Leaving America? VOL. House Hunters International Got Me Ready To Bounce.

[sonoftony]

I totally forgot about Holland and I had no idea about Spain's unemployment.

[@=/u/93394/Colombia]@Colombia[/@] How's life in Belgium?

I enjoy it here and wouldn't move but I wouldn't place it at the top of EU countries. We have a very complicated political system and the country is essentially divided in 2. The north speaks Dutch, the south speaks French. The problem is that we on the northern side all learn French in school but the southerners aren't taught Dutch in most places. It results in a lot of communication problems as not all of us can be fluent in French. Half of our federal government has to use translators because they can't understand eachother properly without them. It's kind of ridiculous when you think about it.
Our economy is doing relatively well, we had a growth of roughly 1,5% the past year and employment is good.
We also have low cost education and healthcare but many other EU countries offer those.
As for racism, I definitely wouldn't recommend Belgium to middle eastern immigrants but other minorities seem to be less affected by racism. There's not really that many different ethnicities here though that aren't middle eastern. We do have a good police system with little police brutality. If it does happen, officers are held accountable. And the police leadership actively trains its officers to deal with racism and different ethnicities.
Crime varies depending on where you go but overall we're doing pretty well on that front. Larger cities have more crime whereas rural areas tend to have very little.
I'd say we're definitely not a bad country to live in but we're clearly outclassed by countries like Sweden and Germany.
Cost of living is good in my eyes but I'm not sure how we compare to other countries. You'll make considerably less than in the US but pay much less in rent, houses, ...
€2500 a month after tax is considered a medium-high wage here for example.

The Netherlands are a bit like us but more liberal. There's also a large problem with racism towards middle eastern people there (look up politician Geert Wilders) there but I believe they have a more multicultural society than us. There's not that many negatives I can think of. Good economy, employment, social security, ... Arguably one of the better EU countries to live in.

Thanks for the insight

 

[titanium tea]

The climate is unfortunately changing in canada.
My homies gf went to a black lives matter protest the other day and some dude came by and spat at the crowd.
Some clown also showed up to throw paint on syrian refugees when they came.

Canada opened its borders up to the world and has grown tremendously.
We are starting to see issues of other nations now, spilling over into our streets.
It is bound to happen when so many have such strong love for the places they left.

If you like sports, music, shoes, fashion, television or internet, moving to canada will not help you escape the social climate you grow sick of.
We too have native reservations and an overmilitarized police force, constantly under investigation for misconduct.

Come here if you want to minimize your chances of being randomly hurt or killed by another citizen, or feel like giving the government 60% of your paycheck so you dont get charged if you do happen to need the ER.

Oh, and if deals on houses is your thing vancouver is probably the last place on gods green earth anyone on a budget should even consider. Same with toronto.

 

[jjs]

Canadians are nice. Probably easy to make friends plus they got tim horton's and poutine.

I heard Montreal is lit. I hope someone I know will have a bachelor's party up there.

Montreal def lit.

Winter is a nightmare though.

Plus the roads are always under repair or some ****, it's a nightmare to drive around this summer.

 

[northoaklandfc]

What are some potential options for Americans there that aren't either Trust Fund Kids or Street Cats?

#1 is probably teaching English. That's one were zero Spanish speaking knowledge is required for many organizations. I'd say 90% of my friends were English Teachers. Pay was usually around €20/hr. To put that in perspective, cost of living in Madrid or Barcelona is significantly lower than the west coast/NYC/DC. Most of the people I know were kid less, sharing a flat, working 20-30 hours a week, and living comfortably. It's different culturally out there though, no one's spending hundreds of dollars a month on Supreme or tennis shoes. A lot of us here in America probably spend more monthly on gas, auto insurance, parking, commuter tolls, and a reasonable car note alone, than what our counterparts (single, 20-40yo) spend total on fixed/necessary expenses.

Tourism industry is huge in Madrid/Barcelona too so that's another option that depending on the job might not require Spanish speaking knowledge. The guy I lived with and was renting a room from was Peruvian and worked at a high end hotel but tour guides, museums, schools and restaurants all need English speakers.

For most professional jobs you'll need to ima fairly competent Spanish speaker. No need for native proficiency, but in most cases you'll probably need to be advanced. Another professional avenue would be remote work brought up already.

I do think it's important to note what a high quality of life and level of comfort you can achieve working PT and/or low level service jobs in Spain and elsewhere. You simply can't live off part time wages in America imo.

One topic that hasn't been talked about much yet is how to acquire a long stay visa (if you want to reside legally) vs. ducking visa requirements and emigrating/residing illegally. Definitely a hurdle, but manageable a hurdle none the less. It definitely requires some strategic planning though because there are endless legal and less legal options out there.

Also have to mention how hard it can be to find work though if you're not in the country legally. Surely not impossible, I met people working all the above jobs who didn't have papers except for maybe professionals employed by Spanish companies. Teaching English is definitely the easiest type of position to acquire without documents.

 

[Rockabilly Zombie]

Great thread. Posting for future reference.

 

[Xennial]

#1 is probably teaching English. That's one were zero Spanish speaking knowledge is required for many organizations. I'd say 90% of my friends were English Teachers. Pay was usually around €20/hr. To put that in perspective, cost of living in Madrid or Barcelona is significantly lower than the west coast/NYC/DC. Most of the people I know were kid less, sharing a flat, working 20-30 hours a week, and living comfortably. It's different culturally out there though, no one's spending hundreds of dollars a month on Supreme or tennis shoes. A lot of us here in America probably spend more monthly on gas, auto insurance, parking, commuter tolls, and a reasonable car note alone, than what our counterparts (single, 20-40yo) spend total on fixed/necessary expenses.

Tourism industry is huge in Madrid/Barcelona too so that's another option that depending on the job might not require Spanish speaking knowledge. The guy I lived with and was renting a room from was Peruvian and worked at a high end hotel but tour guides, museums, schools and restaurants all need English speakers.

For most professional jobs you'll need to ima fairly competent Spanish speaker. No need for native proficiency, but in most cases you'll probably need to be advanced. Another professional avenue would be remote work brought up already.

I do think it's important to note what a high quality of life and level of comfort you can achieve working PT and/or low level service jobs in Spain and elsewhere. You simply can't live off part time wages in America imo.

One topic that hasn't been talked about much yet is how to acquire a long stay visa (if you want to reside legally) vs. ducking visa requirements and emigrating/residing illegally. Definitely a hurdle, but manageable a hurdle none the less. It definitely requires some strategic planning though because there are endless legal and less legal options out there.

Also have to mention how hard it can be to find work though if you're not in the country legally. Surely not impossible, I met people working all the above jobs who didn't have papers except for maybe professionals employed by Spanish companies. Teaching English is definitely the easiest type of position to acquire without documents.

 

[northoaklandfc]

According to Wikipedia 1/2 Spaniards own cars vs. 8/10 in America.

But I can tell you the vast majority of people living within the Barcelona/Madrid urban areas don't own cars or don't drive them daily.

Both cityscapes are designed for walking/public transportation. Most people get around on scooter/motorcycle if public transportation doesn't adequately serve their needs.

Driving is jusy 10x more of a hassle than riding a scooter/bike or public transportation. There are also strict regulations and fees on autos to further dissuade people from driving or even owning a car.

When I go back I'll probably get a scooter or motorcycle just to have it because it's fun as hell to ride.


Useful tip for an extended stay in Barcelona, the metro system is the best I've ever seen, same with the bus system. Most economical adult pass is the unlimited 1 month pass and will let you ride both, cost something like €70 euro.

However there's a 3 month unlimited pass for €100 euro for people under 25. The purchase system is completely automated and you have to provide your Spanish ID or Passport # to buy any kind of extended unlimited pass like that. The thing is when you use an American passport, it doesn't verify your age so the system will let you buy that 3 month unlimited pass regardless of your age.

While I was overseas I spent more on 1 month of car and insurance payments than I would have on a years total transportation costs in Barcelona.

 

[Xennial]

According to Wikipedia 1/2 Spaniards own cars vs. 8/10 in America.

But I can tell you the vast majority of people living within the Barcelona/Madrid urban areas don't own cars or don't drive them daily.

Both cityscapes are designed for walking/public transportation. Most people get around on scooter/motorcycle if public transportation doesn't adequately serve their needs.

Driving is jusy 10x more of a hassle than riding a scooter/bike or public transportation. There are also strict regulations and fees on autos to further dissuade people from driving or even owning a car.

When I go back I'll probably get a scooter or motorcycle just to have it because it's fun as hell to ride.


Useful tip for an extended stay in Barcelona, the metro system is the best I've ever seen, same with the bus system. Most economical adult pass is the unlimited 1 month pass and will let you ride both, cost something like €70 euro.

However there's a 3 month unlimited pass for €100 euro for people under 25. The purchase system is completely automated and you have to provide your Spanish ID or Passport # to buy any kind of extended unlimited pass like that. The thing is when you use an American passport, it doesn't verify your age so the system will let you buy that 3 month unlimited pass regardless of your age.

 

[andretti]

wow this might be the most sensible thread on NT. 

I'm brown and I've spent a ton of time in europe and japan. Ironically I was in europe this summer when the US government issued a travel warning to people saying not to travel to france or europe because of terrorism. I get back to Los Angeles and we have the UCLA shooting, Orlando and all this madness last week. I've never been more ashamed of this nation. We're a coin flip away from electing Trump. I'm 37 and married, otherwise, I would be thinking about getting the FO of here too like you youngsters  |I

How's japan?

 

[acebrigade]

How's japan?

beyond peaceful, clean and efficient. You can teach english there easily, I know many that have done it in their youth. problem is they only have an 8% non-japanese population. That's a bit of an issue for me personally. Also it's expensive AF in Tokyo, especially with the weak yen. 

 

[andretti]

How's japan?

beyond peaceful, clean and efficient. You can teach english there easily, I know many that have done it in their youth. problem is they only have an 8% non-japanese population. That's a bit of an issue for me personally. Also it's expensive AF in Tokyo, especially with the weak yen. 

Damn I'd still like to live there sometime in my life.

 

[northoaklandfc]

Wow that is so cheap, I was just in London about a month ago and the Tube although really good is so expensive, 3 day unlimited pass was more than that Barcelona monthly pass. For someone that like to eat out and drink a lot how are prices for those there?

Most commercial stuff in Barcelona/Madrid is pretty identical pricing to U.S. major metro area prices. Restaurants, fast/local food, retail shopping, commercial clubs etc.

Drinks at the local bars are a lot cheaper than here particularly beer. 1-2 euro beers is common, mixed drinks and hard alcohol are only marginally cheaper. Good beer and wine at the liquor/convenience stores are dirt cheap, hard alcohol not so much.

Street beer vendors are the best thing on earth. They're everywhere, and even when they're not, they pop out the cut like a genie precisely when you need them selling good old Estrella for €1 or even less.

Aside from real estate and transportation, the other area that's a significant cut to your cost of living is food at grocery stores.

I was spending about €35-40 a week on groceries including alcohol for home, and I was eating steak and salmon every night.

 

[combo gd]

 

Colombia always comes to mind. They say it's one of the happiest places on Earth.

Hahahahahahah

On the plane on my way home from Rome, I sat next to a middle eastern female that lived in Toronto who had traveled to over 40 different countries. 

She said the Columbia was her favorite place on Earth. 

 

[frshstunna]

Been interested in the Netherlands, Switzerland or one of the Nordic countries...gotta go visit check them out

 

[Xennial]

Most commercial stuff in Barcelona/Madrid is pretty identical pricing to U.S. major metro area prices. Restaurants, fast/local food, retail shopping, commercial clubs etc.

Drinks at the local bars are a lot cheaper than here particularly beer. 1-2 euro beers is common, mixed drinks and hard alcohol are only marginally cheaper. Good beer and wine at the liquor/convenience stores are dirt cheap, hard alcohol not so much.

Street beer vendors are the best thing on earth. They're everywhere, and even when they're not, they pop out the cut like a genie precisely when you need them selling good old Estrella for €1 or even less.

Aside from real estate and transportation, the other area that's a significant cut to your cost of living is food at grocery stores.

I was spending about €35-40 a week on groceries including alcohol for home, and I was eating steak and salmon every night.

 

[jjs]

 

Colombia always comes to mind. They say it's one of the happiest places on Earth.

Hahahahahahah

On the plane on my way home from Rome, I sat next to a middle eastern female that lived in Toronto who had traveled to over 40 different countries. 

She said the Columbia was her favorite place on Earth. 

I've heard good things about Columbia also.

There is a big difference between spending a couple of weeks on vacation somewhere and actually living there.

I've travelled quite a bit in Asia. Lots of dope places, some i could see myself staying for longer period of time. But living? I don't know man. leaving my family and my brothers here while i live on the other side of the planet? Idk.

And my city is dope. Except the winter.

Not saying no to living abroad. But i'd have to go with my future wifey and have a >>>>> quality of life.

 

[jordman23]

I've heard good things about Columbia also.

There is a big difference between spending a couple of weeks on vacation somewhere and actually living there.

I've travelled quite a bit in Asia. Lots of dope places, some i could see myself staying for longer period of time. But living? I don't know man. leaving my family and my brothers here while i live on the other side of the planet? Idk.

And my city is dope. Except the winter.

Not saying no to living abroad. But i'd have to go with my future wifey and have a >>>>> quality of life.

My GF would kill you lol. That's the biggest pet peeve of Colombians, it's spelled with an O. I learned the hard way lol. Latina women are crazy.



I went to Medellin past november and had a blast, the dollar is really strong over there now and it really lasts.

You can easily live there for $1,000 a month, and I'm talking living good. The cost of living is cheap. Luxury condo apartments in "El Poblado" can cost you $300 USD a month.


The women are all attractive and the food is delicious. I might buy property to retire there for sure.

 

[northoaklandfc]

What about medical/dental care? Also you think the racism aspect would be different between asian americans or asian asians there in Spain?

There's all kinds of affordable travel insurance out there. I'm usually lazy and just get it packaged with my flight. I only paid $100 on top of my flight for a years worth of travel insurance that covered health care.

I'm really not sure about the Asian immigrant vs. Asian tourist dynamic but it's not like I witnessed rampant racism against Asians. I didn't even witness any specific actions that were racist.

I said what I said because I just kind of perceived a weird overarching vibe of a lack of respect towards the Asian locals. Specifically, it seemed like they were all grouped under one umbrella. Chino or Chinese was used to describe any person of Asian descent, regardless of their origins and it was normal. I wasn't used to that coming from the Bay and to me thats a fundamental lack of cultural respect.

 

[Belgium]

My GF would kill you lol. That's the biggest pet peeve of Colombians, it's spelled with an O. I learned the hard way lol. Latina women are crazy.



I went to Medellin past november and had a blast, the dollar is really strong over there now and it really lasts.

You can easily live there for $1,000 a month, and I'm talking living good. The cost of living is cheap. Luxury condo apartments in "El Poblado" can cost you $300 USD a month.


The women are all attractive and the food is delicious. I might buy property to retire there for sure.

How is the public safety in Colombia? My username came from a song I liked at the time I don't actually know much about the country. From what I know it sounds like a rather dangerous place to live.

 

[water]

 

I've heard good things about Columbia also.

There is a big difference between spending a couple of weeks on vacation somewhere and actually living there.

I've travelled quite a bit in Asia. Lots of dope places, some i could see myself staying for longer period of time. But living? I don't know man. leaving my family and my brothers here while i live on the other side of the planet? Idk.

And my city is dope. Except the winter.

Not saying no to living abroad. But i'd have to go with my future wifey and have a >>>>> quality of life.

My GF would kill you lol. That's the biggest pet peeve of Colombians, it's spelled with an O. I learned the hard way lol. Latina women are crazy.



I went to Medellin past november and had a blast, the dollar is really strong over there now and it really lasts.

You can easily live there for $1,000 a month, and I'm talking living good. The cost of living is cheap. Luxury condo apartments in "El Poblado" can cost you $300 USD a month.


The women are all attractive and the food is delicious. I might buy property to retire there for sure.

p4l 

 

 

[011781]

not having to own a car is huge for me.... i'm so over driving everywhere 

I want to be able to walk where I need to go or catch a quick train/cab/Uber 

in south Florida the public transportation is horrible.... and nobody wants to be walking all far in this heat

**** around and pass out 

 

[ksteezy]

Playa Del Carmen, Tulum or Bavaro beach, Dominican Republic a lot of Americans and Canadians settling out there and living so good.

 

[ksteezy]

My GF would kill you lol. That's the biggest pet peeve of Colombians, it's spelled with an O. I learned the hard way lol. Latina women are crazy.



I went to Medellin past november and had a blast, the dollar is really strong over there now and it really lasts.

You can easily live there for $1,000 a month, and I'm talking living good. The cost of living is cheap. Luxury condo apartments in "El Poblado" can cost you $300 USD a month.


The women are all attractive and the food is delicious. I might buy property to retire there for sure.

How you plan on making a living while you out there?...that's the thing, unless you are an entrepreneur you won't be able to settle anywhere outside of the states....you can be a doctor here making good American Dollar and move to another country and don't think you'll be living lavish, only way to make it happen is being your own business...or working for an smart an company based abroad....otherwise you are screwed making pesos and spending pesos if that makes sense.

 

[sfc415]

How you plan on making a living while you out there?...that's the thing, unless you are an entrepreneur you won't be able to settle anywhere outside of the states....you can be a doctor here making good American Dollar and move to another country and don't think you'll be living lavish, only way to make it happen is being your own business...or working for an smart an company based abroad....otherwise you are screwed making pesos and spending pesos if that makes sense.

This is a HUGE generalization and isn't true in most "advanced" countries at all.

 

[northoaklandfc]

How you plan on making a living while you out there?...that's the thing, unless you are an entrepreneur you won't be able to settle anywhere outside of the states....you can be a doctor here making good American Dollar and move to another country and don't think you'll be living lavish, only way to make it happen is being your own business...or working for an smart a company based abroad....otherwise you are screwed making pesos and spending

That's just not true man. Wrong on so many levels.