Post: #1

I'm working on an online business at the moment, but don't expect to be earning everything I need to live in the right off that bat. While I grow things, I thought I could buy myself time by living in a nice, cheap location that will allow me to get out and travel, save money, and grow my business. I'm thinking someplace in South America or Eastern Europe. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Post: #2

I can recommend some cheap places in South America with reliable Internet access. I don't know which type of weather or environment you prefer. Cities, small towns, beaches, mountains, etc.?

La Paz, Bolivia- The cheapest country in South America, cold, interesting but different culture (expensive plane ticket from North America)

Bogotá, Colombia- Cosmopolitan city, great nightlife, cheap food and rent (cheap plane ticket from North America)

Banos, Ecuador- Small beautiful city, cheap food and rent, touristy (cheap plane ticket from North America)

Other places to look into:
-Lima, peru
-Cusco, peru
-Cochabamba, Bolivia,
-Sucre, Bolivia

Post: #3

jmb knows his stuff, but generally you pay for what get. Also, salta and cordoba, argentina won't be too expensive.

Aim for $1500-2000 a month to live a comfortable lifestyle in Brazil.

Post: #4

$1500-2000 a month in Brazil? What is your idea of a "comfortable" lifestyle? I can live on $2000 a month easily here in Texas, so shouldn't it be much cheaper?

Post: #5

(10-05-2008 11:41 PM)zorgon Wrote:  $1500-2000 a month in Brazil? What is your idea of a "comfortable" lifestyle? I can live on $2000 a month easily here in Texas, so shouldn't it be much cheaper?

Living in Brazil (especially Rio) costs more or less the same as the US. Probably more since you are going to want to go out every night in Brazil!

Post: #6

(10-05-2008 11:41 PM)zorgon Wrote:  $1500-2000 a month in Brazil? What is your idea of a "comfortable" lifestyle? I can live on $2000 a month easily here in Texas, so shouldn't it be much cheaper?

I stayed in hostels which weren't very cheap. If you find a cheap apartment it should be around 1000-1250

Post: #7

Pretty much anywhere in Southeast Asia is cheap, and if you have a few bucks it can be downright exotic with maids, drivers, ect..

Here are a couple of articles to give you an idea of living costs for a medium budget in Thailand and Bangkok

http://theprofessionaladventurer.com/Cos...udget.html

http://theprofessionaladventurer.com/Cos...udget.html

Post: #8

Taipei was cheap, I got a nice studio with all the mod-cons for ~$675 in a great part of town. Food was cheap, going out was cheap, taxis were cheap, I lived in a great part of town...fuck, I really want to go back

China would be MUUUUUUCH cheaper. An apartment would be extremely cheap, maybe ~$300, and you could live off of a dollar a day for food.

Post: #9

Bangkok was ridiculously cheap. We stayed at a luxury 2 bedroom 2 bath condo, and when I mean luxury I mean everything...balcony, in-room internet and english speaking cable channels, spa-jet bathtub, remote control air conditioners, padded headboards for the bed, our own kitchen. We stayed there like 7 days and I think it cost us each a couple hundred bucks a piece. A place like that in Manhattan or Vegas would go for well over $1000 per night. Thailand cannot be beat as far as value. Lots to see, great culture, food, history, women, beaches and dirt cheap.

Post: #10

Speakeasy is right, Bangkok and Thailand in general is one of the best places to live especially for folks on a budget.

Bangkok is even better if you have a 5K+ a month budget – you can live like a rockstar in a penthouse apartment, have a personal assistant, go out to the top clubs, eat out at 4* restaurants, ect... for 1/20 of the cost of the same lifestyle in a major western city.

Post: #11

Bringing this thread from the grave, I would like your guys opinion on best countries to live abroad in 2018.

Post: #12

The only country in Latin America that still lets people stay for a long period of time seems to be Mexico. They have a 6 month tourism stamp and let people do border runs. But I have to caution that Mexico taxes residents (183 calendar days) on their worldwide income. So for that reason it isn't a great place for a digital nomad.


/thread-70320.html
(my tone in this thread was a bit negative because of the girl situation).

I spent 6 months in Georgia. 0% foreign income tax. They give everyone a 360 day tourism stamp. Apartment prices are cheaper than Latin America places like Medellin and Mexico City. The only country I know of that is cheaper is maybe Ukraine but they limit you to 90 days. But the major downside to Georgia are the women (almost none on dating apps and premarital sex is rare). And I couldn't grow to love Georgian food either. But a major plus was opening a bank account was super easy and I will be using this account abroad for many years (but you can technically just visit this country for 1 week and still get the account open).


Of course my next stop is Taiwan. A bit more expensive than Georgia but what I read so far is foreign-sourced income is untaxed (so long as the activity is outside of Taiwan). So if I like it I will be doing border runs once every 90 days. But a major disadvantage to Taiwan is nobody there will let you open a bank account (so I would recommend Georgia to open an account and then head over to Taiwan).

My current Airbnb I have booked in Taipei is $24 a night (this is with a monthly discount applied). But the quality of life seems low in Taipei. Most Airbnbs in Taipei don't come with a kitchen. I literally had to click a filter on Airbnb to display the units with kitchens and only 5 places came up!

(So you're forced to eat out everyday but if you're eating weird ass street food then how the hell do you bulk up at the gym? You can't... unless you're eating canned tuna in your apartment a lot...).

Checking photos of restaurant menus it seems like the eating out food is cheaply priced in Taiwan (as cheap as Georgia actually. I imagine this is because it's super competition to open a restaurant or a cafe in Taipei). But supermarkets and so on are going to be more expensive than Georgia.

Post: #13

You are absolutely required to pay personal income tax on foreign sourced income in Taiwan if you are resident for more than 183 days a year since you are considered to be performing the work where you physically reside. This is a long standing misconception.

This doesn't matter much if you only want to stay a year or two on visa runs but if you ever plan to get a real visa then come tax declaration day they will check your history and demand payment for all the tax you did not pay up to that point.

Post: #14

(09-02-2018 06:48 AM)atlant Wrote:  You are absolutely required to pay personal income tax on foreign sourced income in Taiwan if you are resident for more than 183 days a year since you are considered to be performing the work where you physically reside. This is a long standing misconception.

This doesn't matter much if you only want to stay a year or two on visa runs but if you ever plan to get a real visa then come tax declaration day they will check your history and demand payment for all the tax you did not pay up to that point.

Interesting clarification.

But yeah I don't know if I could live in Taiwan for the rest of my life. It'll probably be annexed into China someday and East Asian countries never let people integrate or assimilate either. I couldn't really stand living in Korea that much. Just heard it's a rather cheap place and the women are rather promiscuous (and less ladyboys and prostitutes than other Asian countries).

Post: #15

The best options for living abroad is Lisbon, Medellin, Santo Domingo, Saint Chinian, Mexico, Bali

Post: #16

Kuala Lumpur.cheapest but boring as hell.girls are more difficult than europe or US due to strict islam.nothing like other SEA places.but interms of cost ive not seen lower. you can buy shoes in the mall for 5 euros

Post: #17

Going from one boring country to the next Batumi? What country are you from?, if you are European/American you can open a bank account easily in many European countries. Why not try Serbia? cheap, border runs possible, and a hell of a lot more fun than Taiwan

Post: #18

(09-11-2018 06:03 AM)Henny Wrote:  Going from one boring country to the next Batumi? What country are you from?, if you are European/American you can open a bank account easily in many European countries. Why not try Serbia? cheap, border runs possible, and a hell of a lot more fun than Taiwan

Huh it's not that easy to open a bank account in most places across the world. Most want to see you be on a worker's visa and to own property (because of collateral reasons) or agree to deposit a mid-5 figure amount into a deposit you can't touch.

Why not try Serbia? Do I really want to be there in winter time? Also most Slavic women I find don't really use dating apps, English can be shit and are a bit tricky to convince to do hookups (unless they're an amateur prostitute).

How is Serbia more fun than Taiwan? It doesn't make any sense. Taiwanese women are more promiscuous and Taiwan is a huge foodie and cafe destination.


Looking at the weather for Serbia I wouldn't want to be there until March or April. Same can be said for Ukraine too.

Post: #19

Bangkok, Mexico City and Taipei are all interesting major capitals with good value-for-money.

Post: #20

I assumed you wanted to move to Taiwan full time. Well I'm guessing Serbia's nightlife is far superior to some sterile Asian country like Taiwan(although I haven't been)

You didn't say what country you are from, I never had a problem opening accounts as a Westerner, I have accounts in Poland, Ukraine, Montengro , Serbia and Georgia thus far.

Yes Slavic women don't use Dating apps as much because they have some values and don't want to whore themselves as much as westerners.

If you want ONS then what the fck have you been doing living in Georgia lol