2. A Checklist for Living Abroad

PREVIOUS POST: 1. Once Upon an American Expat

Ken and I met on Match.com. By the end of our second date, we knew a few key things about each other:

I definitely wanted to be married again.
Ken despised the religious and governmental institution of marriage.
We both wanted to be living abroad some day.

That was five years ago—and two of the three still hold true.

For the first few years, we exchanged expat fantasies over craft beer or artisan cocktails in our hipster San Diego neighborhood. In 2017, we started getting serious about moving abroad.

We immediately realized there was actually A LOT to consider when moving to another country! It was a bit daunting, to say the least.

Out with the old, in with the new.

I used to glorify all that was fresh and new.

“Life will be so much better in this house!”
“These neighbors will be friendlier than our old ones.”
“I won’t get bored with this car.”

It was a 2009 electric blue John Cooper Clubman that was the first to show me that if I was actually mindful when choosing something for myself, the odds were exponentially higher that I would still love it long after I discovered its imperfections.

Nine years ago, I took the time to research cars before I took my Mini on a test drive and decided she was going to be mine.

Not long afterwards, her imperfections began to surface—she burned oil like no other, backfired occasionally, and cost me more in repairs than any other car I’d ever owned. But, unlike my other imperfect cars, she still excites me every time I settle into the driver’s seat and my adoration of her has only deepened.

Apparently this whole mindful thing works!

So, we set a goal to be super mindful about choosing the country where we would be expatting so we would love it despite its imperfections.

Our checklist for living abroad:

We started with a checklist of all the things that were important to us. Here it is:

🔲 A COUNTRY & CULTURE THAT FIT US

We both had some must-haves for our expat country—I needed trees and an abundance of nature, Ken needed an ocean with lots of fish and surfable waves. We shared an introverted desire for peace and quiet.

We considered the people, geography, biology, weather, quality of life (including the amount of pollution), food, services and activities. Neither of us wanted to just be an American expat living in another country—we wanted to assimilate as best we could.

Maybe you're a city person or you prefer a tighter knit smaller town or you want to live among expats—all that matters is you really think about what is the best fit for YOU.

UPDATE: Fast forward 4+ years and I learned that I'm more of a city girl, especially if that city has accessible nature like Panama City. I recommend you check out the city...it might surprise you!

🔲 SOMEWHERE WE FELT COMFORTABLE & SAFE

We crave a simpler life—but, we’re 50+ and are ready for some hammock time, too. We like the grid, because it allows for more hammock time. We also fans of drivable roads, indoor plumbing, hot showers, a good grocery store, and a handful of decent restaurants.

Our personal safety was non-negotiable. We don’t like anarchy (it tends to be unpredictable and disrupts relaxation). We weren’t even remotely interested in living somewhere where the line between law enforcement and criminals wasn’t crystal clear, a military coup was lurking on the horizon, or the odds of a home invasion, sexual assault or terrorist attack were uncomfortably high.

🔲 A LENIENT AND AFFORDABLE RESIDENCY PROGRAM

Some countries are bombarded by expats, so they make it difficult (and costly) to obtain residency. Others woo you with minimal effort, low costs and tantalizing perks (especially for retired folks funded by a pension).

Who knows what the future holds, but at this time, we have no intention of giving up our U.S. citizenship—and we’re too young for a pension—so we had to find a country that would still be cool with us living abroad there for awhile without draining our bank account.

UPDATE: Just after we received our Friendly Nation Visa, the financial requirement took a huge jump—from $5,000 in a bank account to $200,000 of property ownership. We just squeaked by! 😅

🔲 A LOWER COST OF LIVING

We weren’t looking for the cheapest place in the world to live, but a lower cost of living than where we are now (San Diego, CA) was a MUST.

In San Diego, you have to spend over $1,000,000 to hear the ocean or soak up the sunset from the comfort of your own home.

I pay $600 in healthcare premiums every month—and that's with a massive deductible.

Groceries for the two of us run about $600 a month and a nice dinner out (with drinks) sets us back at least $75. Last month, I had to grab lunch on the go on a busy work day in the field—I paid $18 for a bottle of juice and some noodles in a plastic to go container.

To say WE’RE OVER IT is an understatement. We’re done watching our hard-earned money flow through our fingers like water as we live in moderation. We deserve to hear the ocean and see the sunset daily just as much as any multi-millionaire!

UPDATE: The community we chose (Playa Venao) ended up not being much less expensive in terms of groceries and dining out than the San Diego we left. However, now that I'm back in San Diego, I'm seeing even higher prices. That being said, living in Venao was not the level of cheap we were hoping for in our expat life.

🔲 THE ABILITY TO EARN AN INCOME

I’m the lucky one when it comes to working abroad—as a freelance website designer and virtual assistant, I can take my work anywhere there’s high speed internet.

I also plan on fulfilling my long-time dream of owning and running a small nature and reading retreat where tired people, avid readers, and creative folks can find rest, time, inspiration, beauty, healing AND fun.

So, in order to earn income abroad, I needed: 1) fast and reliable internet, 2) nature, and 3) affordable land.

Ken is a different story. He’s been a highly specialized employee (large animal trainer) all of his working life, so earning an income abroad poses a bigger for him. Fortunately, he has real estate experience. We just need a country that provides a reasonable entrepreneurial opportunities.

UPDATE: While Panama does offer entrepreneurial opportunities, particularly in the real estate department, it is also with crooks. Long story short, Ken's real estate endeavor crashed and burned.

🔲 EASY TO GET BACK HOME

On one of those early dates when Ken and I first talked about living abroad, he mentioned wanting to check out Asia and Indonesia. My mama heart sank.

The umbilical cord only stretches so far—I didn’t want to be more than a long day’s journey from my (big) babies (or even my own mama, dad, brothers, sisters and close friends). The longing and mama guilt would hamper my experience.

Having fallen in love with Belize and Costa Rica a decade ago, I had Central America pegged for an ideal expat destination. Thankfully, he was open to exploring this region with me.

UPDATE: Over time, living 6 hours from Panama City began to wear on us and our visitors. It's much more ideal to live in or around the city.

🔲 SAFE TO INVEST & OWN PROPERTY

Our financial safety was a huge part of our expat equation. Being long-time property owners and investors, it’s difficult to return to the rental mindset when you know full well that it’s property owners who tend to come out the furthest ahead (financially) in the long run.

Since I was going to be using my irreplaceable nest egg to buy property—for our home AND my retreat—and I really appreciate the ability to sleep at night, a politically and economically stable country that offered expats the same financial and property ownership protections it gave its citizens was crucial for us.

UPDATE: Yes, it's safe to invest in and own property in Panama, but you MUST work with a reputable attorney to structure contracts and ownership in a way that protects you from all the sharks!

🔲 OUR ABILITY TO LEARN THE LANGUAGE

In a perfect world, we wouldn’t have to learn a new language wherever we ended up living abroad. But, we’ve already covered that whole “perfect” thing. We just knew had to choose an expat country that had a language that our 50+ year old brains had a chance of comprehending and eventually speaking.

UPDATE: Let's just say I'm smart in other ways. 😆

🔲 GOOD HEALTHCARE

We’re both in great health and rarely go to doctor other than for our annual checkups, but we definitely wanted the safety net of modern healthcare facilities—especially considering that ditching the cost of U.S. health insurance was one of our primary motivations in becoming expats.

UPDATE: Healthcare was okay, but I did need to pay someone to help me navigate the system and occasionally accompany me as an interpreter. Dental care was a flop!