![](https://images1.caifuzhongwen.com/images/attachement/jpg/site1/20240709/080027b692af27f7310c07.jpg)
2011年,从事计算机科学工作的艾伦·福西特决定退休。当时,他确信自己希望至少拿出几年时间去旅行,尤其是环游欧洲。正如他所说的那样,在科技行业工作了数十年之后,他已经准备让自己的大脑放松一下。他对《财富》杂志表示:“计算机编程毁了我的大脑。我需要逃离这种生活。”
他没想到的是,这次逃离变成了永久的离开。他退休后不久就遇到了现在的妻子伊丽莎白,并最终与妻子一起定居西班牙。
现年67岁的福西特通过结婚获得了西班牙居民身份。他对自己的决定感到无比开心。虽然妻子仍在工作,但他每天都与巴塞罗那的外国朋友一起打网球、读书、去海滩或咖啡馆。他和妻子可以在欧洲大陆旅行,甚至计划今年去巴黎观看奥运会。
福西特表示,在美国不可能过上这种生活。西班牙的房价更低,食物不贵,而且葡萄酒更便宜。西班牙的公共交通系统简直是天赐之物;福西特没有汽车,而且出行也不需要开车。步行便利性是一个重要的好处。
福西特表示:“在这里生活很幸福。你在任何地方都能户外用餐,这里气候宜人,而且所有商品都很便宜。”福西特在2019年获得居民身份。
福西特代表了美国退休人群在退休危机刺激下出现的一种日益流行的趋势,这些退休人员搬到海外生活,而不是在美国度过晚年。根据美国社会保障局(Social Security Administration)最近公开的数据,2022年12月,在海外领取社会保障金的人数超过700,800人。2000年,这个数字还不足400,000人。
一些人搬到海外的原因是,美国的住房和医疗成本变得越来越令人难以承受,因此依靠固定退休收入无法过上舒适的生活。在美国,有大批退休人员几乎完全依赖社会保障金维持生计,每个月的平均社会保障金约为1,900美元。越来越多的美国老年人生活贫困,即使他们能获得社会服务,这类服务也少之又少。
有人一直梦想去旅行,沉浸式体验其他文化。还有人虽然有能力继续留在美国生活,但他们意识到如果在海外生活,他们的钱更有购买力。
“不必付出什么代价”
苏珊·基南·斯威尼和丈夫乔就属于后者。他们在2015年搬到了匈牙利(乔出生在匈牙利,但童年时就搬离了这个国家)。69岁的斯威尼在美国从事银行业软件工作,成绩斐然,她甚至在佛罗里达州提前退休。但日益升高的住宅和医疗成本,让她推迟了退休时间。
在搬到匈牙利之前,她和丈夫曾游览过这个国家。在看到当地的低生活成本和更缓慢的生活节奏后,他们几乎“冲动地”决定搬家。现在他们有一套在乡村的房子,距离布达佩斯约两个小时车程,房子周围是葡萄园。斯威尼在这里从事园艺,在附近的市场购买时令新鲜农产品,在家里制作果酱和果冻;夫妻二人会到西班牙过冬,其他时间则周游欧洲。
![](https://images1.caifuzhongwen.com/images/attachement/jpg/site1/20240709/080027b692af27f7313b08.jpg)
斯威尼还提到四通八达的公共交通系统是匈牙利的一大优势——65岁以上可免费乘坐公共交通,而且在他们生活的山脚下就有一座火车站。此外,他们在这里有安全感和社区感。斯威尼表示,与佛罗里达相比,他们在这里每年可以节省数千美元房产税,而且外籍人士医疗保险远低于美国的医疗保险成本。他们每个月最大的一笔支出是美国Hulu订阅费。他们通过VPN可以观看Hulu的节目。
斯威尼说道:“在退休地点方面,我想我已经走在了最前沿。我们在这里生活不必付出什么代价。”
在海外生活的权衡
当然,在海外生活也有一些缺点。斯威尼的其他家人都在美国,因此他们需要计划探望家人的旅行。至少在最初很难克服文化差异,而且斯威尼仍在学习一些基础的匈牙利语。福西特指出,西班牙人的个人财富水平不及美国;西班牙普遍的工资水平远低于在美国能找到的六位数薪酬。当然,西班牙的所得税率更高。
斯威尼和福西特如果是在欧洲工作,他们可能无法攒到在美国从事高薪职业所攒下的财富。他们的大多数投资依旧在美国的金融机构,因为这些资金很难转移。搬到海外还有其他官僚手续和繁文缛节。斯威尼和丈夫聘请了一位律师帮助他们买房。
福西特表示:“我们在前两年主要是处理官僚手续。在西班牙,你做任何事情都要面对大量文书工作。”
但福西特表示,更多人在西班牙的生活水准高于在美国的生活。在西班牙生活的好处体现在一些小的地方。例如在西班牙更容易买到更新鲜、更便宜的食品杂货和音乐会门票。还有一些更大的福利,例如长达数月的带薪产假、廉价的中等教育和经济实惠的医疗成本等。
![](https://images1.caifuzhongwen.com/images/attachement/jpg/site1/20240709/080027b692af27f7315e09.jpg)
斯威尼表示:“这里与美国截然不同。人们的行事方式截然不同,所以我们才会搬到这里。”
虽然匈牙利和西班牙的全民医疗保健系统因为漫长的等待时间而遭到诟病,而且与美国相比医疗水平可能较低,但福西特和斯威尼对他们接受的医疗服务标准感到满意,包括外科手术和结肠镜检查等大型手术。有一个缺点是,许多医疗服务人员不会说英语;斯威尼表示由于语言障碍,如果有重大疾病,他们会考虑飞回美国接受治疗。
说到文化冲击,斯威尼表示:“如果你作为美国人走进当地医生的诊所,你可能大感意外。在这里不必跟保险公司打交道。你走进诊所,看医生,然后离开。”
Betterment公司的投资总监明迪·于提醒那些有意在海外退休的人们,要拿出时间制定计划,以应对在财务、法律和后勤方面的巨大隐患。
于表示:“关键是要避免将海外退休视为成本更低的选择,而是尽早开始储蓄,同时分散投资组合以规避风险。咨询具有国际专业知识的税务专家至关重要,因为在国外生活也可能让你在美国和新的居住国承担新的税务义务。”
福西特计划与妻子留在西班牙,特别是因为妻子要照顾91岁的母亲,她的子女也在当地长大成人。斯威尼也表示,她和丈夫长期住在匈牙利,但他们最终可能从葡萄园搬到布达佩斯。
斯威尼表示:“我建议任何人搬到国外前,去国外度假,租一套房子,四处游览一番。你会发现自己来到了一些做梦都想不到的地方。如果你已经退休,又有几个月的时间,为什么不尝试一下?”(财富中文网)
翻译:刘进龙
审校:汪皓
2011年,从事计算机科学工作的艾伦·福西特决定退休。当时,他确信自己希望至少拿出几年时间去旅行,尤其是环游欧洲。正如他所说的那样,在科技行业工作了数十年之后,他已经准备让自己的大脑放松一下。他对《财富》杂志表示:“计算机编程毁了我的大脑。我需要逃离这种生活。”
他没想到的是,这次逃离变成了永久的离开。他退休后不久就遇到了现在的妻子伊丽莎白,并最终与妻子一起定居西班牙。
现年67岁的福西特通过结婚获得了西班牙居民身份。他对自己的决定感到无比开心。虽然妻子仍在工作,但他每天都与巴塞罗那的外国朋友一起打网球、读书、去海滩或咖啡馆。他和妻子可以在欧洲大陆旅行,甚至计划今年去巴黎观看奥运会。
福西特表示,在美国不可能过上这种生活。西班牙的房价更低,食物不贵,而且葡萄酒更便宜。西班牙的公共交通系统简直是天赐之物;福西特没有汽车,而且出行也不需要开车。步行便利性是一个重要的好处。
福西特表示:“在这里生活很幸福。你在任何地方都能户外用餐,这里气候宜人,而且所有商品都很便宜。”福西特在2019年获得居民身份。
福西特代表了美国退休人群在退休危机刺激下出现的一种日益流行的趋势,这些退休人员搬到海外生活,而不是在美国度过晚年。根据美国社会保障局(Social Security Administration)最近公开的数据,2022年12月,在海外领取社会保障金的人数超过700,800人。2000年,这个数字还不足400,000人。
一些人搬到海外的原因是,美国的住房和医疗成本变得越来越令人难以承受,因此依靠固定退休收入无法过上舒适的生活。在美国,有大批退休人员几乎完全依赖社会保障金维持生计,每个月的平均社会保障金约为1,900美元。越来越多的美国老年人生活贫困,即使他们能获得社会服务,这类服务也少之又少。
有人一直梦想去旅行,沉浸式体验其他文化。还有人虽然有能力继续留在美国生活,但他们意识到如果在海外生活,他们的钱更有购买力。
“不必付出什么代价”
苏珊·基南·斯威尼和丈夫乔就属于后者。他们在2015年搬到了匈牙利(乔出生在匈牙利,但童年时就搬离了这个国家)。69岁的斯威尼在美国从事银行业软件工作,成绩斐然,她甚至在佛罗里达州提前退休。但日益升高的住宅和医疗成本,让她推迟了退休时间。
在搬到匈牙利之前,她和丈夫曾游览过这个国家。在看到当地的低生活成本和更缓慢的生活节奏后,他们几乎“冲动地”决定搬家。现在他们有一套在乡村的房子,距离布达佩斯约两个小时车程,房子周围是葡萄园。斯威尼在这里从事园艺,在附近的市场购买时令新鲜农产品,在家里制作果酱和果冻;夫妻二人会到西班牙过冬,其他时间则周游欧洲。
斯威尼还提到四通八达的公共交通系统是匈牙利的一大优势——65岁以上可免费乘坐公共交通,而且在他们生活的山脚下就有一座火车站。此外,他们在这里有安全感和社区感。斯威尼表示,与佛罗里达相比,他们在这里每年可以节省数千美元房产税,而且外籍人士医疗保险远低于美国的医疗保险成本。他们每个月最大的一笔支出是美国Hulu订阅费。他们通过VPN可以观看Hulu的节目。
斯威尼说道:“在退休地点方面,我想我已经走在了最前沿。我们在这里生活不必付出什么代价。”
在海外生活的权衡
当然,在海外生活也有一些缺点。斯威尼的其他家人都在美国,因此他们需要计划探望家人的旅行。至少在最初很难克服文化差异,而且斯威尼仍在学习一些基础的匈牙利语。福西特指出,西班牙人的个人财富水平不及美国;西班牙普遍的工资水平远低于在美国能找到的六位数薪酬。当然,西班牙的所得税率更高。
斯威尼和福西特如果是在欧洲工作,他们可能无法攒到在美国从事高薪职业所攒下的财富。他们的大多数投资依旧在美国的金融机构,因为这些资金很难转移。搬到海外还有其他官僚手续和繁文缛节。斯威尼和丈夫聘请了一位律师帮助他们买房。
福西特表示:“我们在前两年主要是处理官僚手续。在西班牙,你做任何事情都要面对大量文书工作。”
但福西特表示,更多人在西班牙的生活水准高于在美国的生活。在西班牙生活的好处体现在一些小的地方。例如在西班牙更容易买到更新鲜、更便宜的食品杂货和音乐会门票。还有一些更大的福利,例如长达数月的带薪产假、廉价的中等教育和经济实惠的医疗成本等。
斯威尼表示:“这里与美国截然不同。人们的行事方式截然不同,所以我们才会搬到这里。”
虽然匈牙利和西班牙的全民医疗保健系统因为漫长的等待时间而遭到诟病,而且与美国相比医疗水平可能较低,但福西特和斯威尼对他们接受的医疗服务标准感到满意,包括外科手术和结肠镜检查等大型手术。有一个缺点是,许多医疗服务人员不会说英语;斯威尼表示由于语言障碍,如果有重大疾病,他们会考虑飞回美国接受治疗。
说到文化冲击,斯威尼表示:“如果你作为美国人走进当地医生的诊所,你可能大感意外。在这里不必跟保险公司打交道。你走进诊所,看医生,然后离开。”
Betterment公司的投资总监明迪·于提醒那些有意在海外退休的人们,要拿出时间制定计划,以应对在财务、法律和后勤方面的巨大隐患。
于表示:“关键是要避免将海外退休视为成本更低的选择,而是尽早开始储蓄,同时分散投资组合以规避风险。咨询具有国际专业知识的税务专家至关重要,因为在国外生活也可能让你在美国和新的居住国承担新的税务义务。”
福西特计划与妻子留在西班牙,特别是因为妻子要照顾91岁的母亲,她的子女也在当地长大成人。斯威尼也表示,她和丈夫长期住在匈牙利,但他们最终可能从葡萄园搬到布达佩斯。
斯威尼表示:“我建议任何人搬到国外前,去国外度假,租一套房子,四处游览一番。你会发现自己来到了一些做梦都想不到的地方。如果你已经退休,又有几个月的时间,为什么不尝试一下?”(财富中文网)
翻译:刘进龙
审校:汪皓
When Allan Fawcett decided to retire from his career in computer science in 2011, he knew he wanted to spend at least a few years traveling, particularly around Europe. After decades working in tech, he was ready, as he says, to give his mind a rest. “Computer programming destroyed my brain,” he tells Fortune. “I needed an escape.”
What he didn’t know is that that escape would become permanent. He met his now-wife, Elisabeth, shortly after he retired, and eventually took the leap to move permanently to Spain with her.
Fawcett, now 67 and a Spanish resident through marriage, couldn’t be happier about his decision. Though his wife still works, he spends his days playing tennis, reading, and going to the beach or cafés with expat friends in Barcelona. He and his wife are able to travel around the continent, even planning a trip to Paris for the Olympics this year.
The same lifestyle wouldn’t be possible in the U.S., Fawcett says. Housing is much more affordable, food is inexpensive, and the wine is even less so. The mass transit system is a godsend; Fawcett doesn’t have a car and doesn’t need one to get around. Walkability is also a major benefit.
“It’s a good life here,” says Fawcett, who became a resident in 2019. “Outdoor dining is everywhere, the weather is amazing. Everything is very cheap.”
Fawcett is part of a growing trend of retirees, spurred by America’s retirement crisis, who are moving abroad instead of spending their golden years in the U.S. In December 2022, there were over 700,800 people receiving Social Security payments abroad, according to the most recently available data from the Social Security Administration. In 2000, that figure was less than 400,000.
Some move abroad because they simply cannot comfortably live on a fixed retirement income in the U.S., where the costs of housing and healthcare, especially, are becoming increasingly unaffordable. A substantial number of retirees rely almost completely on Social Security payments to make ends meet in the U.S., which average around $1,900 per month. A growing portion of elderly Americans live in poverty, with social services few and far between, if they are accessible at all.
Others always dreamed of travel and immersing themselves in other cultures. And still others could afford to stay in the U.S. but realized how much more they could get for their money abroad.
‘It costs us next to nothing’
The latter is true for Susan Keenan Sweeney and her husband, Joe, who moved to Hungary in 2015 (Joe was born in Hungary, but moved away as a child). Though Sweeney, 69, had done well for herself in a career in banking software in the states and even retired early in Florida, she was put off by the increasingly high costs of housing and health care.
When she and her husband visited Hungary before the move, they looked at the affordable cost of living and slower pace of life and decided, almost “on a whim,” to move. They now own a home in the countryside, about two hours outside of Budapest, surrounded by vineyards. Sweeney gardens and revels in the seasonal fresh produce that’s available at the nearby market, making jams and jellies at home; the couple spends their winters in Spain, and travels extensively around Europe the rest of the year.
Susan Keenan Sweeney and her husband, Joe Horvath, in Budapest.
Sweeney also points to the extensive public transit system as a major plus—it is free to use for those over 65, and there is a train station at the base of the hill they live on—as is the sense of safety and community they feel. They save thousands a year in property taxes compared to Florida, and expat health insurance is a fraction of the cost of American health insurance, she says. One of their biggest monthly expenses is their U.S. Hulu subscription, which they watch via VPN.
“I’d like to think I’m on the cutting edge of where to retire,” says Sweeney. “It costs us next to nothing to live here.”
The trade-offs of living abroad
There are drawbacks, of course. The rest of Sweeney’s family is in the states, so they need to plan trips to see each other. The cultural differences can be difficult to manage, at least at first, and Sweeney is still learning the basics of Hungarian. There’s not the same level of individual wealth in Spain as in the U.S., Fawcett points out; the typical salary is far lower than the six-figure jobs you can find in the states. And of course, the income tax burden is much higher.
Sweeney and Fawcett wouldn’t have been able to save the amount of money they did throughout their high-paying careers in the U.S. had they spent their careers in Europe. Most of their investments are still in U.S. financial institutions because of the difficulty to move them. And there is plenty of other bureaucracy and red tape to move through to move abroad. Sweeney and her husband enlisted a lawyer to help them buy their home;
“The first couple of years are taking care of bureaucracy more than anything,” says Fawcett. “Anything you want in Spain requires a ton of paperwork.”
But the standard of living is much better for a wider swath of the population than it is in the U.S., Fawcett contends. There are the small things, like fresher, less expensive groceries and concert tickets being much more affordable and accessible. And then there are the larger benefits, like months of paid maternity leave, inexpensive secondary education, and affordable health care.
On the road to Susan Keenan Sweeney’s home in Hungary.
“It’s not the U.S.,” says Sweeney. “They do things differently here, and that’s why we’re here.”
And while universal health care systems like those in Hungary and Spain are often criticized for long waiting times and the potential for subpar care compared to the U.S., both Fawcett and Sweeney are satisfied with the standard of care they’ve received, including through surgeries and major procedures like colonoscopies. One drawback is that many providers don’t necessarily speak English; Sweeney says if something major happened, they’d consider flying back to the U.S. for care because of the language barrier.
“If you walked in here as an American and went to a doctor’s office, I’d have to pick you up off the floor,” says Sweeney of the culture shock. “There’s none of the dealing with the insurance. It’s walk in, see the doctor, walk out.”
Mindy Yu, director of investing at Betterment, warns those interested in retiring abroad to take the time to plan for the considerable financial, legal, and logistical pitfalls.
“It’s crucial to avoid seeing retiring abroad as the cheaper option and instead begin saving as early as possible, while diversifying your portfolio to avoid risk,” says Yu. “Consulting a tax professional with international expertise is crucial, as living abroad may also come with new tax obligations, both to the U.S. and your new country of residence.”
Fawcett plans to remain in Spain with his wife, especially as she is the caretaker for her 91-year-old mother and has grown children in the area. Sweeney, too, says she and her husband are in Hungary for the long haul, though they may eventually move from the vineyards to Budapest.
“I would urge anybody who is going to do it, go on vacation and rent a house and look around. You find yourself in some places where you never would have dreamed you’d be,” says Sweeney. “If you’re retired and you have a few months, what the hell?”