Here’s How Retirement Looks for Americans Who Left U.S. (WSJ May 22, 2023)
Six people open up about the financial and personal challenges of spending later years overseas. Many Americans dream of retiring overseas, and more are packing their bags. Whether seeking adventure, self-reinvention, or just a lower cost of living, international retirees face unique challenges.
It is unclear how many Americans retire abroad, but where people collect their Social Security checks provides a ballpark figure. Nearly 450,000 people received their benefits outside the U.S. at the end of 2021, up from 307,000 in 2008, according to the Social Security Administration, which says nearly half are U.S. citizens.
Once a fringe idea, retiring abroad has gone mainstream, said Kathleen Peddicord, founder of Live and Invest Overseas, which provides information on subjects including healthcare quality and the cost of living in various countries. Because many Americans living overseas have their Social Security checks deposited into U.S. bank accounts, government data likely understates the trend, she said.
The strong dollar has made many countries seem affordable, Peddicord said. Many countries have visas designed for retirees. Typically, they require applicants to disclose income and assets to prove they won’t become a financial burden. Other hurdles include leaving children and grandchildren, she said.
We spoke in depth with six retirees who relocated to France, Portugal, Spain and Costa Rica. With savings ranging from $70,000 to $1.8 million, they prove that an overseas move doesn’t require a massive nest egg. They shared insights about their spending and routines, the challenges of building a new life, and what has given them joy or anxiety along the way.
RICK JONES AND ELLEN BRYSON 71 and 73 years old
Location: Paris, France Annual spending: $135,000
Retiring abroad took Rick Jones and Ellen Bryson two tries. The couple moved to Buenos Aires in 2006 after realizing during a vacation that they could afford to retire there despite being in their 50s at the time. They sold their Washing-ton, D.C., apartment for about $900,000 and bought a sprawling place in Buenos Aires.
Yet the novelty eventually wore off, and while Bryson, 73, was writing a novel, “I didn’t have a purpose for getting out of bed in the morning,” said Jones, now 71 and a retired Navy SEAL officer.
They returned to the U.S., but in 2016 Bryson came home from a French class with a new destination in mind: Paris. The couple joined expatriate organizations. The social ties they forged “provided a support system during the pandemic,” Bryson said.
Jones sets annual goals that give him a sense of purpose. He took up the flute and regularly engages in conversation exchanges with native French speakers. Bryson takes Pilates and French and is writing her third novel.
The downside to living in France? Paperwork, said Jones, who reserves time every morning for forms, from tax returns to applications for driver’s licenses.
The couple have long-stay visas they renew annually, requiring them to show they have enough income to support themselves and to promise they won’t work for pay in France. Next year, they will qualify to apply for a visa that’s valid for 10 years.
Each month, they receive $4,300 from Social Security, about $5,000 from Jones’s military pension, and about $4,000 from a retirement account. They have no debt.
SUSAN WOJCIK 62 years old Location: Samara, Costa Rica Annual spending: $16,600
Susan Wojcik, 62, fell in love with Costa Rica in 2001 on a vacation arranged by her housecleaner, a native of the country. Wojcik and her former husband were especially taken with a small Pacific coast beach town called Samara. “They call Samara the black hole of happiness,” said Wojcik, a former resident of Southampton, N.Y. “If you come here and feel it, you never want to leave. I felt it.” The couple divorced in 2015.
She moved to Samara soon after, spending $235,000 of her $400,000 nest egg to buy land and build a small bed & breakfast.
In 2019, Wojcik reconnected with a high-school friend living in Atlanta. The two married in March 2020, just as lockdowns forced Wojcik to temporarily shut her B&B. She was devastated when her husband, who had multiple sclerosis, died in November 2020. In 2021, she sold the B&B and briefly moved to the U.S. to care for her ailing mother, who died that fall.
Wojcik returned to Costa Rica and put the money from the sale of her business in the bank, where it earns 6% to 8% annually in interest. Her goal is to use the $70,000 that remains for emergencies.
While prices have risen, Wojcik says the $1,421 a month she receives from Social Security covers her expenses. She recently obtained a residence permit and pays $90 a month to the public healthcare system for insurance.
The downside to living in Costa Rica is the inefficiency that can mean long lines at the bank and requirements to pay bills in person.
“If you can tolerate the red tape it’s paradise,” Wojcik said.
MATTHEW COE 60 years oldLocation: Barcelona, Spain Annual spending: $57,000
Matthew Coe, 60, moved to Barcelona about 13 years ago after working and traveling abroad. The former corporate lawyer worked remotely from Spain as a legal consultant, invested in local real estate, and last year started his own business.
His business, which helps international buyers find and redo homes around Barcelona, takes about 20 hours a week, on average, though some weeks he doesn’t work at all and that is the way he likes it. The job brings him closer to the local community.
“I plan on never fully retiring,” he said.
He spends about $3,000 a month on food, utilities, public transportation, and other living expenses. His roughly 900-square-foot condo cost $400,000, and he pays about $1,000 a year for a private health-insurance policy that he keeps in addition to the public insurance he receives through the regional Catalan government. He has no debt.
Coe, who is single with no children, grew up in eastern Washing-ton state. His mother, who is in her 80s, and siblings still live in the U.S. Distance from family and some close friends is the part of living abroad that he finds most difficult.
“My stress level in Spain is much lower as a result of the lower cost of living and an overall higher quality of life,” he said.
Matthew Coe, above right, moved to Barcelona about 13 years ago after working and traveling abroad. Rick Jones and Ellen Bryson, left, shop at a food market in Paris.
HALISI VINSON AND RICARDO CRAWLEY 58 and 67 years old
Location: Lisbon, Portugal Annual spending: $31,200
About six years ago, Halisi Vinson and Ricardo Crawley realized their financial life needed a major change. The wake-up call came in part after meeting with a financial adviser who told them they’d likely struggle in retirement if they didn’t boost their savings.
Vinson, now 58, and Crawley, now 67, had about $25,000 in credit-card debt and less than $50,000 saved in total for retirement at the time.
The Denver couple, who married about 20 years ago, blamed their excessive spending.
“I didn’t want to die in poverty,” said Vinson, the retired executive director of the Colorado Democratic Party.
They eventually paid their credit-card debt and managed to increase their retirement savings to about $300,000—all in about six years. They have six adult children between them and since most of them have moved away from Denver, the couple no longer felt anchored there. After speaking to other Americans who had moved abroad and a one-month visit, the couple decided to move to Portugal.
They rented their Denver home to two of their adult children, making a profit of about $100 a month. They break even on the Los Angeles apartment they purchased about two years ago and rent to Vinson’s mother. They have roughly $600,000 in mortgage debt. They eventually plan to rent both residences out at market rate, which will net them about $1,000 a month in total.
Crawley receives about $2,700 in Social Security. Vinson plans to take Social Security as soon as she’s able.
Living in Lisbon has helped them further trim spending. Expenses including rent and dining out run about $2,600 a month, about half what they’d expect to spend in the U.S.
They both feel at peace no longer constantly worrying about money. They enjoy low-cost meals at local cafes, exploring Portugal and creating videos for their You-Tube channel, which encourages other Black Americans to move abroad for a lower cost of living.
Ricardo Crawley and Halisi Vinson, above, say they enjoy Lisbon’s slower pace and lower prices. Susan Wojcik, left, fell in love with Costa Rica while on vacation in 2001.
