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Will you still live in the U.S. in 20 years?


Will you still live in the U.S. 20 years from now?  

83 members have voted

  1. 1. Will you still live in the U.S. 20 years from now?

    • Definitely Yes
      23
    • Leaning Yes
      13
    • Leaning No
      35
    • Definitely No
      12


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Posted
I remember seeing a few comments that seemed a bit out of character and lousy over the past 6-12 months and it made me wonder then, but this felt like a departure even from those. 
I hope you get your shit together [mention=177]Spankytoes[/mention] but if not, that you just completely fuck off. 

This is me, too. Over the line, Smokey. I’m not quoting that asshole and I hope he fucks off.
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Posted
10 hours ago, Spankytoes said:

I’ve heard Transylvania is lovely.

Right wing dipshits are getting better at humor and it is making the left nervous. 

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Posted
26 minutes ago, sidis said:

Right wing dipshits are getting better at humor and it is making the left nervous. 

no, legislative cruelty is what is making me/us nervous.

Posted
12 hours ago, Dbeasy said:

We have kids and grandkids here. Otherwise we’d already be living in either Europe or Costa Rica. 

We have a condo under construction in Costa Rica that should be ready before the end of this year. At that time we are planning on spending about 8 months a year in CR and likely selling at least one of our places in Port A. May sell both and buy something in Scottsdale or just basically live in CR full time and do short term rentals when we want/need to go back to the states.

Nothing at all to do with politics, just lifestyle choices. The more time we spend out of the U.S. the less we miss it.

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Posted
7 minutes ago, justhookit said:

The more time we spend out of the U.S. the less we miss it.

This more than anything for me.

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Posted

Wife has the mandate to decide where she would like to live. EU is winning as of now. Client asked me about setting up a shop in Geneva. Um, yeah, hell yeah.

Another way to look at it is this. Will there be a US to live in? 20 years is a long time.

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Posted
1 hour ago, SimonBolivar said:

It took me way too long to figure out what a gramer was in your post. 

 

"Did she misspell gamer?"

 

 

Exactly the same thought, lol.

Posted

Wife works for a global manufacturing company and she has made it widely known that she would accept a European assignment. She is also completing a graduate program at a French business school as a means to build her international network.

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Posted
47 minutes ago, immamac said:

Spanky is on a vacation. 

Can it be permanent?  That dude's brain either broke or he's suddenly a more vocal piece of shit.

Either way his bullshit is at best a waste of time.

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Posted

Daughter is applying to Master's programs in Germany.  Odds seem pretty good that she will make her career and life over there.  And if that's where a kiddo is....we can at least see spending a lot of time there.

We already own a place in the UK, and plan on keeping it - at the very least, as an escape hatch temporarily.  But...our friends, and our network, is here.  And the idea that fascist pieces of shit will run all the decent people out of our country royally pisses me off.  So, maybe all in all, I'd rather go down shooting fascists dead in a civil war.  

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Posted (edited)
3 hours ago, Player said:


How far along in the process are you? I assume applications have increased since you submitted yours, but do you have an anticipated date by which you will get an answer?

I have my tax ID and bank account set up/funded - that part takes up the most time from the applicant's perspective. Highly recommend using a Portuguese attorney to assist; they're reasonable (i.e. not members of the Surly Lawdog Cabal). As far as the rest goes, I've put it on hold whilst waiting on the new government's changes to the visa laws to become codified/clarified as well as to take care of some things here. It'll probably be a year or so until I restart the process, all else being equal.

There is still a backlog of applicants for the Golden Visa program (visa by investment; 7 days min residency/year); it's being cleared as fast as possible but there's still a processing backlog of 18-24 months. Note that this doesn't mean you can't get temporary residency there. The 5 year clock to citizenship or permanent residency now starts upon acceptance of application rather than processing date, which is a huge time savings. 

The other residency visa options are much quicker/cheaper but require tax residency, or 181+ days/year in country. 

My sister and her family have been in the UK for 16 years and are dual citizens - one of the reasons Portugal was so appealing to me (plus it's just a lovely country/people and I speak a bit of Portuguese; not required to live there at all, but is for citizenship/permanent residency).

Edited by flatdawgs
dedos gordos
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Posted
4 hours ago, G650 said:

I mean I'd prefer to live in northern Italy regardless, so hopefully that happens.

I have an employee that recently moved to Turin in northern Italy. He rents a three bedroom apartment outside of the city for 1500 euros. That's a pretty affordable price.

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Posted
16 minutes ago, F250 said:

I have an employee that recently moved to Turin in northern Italy. He rents a three bedroom apartment outside of the city for 1500 euros. That's a pretty affordable price.

Wife has to be in Northern Italy for work in September and I’m planning on tagging along either before or after and Turin is on our list of places to visit.

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Posted

I've said on other threads, our plan is to be in Spain by 2026. How long we'll stay is TBD. We'll play it by ear. I can see a scenario where we never come back, but who knows what the future holds, or how we'll feel after a year or two. Mrs MO is already retired and I retire the end of September. Our adult children aren't producing grandkids at this point. All I know is that I need a break from this fucking mess. I want to sit at a restaurant table and not worry about how long I stay there. I want to be able to get on a high speed train and visit other places for a reasonable price. I want to be somewhere that isn't led by a fucking idiot, and over half of the voting public is happy about it. 

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Posted

Costa Rica would be Exhibit A for me for countries that depend on the US to ensure their national sovereignty. 

If worse case scenarios come through I believe I'd prefer to be living in a country with at least some kind of military. 

Although it's a lovely country with lovely people, for sure. 

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Posted

I am too much of a mule to get runnt offt, plus I have paid-for houses in two blue counties. Not to mention that my oncologist lives about three blocks away.

But if we're all stoned and just fantasizing, Mrs. Canecutter would qualify for Danish birthright citizenship. I think I'd die of boredom anyplace north of Marseilles. I do have a CURP (SSN + hot sauce) and when I mention that in Mexico, people offer me jobs in a kidding/not-kidding sort of way. I could be the tall white artist from the telenovela, those guys always make bank selling giant paintings until they are falsely set up as the knife-murderer of the local chief's son.

 

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Posted

I've been wanting to move to the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica for some years. My youngest son graduates HS in 2026. My oldest son will graduate in 2027 at the latest. I'm angling toward part-time soon after. I suspect my mother will live into her 90s, so I have to decide if she is part time expat, too... And then there is whatever my wife's plan is (and I know she is down to gtfo.)

Leaning No and working to make it a hard "Well, Bye."

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Posted
On 3/4/2025 at 11:33 AM, MissingInAction said:

What? They don't have flame throwers in Bali?

With the cost of labor in Bali. I can hire someone who’s singular job is to kills spiders around my villa, and walk in front of me to clear any webs. 

Posted
On 3/3/2025 at 8:55 PM, DixonHur said:

This might be truer than we think.  Other countries might not let us in.

Yeah I've been thinking a lot lately about moving to aother country, for the first time in my life, really ... and I keep coming back to this realization. Add to that the fact that this kind of idiotic political thinking is also taking hold elsewhere, and the picture gets even muddier.

Posted
On 3/4/2025 at 7:24 AM, troph said:

in the mornings, most mornings, this is how I feel. But late at night I’m not so sure. In the end, the appeal for adventure and a 5x amplifier on spending power makes leaving extremely inticing.

Subscribed. Where we talkin' bout?

Posted
On 3/4/2025 at 7:54 AM, Brisketexan said:

Daughter is applying to Master's programs in Germany.  Odds seem pretty good that she will make her career and life over there.  And if that's where a kiddo is....we can at least see spending a lot of time there.

We already own a place in the UK, and plan on keeping it - at the very least, as an escape hatch temporarily.  But...our friends, and our network, is here.  And the idea that fascist pieces of shit will run all the decent people out of our country royally pisses me off.  So, maybe all in all, I'd rather go down shooting fascists dead in a civil war.  

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Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, wood said:

Subscribed. Where we talkin' bout?

average monthly expenses in mexico can be like $1500/2500 per month (before you splurge). if you can trade your house for a house or condo in mexico then you are mortgage free and their property taxes are next to nothing. tax treaty so no double tax on income, similar income tax rates. healthcare is western, American/Canada trained doctors in the popular spots. residents are in the Mexico health care system and you can get additional coverage. residency requirements are manageable. temp I think is less than $100,000 in cash and a very modest income requirement - nomad work or investment income is fine as I recall.

ineffective cost wise to borrow for housing even when you can, so you should pay cash.  housing varies. there is some very expensive real estate in Mexico but there's considerable value too. We are currently looking at Puerto Vallarta and San Miguel de Allende. PV is extremely hot and humid in the summers - and that's by Texas standards - and most only winter in PV - at least 5 months out the year are tough - by May it's hot, and it's still pretty hot and humid in October. But November through April can be really nice. SMA is in the central mountain region about 6000 ft elevation so it can be quite mild.

once you can determine your housing situation, then it's all downhill from there.

full time assistant - grocery shopping, errands, miscellaneous personal assistant stuff, $5 USD per hour.  $1000/month and you're getting a pretty solid assistant. you can add gardeners if you need one, a cook, maid service too for part time next to nothing.

PV has 35,000 US/Canadian ex pats, SMA something like 10,000.

Cartel violence is aimed at rivals and gangs, Mexico has virtually zero non-cartel gun violence. So school shootings, movie theatres getting pelted with ammo, concerts, malls, indiscriminate gun violence is not a thing.  violent crime is higher in Mexico but it's predictable.

remains to be seen how politics will change things for expats but there's a decent chance we are applying for temp residency this summer.

there is a similar equation in southern Europe - Portugal, Spain, Italy, Montenegro, Greece, Croatia. Housing is always the wild card but there are plenty of opportunities. Costa Rica, Panama, South America as well, plenty of opportunity where your money will amplify 3-4-5x compared to in the US.

At this point I don't see how we stay, the ability to retire early and not go bankrupt with health care is just too inciting.  Tradeoffs are real, but for us, if our actual cost goes down to $5000-6000 per month, then we should have plenty to travel ALL the time - a month or two in the US in places we love should be infinitely doable. So live in SMA or PV and summer or winter or travel all the time wherever, even a month in California or Colorado is completely doable. picking up flights from PV to ATX for a weekend to see a baseball game at the Disch or even going to a concert and staying for a week suddenly becomes not a dream but an easy reality. spending an entire summer in europe becomes easy too, no housing costs to speak of, you can pick up and go.

Edited by troph
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Posted

I’ve put almost 20 years and a lot of money into my current retreat and future forever home in retirement. Only death or incarceration will prevent me from spending the rest of my life as a fixture in the Trans-Pecos. Hiking the Chisos and Chihuahuan desert, stargazing, paddling the Rio Grande and Devils River, picking guitars with the other desert weirdos and our dogs. It’s the golden years I’ve known I wanted since I was 19 and spent 30 days of primitive camping, hiking, and paddling in Brewster County. I’ve traveled the world, lived abroad in Europe in my 20s, and have been able to visit most places I wanted to experience before retirement. I can’t concisely summarize my disgust and disappointment with where we find ourselves, but I’ve spent too much time dreaming and doing the work to manifest the vision of my retirement to let it be ruined by these traitors and oligarchs. Damn them all. They’re not chasing me away. Again only death or incarceration will stop me going out the way I want. 

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Posted
3 minutes ago, Whitewater Horn said:

I’ve put almost 20 years and a lot of money into my current retreat and future forever home in retirement. Only death or incarceration will prevent me from spending the rest of my life as a fixture in the Trans-Pecos. Hiking the Chisos and Chihuahuan desert, stargazing, paddling the Rio Grande and Devils River, picking guitars with the other desert weirdos and our dogs. It’s the golden years I’ve known I wanted since I was 19 and spent 30 days of primitive camping, hiking, and paddling in Brewster County. I’ve traveled the world, lived abroad in Europe in my 20s, and have been able to visit most places I wanted to experience before retirement. I can’t concisely summarize my disgust and disappointment with where we find ourselves, but I’ve spent too much time dreaming and doing the work to manifest the vision of my retirement to let it be ruined by these traitors and oligarchs. Damn them all. They’re not chasing me away. Again only death or incarceration will stop me going out the way I want. 

trans pecos is a great place to disappear. very appealing.

Posted
12 minutes ago, wood said:

Thanks @troph!

200w.gif?cid=6c09b952w06unyeplla32rapvil

once we get over the myth of American exceptionalism then every country is a pros/cons analysis and there is nothing that demands you stay here.  outcomes in the US objectively show the US is one of many countries to consider, not the only one.

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Posted (edited)
39 minutes ago, troph said:

average monthly expenses in mexico can be like $1500/2500 per month (before you splurge). if you can trade your house for a house or condo in mexico then you are mortgage free and their property taxes are next to nothing. tax treaty so no double tax on income, similar income tax rates. healthcare is western, American/Canada trained doctors in the popular spots. residents are in the Mexico health care system and you can get additional coverage. residency requirements are manageable. temp I think is less than $100,000 in cash and a very modest income requirement - nomad work or investment income is fine as I recall.

ineffective cost wise to borrow for housing even when you can, so you should pay cash.  housing varies. there is some very expensive real estate in Mexico but there's considerable value too. We are currently looking at Puerto Vallarta and San Miguel de Allende. PV is extremely hot and humid in the summers - and that's by Texas standards - and most only winter in PV - at least 5 months out the year are tough - by May it's hot, and it's still pretty hot and humid in October. But November through April can be really nice. SMA is in the central mountain region about 6000 ft elevation so it can be quite mild.

once you can determine your housing situation, then it's all downhill from there.

full time assistant - grocery shopping, errands, miscellaneous personal assistant stuff, $5 USD per hour.  $1000/month and you're getting a pretty solid assistant. you can add gardeners if you need one, a cook, maid service too for part time next to nothing.

PV has 35,000 US/Canadian ex pats, SMA something like 10,000.

Cartel violence is aimed at rivals and gangs, Mexico has virtually zero non-cartel gun violence. So school shootings, movie theatres getting pelted with ammo, concerts, malls, indiscriminate gun violence is not a thing.  violent crime is higher in Mexico but it's predictable.

remains to be seen how politics will change things for expats but there's a decent chance we are applying for temp residency this summer.

there is a similar equation in southern Europe - Portugal, Spain, Italy, Montenegro, Greece, Croatia. Housing is always the wild card but there are plenty of opportunities. Costa Rica, Panama, South America as well, plenty of opportunity where your money will amplify 3-4-5x compared to in the US.

At this point I don't see how we stay, the ability to retire early and not go bankrupt with health care is just too inciting.  Tradeoffs are real, but for us, if our actual cost goes down to $5000-6000 per month, then we should have plenty to travel ALL the time - a month or two in the US in places we love should be infinitely doable. So live in SMA or PV and summer or winter or travel all the time wherever, even a month in California or Colorado is completely doable. picking up flights from PV to ATX for a weekend to see a baseball game at the Disch or even going to a concert and staying for a week suddenly becomes not a dream but an easy reality. spending an entire summer in europe becomes easy too, no housing costs to speak of, you can pick up and go.

THis is the plan for the wife and I. I came into some money in the last year.  I had originally planned to work through this administration, but I might only make it to mid terms, the job is so stressful right now. So for my wife, who is also in politics. I......I just don't want to be here anymore. We are going to visit SMA or Merida this year, and start scoping things out. 

 

Edited by Bateshorn
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Posted

Better than a 50% chance we will be living in Mexico in 15 months. From there, no idea. Looking like 6 months in Mexico/ 6 months in Denver or Colorado area each year is most likely scenario as of today. Love it here in Dallas but the weather looks like it wont be cooperating the next 20 years so heading north for the good months in Colorado and the other months in Mexico.

Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, troph said:

once we get over the myth of American exceptionalism then every country is a pros/cons analysis and there is nothing that demands you stay here.  outcomes in the US objectively show the US is one of many countries to consider, not the only one.

Oh, absolutely. We've traveled all over esp in the last several years & have been kicking around the idea of moving to Mexico, Italy, Spain, etc. Mexico is our most frequent destination, mostly in QRoo, and a bit to MxC, but also Spain, Switzerland (surely too expensive for me to live there, but man, I wish), Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Scotland, Thailand, Maldives, PR, CR, Chile, Fiji, T & C, etc between the two of us. People who never get out of the US will never understand how much it's been slipping compared to the rest of the world, and they'll never understand that some places they consider 'third world" are on par or close to us in terms of infrastructure, etc.

Edited by wood
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Posted

I love Mexico, but being in Mexico is like being in a novel in both good and bad ways outside of cartels. You can feel the energy in the air the moment you step foot in the country no matter which state you're in and that's generally a shock to the white American that grew up eating meat and potatoes, going to the local FBC, paid his HoA fees on time, and cheered on Reagan's dismantling of the Soviet Union only to abandon American exceptionalism in the Trump Era. It takes a few months to understand the real differences and to acclimatize to Latin America.

First thing to learn is that you don't complain about the rooster being loud at unholy hours. It's been his home longer than it's been yours and nobody gives a shit about your gringo ass sleep schedule.

 

Although I guess if one lives in an expat enclave then they may be able to spend their way out of living in Mexico and instead end up living in some sort of halfway state that is in neither country. 

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Posted (edited)
54 minutes ago, wood said:

Oh, absolutely. We've traveled all over esp in the last several years & have been kicking around the idea of moving to Mexico, Italy, Spain, etc. Mexico is our most frequent destination, mostly in QRoo, and a bit to MxC, but also Spain, Switzerland (surely too expensive for me to live there, but man, I wish), Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Scotland, Thailand, Maldives, PR, CR, Chile, Fiji, T & C, etc between the two of us. People who never get out of the US will never understand how much it's been slipping compared to the rest of the world, and they'll never understand that some places they consider 'third world" are on par or close to us in terms of infrastructure, etc.

My hunch is staying in similar time zones will be important for us - whether it’s watching a UT game, working FT or PT, or being closer to our kids, I just don’t see Europe as home base working easily for us. From there, it’s the culture, we genuinely love Mexico and its people.

Edited by troph
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Posted
51 minutes ago, SimonBolivar said:

First thing to learn is that you don't complain about the rooster being loud at unholy hours. It's been his home longer than it's been yours and nobody gives a shit about your gringo ass sleep schedule.

Second thing is that telenovelas are not fiction, they are documentaries.

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Posted
1 minute ago, RDCanecutter said:

Second thing is that telenovelas are not fiction, they are documentaries.

And your mother-in-law really did see that fairy out by the downed tree. It's incredibly rude to doubt it or laugh about it.

 

OH, and I forgot, you talked to another woman in your wife's dream last night. I hope you are ready for a day of hell.

 

God, I love Mexico

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Posted
12 minutes ago, SimonBolivar said:

And your mother-in-law really did see that fairy out by the downed tree. It's incredibly rude to doubt it or laugh about it.

A Canadian friend who married a Mexican woman found out all about that.

Her mom lived 5 hours up a dirt road in Michoacan. At some point his life changed from "parties at the beach" to "drive 5 hours up a dirt road into the mountains err damn weekend."

Even better, he got set to searching for the Family Gold that was hidden during the Tragic [insert reoccurring historical mayhem.] So my boy was alternating between metal detecting and pick-and-shovel work, all the time getting watched by in-laws making sure he didn't pocket something.

He never found anything, which tells me he actually is lucky.

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Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, troph said:

My hunch is staying in similar time zones will be important for us - whether it’s watching a UT game, working FT or PT, or being closer to our kids, I just don’t see Europe as home base working easily for us. From there, it’s the culture, we genuinely love Mexico and its people.

Yep. Same here. + Mrs. Wood (no pics you animals) is of Mexican heritage as well.

Edited by wood


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