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Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

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Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#121

Post by la_fayette »

keiferski wrote: post #17

I recommend the Balkans, in particular the less touristic countries. Serbia, Bosnia, Albania, Bulgaria are all very inexpensive, safe, have reliable internet, and an abundance of cafes and co-working spaces. Most also have favorable visa conditions for Americans (e.g. Albania lets Americans stay up to a year on a tourist visa.) In terms of cities, I recommend Belgrade and Sarajevo the most. Going further east, Tbilis…

I can also highly recommend Bulgaria (Sofia). With 1000$ you'll have a decent lifestyle there. I did my Erasmus there with less money. The people are extremely helpful and friendly to foreigners. There is also a tech scene with meetups etc, were you can connect with other people. As a side note BG has the most beatiful women in the world...

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#122

Post by wil421 »

freediver wrote: post #107

Serbia offers a 180 degrees different culture than most of what you experienced in US plus is very dynamic, cheap and great for young people. Couple of a links to get you started: https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/serbia-best-places-to... https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20170822-belgrades-floati... https://theculturetrip.com/europe/serbia/articles/an-expats-... https://www.quora.com/What-is-life-like-for-Amer…

180 degrees from what culture? I’ve been to Belgrade a few times for work and worked with lots of Serbians for a number of years. They are more like the conservatives in the US.

People move to Belgrade because it’s cheap and the food is awesome. I’ve partied at the Splavs and had a great time. Random people were much more friendlier than Germans (the Serbs told me they were robots). There are some resentments by the Serbs against Americans and NATO bombings. It did come up while I was there.

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#123

Post by huachimingo »

In Latin America you can try Chile, we are doing OK with the pandemic compared to other countries, we are in opening phase now, housing can be not that cheap but you may try sharing an apartment/room/house.

The south can be pretty nice and chill compared to the capital (see Canada vs US), but you have less services the more you are in rural areas. Dunno how the prices are there, though. Capital's downtown can be very calm compared to the hell of Santiago's (too much peasants on the road!), but in Santiago you have museums and All-the-nice-stuff(tm) like architecture and European-like roads, metro to everywhere,etc. It can feel like living in another country sometimes, but some things costs more.

Same with Valparaíso or Viña, doesnt look that good but at least you have beaches and a lot of services.

Beware our spanish dialect, we use lots of loanwords and nonstandard stuff sometimes...

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#124

Post by piyushpr134 »

If you are a developer, you can move to Bangalore. You can get a new job in a heartbeat. Salaries here for a senior dev can range between $60K to $120K. Living expenses depends on where you live and what you do. You can easily live here in $1K. A decent 2/3bhk (2/3 bedrooms, hall and kitchen) with all furnishing in a nice area would cost $400-500 along with maintenance.

Rest is super cheap. $20 for really fast internet. $5 for all you eat 4g phone connection. Netflix here is also very cheap at $10. $200 for groceries would fetch all kinds of good fresh veggies. $150 for a maid to clean, wash and cook etc. Rest you can use up on ordering food (roughly $5-10 per meal)...huge number of eating out and ordering in options. Delivery apps are everywhere so no need to go out. Uber is there for going around. Medical is really cheap compared to USA. You can get really good insurance policy for say $300 per annum which will cover everything and then some. Weather of Bangalore is really nice. Never too hot

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#125

Post by Frazmatazz »

41209 wrote: post #32
qwerty456127 wrote: post #31

I believe $1K/person is more than enough for great living (including a humble but nice room rent) in the majority of countries (including a number of the EU members, let alone the "third world").

I think 1k is a reasonable target for an American though. I strongly suspect I could get down to 500$ , but I don't want to push it.

The lowest median rent in the US is $725 a month in West Virginia and the internet access is not great.

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#126

Post by ai_ia »

Leftium wrote: post #87
ai_ia wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Korea is something I have on my mind for so long. I would love a detailed blog post regarding your experience living in Korea as an expat with breakdown of cost and how you ended up there. Seems like an interesting journey to know about.

It's been quite an interesting journey! The original plan was to study Korean language for just a year, then I kept extending the trip... I haven't blogged in a long time, but here are the Korea-related blog posts: http://blog.leftium.com/2007/06/my-life-prologue.html http://blog.leftium.com/2007/06/past-month-in-review.html http://blog.leftium.com/2007/06/my-life-chapter-i.html http://blog.leftium.com/2010/08/dragon…

Thank you. Reading it right now.

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#127

Post by pavlov »

You could live in rural Finland on $1k USD, although frugally.

The upsides: lots of peace and quiet, excellent infrastructure, almost no crime, progressive Scandinavian values, almost everybody speaks English.

The downsides: long dark winter, sparsely populated, quiet people don't actively seek interaction with newcomers.

Probably not ideal unless you're serious about just huddling down to work.

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#128

Post by mathgenius »

burntoutfire wrote: post #19

Poland is doable if you stay out of major cities. You can rent a studio for $300 (incl. all utilities). Food, if you cook, will cost you $200-$250 ($300-$400 if you don't cook and want to eat out only). Wired Internet and cell phone will be around $20. State-provided health insurance is about $120 per month (this is "socialized medicine", so it provides everything with no deducible, up to treating cancer etc.), but c…

I'm an Australian in Krakow & I'd recommend it. Plenty of people understand English, and it's a small enough city that the vibe is fairly relaxed.

Places like this will help with a visa for a more extended stay so you can run your "startup":

https://twojstartup.pl/

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#129

Post by bruceb »

rich_sasha wrote: post #59
burntoutfire wrote: post #19

Poland is doable if you stay out of major cities. You can rent a studio for $300 (incl. all utilities). Food, if you cook, will cost you $200-$250 ($300-$400 if you don't cook and want to eat out only). Wired Internet and cell phone will be around $20. State-provided health insurance is about $120 per month (this is "socialized medicine", so it provides everything with no deducible, up to treating cancer etc.), but c…

As a Pole myself, I’d add two things: it is generally a lovely country, lots of beautiful countryside etc. Less “spectacular”, more “cozy” etc. People are a bit uncertain of new things (eg foreigners in a new town) but generally warm and helpful eventually. That said, I’d you’re not white and straight, small towns could be very unwelcoming, from people staring, to telling you to go, to physical violence. Rare but tru…

non pole here, knew a guy who wasn't white or European, not living in biggest cities, loved it there. sure its safer than many places.

Re: Ask HN: Where can I live off 1k USD per month?

#130

Post by pelasaco »

If you want to have a great experience, I would suggest South of Brazil (something like country from Rio Grande do Sul or Santa Catarina), Buenos Aires in Argentina, or my favorite spot Montevideo, Uruguay. In the 3 options, you can live well with 1k USD and have one of the best times of your life, without a super huge cultural shock. Have fun!
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