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Forget Buying Overseas, Rent Your Way Around The World


soldintime

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HOLA441

Definitely a great way of seeing the world. I have a main home and rental properties in Bulgaria, spend summers there, then have spent last couple of winters renting in France. Now just bought in France. If I didn't have 3 dogs which makes renting more difficult would love to just rent around the world and experience different places. House swaps are a great idea and there are some brilliant websites.

Do have to take issues with this statement though:

Bulgaria, not high on my list. Short summer. Taxed on worldwide income. Don't know the healthcare situation. Plus I like good cuisine.

Summers long and hot from April/May through to end of September. Health case brilliant if you go private, which is cheap. Great fresh food - amazing fruit and veg markets. Not sure on the tax situation but as in EU there are dual tax treaties in place.

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  • 1 month later...
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HOLA443

Pets and children make it harder but not impossible to do.

Here is a nice list called the quality of life index. Quality of life Index

as a citizen of 2 counties which are in the top 10 in that list and having travelled in others countries, I can tell assure you, that life index is useless.

Plus there are deep differences between one area and another one within the same country.

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HOLA444

as a citizen of 2 counties which are in the top 10 in that list and having travelled in others countries, I can tell assure you, that life index is useless.

Plus there are deep differences between one area and another one within the same country.

I agree. This list is compiled by International Living. A magazine highly geared towards Americans that want to retire overseas. Hence why health is an important one but also culture, cost of living, infrastructure.

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HOLA445

I agree. This list is compiled by International Living. A magazine highly geared towards Americans that want to retire overseas. Hence why health is an important one but also culture, cost of living, infrastructure.

Sorry about my previous post, its spelling was a disaster.

Yes, I know that magazine but people could take wrong decisions based on that.

I have extensively researching myself economic data and comparing everything I could lately.

And I do like what you have been doing, except Forex trading which (when I had the money) I knew well and tried a bit but it ain't that easy and there are lots of bucket shops around.

Regarding the life index, for example, if you order the list by cost of living, New Zealand is no way cheaper than Argentina, let alone Ghana or Bulgaria....median house prices in NZ are well above $300,000 while in Bulgaria you can pick up decent homes for $10,000 I read what the magazine wrote about NZ, the content is maybe stuck 10 years ago before the sheep started to buy property too.....there is such a massive bubble in Australia and NZ that when it implode, they'll hear it on Venus!

If instead you oder the chart by health, there are so many things to say that I don't know where to start.

I really wonder how they put together the list but I did read they calculated the scores and I invite to take the whole data with lots of salt.

Personally, I'd have a look at more professional data such this one to establish cost of living:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

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Sorry about my previous post, its spelling was a disaster.

Yes, I know that magazine but people could take wrong decisions based on that.

I have extensively researching myself economic data and comparing everything I could lately.

And I do like what you have been doing, except Forex trading which (when I had the money) I knew well and tried a bit but it ain't that easy and there are lots of bucket shops around.

Regarding the life index, for example, if you order the list by cost of living, New Zealand is no way cheaper than Argentina, let alone Ghana or Bulgaria....median house prices in NZ are well above $300,000 while in Bulgaria you can pick up decent homes for $10,000 I read what the magazine wrote about NZ, the content is maybe stuck 10 years ago before the sheep started to buy property too.....there is such a massive bubble in Australia and NZ that when it implode, they'll hear it on Venus!

If instead you oder the chart by health, there are so many things to say that I don't know where to start.

I really wonder how they put together the list but I did read they calculated the scores and I invite to take the whole data with lots of salt.

Personally, I'd have a look at more professional data such this one to establish cost of living:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

I am in Australia at the moment, but only temporary as my other half is Australian and we decided on a long family visit. It is insanely overpriced here and everyone is in such a bullish mode. This is what happens if the credit has not effected you so much. It is a nice country but for me the lack of culture (there is more in a pot of yogurt) is a big factor. I also do not like countries that tax you a lot. So i agree this list is controversial. However I am still a happy renter and have been in a lot of places around the globe. It still amazes me wherever I go that I can rent cheaper than buy a comparable home. In oz & NZ it has mainly to do with massive tax breaks and in other countries it is due to mega oversupply. Japan, Switzerland & Germany are only a hand full of countries where it does not apply to.

I am in sunshine coast in OZ, I just grabbed the local property rag. There is nothing advertised below AUD 420,000 (£260,000). The median price is about AUD 570,000 who can afford this.

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HOLA447

I am in Australia at the moment, but only temporary as my other half is Australian and we decided on a long family visit. It is insanely overpriced here and everyone is in such a bullish mode. This is what happens if the credit has not effected you so much. It is a nice country but for me the lack of culture (there is more in a pot of yogurt) is a big factor. I also do not like countries that tax you a lot. So i agree this list is controversial. However I am still a happy renter and have been in a lot of places around the globe. It still amazes me wherever I go that I can rent cheaper than buy a comparable home. In oz & NZ it has mainly to do with massive tax breaks and in other countries it is due to mega oversupply. Japan, Switzerland & Germany are only a hand full of countries where it does not apply to.

I am in sunshine coast in OZ, I just grabbed the local property rag. There is nothing advertised below AUD 420,000 (£260,000). The median price is about AUD 570,000 who can afford this.

Been there.

I am in Tasmania now.

Culture? Tell me about it. :( I gave up a looong time ago...

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HOLA448

It is time to end my rent in Malta. After three summers here I can say I have had enough of island life. It is time to move elsewhere.

Next move is Andorra, they have a massive glut in Apartments so rent is cheap, facilities are good. Andorra has fewer houses to rent but the ones that are for rent are cheap compared to asking prices. Houses for sale between 1 million and 2 million euros seem to rent for 1500-2000 euros per month. Yields are paltry at 1.5-2%.

I never lied close to ski slopes that will be a new experience.

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HOLA449

See the film Leon? No roots will get to you one day. I am not sure how old you are or if you have kids but in the end everywhere sort of ends up the same. I travelled the world for 10 years and in the end I really needed to stay in one place for a while.

I would give Andorra a miss though, a few days there and you will be boreddddddd.

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HOLA4410

See the film Leon? No roots will get to you one day. I am not sure how old you are or if you have kids but in the end everywhere sort of ends up the same. I travelled the world for 10 years and in the end I really needed to stay in one place for a while.

I would give Andorra a miss though, a few days there and you will be boreddddddd.

I agree with you there. I have done the roots thing for 10 years in the UK. I have now had 3 years of renting in one place (6 months per year) and travelling the other 6 months. With the coming of the second child I need to root again.

Andorra is more the family life style choice. For action I will rent a second flat in Barcelona only a bit over 2 hour drive away. Time will tell if roots will grow.

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HOLA4411

I agree with you there. I have done the roots thing for 10 years in the UK. I have now had 3 years of renting in one place (6 months per year) and travelling the other 6 months. With the coming of the second child I need to root again.

Andorra is more the family life style choice. For action I will rent a second flat in Barcelona only a bit over 2 hour drive away. Time will tell if roots will grow.

I have a business in Barcelona and Madrid but live in Prague. Had the choice of living in BCN but chose Prague in the end as it is a lot more mellow, that was 7 years ago now. Barcelona is great for visiting though + you have the beach. Also property has dropped if you are going to rent. Check our idealista.com as it has quite a nice feature that shows average prices per m2 in certain areas. We renegotiating rents on our business now from 21 euro/m2 ( signed in the good times) down to 14 euros. You can even get 9 or 10 in decent areas if you are not too fussy.

We also have a second baby on the way too :)

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HOLA4412

I have a business in Barcelona and Madrid but live in Prague. Had the choice of living in BCN but chose Prague in the end as it is a lot more mellow, that was 7 years ago now. Barcelona is great for visiting though + you have the beach. Also property has dropped if you are going to rent. Check our idealista.com as it has quite a nice feature that shows average prices per m2 in certain areas. We renegotiating rents on our business now from 21 euro/m2 ( signed in the good times) down to 14 euros. You can even get 9 or 10 in decent areas if you are not too fussy.

We also have a second baby on the way too :)

I do check out idealista and pisos. I am amazed you can rent a nice 3 bedroom flat for between €1000 - €1500 in the Eixample area. You will not get that in Brighton UK, so where would you rather be?

Looks like you traveled a lot and have a nice international lifestyle.

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  • 9 months later...
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HOLA4413
  • 11 months later...
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HOLA4414

1 year later. Rental prices keep falling in Spain. There is so much empty expect it to go lower. This is €3 per sqm rent for a new built.

http://www.idealista.com/pagina/inmueble?codigoinmueble=VP0000005362587&numInm=3&edd=list

Not that I fancy this place.

But even Barcelona now has good rentals for €700-$800 for a 3 bedroom flat. Try to find that in Brighton.

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HOLA4415

1 year later. Rental prices keep falling in Spain. There is so much empty expect it to go lower. This is €3 per sqm rent for a new built.

http://www.idealista.com/pagina/inmueble?codigoinmueble=VP0000005362587&numInm=3&edd=list

Not that I fancy this place.

But even Barcelona now has good rentals for €700-$800 for a 3 bedroom flat. Try to find that in Brighton.

In July last 2010 you said you were moving to Andorra. Is that where you are now or have you moved to Spain?

It's an interesting thread and one that should be moved to the new Living Overseas section, it's certainly not overseas property investment.

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?showforum=72

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HOLA4416

In July last 2010 you said you were moving to Andorra. Is that where you are now or have you moved to Spain?

It's an interesting thread and one that should be moved to the new Living Overseas section, it's certainly not overseas property investment.

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?showforum=72

You are right I have moved to Andorra. However within 3 hours drive there is Barcelona and a large stretch of coastal Spain. Now that my family has expanded I am considering renting a 2nd home on the coast or in Barcelona. Or both where I will rent for 1 year on the coast and after that in Barcelona.

We love Barcelona, but the cost of hotels (2 rooms as we have kids), eating out and parking make the option of a 2nd apartment very appealing. I also think of sharing the apartment with one other family that have similar needs.

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HOLA4417

You are right I have moved to Andorra. However within 3 hours drive there is Barcelona and a large stretch of coastal Spain. Now that my family has expanded I am considering renting a 2nd home on the coast or in Barcelona. Or both where I will rent for 1 year on the coast and after that in Barcelona.

We love Barcelona, but the cost of hotels (2 rooms as we have kids), eating out and parking make the option of a 2nd apartment very appealing. I also think of sharing the apartment with one other family that have similar needs.

In your experiences worldwide is it a 6 month minimum for a long term? Or is anyhwere more flexible without being a lot more expensive for shorter term holiday lets?

I'm not looking at Spain. I fancy trying somewhere tropical and see if it suits me better than it did you but I could try other places on the way.

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HOLA4418

In your experiences worldwide is it a 6 month minimum for a long term? Or is anyhwere more flexible without being a lot more expensive for shorter term holiday lets?

I'm not looking at Spain. I fancy trying somewhere tropical and see if it suits me better than it did you but I could try other places on the way.

I was in Thailand (more topical) in December and their you can rent super cheap £50 a week (not in Bangkok) for 1 month periods. If you are super flexible South East Asia has quiet a few nice place to hang out for a while. If you move around that way you can escape the monsoon season that are different for each country.

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HOLA4424

Hey soldintime, great thread, great inspiration, especially for us in the UK who continue to be at the mercy of the governments determination to prop the housing 'market' up at all costs - very frustrating, on a brighter note, where have your latest ventures taken you? have you set down some roots? do you have a favourite 'go-back-to' place?

Thanks for reviving this threat. I have settled down a bit. Kids is the main reason. Renting in Andorra at the moment (5 year rental contract, but you only have 1 month notice to give when you leave). Great rental bargains here if you compare it to buying. Most expats that come here are smart enough and rent as well.

I am thinking of renting a 2nd place on the Spanish coast somewhere within 3 hours drive from Andorra. I can't believe how cheap places are going for. €350-€400 a month gets you a nice 2-3 bedroom communal pool type apartment. That is if you take it as a long term rental.

If I did not have to root, I would seriously rent my way around the world. 3-4 months, sometimes 6 months. If you do South East Asia you can rent where there is no monsoon or cyclone. My favourites there are Thailand, Laos, Vietnam & Indonesia.

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HOLA4425

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