Free housing in London....move from NY?

[tooyoung]

Hi there!

My husband and i (30 and 28) have been offered an interesting deal. My MIL made a killing off her London property and has bought three homes (in london). She is now retired. She offered us the extra property. My husband is in middle managment at a tech co in NYC and is being offered an exec position at a small company in London. Take home is about the same at 200k per year (120 in Lon). All of this would require an immediate relocation. We currently do no own and rent at 4k for a 2 bed. We have 2 kids and not much saved. So we see it as a better position, no housing to pay for, and cheaper for kids. So, should we do it?

Thanks

[Gobitron]

It sounds like you've already answered your own question. Go for it!

[Argyle]

Sounds fabulous!  I'd do it in an instant!

[Pinch of salt]

Definitely! And by not paying rent for a three bedroom house in, say, zones 2-3, you're saving minimum £2,500 per month. Depends on area of course. Very jealous of your free housing!

[EricL]

Free housing in London on a $200k paycheck?  Are you &^&$@% kidding me?  London housing is as crazy expensive as NYC, if not more.  Some of the Brits on this board are gonna be really jealous.  Hell, I'm jealous.  But they're in a position to stalk you when you get there and I'm not.  Jealous Brits are about the only downside I can think of unless your kids are Anglophobes.

[justplucky]

What are the potential downsides of this? Is your mother-in-law the type to get in your business if you're geographically closer?

If she respects boundaries, I'd jump on it!

[devan]

I just moved from NYC to London,
I was surprised by the income tax being lower here.
But if you're US citizens you should consult an accountant, you will probably have to report your income every year and maybe even by some income tax to the US.

[tooyoung]

Hi all!

Thanks for the responses! Yes, I'm thinking it could be great and obviously wise financially. Hell, we could probably Fire in 5 years due to the housing alone (NYC you kill me). It's in a good area (not rough) in North London. The MIL I'm not so sure about, but I think that has more to do with setting my boundaries if there is an issue. I haven't lived near her so I'm just not totally sure about that one! On the other hand it's extremely generous and I'll feel indebted too! Not used to things being handed to me (neither is my husband)!

The kids in NY make our cost of living quite high (classes, food, etc, not to mention the bigger place) so I see that as being another huge accidental benefit (everything I've done there with kids on visits has been quite cheap, $5 drop in play for 2 hours? Sign us up!, 3$ music class drop in? Yes please! Compared to my city stuff now) so as a stay at home mom, I can see it being cheaper to raise the kids with a decent lifestyle in a huge city (which are becoming so unbelievably expensive :( )

We have a side gig that we run that brings in extra income, that will probably cancel out the extra tax to the US (if we have to pay more). I know it would make investing etc tricky, but from what I've read the UK version of a 401k is quite nifty.

I guess there is no harm in going!! I've really been trying to see a downside and be realistic but it doesn't seem there is too too much that would be an issue, especially mirrored with our current situation.

Thanks for your input!

And I hope no one stalks me! :D

[undercover]

I read: we are young, 1%ers that can move from one world class city to another and save thousands in the process and give up literally nothing in quality of life (probably gain - NYC sucks imo), should we do it? Boo hoo. Sorry to sound insensitive, but what is the question here? Get to saving.

[AllieVaulter]

I think it's great that you are trying to look at your situation critically and make the best decision.  Everyone sees things from a different perspective and gathering that information is a great way to find things you would have overlooked. 

My opinion is that this sounds amazing!  The only things that pop out to me have already been mentioned:  Financial complications from living abroad and being too close to the in-laws.  And to be honest, I think I find the in-laws more worrisome!  :) 

My advice:  Be thankful and gracious, but work on maintaining boundaries.  I know nothing of what the MIL is like, but feeling indebted to someone can lead people into situations they'd rather not be in.  The fact that you're considering the offer probably means that you don't see any awful warning signs, so go for it!  Have a blast, host some friends from the US.  If you get homesick (or sick of the MIL) you can always move back to the US and you'll be that much closer to FIRE. 

Good luck!  To be honest, I'm a little jealous.  ;)  But good lord!  I am SO thankful I don't have to pay $4k (a month?!?!) for housing! 

[Doubleh]

As a London local I think this sounds like potentially a great opportunity. How much you enjoy it depends largely on your attitude and open mindedness to new experiences - will you embrace the new things about London life or focus on the things you miss from usa? Don't underestimate the impact of cultural differences but if you're open to seeing this as an adventure you should have a blast!

Be aware also that London even within zone 1 is a big area and can easily take an hour or more to travel around. If you know the addresses or postcode of the house and office you can get a travel time from the transport planner at tfl.gov.uk. If you want some local insight into the areas you can post rough details here or pm them.

Tax wise you're unlikely to end up paying more in federal tax than you will in the uk although you'll still have to file for it. What you'll want to ensure its how you will be able to avoid having to pay ny state and local taxes, I have no knowledge about this. We have used greenback tax for my wife's is taxes, they are online specialists in expat tax and we found them good value and very good.

FYI the range between 100-120k gbp is a tough place to be as the phase out of personal allowance gives you a marginal tax rate of 60%. If you're saving aggressively anyway it may be worth getting your taxable pay below £100k the easiest way to do this is by making contributions to a uk pension fund. This works similarly to a traditional 401k with the proviso that it is almost impossible to access the money early without huge penalties. But you could just leave this as your "old man money" and save the remainder of your savings for earlier life.

[Pinch of salt]

For gods sake don't keep us waiting for an answer! Have you decided to move or not  ️