International Living Postcards– Sunday Edition
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Once you’ve made up your mind to pursue a new life overseas, you’re faced immediately with another decision:
Where?
We tease and tempt you with the possibilities in these Postcards every day. Run away to the beach in Panama…or retreat to your own pied-à-terre in Paris. Savor la pura vida in Costa Rica or la dolce vita in Le Marche, Italy. We present you with so many choices, in fact, that you may find it hard to pick one.
So don’t.
About eight years ago, Lief and I met a couple who had refused to settle for a new life in paradise…because they couldn’t decide where to settle. Instead, they’d identified a handful of places where they enjoyed spending time and then traveled among them according to the season–Buenos Aires in winter, Paris come spring, Chiang Mai during the summertime…
Ah, ha, Lief and I thought! This couple has figured this out. We, too, had been struggling, when thinking long term, trying to choose between Paris and B.A.…Istria, Croatia, and the Pacific coast of Nicaragua. In fact, we don’t have to choose, we realized. And neither do you.
Just as no one overseas haven fits all, so, too, maybe no single destination will satisfy your interests and agendas full-time year-round. No problem. It can be easier than you might think to organize a "perpetual traveler" or "non-permanent retiree" lifestyle.
You can begin planning for it today. Lief and I started, about a half-dozen years ago, preparing for our eventual "retirement" by investing in long-term hold properties in each of the four destinations on our list. We bought a lot on the beach in southern Nicaragua (where we’ve yet to build…but the land is there when we’re ready); an apartment with friends in BA (we have three partners in this property, which allows us at least three months use a year); an apartment in Paris (here we invested in a place that will be ideal for us long term and perfect for short-term rental, but that can be a little cramped right now when we and both children are in residence); and, finally, 18 months ago, a tumbledown farmhouse on the side of a mountain in Istria (where our architect Lovorko is beginning the renovation work).
Buying this way, slowly and over time, allows you to time the buys to take advantage of market downturns (we bought in BA just after the devaluation of the country’s peso, for example). It makes it possible for you to accomplish renovations, to organize rental management (in each case, you’ll probably want to rent the house or apartment during the seasons of the year when you’re not in residence), and to take your time with construction plans.
Along the way, you’ll be getting to know each region, establishing contacts, and making friends. You’ll be creating a new life while living your current one. One day, you’ll be able to wake up and say to yourself (or your significant other), "Today’s the day. I’m ready to flip the switch to ‘retirement.’"
Between now and then, you’ll enjoy unlimited day-dreaming rights.
Kathleen Peddicord
Publisher, International Living
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P.S. The couple who introduced Lief and me to the "perpetual traveler" model was Paul and Vicki Terhorst. You’ve heard from Paul before in these Postcards…but you’re going to be hearing a lot more from him soon. Stay tuned…
P.P.S. Further benefits of the perpetual traveler lifestyle: It may allow you to avoid residency issues and local income taxes. Make sure you’re not present in one country longer than six months during any 12-month period, and neither residency nor local tax implications are triggered. You’ll want to get sound professional advice on these points, but the kind of non-permanent lifestyle Paul and Vicki have perfected can be an effective way to both avoid immigration hassles and minimize your overall tax burden.
