheap)
-Language


Brazil:
-Language, new culture, martial arts, and soccer


Thailand
-Language, martial arts, people, and new experience



Anyways, my question what do you want out of moving?

[OutsourcedMyLife.com]

Good question! If it was a perfect world, I'd want everything as it is in California, but cheaper cost of living and lower taxes! ;)

It is hard to beat living in California. People from all over the world like to live in the US and people all over the US like to live in California... well, they did until everything doubled in price.

My list of priorities changes, but here are my current priorities:

1) Low cost of living (if this can't be low, no reason to move)
2) Relatively safe for me and my family
3) Good culture and climate, with as few natural disasters / diseases as possible. :)
4) Relatively good infrastructure: I need electricity and internet to do my job. ;)

[Bohemiana]

Seriously, you should look into New Zealand. I have a friend who has quite a large real estate portfolio in So. Cal. (most paid in full with big cash flow) and bought some fantastic view properties on the north island in NZ about 6 years ago. For the past few years she's been living there about 6 mos a year and LOVES it. We are going for 3 weeks in Jan as part of our big trip to check it out...I'm afraid we'll like it too much!

It's a little smaller than CA with a fraction of the population, the US dollar is still strong there (hard to believe but true), real estate is cheaper, entrepreneurs have an easier time getting residence, they speak English, fantastic weather in many parts (some parts are rainey), dozens of national parks, etc...

It's not cheap like Thailand etc., but there's also a reason those countries are that cheap. (Don't get me wrong, I liked a lot of the islands I went to in Thailand but I could never live there full time.)

[JRL]

Vancouver, British Columbia.

Must check it out if you haven't yet.

Specifically, the Kitsilano/Spanish Banks area.

[OutsourcedMyLife.com]

With the recent rush of extreme cold we've had, anything farther north sounds scary cold to me, but I know nothing of the climate there.

[codymckibb]

I think it's gonna be hard to find *California* somewhere else for cheaper. As much as I love Cali, I actually don't think you'd want to either. I think you'll find once you actually leave California that all kinds of places have all kinds of things you can appreciate. (I'm from Sacramento, now living in Thailand for over a year)

Not sure that many of the "cheap" travel spots are going to be best for your young kids (i.e., there's some crime to worry about in most of South America, huge language barriers in most of Asia). Haven't been there but from friends & what I know, you might look at NZ, Costa Rica, and Jamaica.

If you want to stay in the US, then I think doing a big road trip would be the best thing you can do for your family. No one else can tell you what will work for you, but you can wander until you find a place you really feel at "home". Forbes had a great article on geo-arbitrage and best, cheapest places to live in the States (and breaks them down by the *types* of communities): http://www.forbes.com/2005/10/31/karlgaard-broadband-telecommuting_cz_rk_1101liverich.html

[OutsourcedMyLife.com]

codymckibb, fantastic comments and a great article!

I could do some CRAZY geo-arbitrage if I wasn't married or have kids. I'd be all over the world... but school, consistency, family (extended) etc. keeps me a bit more grounded.

With that said, it would be nice to know what the options are in case we need or want to make a move, so I'll definitely look into some of the suggestions.

[scotland]

New Zealand is great, I would say that, tax is standard 30% business.

[gsimd]

Seriously consider homeschooling. It allows us to be anywhere, anytime with minimal disruption. It's much easier than you think, takes less time and wildly increases your mobility.

Oddly, we sometimes put our kids in school when we stay abroad. More for the social contact than for the education. We still continue to homeschool but schools are a quick way to get the kids some playmates and get immersed in a foreign language too.

Michael

[djhelliweld]

Hi

All your criteria are meet by Malaysia google malaysia my second home and you will get lots of info.

Regards

David

[djhelliweld]

I have spent three years in India please try Malaysia first.

What you said is true, but you are only meeting the top 1% of the population. India is great but it was serious culture shock for me and I had been living around Asia for 15 years.

At the moment we are looking for a villa in Bali another great place and easy to get to from KL www.airasia.com

Good luck finding your paradise!

[jadedragon]

I might consider Malaysia - at least for an extended vacation. Most people speak good English and are generally friendly/interested in foreigners. It is a good introduction to Asia and far less of a tourist trap than say parts of Thailand - relatively hassle/crime free and moving out of developing world status quite quickly. You can also reach other Asian countries quite easily from there.

Heat and humidity aside it is family friendly. In fact you'll probably find your children will open doors for you that would be impossible as a single man.

It is a real melting pot as there are big chinese and indian communities as well as Malay and other indigeous peoples.

Foodwise - I reckon it's one of the best places in the world to eat well and cheaply. And outside of very rural areas - you do not generally need to worry about the water/sanitation.

Politically it is very stable - practically the same government has been in power since independence 50 odd years ago. And that is in a way - one of it's downfalls. The Government is Malay dominated - which means Muslim.

So culturally it is quite conservative (but we are not talking Saudia Arabia here) - but interestingly there are different rules/laws for different groups. For example - Muslims would get into trouble for drinking alcohol - but other ethnic groups are free to do so (and alcohol is easy for them to obtain). As a foreigner you would be expected to respect local customs eg relaxing by the pool in a swimming costume if you are a woman would be OK but walking in the street in a sleeveless top probably would attract stares (even if you see other - probably chinese - women doing it).

I was going to write up the wonders of Malaysia (my second home, wife from there) but I see that it's been done.

I'll add that the fact Malaysia is home to discount superstar AirAsia makes it a great base to explore from - go to Indonesia, anywhere in SE Asia, up to China and so on. I find expenses in Malaysia are about 1/3 the cost of living in Canada/USA. Medical care is also top rate and dumb cheap. Having a baby there in a top rate all English speaking hospital - $1000.