Where could you live comfortably on 80k a year?

[Anonymous]

80k a year? What is that, your retired military benefits? That is not enough money, bud.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:54 yo retiree here in Fairfax living extremely comfortably on 72K. SFH, big yard, huge garden, community pool, kids done with college, 3 or 4 two week trips every year...

Troll harder.

So be a child Bride with a big pension at a young age with medical for life who bought a million years ago when homes were dirt cheap is the answer. Thanks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:80k?! Is this a joke? That is not enough money to live comfortably anywhere that is not straight up third world. Like you will be living like a local with no ac and a squat toilet in Eastern Europe/Asia.

You are a joke if you think that's what 80k/year is

You can live very nicely, with a/c and eating out a lot in South Korea for under $80K. And Seoul is super modern, more so than the US. I was super impressed with how clean and modern it was. Puts DC and NYC to shame.

Where? Live in a goshitel?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.southernliving.com/travel/what-to-do-fairhope-alabama

Fairhope, Alabama

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/16475-River-Park-Rd-Fairhope-AL-36532/72759552_zpid/

Shhhh!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP again. I do want to clarify that the 80k is pre-tax. It's a pension.

For context, this is a couple in their late 50s looking at early retirement. They recently sold a business for a nice chunk of change plus have plenty of retirement savings. They are ready to leave the rat race but they are still young and they'd like to try living in the pension income only until their early 60s. One of them is a writer and wants to pursue that more seriously, the other is unsure but would like to do something similar. They may dip into their reserves for travel, but otherwise they'd like to live somewhat simply, somewhere with a low cost of living, while they pursue their passions. They are willing to try out multiple places. They don't want to live in the DC area (BTDT, plus they feel they will be pressured into a higher cost lifestyle here because of their peers in the area).

I am helping them make a list of possibilities. Schools are a non-issue, but they want a safe, lively neighborhood and be close enough to a decent sized airport to easily travel and be visited. Second bedroom for friends and family. They don't want to pinch pennies too much but are fine living on a budget as they don't have luxury tastes.

Some good options so far! I'd love to know if there are any European cities that seem feasible because, selfishly, I want to visit them there. Someone asked about the health insurance issue -- they've told me they think it would be feasible to get coverage abroad but need to investigate more. They have access to an employer sponsored plan via BCBS and there are apparently options that would work abroad, but I don't know the details.

Upstate NY: Rochester, Syracuse, Ithaca, even Binghamton. You will need a car and a SFH, but you can live like a king. Will be cold but August is beautiful.

Far away but Chiang Mai or Hua Hin. Great healthcare and strong expat presence.

[Anonymous]

Columbus, Ohio

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:54 yo retiree here in Fairfax living extremely comfortably on 72K. SFH, big yard, huge garden, community pool, kids done with college, 3 or 4 two week trips every year...

Troll harder.

Where do you live in Fairfax? Is your house paid off, I assume? And is the $72K net? I'm interested in the details, please.

[Anonymous]

Not OP but are there any places in Virginia that would meet these requirements?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can get a nice home in the Lehigh Valley in West Allentown or historic Bethlehem for that budget.

Lancaster would be an option as well. I’d prefer both of these places to Pittsburgh because they’re close to big cities like New York and Philadelphia and Pittsburgh is isolated.

An example of what you can get in West Allentown. Obviously you can go lower than $400,000 and pick up something nice, but smaller and not as updated.

https://www.redfin.com/PA/Allentown/2729-W-Allen-St-18104/home/196135126

They are an hour to an 1 1/2 hours to those cities. Pittsburgh is a million times better then slightly depressed towns like Allentown, Bethlehem (the best of the three) or Lancaster.

I’d rather be 1 1/2 hours from the best city in the world, NYC, than be 4 hours from any major city, like you are in Pittsburgh.

If you move to Pittsburgh you need to really like Pittsburgh, because it’s not close to anything except Ohio.

Lancaster, Allentown, and Bethlehem are all mid tier cities with plenty of amenities that are close to world class cities. And there are nice places in all three of these cities, just like there are depressing neighborhoods and nice neighborhoods in Pittsburgh. The house in Allentown posted above is in a very nice Pre WW2 neighborhood with big parks and a university within walking distance.

I know these three cities extremely well. They are slightly depressed and boring places to live. I don't know what "plenty of amenities" even means. Do they have professional sports teams? I guess if you include a AAA Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs or the minor league hockey team...is that experience anything similar to a Steelers, Penguins or Pirates game (yeah, the Pirates suck...but they get way more fans than the Nationals)? Of course not. Is it "easy" to get to an Eagles or Phillies or NY sports team game...heck no. Almost nobody does it.

Is there theatre...yeah, but it's mostly local and average...nothing compared to what you would see in Pittsburgh. Again, you can haul to NYC or Philly, but it's not easy.

Hey, the Allentown Fair is always fun and I love the farmers' market. Downtown Bethlehem is fun at Christmas...MusicFest is fun. Lancaster I don't really care much at all for.

Being walking distance to Muhlenberg College really isn't much of a draw. What are you even doing when you get there? It's a small school that does have some decent theatre productions, but nobody gives a shit about their D3 sports...not even their own students. Again, with Pittsburgh you can follow the Panthers with the added bonus of watching the football team play at the Steelers stadium.

As others have pointed out...go live much closer to Philly (or even in Philly which is actually quite affordable) or NYC so you can take SEPTA or NJ Transit/NYC Metro, if you want easy access to those cities.

These are C cities...not even B cities...which is fine if you want basic life things

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:80k?! Is this a joke? That is not enough money to live comfortably anywhere that is not straight up third world. Like you will be living like a local with no ac and a squat toilet in Eastern Europe/Asia.

OP here. This doesn't sound right. They can spend the full 80k on living expenses. I was thinking if we could find somewhere where you could get a rental for around 2k/mo would work, would adjust higher or lower depending on taxes, whether they'd need a car, etc.

I was expecting suggestions for smaller cities in the midwest, south, and rust belt, maybe midsize cities in Europe? They'd be open to Mexico for sure (one of them speaks Spanish very well) though I'm mildly worried about the heat.

I’m the poster who suggested Mexico.

I lived in Mexico City for a year, and it’s not hot at all because of the altitude. The weather was absolutely lovely - much nicer than DC. Mexico City is a cosmopolitan city with an excellent public transportation system, plenty of cultural events, and incredibly delicious food. I’d move there again in a heartbeat if I wasn’t tied to my job here.

Mexicans don’t want American expats anymore driving up their prices. They are protesting now in Mexico City. Unless you speak the language and look like you will blend it, I honestly would not move anywhere where people are having anti-tourist and anti-expat protests. I am not saying it’s unsafe necessarily or you will be hurt, but it’s because the environment might be unpleasant and you will feel unwelcome. No need to go overseas at all having 80K a year for a childless couple with subsidized healthcare. You can live anywhere in the USA pretty much outside of the most expensive neighborhoods or HCOL cities.

Mexicans have been treating our border laws like suggestions for decades. They can kiss my ass.

And you are the reason Americans are no longer welcome in Mexico. Your combination of arrogance and ignorance. Embarrassing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not OP but are there any places in Virginia that would meet these requirements?

Roanoke or Lynchburg

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:54 yo retiree here in Fairfax living extremely comfortably on 72K. SFH, big yard, huge garden, community pool, kids done with college, 3 or 4 two week trips every year...

Troll harder.

Where do you live in Fairfax? Is your house paid off, I assume? And is the $72K net? I'm interested in the details, please.

It's within a mile of Woodson and yes it is paid. The 72 is gross but like I said we have no real expenses other than property tax. We will take SS at 62 which will give us another ~$ 5000 a month. We have about $650,000 in investments that we don't touch. And bout 900K in equity in the house

I don't understand how this confounds people. What the hell are you blowing your money on?

[Anonymous]

Youngstown,OH

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:80k?! Is this a joke? That is not enough money to live comfortably anywhere that is not straight up third world. Like you will be living like a local with no ac and a squat toilet in Eastern Europe/Asia.

I live in Baltimore County on less than that. I have a 2 bedroom condo in a quiet neighborhood, good schools, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Open to US and international locations.

Puerto Rico. Get property while it's still affordable.