If you’ve read any of the guest posts or features I’ve done you’ll see the headlines saying I’ve paid off anywhere from $50,000 to $200,000 in debt. But truthfully, I haven’t stopped to add it all up in awhile and I have been hesitant to share those numbers. But as I switch my focus to retirement I really want to be transparent with all my numbers and share my journey on my own platform. So here it goes. Here is the breakdown of how much I’ve been able to save or pay off since moving overseas.
Properties
Before moving overseas I really tried to acquire everything I thought I had to have to live the American dream. Enter two condos. I purchased two condos, one of which I lived in and the other which was an investment. When I moved overseas I rented them both out and made it a goal to pay them off as soon as possible. I paid off one over three years ago then about two years ago I paid the second one off in full. Between both condos I paid just over $200,000 total. And I can honestly say I struggled to make any progress towards that debt while living in the US.
I ultimately sold one of my condos as soon as it was paid off. It was a complete headache and had been vandalized to the tune of $50,000 so I was ready to let it go. But I used the money from the sale to put a sizeable down payment on a larger house in Puerto Rico.
Student Loans
Although it pained me to make these payments and education really should be free, I also started making larger student loan payments as soon as I moved abroad. And I did so, aggressively. When I sold my house I used some of the proceeds to make a large final lump sum payment to knock out that student loan debt once and for all. In total I paid off about $70,000 in student loan debt. Luckily I was able to get one smaller loan forgiven, otherwise it would have been about $10,000 more.
Investments
Now here is where I wish I was able to make more progress. And if not for so much debt in the first place I am sure I would have made more progress. But still I have to take some pride in the fact that even with so much debt I have still been able to save $59,500 towards retirement.
Getting Back Into Debt
My husband and I are big believers in investing in real estate as part of our retirement strategy. He owns two homes and I own two homes, and we have just purchased a home in Singapore together. But this strategy involved us taking on more debt. As I have stated in previous posts, one of the major perks of being on an expat contract is that your employer takes care of your housing. So we figured why not take that perk and rather than give it to a landlord every month we can put it towards our own mortgage. We are very happy so far with this decision and have already accumulated a good sum towards our principal, but we had to be creative with the downpayment. Singapore is not like the US where you can sometimes find 100% financing. Instead we had to come up with a 23% downpayment. 23% of about $875,000 Singapore dollars to be exact. So while we are able to chip away at the principal every month with just what we would normally pay for rent, we are also having to pay off a huge debt towards the down payment which we creatively managed to come up with. We also paid a pretty penny to renovate it, which I won’t include in these numbers. Hopefully, the renovations have increased the value of our home. It has not been a year yet and we have already paid $39,748 Singapore dollars or roughly $29,350 US dollars towards the debt. And this number does not include any of the money we have gained towards the equity of our home, which already is about $15,000. It has all gone toward the down payment.
Interest
Who knows how many tens of thousands of dollars I have spent in interest? I haven’t counted, nor will I. I know it’s a lot, but I know without the debt I wouldn’t have been able to go to college or buy a home. In the future I want to be more conscious of the amount of interest I’m paying, but I know that sometimes it is a necessary evil. That being said, there is some debt I’ve sworn off forever; for example credit cards and car loans.
Expat Factor
While I’m proud of what I’ve been able to do financially since becoming an expat, this is no where near what I wish I’d tucked away. But what I will say I’m pretty proud of and what I’ll call the “expat factor” is how much I was able to travel while also paying off this debt. In the past 9 years I’ve saved/paid off a grand total of about $358,850 USD and have done all the traveling listed below. In this time I’ve been blessed to go on safaris, a cruise, have two destination weddings, island hop, scuba dive, surf, spend summers traveling with my family and just genuinely enjoy life. I haven’t really had to cut back or go without.
Even though I want to be able to say I’m financially ready to retire, I’ve already had life experiences that people work and wait their whole lives for. I’m not sure where the future will take me travel wise, especially with a baby joining our family any day now. But I hope that in another 9 years I’m fully prepared for retirement and to actually move into one of these vacation properties to enjoy it and enjoy the fruits of our labor. It’s a big goal, but hopefully I can share the journey along the way. Thanks for reading!
This post is AMAZING! You are truly living a dream. I’m 32, no kids, just switched my career into IT. I have student loans I’ve been putting off or paying the minimum on, even to the point where I can’t fathom owning my own home — especially living in Los Angeles. And I’m just ready to grow up. I’d like to move out of the country and experience life without the stress of debt. I hope to one day have the list of countries you have. You are truly an inspiration.
Thanks so much, Brittney! I’m from Los Angeles, so believe me I know how expensive it can be. Sometimes the change of location is exactly what you need to get the debt repayment rolling.
Hey Maya!
I thought you had stopped blogging- so great to read a new entry. Please keep the financial education going! I have to admit I don’t think enough about it. May I ask at what age you want to retire? Because you seem so young and you’re planning to retire already in 9 years. Or do you plan a career change for that time? So interesting! How did you get so conscious about your financial situation? Have you always been like that? 🙂
Hi Jen! I want to retire by 46, which would be in 9 years. And I want to be fully retired and only work if I want to. My husband and I would like to try opening a wellness retreat or bed and breakfast on the property we have in Costa Rica, but it would be more of a passion project and we don’t want to have to rely on the money. I love real estate, so I find it really interesting. And I think I am the way that I am because I grew up without money. It’s motivated me to want more or to do better. Thanks for reading and for the questions!
Hi Maya! Thank you for being so open and for sharing! My question is, how have you been able to save this much? What kind of job do you have? Maybe this is intrusive but since these are big numbers I’m just wondering how it happened!
Hi Stacie! No problem. I’m happy to answer. I’m a special education teacher. But the big difference is I work abroad and the benefits and salary are WAY different as compared to the same position in the US. That’s what I was referring to when I called it the “expat factor.” It really makes a difference.
I’ve been following your blog post for about 3 years you inspired me to expat I had this opportunity last summer but I had a baby so plan on going in 2/3 years again. Initially I was going to the UAE but now considering Singapore. Always inspired by your post and nice to know working smart can achieve so much being an expat.
My husband forwarded me your story because we want to learn. Can you tell me what it’s like to (costs as well as culture) for children to attend school in Asian nations? I believe that that is our only area of ignorance when it comes to moving abroad to teach English.
Thank you so much for you honest contribution.
It did not go unnoticed.
Hi Stacy…no e. Thanks to both you and your husband for reading! Well that’s the best part of teaching overseas. Tuition is free for your children. So my daughter will get to attend one of the best schools in the world for free. We just pay taxes on the benefit. But that’s because we teach at an international school and you wouldn’t necessarily have the same benefit for teaching English as a second language. Does that make sense?
hey, I’m also interested in this and have two kids aged 7 and 4 and I always thought having kids God forbid hate to say it was a hindrance in applying for these things. I am turning 29 and last year moved to Ghana, Africa for 6 months without my kids and left them in England with my family who encouraged me to go and work. Unfortunately contract got cut short and I had to return to the UK, I had a good salary expat life etc. but did not get support in childcare expenses hence leaving the kids and also moving to Africa going into the unknown. I had wanted to adjust then bring my kids. NOW I am working towards buying my apartment I have now and then once that purchase is made, rent it out and THEN MOVE WITH MY KIDS, SOMEWHERE ANYWHERE JUST OUT OF THE UK!! I believe in LIVING AND EXPLORING LIFE AND HAVING FAITH. I plan on saving with the teaching abroad and then moving back to Africa and building my own home etc. as well as a host of other things. I don’t know why I have given you a mini version of my life lol but I hope this can help you advise and support me, HOW did you manage to teach abroad, and are you teaching English as an additional language or???? what websites can I use to find those type of jobs please. thank you. I found on you xonecole , wish u all the best x
Hi Stephanie! I’d be happy to give you some advice. I have a few posts on the blog that talk about how to get started teaching. Feel free to send me an e-mail so I can try to help. mayatheexplorer@gmail.com
Maya, this post gives me life and inspires me to keep searching for a fit in the expat world! Thank you for your being vulnerable and sharing so openly about your finances. A lot of people don’t like to do that. You hold no secrets; you are a gift. Please keep interested in sharing your story. You are touching so many people.
Sincerely,
Amber
Thanks so much, Amber! It was really scary to share but your comment makes me glad that I did.