DAILY POSTCARD | TUESDAY, MARCH 3, 2026 |
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Dear International Living reader, Kathleen Evans and her husband talked about moving overseas for years—until one particularly bad day at work and a well-timed question changed everything: "Are we going to do it?" That leap took them from Corporate America to oceanfront life in Costa Rica, and later to a sunny European footprint in Malta. Here's how patience, smart planning, and a safety net made their multi-home, slow-travel retirement possible. | |
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| My husband glanced at the former version of me nearly two decades ago and asked, "Are we going to keep talking about moving overseas or are we going to do it?" My response after previous years of research and a horrible day at the office: "Let's do this!" |
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I was in my 40s and still slogging through my extraordinarily stressful "Corporate America" job, and had to take into account that exiting my media career would leave us without healthcare coverage. But boy, was I ready to make my dreams come true. I figured, let's take the leap of faith and do it. What's the worst that could happen? We ultimately made a list of what was important to us as immigrants to a new country… |
- See and hear the ocean every day (from a life of being land-locked)
- A stable democracy (things were more stable back then)
- A lower cost of living than Austin, Texas
- Never wear a coat (from a couple of snow-belt childhoods)
- A straightforward, relatively affordable residency process
- Ease of buying real estate and owning it clear titled
- Fast and reasonably priced flights back to the US
- Access to lower-cost, reputable healthcare
- Ability to drink water safely out of the tap
- An established expat community to show us the ropes
- English speakers (a bonus but not a deal breaker)
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It did not take long (after five recon visits and scouring International Living) for us to unanimously agree that Costa Rica met all the criteria. The move took longer than expected because of that pesky housing crash of 2008. We needed to sell our home in order to have the cash to buy a condo in Costa Rica. Loans for foreigners were impossible to secure in those days. It all eventually came together in 2013 after a little patience (OK, agonizing patience) and a few more years of bigger earnings. We had enough money from the sale to buy a two-bedroom beach condo in Tamarindo and to maintain a small, one-bedroom mid-term rental in Austin. That way we had a safety net if things did not work out. Plus, we had an income producer to help fund our lives overseas. I recommend keeping a physical address in your home country for banking, investments, driver's license renewals, voting, etc. |
Leading a slow travel, multiple-footprint retirement requires sharp financial planning, and a little bit of advice/professional help along the way. If moving has been on your mind—don't wait. Our Live Better book could be your guide to getting there while the window's still open. Get it free when you join International Living. |
We created a life before the pandemic where we lived in Costa Rica for 6-7 months as legal residents, traveled to the US for 3 months in the autumn (to satisfy my fanatical husband's football cravings– and to see family/friends) and still allow for 2-3 months of foreign slow travel. For us, the funny thing about travel and seeing far corners of the world is… the more you see, the more you want to see. And so, in our post-pandemic world, we decided that our life would be more enriched if we had a footprint on another continent also. We still love Costa Rica and have our permanent residency (my husband recently applied for citizenship). But there is so much of the European continent that resonates with us. Culture, history, food and wine, cheap flights. Once again, my husband's voice of reason pierced my thoughts, "OK, but you do not like being cold and neither do I. And don't force me to try to learn a third language when I still struggle with my first one. Where are we going to go?" Drumroll: We chose Malta for our Euro footprint after several visits to the EU's mild-wintered, English-speaking, sunny, Mediterranean island nation. The vexing virus and a couple of life-threatening health issues slowed our progress in buying property and applying for residency. However, this year is shining a brighter light for our future. The permanent residency scheme for third-country nationals (non-EU) in Malta is significantly pricier than in Costa Rica (a rough example: $3,000+ vs. over $150,000+). At this point we are meeting the 90-days in, 90-days out Schengen requirements. And I am patiently waiting (again, not my strong suit) for the Lithuanian courts to hear my case for restoring citizenship by descent. Which would grant me an EU passport. Thus, making the footprint in Malta substantially easier, at a fraction of the cost. The plan is to purchase an apartment which would also be producing income (or at least covering the costs) when we are not there. Leading a slow travel, multiple-footprint retirement takes attention to details, patience, sharp financial planning, ingenuity, and a little bit of advice/professional help along the way. We are no geniuses, but we are seasoned. I remember reading profiles in International Living years ago and thinking, "Well, they created the life they wanted overseas, why can't we?" You can too. Let's do this! |
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