While living or working abroad, you need to plan to continue filing an annual U.S. tax return. Regardless of any hearsay or unqualified advice you might receive, filing a federal tax return is the only way you can elect to apply the additional tax benefits available to American expats, which for most people means not […]

The conical peak of Volcán de Agua towered above me. It was one of three volcanic giants in view as I jogged along narrow dirt trails crisscrossing Agua’s slopes in southern Guatemala. On the horizon, wisps of smoke erupted from active Volcán de Fuego, while at night a spectacular show of fiery lava spurted skyward. […]

From the window, I watched the sunlight shine through the trees dotting the lush country property in Upper Orara, New South Wales, Australia. Inside the cozy farmhouse, the warmth of a log fire embraced me. My husband, Andrew, was enjoying the full complement of cable TV channels and I the comforts of a lap cat. […]

Dear The Savvy Retiree Daily Reader, And so begins a new age… You might have noticed (or not) that the Fund Your Life Daily banner you normally see atop the daily e-letter is, as of today, The Savvy Retiree Daily. While the name has changed, our mission to bring you the best, most innovative earning […]

For years, my wife, Gretchen, and I listened to a couple we’re friends with talk about their frequent, exotic vacations. Every few months, it was somewhere else: Ireland, Denmark, Iceland, Costa Rica, Australia… Like my wife and me, they’re a couple consisting of a college professor and a stay-at-home parent who works part-time. And like […]

The affordability of life in Panama has allowed me to live very well without the need to work. However, you can’t just sit in a hammock all day enjoying the tropical breeze (or at least, I can’t). Most expats, after being here a year or so, get itchy to do something. Many volunteer, others dedicate […]

Not long ago, a question came in from one of your fellow subscribers. She was rightsizing her life, leaving behind a large house in a big city for a smaller, easier space and a simpler existence…

It took a downturn in the economy for some folks to see the light. But it sure illuminated their world and, yes…the emperor had no clothes. If you had wardrobes full of clothes, you had credit…

Moving to the EcoVillage Ithaca in New York was one of the best decisions Laura Beck ever made. “We have ponds to swim in and to ice skate on in winter…

Over the past 10 years, student loan debt in the U.S. ballooned from less than $600 billion – which was already out of control – to more than $1.25 trillion. But beware of the student loan debt trap…

A little over a year ago I threw out almost everything I owned. Since then I’ve been living out of a single bag. I live in random places through Airbnb or other house or room-sharing services…

It was, as I recall, a pretty normal evening, when Deb, my wife of several decades, leaned over the staircase rail and asked: “What would you think about retiring onto a sailboat…