I am sure people here have done this, just wanted to hear some first stories.
My question:
Is anyone on this board currently living solely off rental income in another (cheaper) city or country? I feel like this could work even in a cheaper city in the US. Would love to hear first hand stories of this working, not working, what I am missing, what I should plan for, etc.
My story:
My wife and I are both 32 years old. I graduated undergrad in 2008 with 130K in student loans (oops), got lucky and bought a house in the Bronx while things were still cheap in 2013, and have been basement living and renting out the top 2 units for the past 5 years. I am about 4 months away from paying off the final dollars on the loans. We are paying for my wife's school at a cheaper city college in cash as we go along to avoid that mistake again (she has 1 year left). Next step is to finish 2 more years at my job so that I am vested in medical benefits for me and my wife when we turn 55. We will also GTFO the basement apartment because regardless of how much it saves, 5 years of cave dwelling takes its toll on sanity.
By October 2020 I will be vested in med benefits (and paltry pension), my wife will have worked for a full year, and we will have around $75,000 socked away in cash (which will be either a down payment for another rental property, or cash pillow). When we move out of our apartment for good, our monthly income from the house will be about $2500 after mortgage, property management, insurance, expenses, etc.
My plan:
Move to Central America (my wife is from there and we both have lived there before), live on the beach for $500 a month rent (buying doesn't seem smart in a country with unstable gov't etc), spend another $1000 a month to live very well, and save $1000 a month. Use that savings to invest in real estate, stocks, whatever.