If you have the desire to move abroad and start a new life, you probably have a thousand questions about where to start and what you should focus on to make your dreams a reality.
In this article, we’ll show you the do’s and don’t of doing research, saving, and packing for your big move overseas. These tips will help you narrow your search for the best country, get your money right, downsize, and stay excited throughout the process.
The Do’s of Moving Abroad
1. Imagine & Budget Your Life Abroad
Imagining is the easy and the fun part of the planning process! You probably have done a little imagining already. However, you should not just imagine in your head, daydreaming all day long. You should imagine with purpose and with data.
Use resources like Airbnb, and FaceBook Marketplace to look for a monthly rentals in your target city. Find the cheapest rental that you would be comfortable staying in and imagine yourself living there.
How would it feel to walk around this space and take in the unique views of your target city? Would you feel comfortable in this space? If so, then add the monthly rental cost to a spreadsheet. In this way, you are imagining your new life and preparing a budget that is unique to you at the same time.
Follow the same process with transportation. Will you be riding public transportation, finding a rental car, or renting a motorbike? Find out the cost for your preferred form of transportation, and imagine yourself riding around town to see the different sights. Don’t forget to put those expected costs on your budgeting spreadsheet.
Pick Your Top 3 Countries
The world is huge! There are 195 countries so exploring the whole planet is a real challenge! This is why you should research and pick out 2 or 3 target countries in which you are interested. We suggest a top 3 list, because it’s impossible for you to really know if you want to live someplace until you spend some time there.
What countries call your name due to their landscape, their people, their food, or their culture? What countries are you fascinated by? What countries have you been that you would like to explore longer? Having a top 3 list will help you narrow your focus while not putting your eggs all in one basket.
Join Facebook Groups
Love it or hate it, Facebook is a great resource for information about your target city. Every city has Facebook groups dedicated to expats, to local events, to restaurants, and for every activity that interests you. Try to join as many Facebook groups as possible, so you can see what activities each city offers, and you can imagine how you are going to insert yourself into this already established community abroad.
2. Make the decision & take action
The hardest part of moving abroad is making the decision, but because you’ve taken the time to imagine and budget your move, you should be so excited about your new life that making the decision should be easy.
Moving abroad is not something that you can be wishy washy about. Once you make the decision the physical steps you need to take to make it happen are obvious and logical.
It will take time to make your dreams a reality, so we recommend giving yourself 6-12 months to prepare for the move abroad.
3. Get your money right!
Money is the biggest concern for most people wanting to move abroad, but we have 4 step process for getting your money right for moving abroad and starting a new life.
Step #1: Save 6 months of expenses
You have already done the budget for your top 3 countries. You know whether you are going to need $1500 a month or $3000 a month to survive. Whatever your expected monthly expenses will be, you should save 6 months worth of expenses. This will give you enough buffer and enough cushion that you can explore all three of your target countries, make a decision, and start building a life in your favorite country.
It really might take a year to save up for 6 months of expenses, but that savings will really make you feel so much more comfortable stepping out into this new life.
Step #2: Downsize and sell everything!
Once you make the decision to move, start downsizing and selling everything immediately. You need to save 6 months of expenses and the sell of your belongings can help you get there and lighten your baggage for your move abroad.
Start by selling or donating everything in closets and unused bedrooms. Facebook marketplace is a great resource for selling items quickly. Also having a garage sell is helpful as well. Make sure that all of the money from the sell of your items goes straight into your travel savings account.
Next, if you have a lease don’t renew it. If you have a house, find a realtor, put your house on the market, and sell it. You can always find a roommate or live with family temporarily until it’s time for your big departure. This will help you cut your expenses and save even further.
Many people have a hard time letting go of their homes. They want to rent them out for some reason, but we always suggest selling because one bad tenant can ruin your property and ruin your hope of rental income. If your goal is to start a new life then, then leave your house and all its baggage behind. Plus, a lot of time the sell of your home will give you enough money to cover your 6 months of expenses and more.
Step #3: Create an income
To create an income abroad, you have two options. You can apply for jobs or you can create an online income. I daresay finding a job is a bit easier, but online income is great because it’s location independent and you can live anywhere you like.
Another benefit of building an online income is that it will help you save money for your big move while you’re still in your home country. A good goal is have an income of $1000 a month from different online sources before you leave with the plan of increasing that income once you arrive abroad.
Technically, I only had an online income of $900 when we left, but we had enough savings that we still felt comfortable leaving without meeting that target.
The best source of income for me has been Udemy. I created an online English as a second language course on Udemy in 2016, and I still receive regular royalties from that course. The course took months of hard work, but it was worth the effort because many years later, it is still supporting us.
You should also look into freelancing on Upwork or Fiverr. These platforms are a great place to advertise your skills to the masses. Another popular option is to teach English on VIP kid or iTalki.
For a second source of income, we have also started this blog and a YouTube channel. I must admit the learning curve on blogs and YouTube is quite high, and it’s very challenging to get started. However, if you go into a niche that you are truly passionate about then it’s definitely worth a try!
You can watch our full video on how to move abroad and start a new life below!
Finding a job abroad can be another great option, so start applying for jobs now. However, please remember to research the proper resume formats for each country to which you are applying. Each country has its own unique way of presenting a resume. You can use sites like Indeed.com to search for international jobs and to learn more about their requirements.
You should also try to network with international recruiters on LinkedIn. 80% of jobs are not advertised so by connecting directly with HR representatives and recruiters at companies that you are interested in working for, you are increasing your chances of finding jobs before they are advertised.
Remember you have 6-12 months to prepare so why not do a combination of both applying for jobs and building an income online? Afterall, having two income sources is never a bad thing!
Up your skills to up your income
Don’t ever let not knowing how to do something stop you because you can learn. You can take a class. You can figure it out. This is why I’ve used YouTube and Skillshare to up my skills in blogging, Google analytics, video editing, photography, and growing on social media. I still have a lot left to master, but I’m not afraid to keep learning and neither should you!
Step #4: Pack light
We think it’s a big mistake when people try to pack up their whole house and move it to another country. Instead, you want to pack light and be flexible enough that you can change cities or change countries as you learn what you like and what you don’t like. A foreign country is not going to do things in a way that you are used to. You have to go and experience those differences and see if those differences are something you can accept living with or not.
Just think you wouldn’t move in with someone after a first date would you? Then, don’t move into a city after a first date. Have multiple dates with the city to see if it’s right for you. If it’s not right for you, it’s nice to be able to move and try another city whenever you like.
Do not move with furniture or boxes. It can cost $2-3K to move boxes and furniture overseas. I don’t know why anyone would want to spend that money on shipping when you can just start fresh wherever you go. Let that stuff go and rent fully furnished accommodations until you decide where on the planet you want to live.
The only exception is if you land a dream job and that job is paying to move your stuff. If your employer is going to pay for it, then by all means take the free money and have them move your stuff. However, if your company is not going to pay to move your belongings then sell them all and just take a suitcase or two on the plane with you.
When we left the US, our top three countries to move to included Thailand, Indonesia, and Austria. Bali was actually our first stop on our journey, because from what we read, we really thought Bali would be our forever home. While we loved our vacation in Bali, we discovered that we would not want to live there.
We would have been so disappointed to have spent thousands of dollars moving boxes and furniture to a country that we eventually realized was not right for us. However, because we packed light, it was easy to pack up and try another country and find the perfect fit for us in Thailand.
It really does not matter how many books you read, how many blogs and vlogs that you watch, it’s impossible to know until you go and experience a country for yourself.
The 4 DON’TS of Moving Abroad and Starting a New Life
#1 Don’t ask inexperienced people for advice
One of the worst things you can do is ask advice from people who have no experience moving overseas. They have no personal experience with what you are doing and will only advise you on their own personal fears.
You don’t need fear in your life. It will only slow you down. Watch and learn from people who are doing what you want to do such as travelers on YouTube and on blogs.
You are going to come across a lot of fearful people. Just brush off their concerns and continue living your dream.
#2 Don’t be rash! Don’t quit your job tomorrow
Once you make the decision to move, it can be tempting to quit your job and book your plane ticket for the next day. Instead, I encourage you to make this move responsibly, so you never have to come back if you don’t want to. That preparation of 6-12 months is key for making sure your move will be a permanent one.
#3 Don’t be scared, be excited.
You are about to live your dream. So few people do!
It was actually comforting to me to list out the worst-case scenarios of moving abroad. I wrote the worst that could happen was that we would spend all our savings, that we could not build an income online, or that we could not find a job. But if these things happened, then what would we do?
We would simply go back to our home country and get jobs. We’ve are already lived that life so that didn’t scare me at all. Once I realized that the worst-case scenario wasn’t that bad at all, it was easy for me to get excited and live my dream without regrets.
#4 Don’t leave errands for yourself at home
Don’t leave cars behind, don’t leave your house behind. You don’t want calls about car maintenance and tenants that are late paying rent in your new life. Sell these things, take the money, and go.
Houses and cars are easy to come by. Don’t get attached to them. Houses are indeed a good investment, but you don’t need to own a house every year of your life. Balance is important. And the carefree life of renting has a lot of benefits. Rent until you fall in love with a place abroad and know for sure that you want to “marry” it. Then and only then should even think about buying a property and buying furniture for your new life abroad.
What about you?
How are you going to apply these tips to start a new life abroad? I’m curious to know so leave me a comment below with your next steps or with a question.
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Thanks for reading all the way to the end! Good luck planning your big move!