Grew 2nd set of stache hairs: Rented 1.2k sqft USA home, renting 6-tatami Japan

[johnnyd]

I'm still in my first year of mustachian style living, so still dialing a lot of things down.  But, I made my 2nd big financial move of the year and it's going great.

In March I disovered MMM and this site, thanks to the Tim Ferris Podcast.

In May I sold Sold my $60,000 7speed, now on a $300 1speed

In September, I rented out my home in the USA for $550 above my mortgage, with the plan of living / working remotely abroad and trying to have my lodging expenses mostly covered by the $550, keeping my other costs low and hopefully saving the equivalant of 80-100% of my take home pay* (if qualify for FEIE).  So far it's working out great.

My first country: Japan

Japan may not seem like a great first choice, given it's reputation for being expensive.  You can easily break any budget here in Japan.  Luckily, I have a lot of experience living and traveling in Japan and speak Japanese, so I decided to start here.

My room is 55000 yen a month ($490), which includes internet, furniture, and all utilities.  It's a 6-tatami room in a share house near the Kamo Gawa river in Kyoto Japan, which is a beautiful area to live.  Share house means there are common areas such as kitchen, bathrooms, rooftop deck, that I share with other people.  I'm now wrapping up my 3rd month here and have easily hit my target savings goal (80% of take home pay), despite doing a lot and spending on luxuries like buying monthly passes to a yoga studio, and salsa lessons once or twice a week. 

From here, I plan on going to less expensive countries and saving even more (India is next).  Most all of my airfare is covered by miles, and I've spent the last 8 years traveling and learning about the ins and outs of travel hacking.    I hope to be out of the USA for over 330 days of the 365 from when I started, so that I can qualify for the FEIE and have my federal and state tax be 0.  If that happens, I project that my total spend for the year, including all travel, medical, bills, etc. will be covered by that tax break and my total income will be the same as if I were living in the states and spent $0 for the whole year.

Thanks again for all the great information that MMM and this community provides.  I'll keep ya posted!

[ospreyjp]

I spent 7 years living and working in Japan and managed to save a pretty decent sum.  The high cost of living stats on Japan apply more when comparing similar square footage and western diet choices to that of US/Aus/Can and other western countries.  By finding an apartment in the suburbs of Tokyo I had a nice place for around $700 a month.  By choosing to eat a healthier Japanese diet, my food bills were similar to the US.  Best of all, there was no need at all for a car and Japanese employers pay for employee train commutes.  National health care in Japan has no deductibles either for the kids, another plus.

I plan to return to Japan in the next couple of years and do the same thing as you, rent out our home in the US and pocket the difference for a few years.  Great country, 楽しんで ください! 

[Debonair]

Taiwan is similar in that a "USA" lifestyle and diet make it extremely expensive. Living away from Taipei is much cheaper. I keep meaning to check out Japan, it's just a few hour flight away.

what type of work are you doing remotly?

[johnnyd]

I spent 7 years living and working in Japan and managed to save a pretty decent sum.  The high cost of living stats on Japan apply more when comparing similar square footage and western diet choices to that of US/Aus/Can and other western countries.  By finding an apartment in the suburbs of Tokyo I had a nice place for around $700 a month.  By choosing to eat a healthier Japanese diet, my food bills were similar to the US.  Best of all, there was no need at all for a car and Japanese employers pay for employee train commutes.  National health care in Japan has no deductibles either for the kids, another plus.

I plan to return to Japan in the next couple of years and do the same thing as you, rent out our home in the US and pocket the difference for a few years.  Great country, 楽しんで ください!

Yeah, thanks to the weakening of the yen and services like airbnb spreading and google fi it has been amazing how much cheaper things have gotten from when I first started coming to Japan 8 years ago.  And you're totally right, by knowing how to shop for the right food and when to go to the grocery store, grocery bills can easily be less than I'd assume most states in the US (I'm comparing my bills to what I'd spend in Arizona).  It only gets expensive here if I try to make beef tacos.. haha

Taiwan is similar in that a "USA" lifestyle and diet make it extremely expensive. Living away from Taipei is much cheaper. I keep meaning to check out Japan, it's just a few hour flight away.

what type of work are you doing remotly?

I enjoyed some time in Taiwan a couple years back, and have been considering going there again if I decide to get serious about learning Mandarin.  I work in software for a company in the US.  I spent my first 6 years on the job negotiating for full time remote status instead of negotiating pay raises.  I may have been able to FIRE earlier if I hadn't done that, but I don't regret it for a second.