
With ~$2M, where should I move to have impact and relax in life? - travel_world
I can liquidate for around $2M. Where can I move to in the world that will allow me to participate greatly in local business and community while also living a luxurious, relaxed life?
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troydavis
Other people won't share your preferences, so rather than an arbitrary list of
cities, here's a process for finding your own.

First, given your goal of "[participating] greatly in local business and
community," use language as a first filter. This question will either
eliminate or open up most of the world: "Am I willing to spend 3-6 intensive
years to learn a new language (and not be very effective during that time)?"

Near-native fluency isn't required to live somewhere, but it is basically
required to make an impact there outside of any expat bubble.

Second, from that scope, pick any 3 cites that meet your cost of living
requirement and live in each for a month. Airbnb makes this relatively easy.
Aim for significant differences - continent if possible, city size, culture,
weather, similarity to your situation now, etc - between the 3. The specific 3
cities matter less than ensuring you experience a month in maximally different
situations.

Use what you like and don't like at those places to decide where to live/test
next. After living briefly in 1-3 more places, you'll either have a strong,
informed opinion about what you like (and probably a favorite place), or an
unexpected result, like that you actually enjoy moving around, or aren't happy
anywhere, or don't want to leave where you are.

(Source: I did something like this, though not with the goal of relaxing)

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baccredited
To reach financial independence you need 25x your annual spending. Then you
invest it to earn over 7% and have a SWR (safe withdrawal rate) of 4%. The
extra 3% should cover inflation. So you can enjoy the same lifestyle
'forever'. So if you can live on 80K yr (6.6K/mo) you are all set on the
luxury part.

Put the money 90% in VOO and 10% in BND (like Warren Buffett tells his heirs).
Or get fancier as you learn how to invest.

More (read the sidebar on right):
[https://www.reddit.com/r/financialindependence/](https://www.reddit.com/r/financialindependence/)

'participate greatly in local business' Your time and energy are probably the
best thing you can give.

~~~
hackerboos
[https://www.reddit.com/r/leanfire/](https://www.reddit.com/r/leanfire/) is
another good subreddit for early retirees.

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NetStrikeForce
Some spot in the south of Spain, where there's so much to choose. Málaga and
surroundings for international community (avoid Marbella if you don't want to
burn your money in 2 days), but Cádiz and Granada are probably awesome too.
Almeria has some very nice spots (Cabo de Gata) and Sevilla is worth visiting
often.

Bonuses:

\- North Africa round the corner. Actually there are two Spanish cities in
North Africa, so you don't even need another visa to step on the continent.

\- You also have Huelva and the Portuguese Algarve somewhat close.

\- Very cheap flights to anywhere in Europe (my last Málaga - London Luton was
£24) and easy to jump to Madrid or Barcelona for long haul.

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joefarish
You might find the Financial Independence subreddit[1] useful. Here are some
threads that might be of interest:

ER Cities in the U.S. - [https://redd.it/3cjtth](https://redd.it/3cjtth)

The Reality of Expatriating for a Lower Cost of Living -
[https://redd.it/5w4p92](https://redd.it/5w4p92)

Where do you plan on retiring early? -
[https://redd.it/5kj438](https://redd.it/5kj438)

[1] -
[https://www.reddit.com/r/financialindependence/](https://www.reddit.com/r/financialindependence/)

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airbreather
Are you sure luxurious and relaxed is what you want for the rest of your life?

It could be a path to mediocrity.

~~~
taway_1212
What's wrong with mediocrity? Once you "won" (have FU money), the rat race
terms are no longer relevant.

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tylercubell
Vermont. Depends on your idea of luxury and taking "in the world" to not mean
exclusively outside of the US. I think it definitely fits the rest of your
criteria though.

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jklein11
I don't mean to hijack the thread but would you mind sharing how you got to
where you are?

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TomMarius
Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland, Croatia, Crna Gora, Serbia, Canary
Islands, ...

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albertTJames
Which one is the safest ?

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Guest98123
I've spent a couple of years in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Poland, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia. All of those countries are incredibly
safe. The worst that ever happened was a couple of taxi drivers trying to
charge me double what a local person would pay. I'd rank Montenegro and Serbia
a little below the others, but don't get the wrong impression, they're still
very safe.

Croatia is one of the safest places I've ever lived. I think I'd rank it
higher than Canada. I hitchhiked in Slovenia and all three times I was picked
up by women (I'm male), once by a mother and her daughter, once by two
friends, and once by a mother and her son. How many places in the world do
women trust picking up random male hitchhikers? That gives you an idea how
safe these places are to live.

~~~
taway_1212
Poland is similar, the matter of safety when choosing where to live is not a
concern for people here - it's just very safe everywhere. The worst that can
realistically happen is some non-physical harrasement by drunks at night.

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billconan
I want to move to a distant island in Alaska.

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roschdal
Norway

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true_tuna
High taxes, high cost of living. I don't think this is the right call.

