I am Belgian and 50 % of my salary went to the state. But don't call that taxes as it paid for my healthcare, education of my children, retirement fund and a few more. From the left over I could buy me a house, a car, go on vacation abroad and life comfortably. And I worked 8 hours a day with 4 weeks of payed vacation. Most of Europe will be comparable. My wishes to you and your dearest.
Even if you do call them taxes, you enjoy something many of us in the US never do: security. Living here feels more and more like gambling. The payoff can be huge, but so can the losses.
45,000 that's quite a comfortable way of living. The real cost after a few years will certainly much lower, after you go past the discovery effect. 600-700€/month is a bit high but it also depend on the car category. Buying or leasing a car would be more interesting if you aim for a long stay anyway. Considering the devaluation buying a new car isn't really worth it, a leased car is more interesting. Around the same cost as a purchase, but the monthly payments include insurance and you don't have to think about devaluation. If you really want to buy one, a 3-4 years car with low mileage is a better option. That said, it's all a question of budget and life style you want. As for "Food and Goods", I guess there's a discovery effect on that one too when I see the budget. One thing you should know if you like food, and you're in a very good location for that. France and many European countries have different types of restaurants. One of that type should be similar to the US eateries I think, it's called "Auberges", real ones, not restaurants that use the name. They serve food in generous portion, at reasonable prices and mostly local traditional meals. You will find some mainly along "départementales" and "Nationales" roads and practically never in a city. At best in villages. As for healthcare, once again, whether you aim for citizenship or not, when you qualify as permanent resident, you will have access to the public healthcare, so your medical expenses will be reimbursed on the official based fees. Private insurances are mandatory except for public servants and self-employed people. But it is strongly advised to get one that covers your real needs so you will have the best health coverage you need. For the 3 of you (2 adults, in fact), it should be around 70-90 € per month for a pretty good coverage. Education : it changes with time but for public school, it's basically the subscription fee. In high school (lycée), you will have to factor in the lessons books. Usually they are changed every few years, so if the books are still in use, it's better to go for used ones and resell them the next year. For University and assimilated (fun fact Grandes Ecoles in French can almost be translated as "High School" but it's absolutely not the same thing), the fees are around twice or thrice that amount, and your daughter will be required to have her own student healthcare plan. All in all far cheaper than in North America. The one big flaw in French schools are the amount of lessons they have everyday and a school year quite condensed compared to most other countries.
True. But they simply shifted their life here and part of their way of living. Of course and it's all about Baguette Bound, they adapted. After all those years of bashing, it's nice to see some people facting they thoughts and coming to "surprising" conclusions. Love the content.
I'm French living in France since birth and I am still watching this video 🤣 I love to hear people's experience and point of view on France, it's very interesting ✨
First video and really enjoying it! BUT I’m finding the music very distracting and loud, makes it hard to understand what you’re saying… Had to skip to the end and watch the totals on mute. 😞 Off to watch one more and hoping this isn’t usual. Personally, im here to hear what you SAY, and jingly music doesn’t help. 😊
We are currently living in Massachusetts. We got a slightly better deal but a 4 bdrm house runs $2800 - $3500. That does not include utilities. Our electricity is about $1oo a month since we have solar but oil heat costs $500 every other month in winter if we keep it at 68-70deg. It varies for everyone depending on the house. Our water is free since we have a private well instead of city water. I’d love to pay $1500!! 🎉 That yearly total is an amazing amount.
It’s wonderful to find you tubers with a comprehensive and well balanced view of their topics. This is reflected in the interesting and civilized comments. Best Wishes !
I found your video by chance. If you live not far from Bordeaux, my favourite city in France, after Paris, my birth city, I will give you a tip. Go visit the town of Arcachon, the seaside resort located in the bay of the same name, about 76 km from Bordeaux. Arcachon Bay is almost closed and surrounded by one of the largest forest areas in Western Europe. It is known for its oyster farming. Much of the city is located in the bay and the other on the Atlantic coast with its long Atlantic sandy beaches, not overcrowded like on the Côte d'Azur. You'll find many small oyster-farming villages full of charm around the bay. At the other end of the bay is the Cap Ferret peninsula with its beautiful villas and fishermen's huts. The paradise of my childhood, but also of my children.
And the rent of the house is for one of the most expensive areas in the countryside, the Dordogne. There are many areas where a family house in nature would cost a lost less.
In May 2025 my wife and I plan on retiring to France from DFW Texas. We recently found your site and find it very informative. We have visited France several times. We love SW France and very fond of Bordeaux but find it a little expensive for our needs. Loved Eymet and Bergerac, especially since English so widely used. Look forward to your future videos.
Thanks for sharing this! Cost of living surveys like Numbeo are great, but there's nothing like getting the scoop from folks actually doing it. I subscribed and can't wait for more!
.Hello, I live near Perpignan, I have a friend who left for the USA and had to go to the hospital near New York. when we told him the price of the bill for a box of medicine and some basic care. It was simply shocking, it's incredibly expensive in the USA, it's shocking how expensive it is.
@@InsideouttrainingWB Um...no. They pay half their salary for medical care and in the US, we don't. Not even close and we can get surgery before we die.
@@ZONEPRESSLLC What is comical is your comment... You don't seem to be well informed about universal healthcare in Europe (and in most countries around the world except the US).
I love this video, I'm so glad I found you! I just subscribed. I visit France at least every 2 years because I have lots of cousins (Paris, Lille, Luxeuil-les-Bains and Bretagne). When I retire in 2 years, I plan to spend at least a month per year in France (I live in California) and 2 months in Europe all together. Because I've always stayed with cousins, I had no idea how much it would cost to stay outside of the big cities in my own place. I agree about the American farmer markets-I can't afford to go them. The produce in France is not only much cheaper but it has so much more flavor!
Wow, how awesome to have been visiting regularly for so many years and your upcoming plan sounds exciting, congrats! As you might guess, we love the idea of staying in France (and Europe!) for longer periods. It makes it easier to really soak it all in, go off the beaten path, and enjoy it without going home exhausted. Good luck with all your plans and thanks for subscribing!
Great content, guys. Thank you. My wife and I are retiring at 61 in December and moving to the UK and Europe. France will be the home base due to the visa ease. For the first 8 months of the year we are pet sitting in England for 4 of those months. Your car rental link was incredibly eye-opening. We are looking at Toulouse as a home base and would love your thoughts on that if you have been there. Be safe, be well.
Congrats! 🎉 We have friends that just did petsitting through the UK for the summer with Trusted House Sitters, and it was a great experience. So happy the car info was helpful, thanks for telling us. 🙂 Toulouse! We've just been there a couple of times overnight when we've flown out so I feel I don't have a deeply informed opinion (yet! We hope to spend some more time there). But our first impressions were good! The central city seems nice, with some pretty parks, squares and architecture. There's a large medical school there and good medical facilities. Airbus and some other international companies are based there, so there's a cool mix of French and international/expat population. And the airport is great! Both times we've flown out and back, it's been so easy. I'm curious if there was something in particular that caught your attention about the city? Would love to hear! Good luck, and thanks for watching!
Your videos are simply the best! So clear, informative and full of exactly the kind of information that people like me who want to move to France are looking for. I re-watch this regularly! Thanks again, Raina and Jason!
Thank you!! 😄 I was just thinking soon we'll need to make an updated one of these, especially now that we own a house. Thanks as always for watching. 😊
In France, the initial visa and the subsequent annual visitor permits require an income equaling the minimum wage. The French do not consider how much you have in your bank account. Nor do people you want to rent property from. So if you are coming here to retire, the income requirement could get tricky. In our case, we used our Social Security benefits letters to justify income even though we hadn't yet started drawing from Social Security. But yes, aside from energy costs, it is considerably cheaper living here than in most places you would want to live in the States.
Ou là là... great video guys, the Christmas markets where cool indeed, love the food and life in Bordeaux and so happy you three set out to chase your dreams. The most surprising for me was the healthcare cost though... awesome stuff! Looking forward to watch and learn more from you two!!!
@@BaguetteBoundhealthcare : you could also get a voluntary complementary insurance called mutuelle, that would cover all your healthcare needs, including visits to,your local GP, and medication for about 120€/month for the whole family, and get rid of your international coverage. So for slightly more than your current plan, you’d be fully covered like any other person living here. The only thing you wouldn’t be covered for would be the repatriation trip in case of an emergency. But you would be treated free of charge locally in case of that emergency.
I love your videos!!!! this was so helpful. I am a single person who would want to live either in someplace like Bordeaux or in the countryside just outside of it so that I could have fast access to Paris. And €17,000 for a year, that’s amazing!
It’s interesting to have this American perspective on life in France. Although it is surprising to see what you consider as cheap or expensive. An important point for the Americans who watch is the difference in income levels between the USA and France. Yes many things (health, education) are cheaper in France but incomes are lower. The average salary in Aquitaine is about 2200 to 2400 € compared to 5000 or 6000 dollars in the USA (variable according to the states).
Average of 2200 / 2400 ? where ? où ça ? En plein coeur de Bdx ? tu parles en salaire brut ? Most people are living with 1600 to 1800 or let's say 2000 € / month i can confidently say you that 80 % of french people are under 2500 € / month ; source : statista
My goodness. We're paying more than your total budget just in just our house payment in Denver 😭. Once you add in our healthcare cost for a family of 4 it definitely becomes a joke. I was surprised at the cost of housing even in the big cities. Denver is by no means as big and popular as Paris, and not as nice as Bordeaux, yet we are paying $4,065/mo for a 3/2. I've found we could live in a slightly smaller place, but still 3 bedrooms, in a nice area of Paris for less than that... And that's for short term rentals that include all utilities!! Fortunately I have a job that I can easily do in France at a company in the EU making similar to what I'm making now, or continue to work for my US company remotely, which I will definitely do in the short term. I've been binging your videos, thanks for all the tips and motivation to make our move to France more of a reality!
" Fortunately I have a job that I can easily do in France at a company in the EU making similar to what I'm making now, " This is it ... if you were employed as a European with something like 1500 or 2000 € / month , you wouldn't find those prices so cheap
Thanks for your nice videos, I really appreciate to get your inputs about that experience, and it allows me to practice English listening 😉. I was lucky to go to the US few times and it was definitely my feeling that currently the average cost is twice in the US, except for car and gas. Talking with few Americans (outside big cities) , I was surprised (and sad) that many of them think that French people don’t like Americans and so they don’t feel comfortable to come. Happy to see that you enjoy your new life. Et bon courage pour être à l’aise en français 😊.
I m glad you guys are still in france as it is really difficult to find what france use to be .it is mainly mixed up with steong arabic roots which is changing completely the whole country and not for the best
Really enjoy your shows! My wife and I are looking to retiring in France. Could you do a show on meat prices a local butcher vs major chain store? Thanks
Jason et Raina vous êtes vraiment géniaux. Je regarde vos vidéos via la traduction et c'est tres intéressant de voir une vue fraiche et détaillée de ce qu'est mon pays vue un œil ingénu. Un proverbe dit"heureux comme dieu en France "nous nous rendons pas assez compte de la chance de vivre ici. Petite question: Pensez vous faire une video sur la GRANDE différence de notre rapport au religieux. Tres présent au USA? MERCI A VOUS
Just tuned in to your channel & loving it! Esp appreciating that y’all are sharing the links to resources you’ve found along the way as we are shortly behind you on this crazy l’aventure (our flight with us and 2 chiens is in April, but feels like next week with all we have to do!) Which int’l moving service did y’all use & would you recommend? We’ve heard UPakWeShip lots but would like to comparison shop…Bisou from Texas!!
How exciting!!! We didn't use a moving service, so unfortunately, I don't have any specific recommendations. I will say I too have heard good things about UPakWeShip. Good luck with everything!
Your videos make me appreciate my home turf in Europe even more. The challenge is to compare the values of the dollar and euros... they can't be compared 1:1 (due to the exchange rate; everyone does do that though ;). So you pay less in Europe, but you also earn less in Europe. Still, from what I have seen on my travels, the USA can be very expensive, even for average Americans - especially when you get chronically ill, or if you need a good education. Much of the taxes in Europe go to infrastructure, health systems, social benefits system, or schools/education; things that benefit society or people.
Hi guys ! LOVE your channel! Thanks so much for what you're doing to share your experience as a family living in France. In this video you referenced longer-term car rental. Is it possible you could provide more information on this? How do you get the good rate for, say, a monthly rental ?
So happy for you !! when/if you'll become french citizens, healthcare will only be your taxes and "mutuelle" (insurance) which cost somewhere between 30 to 100 €/ person (and theres some family pack too). So instead of 1500 you'll spend 100 to 300 max with better benefits. Keep it up !
@ not sure, 🤔 I believe that persons has the healthcare from the country he/she is. The insurance covers what the universal healthcare doesn’t cover. And I guess there’s some agreements between European countries. I Also there like an EU insurance. CEAM But honestly if that persons come live in France it’s better to get French insurance. If that person only visit, then her country’insurance should be enough. Like when I travel in Europe , hospitals and doctors don’t have the same cost but my insurance should get some. But if it’s gonna be several visits per year that person should take the European insurance coverage: CEAM
Hey Jason, Raina - How do taxes work for retirees in Francee. As you know in the U.S. Retirees pay zero taxes on capital gaines upto the first 40k if you are single and double that if you are married. And then you have your single and married deductibles. Would that apply in France ? Considering France and the U.S have a tax treaty. Or would retirees have to pay french taxes first ?
Bonjour! You are correct that France and U.S. have a tax treaty and the great news is it's actually more favorable for Americans than the tax treaties the U.S. has with many countries. This is because there are specific provisions for retirement accounts. We are not tax professionals, so here is a resource Jason found helpful in understanding the basics of how American expats are taxed while living in France. Thanks for watching and your comment! www.hrblock.com/expat-tax-preparation/resource-center/country/france/guide-to-u-s-expat-taxes-in-france/
The car rental price is a revelation! Thanks for this info! My first trip is this fall for 7 weeks to find the region to retire to (on a budget) and I’m even more confident now that I can make it work! Have you signed up for the Carte Vitale?
super cool! glad i found your channel. I am tired of toronto canada and always interested in somehow getting out! subscribed to learn more. Can you shed a little light on how you make a living? I assume you are still working on your french and since not living in Paris or large city maybe there are not as many english speaking companies etc. ? thanks!!
I'm self employed as a professional and personal development coach. I help small business owners with life planning, productivity and time management. This was my work before France and what my entrepreneur visa is based on. If you'd like some ideas for businesses you can run in France to support yourself, check out my friend Valerie at www.startbusinessinfrance.com/ And you are correct there is much less English spoken in the countryside, which definitely helps your French get better faster!
Great, thanks for the reply. Really helps in the transition when you are already remote and business is up and running. Enjoying your content, best wishes to you guys! Thanks for the link, will check it out. Looking forward to learning more about different visa types@@BaguetteBound
@@JJMA52 Why don't you check the french government websites for that? Or do you think everything is in french on the internet? I am unsure in how many languages it is translated, but i seem to remember there is an english version.
Beautiful *Video ❤️ I think the pandemic has taught people the importance of multiple sources of income, unfortunately having a job does not guarantee financial security. I really appreciate the transparency and giving people a fighting chance during these difficult times.
So True! I'm into stocks Investment, Forex trading, cryptocurrency investments, Real Estate Investments and I am making good profits from them all. I always encourage Investments.
Most failures and loss on Investment usually happens when you invest without proper guide. It is best to have an investment *manager* who has in-depth knowledge about investing, to help you make money on your investment on your behalf.
Wow. Thank you for sharing this. I am in Boulder right now and prices in Boulder are worst than Connecticut, where I live part time. I hope to do what you are doing by the end of the year. Thank you for sharing!
If you spend the double in the US in one year you must both earn zn income of 95.000 dollar or more. 47500 euro(gross) is in Europe an average income for 2 working people, but a lot do not earn that amount with 2 people working and have less than 45.000(gross) Is the 47.500 euro also your income for both in a year or is your yearly netto income higer than 47.500 euro, I think if you spend 47.500 in one year and your netto income iis the same in one year than there is something wrong. Did you have a salary like the French or do you have an US salary?
Not yet, but it's coming! As you might already know, It's a whole thing. 🙃 To answer your question in short though, Jason has a long stay visitor's visa, and I'm on a entrepreneur profession libéral visa. A great reference for the requirements and details for each is Allison Lounes book "Foolproof French Visas". Stay tuned and thanks for watching!
Thanks so much for sharing this info! For the past year, my husband and I have been seriously looking into moving to France. I’m Canadian and he’s American. Our main concern is making money there, and whether or not we’ll be able to earn enough to sustain ourselves until retirement in about 10 years from now. It seems most likely that we’ll get similar visas to yours. Do you mind if I ask how you pay the bills, and whether or not this was a concern for you as well?
@@nadynekasta this is a great question. I just told Jason we should probably make a video about this because I know it's a major concern for people, and probably one of the biggest hurdles. Stay tuned for that, but the quick answer for our first year is we had/have a mix of savings, my business income (www.rainawillick.com), and a small income from a rental house in the US. In most cases we've seen, your best bet if you still need to work for a few years before retirement in France is to be self-employed on an entrepreneur professions liberal visa. My favorite, favorite, favorite source for info on this is Valerie at www.startbusinessinfrance.com/ - if you don't already have a business and need a place to start, check out her download on "100 Business ideas to create a business in France:" ---> news.startbusinessinfrance.com/100-business-ideas-france
@@BaguetteBound Thanks so much for this super helpful info! I will definitely be looking into your recommendations, and looking forward to watching your future videos. All the best to you!
GREAT information. Now I’m asking WTF are we still doing here? Ugh! I’m ready for market day shopping. Good for you happy and healthy food and the love I sense when there are what draws me to France. Thank you for sharing you experience with us.
Its cheaper than you think because most non-Americans don't know how expensive America is. American salaries are high for a reason. Add the horrendous costs of food and eating out to the cost of medical care, car insurance, taxes, travel and education, you end up with a very expensive country. My wife and I live in Thailand on less than half their French costs.
Is not only how much it cost but how much you make. When I moved to France from Florida I research that if making 10 bucks there needed 15 in Paris, well they paid me 25 and i ran without ever looking back already 22 years, salut de Bretagne !!
I have a question regarding the school lunches for your daughter - you said you spend only 200.00 a year, but when I looked up french school lunches they range from 3 - 4.00 per lunch - very curious about this.
You looked puzzled when you said medication in France costs roughly 10% of the USA prices. When you think about it, please consider - the French companies selling these medications to pharmacies still make a profit..!! And the people running a pharmacy are normally upper middle class income.
It's great that the cost of living is lower than in the US....but what about average salaries in France, are they comparable to US salaries or less? Just curious if local folks also think the cost of living is low or if this opinion only applies to folks from the US who are considering moving to France. Perspective is important. US had high inflation over the past few years, what about France? Didn't they have a similar situation?
We used IMG global for our international plan we refer to in this video for our first year. (www.imglobal.com/). Fortunately, we never had to use it during that first year, as it's mostly catastrophe/hospization coverage. We paid for Dr visits and medication in cash until we were on the French system. But that means I can't tell you much about what it would be like if we had to use it. I can tell you it was easy to get quotes, easy to get the paperwork we needed to submit with our visas, the coverage for the price was good, and we knew they had a good reputation as a well established company. AXA is another company you might check out. We got quotes from some of the big US companies (like Cigna, BCBS, and Atnea) but their quotes for international insurance were much more expensive. Make sure you note, these plans usually will NOT cover you in the US. Some will cover for two weeks (so for example if you're home for a short visit during your time abroad). Good luck!
I just went on the IMG site and cannot find anything near what you are getting. I see monthly $502/month. $1000 deductible no coverage in about half a dozen countries including the US. Clearly I am doing something very wrong. We are in Thailand, have 3 kids, and would be OK with a big deductible, but it doesn't seem to go down much with a bigger deductible. What are we missing. Excellent/cheap healthcare here, too. It's a place people come for medical tourism. Any idea what I am missing?
@jacalynmeintz2438 dang, that's disappointing. I don't know what might be different there, but you could also take a look at AXA. www.axaglobalhealthcare.com/en/international-health-insurance/
@@TheMeierTheMerrierupdate: we just went back and checked and the policy we had is called "Patriot International Lite". We can still find it on the site (make sure you're on IMG global site). We entered 4 people based in Thailand and got a quote for around $2100 for the year with a $1000 deductible. There wasn't a way to share a link though. That's really frustrating, I'm not sure why it's not showing up for you. Hopefully the plan name is helpful. Good luck!
Very interesting. Where I live in a small city in Canada in 900 sq foot 2 bed/2 bath, with 2 people eating quality food and health care bills supposedly 'covered' (although this is not true in the way some Canadians like to brag about)--45K euros or 66K Canadian sounds like a dream. I wonder if this has to do with quality local food in France + subsidized health care? Curious what accounts for the dramatic difference.
Hi, I would be interested in hearing more about your experience with the vehicle subscription. The link in the description is broken. Do you need to qualify for it, like a lease in the US? What criteria is applied?
Link has been fixed, it now points to the French language version but you can use your browser to auto-translate. The car subscription services ("abonnement" in French) do not involve a line of credit like a auto-lease and don't require any financial qualification other than a credit card to pay for the monthly rental charges. You will also need a valid drivers license, some require an international drivers license which you can get at various places in the US, check with AAA. We used 3 different subscription services and were happy with all 3. Different companies will offer different rental lengths, some are fixed lengths that give you the option to buy the car at the end but you cannot renew the rental, others allow you to continue the monthly rental indefinitely. We received good service at the pickup and good service during the rental with billing and repair questions. They have all been very, very easy and greatly simplified our first year+ in France.
May I know is the insurance travel insurance or global health insurance? Year round travel insurance requires you to flown back to US for major issues then the policy ended? Not sure how thing works. Can you provide more details? and which insurance company? Thanks.
It all depends on the plan, but the one we purchased meant if we received treatment it would be in the country we were in (in our case, France). We felt comfortable with this considering France has an excellent healthcare system. It's correct that these plans usually will NOT cover you in the US. Some will cover for two weeks (so for example if you're home for a short visit during your time abroad). Not to be morbid, but I think the option for being flown home is primarily if you were to die and wanted your body repatriated to the US. Because of exactly what you said, it's hard to imagine being flown home for care just to go to a place where you don't have medical coverage. If you DID want to be flown home to the US for treatment if it was major, these policies would cover getting you home, but then you would need to have some kind of existing medical coverage in the US. I think there are policies that would cover both, but they are more expensive. We used IMG global for our international plan we refer to in this video for our first year. (www.imglobal.com/). Fortunately, we never had to use it during that first year, as it's mostly catastrophe/hospitalization coverage. We paid for doctor visits and medication in cash until we were on the French system. But that means I can't tell you much about what it would be like if we had to use it. I can tell you it was easy to get quotes, easy to get the paperwork we needed to submit with our visas, the coverage for the price was good, and we knew they had a good reputation as a well-established company. AXA is another company you might check out. We got quotes from some of the big US companies (like Cigna, BCBS, and Atnea) but their quotes for international insurance were much more expensive, and since we didn't also need US coverage (which they could have included for a price), they made less sense for us. Good luck!
It's beautiful isn't it??? I love Paris, but Bordeaux to me feels like a more "people-sized" city, a little more compact overall for day to day living. Good luck with everything!!
I am self-employed and qualified for the entrepreneur professions libéral visa. We'll have an interview coming out soon with an expert on ideas for starting or moving a business to France.
Great video, so informative too :) I'm moving on my own over to France in a month's time which will be so exciting! I'm looking forward to having a lower cost of living compared to being in the UK! One thing I'm now trying to organise is a long term car rental, you went over this in the video - would you mind advising what company you used and if you have any advice? :)
Congrats! Check the description of the video for the car links. I will say the one we used originally is unfortunately much more expensive now that it was in 2022. E'leclerc is still a great option as long as you're staying in the same area and aren't driving crazy miles. Good luck with the move.
The most important qualification for living in France is French fluency. I'm not yet fluent, and living among the French didn't help at all. So I'm returning to the US, where I can improve at my own pace.
Enroll in French classes maybe at a university. I took 4 yrs of French in college, but that was 30yrs ago. I can still read and understand a bit of French but definitely no longer fluent in French. If I were to move to France, I'd definitely enroll in university French classes . I found apps completely worthless !! They don't teach proper grammar, at all , just cutesy phases , like Can I have a coffee, where is the beach . Just learning phases you will not be able to converse freely and easily with French speakers of France . Good luck, Bon chance mon ami !! ❤
Thank you so much for sharing such an enlightening info; I find myself yearning for your video’s; I’m learning from your journey and other expats. I’m trying to move to France, and planning to take sabbatical hoping to leave next month, and figure out where to live. I’v so many questions, as single to move abroad sometimes I find it worrisome, hence sure must be easier when you’ve someone troubleshoot with if obstacle arises; maybe I’ll address some of my questions via your email. I’m immensely grateful for your info-much love.
This can be a tough one, we'll make a bidet on it in the future, but in the mean time check out the description of this video for links to places to look outside of airbnb. Thanks for watching!
So you have bought a house since this video came out. Are you going to be permanent residents of France now? May I ask what part of Colorado you are from? I live in southern Colorado.
Great video! My wife and 10 year old daughter are planning to move to France when I retire next year. We’d prefer to live in the country, but our daughter doesn’t know French although we plan to have her taking lessons soon. Did your daughter speak French before enrolling her in public schools or were they accommodating to her? Our biggest fear is we’d have to live in a city and pay for international school which would be tough on my pension income.
As french I can tell you no problem with that. We have many kids from entire world at school in countryside (actually maybe at least 1 or 2 ukrainian kids per school in France). Please consider that catholic private schools are more attentive than public schools for only $1000 per year. 😉
My husband and I want to do this when he retires next year. We'll have a 9-year-old. Did you do this to eventually move there or just for an adventure?
It started as a year adventure. As the year was ending, we weren't ready to leave. It felt like we had just gotten settled! So we're in our second year now. But the longer we're here, the more we love it.
46k for 3 and you were not restraining yourself. driving a nice car and having a pretty big house. For people short on money, you can probably make it for 33 to 36k for 3 people. considering the minimum salary is at almost 17k net a year and you would get some governement support for a few things.
Yeah. Us too. Our health care costs in Colorado alone were $12,000 a year while Jason was working (pemiums plus deductibles and co-pays), then $24,000 a year when we were paying completely out of pocket. The modest house we rented was $36,000 a year. We were in a higher cost of living area in Colorado, but a small suburb 40 minutes from Denver, not New York. Even in Paris, you could rent a nice apartment for $3000 a month.
Can you use your US drivers license in france to buy a car and get insurance?? I rented a car in ireland, it was no problem for a month kinda pricey but the round-a-bouts and driving on opposite side of car (right) was a crash course. My friend said im too scared to drive , so I drove the whole trip all of west Ireland Sligo to Cork to Dublin and back to Cork 🤯 after day 2 I got used to it . 👍
Oh my gosh, I can't imagine driving on a different side of the road after so many years. You're a brave soul!! Your US drivers license is valid in France for one year. You'll want to get an "international" license to carry with it, which is basically a translation. You can get them from AAA. After a year, you need to have either exchanged your US license if you are from one of the 13 states with reciprocal driving agreements, OR take the French driving test. Either way, after one year, you need to have a French driver's license to continue driving legally.
Musing now about bringing my 2023 EV with me when I make the pond hop, or not. It won't be completely paid for yet, and there are tons of EV charging stations all over Europe. Do you know anyone in your expat circle who brought their ride with them?
I realize that this video is from a year ago, but you don't mention taxes. I am a little confused about the tax treaty between U.S. and France and what is and isn't exempt in France. Any guidance, or video on that issue? I also note that France, unlike Italy (except for luxury homes), has property taxes. If I understand your situation at this point, you rent, so I guess you aren't concerned with that.
Ugh, glad you said trick question so i know you already know the answer. For everyone who doesn't: tipping is not a cultural norm in France in the same way as in the US. So we tip exactly what we want for service that's out of the ordinary or in a bar we frequent often. It feels like something I do to genuinely express my appreciation here in France vs in the US as obligatory to pay part of someone's salary or a box i have to constatly decline or feel guilty and confused about at counter service places where I'm not even sure WHO or WHY I'm tipping. 🙄 (edited for typos)
Hey Guys! Please explain something for me: “€17,000 per person of income” ?! 😱😱😱Does it mean they want you to make at least €17,000 (per month I guess) or do you have to have €17,000 in your bank ? And how is this average income? It is a lot of money in the USA so how is it cheaper in France. Am I missing something???? Thanks!
That is per YEAR per person. It's gone up slightly since we made the video, but I dont remember the exact number right now. Yes, you could show either that much in the bank in total or that you have an income source coming in each month to meet it throughout the year, around $2000 a month with the new minimum and current exchange rate.
Really enjoyed this as I think we can spend nearly half of what we spend in the US for better quality of life. But how is it politically? Isn’t that a push for nativism and anti immigration throughout Europe? What have your experiences been on that front?
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
I am Belgian and 50 % of my salary went to the state. But don't call that taxes as it paid for my healthcare, education of my children, retirement fund and a few more. From the left over I could buy me a house, a car, go on vacation abroad and life comfortably. And I worked 8 hours a day with 4 weeks of payed vacation. Most of Europe will be comparable. My wishes to you and your dearest.
Even if you do call them taxes, you enjoy something many of us in the US never do: security. Living here feels more and more like gambling. The payoff can be huge, but so can the losses.
45,000 that's quite a comfortable way of living.
The real cost after a few years will certainly much lower, after you go past the discovery effect.
600-700€/month is a bit high but it also depend on the car category. Buying or leasing a car would be more interesting if you aim for a long stay anyway. Considering the devaluation buying a new car isn't really worth it, a leased car is more interesting. Around the same cost as a purchase, but the monthly payments include insurance and you don't have to think about devaluation.
If you really want to buy one, a 3-4 years car with low mileage is a better option. That said, it's all a question of budget and life style you want.
As for "Food and Goods", I guess there's a discovery effect on that one too when I see the budget. One thing you should know if you like food, and you're in a very good location for that. France and many European countries have different types of restaurants. One of that type should be similar to the US eateries I think, it's called "Auberges", real ones, not restaurants that use the name. They serve food in generous portion, at reasonable prices and mostly local traditional meals. You will find some mainly along "départementales" and "Nationales" roads and practically never in a city. At best in villages.
As for healthcare, once again, whether you aim for citizenship or not, when you qualify as permanent resident, you will have access to the public healthcare, so your medical expenses will be reimbursed on the official based fees. Private insurances are mandatory except for public servants and self-employed people. But it is strongly advised to get one that covers your real needs so you will have the best health coverage you need. For the 3 of you (2 adults, in fact), it should be around 70-90 € per month for a pretty good coverage.
Education : it changes with time but for public school, it's basically the subscription fee. In high school (lycée), you will have to factor in the lessons books. Usually they are changed every few years, so if the books are still in use, it's better to go for used ones and resell them the next year. For University and assimilated (fun fact Grandes Ecoles in French can almost be translated as "High School" but it's absolutely not the same thing), the fees are around twice or thrice that amount, and your daughter will be required to have her own student healthcare plan.
All in all far cheaper than in North America.
The one big flaw in French schools are the amount of lessons they have everyday and a school year quite condensed compared to most other countries.
True. But they simply shifted their life here and part of their way of living.
Of course and it's all about Baguette Bound, they adapted.
After all those years of bashing, it's nice to see some people facting they thoughts and coming to "surprising" conclusions.
Love the content.
I really hope that everything will be fine for you in France on the long term, because you are such a nice couple 🙂 All my best, sincerely !
Merci beaucoup !! ❤
I'm French living in France since birth and I am still watching this video 🤣 I love to hear people's experience and point of view on France, it's very interesting ✨
L'écrire en français serait mieux.
Gives you a different perspective on life, doesn't it…
We have been in Germany almost 5 years. France is more where we are drawn for retirement. Thank you for your real perspective videos
First video and really enjoying it! BUT I’m finding the music very distracting and loud, makes it hard to understand what you’re saying… Had to skip to the end and watch the totals on mute. 😞 Off to watch one more and hoping this isn’t usual. Personally, im here to hear what you SAY, and jingly music doesn’t help. 😊
Thanks for that feedback! Notes from viewers on things like this are helpful to know. Thanks for watching. 🙂
I don't.
We are currently living in Massachusetts. We got a slightly better deal but a 4 bdrm house runs $2800 - $3500. That does not include utilities. Our electricity is about $1oo a month since we have solar but oil heat costs $500 every other month in winter if we keep it at 68-70deg. It varies for everyone depending on the house. Our water is free since we have a private well instead of city water. I’d love to pay $1500!! 🎉
That yearly total is an amazing amount.
It’s wonderful to find you tubers with a comprehensive and well balanced view of their topics. This is reflected in the interesting and civilized comments. Best Wishes !
I found your video by chance. If you live not far from Bordeaux, my favourite city in France, after Paris, my birth city, I will give you a tip. Go visit the town of Arcachon, the seaside resort located in the bay of the same name, about 76 km from Bordeaux. Arcachon Bay is almost closed and surrounded by one of the largest forest areas in Western Europe. It is known for its oyster farming. Much of the city is located in the bay and the other on the Atlantic coast with its long Atlantic sandy beaches, not overcrowded like on the Côte d'Azur. You'll find many small oyster-farming villages full of charm around the bay. At the other end of the bay is the Cap Ferret peninsula with its beautiful villas and fishermen's huts. The paradise of my childhood, but also of my children.
This area really is magical! We've been lucky enough to go for a couple long weekends, but it wasn't long enough!
And the rent of the house is for one of the most expensive areas in the countryside, the Dordogne. There are many areas where a family house in nature would cost a lost less.
My wife and I are planning to move to France in January. This was really helpful, especially the long-term car rental info.
Best option is to buy it on Leboncoin, renting is too expensive.
In May 2025 my wife and I plan on retiring to France from DFW Texas. We recently found your site and find it very informative. We have visited France several times. We love SW France and very fond of Bordeaux but find it a little expensive for our needs. Loved Eymet and Bergerac, especially since English so widely used. Look forward to your future videos.
Bergerac weather is far from top. Hot and often raining. Like Limoges yo be avoided in my opinion
Great video, lots of helpful tips. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing this! Cost of living surveys like Numbeo are great, but there's nothing like getting the scoop from folks actually doing it.
I subscribed and can't wait for more!
.Hello, I live near Perpignan, I have a friend who left for the USA and had to go to the hospital near New York. when we told him the price of the bill for a box of medicine and some basic care. It was simply shocking, it's incredibly expensive in the USA, it's shocking how expensive it is.
We, in the US, agree with you 100%
@@InsideouttrainingWB Um...no. They pay half their salary for medical care and in the US, we don't. Not even close and we can get surgery before we die.
@@ZONEPRESSLLC You're wrong. They don't pay 1500€ a month for their medical care, but 1500€ a year, about 3% of their annual budget.
@@ChristianSarreau lol, they can't even get surgery for months and months. The care is comical compared to the US
@@ZONEPRESSLLC What is comical is your comment... You don't seem to be well informed about universal healthcare in Europe (and in most countries around the world except the US).
I love this video, I'm so glad I found you! I just subscribed. I visit France at least every 2 years because I have lots of cousins (Paris, Lille, Luxeuil-les-Bains and Bretagne). When I retire in 2 years, I plan to spend at least a month per year in France (I live in California) and 2 months in Europe all together. Because I've always stayed with cousins, I had no idea how much it would cost to stay outside of the big cities in my own place. I agree about the American farmer markets-I can't afford to go them. The produce in France is not only much cheaper but it has so much more flavor!
Wow, how awesome to have been visiting regularly for so many years and your upcoming plan sounds exciting, congrats! As you might guess, we love the idea of staying in France (and Europe!) for longer periods. It makes it easier to really soak it all in, go off the beaten path, and enjoy it without going home exhausted. Good luck with all your plans and thanks for subscribing!
Great content, guys. Thank you. My wife and I are retiring at 61 in December and moving to the UK and Europe. France will be the home base due to the visa ease. For the first 8 months of the year we are pet sitting in England for 4 of those months. Your car rental link was incredibly eye-opening. We are looking at Toulouse as a home base and would love your thoughts on that if you have been there. Be safe, be well.
Congrats! 🎉 We have friends that just did petsitting through the UK for the summer with Trusted House Sitters, and it was a great experience.
So happy the car info was helpful, thanks for telling us. 🙂
Toulouse! We've just been there a couple of times overnight when we've flown out so I feel I don't have a deeply informed opinion (yet! We hope to spend some more time there). But our first impressions were good!
The central city seems nice, with some pretty parks, squares and architecture. There's a large medical school there and good medical facilities. Airbus and some other international companies are based there, so there's a cool mix of French and international/expat population. And the airport is great! Both times we've flown out and back, it's been so easy.
I'm curious if there was something in particular that caught your attention about the city? Would love to hear! Good luck, and thanks for watching!
If you go to Toulouse, learn to love Rugby, or you will never fit :) GO GO le Stade !
The UK is only beneficial because of the ease of language. Otherwise the standard of living is better on the continent
UK?? You can't be serious.
@ Yes, serious. Pet sitting opportunities abound and it’s a lot cooler over the summer months than most of Europe.
Hi Raina & Jason, what an interesting feedback! Love the fact that you gave exact numbers and compared to US prices. Keep up the great work 👏
Thank you!
What part of the area you live in?
I mean in the country side
A bientôt et prenez soin de vous
Bonjour la famille ! C'est surprenant , en tant que français , j'apprends beaucoup sur mon pays avec vous . Merci. Amitiés , Joel , de Bretagne .
Wow, this is a wonderful surprise
Your videos are simply the best! So clear, informative and full of exactly the kind of information that people like me who want to move to France are looking for. I re-watch this regularly! Thanks again, Raina and Jason!
Thank you!! 😄 I was just thinking soon we'll need to make an updated one of these, especially now that we own a house. Thanks as always for watching. 😊
In France, the initial visa and the subsequent annual visitor permits require an income equaling the minimum wage. The French do not consider how much you have in your bank account. Nor do people you want to rent property from. So if you are coming here to retire, the income requirement could get tricky. In our case, we used our Social Security benefits letters to justify income even though we hadn't yet started drawing from Social Security. But yes, aside from energy costs, it is considerably cheaper living here than in most places you would want to live in the States.
Ou là là... great video guys, the Christmas markets where cool indeed, love the food and life in Bordeaux and so happy you three set out to chase your dreams. The most surprising for me was the healthcare cost though... awesome stuff! Looking forward to watch and learn more from you two!!!
Thanks Matt!!! ❤️
@@BaguetteBoundhealthcare : you could also get a voluntary complementary insurance called mutuelle, that would cover all your healthcare needs, including visits to,your local GP, and medication for about 120€/month for the whole family, and get rid of your international coverage. So for slightly more than your current plan, you’d be fully covered like any other person living here. The only thing you wouldn’t be covered for would be the repatriation trip in case of an emergency. But you would be treated free of charge locally in case of that emergency.
Great to see you sharing your dream! Nice, clear, personable video. 😊
Thanks so much for watching! ❤️
I love your videos!!!! this was so helpful. I am a single person who would want to live either in someplace like Bordeaux or in the countryside just outside of it so that I could have fast access to Paris. And €17,000 for a year, that’s amazing!
Wonderful video! Great information. We look forward to watching your other videos!
Aw, thanks so much for watching!! ❤
I'd love to see an update to this video since you've now purchased a home and are possibly covered by the national health insurance.
It’s interesting to have this American perspective on life in France. Although it is surprising to see what you consider as cheap or expensive. An important point for the Americans who watch is the difference in income levels between the USA and France. Yes many things (health, education) are cheaper in France but incomes are lower. The average salary in Aquitaine is about 2200 to 2400 € compared to 5000 or 6000 dollars in the USA (variable according to the states).
This is true. Thank you.
Average of 2200 / 2400 ? where ? où ça ? En plein coeur de Bdx ? tu parles en salaire brut ?
Most people are living with 1600 to 1800 or let's say 2000 € / month
i can confidently say you that 80 % of french people are under 2500 € / month ; source : statista
My goodness. We're paying more than your total budget just in just our house payment in Denver 😭. Once you add in our healthcare cost for a family of 4 it definitely becomes a joke. I was surprised at the cost of housing even in the big cities. Denver is by no means as big and popular as Paris, and not as nice as Bordeaux, yet we are paying $4,065/mo for a 3/2. I've found we could live in a slightly smaller place, but still 3 bedrooms, in a nice area of Paris for less than that... And that's for short term rentals that include all utilities!! Fortunately I have a job that I can easily do in France at a company in the EU making similar to what I'm making now, or continue to work for my US company remotely, which I will definitely do in the short term. I've been binging your videos, thanks for all the tips and motivation to make our move to France more of a reality!
Housing is just crazy in CO. So beautiful but so expensive. Good luck and thanks for watching!
" Fortunately I have a job that I can easily do in France at a company in the EU making similar to what I'm making now, "
This is it ...
if you were employed as a European with something like 1500 or 2000 € / month , you wouldn't find those prices so cheap
Just found your videos, really enjoying them.... wish I could up and move to! I hope you are going to all the brocantes....
Thanks for your nice videos, I really appreciate to get your inputs about that experience, and it allows me to practice English listening 😉. I was lucky to go to the US few times and it was definitely my feeling that currently the average cost is twice in the US, except for car and gas. Talking with few Americans (outside big cities) , I was surprised (and sad) that many of them think that French people don’t like Americans and so they don’t feel comfortable to come. Happy to see that you enjoy your new life. Et bon courage pour être à l’aise en français 😊.
Belle vidéo, bravo et bienvenue en France !
I m glad you guys are still in france as it is really difficult to find what france use to be .it is mainly mixed up with steong arabic roots which is changing completely the whole country and not for the best
Really enjoy your shows! My wife and I are looking to retiring in France.
Could you do a show on meat prices a local butcher vs major chain store? Thanks
I would say around 20-25€/ kg in a butcher shop, sometimes more, depends on the meat u buy...in a store or supermarket, from 12 to 25 € .
I’m watching all your videos, very informative and very real. Love the content of your channel. Keep it coming 😊
Thanks!! 🙂
Thanks for the video, I love these kinds of videos!
Jason et Raina vous êtes vraiment géniaux. Je regarde vos vidéos via la traduction et c'est tres intéressant de voir une vue fraiche et détaillée de ce qu'est mon pays vue un œil ingénu. Un proverbe dit"heureux comme dieu en France "nous nous rendons pas assez compte de la chance de vivre ici.
Petite question:
Pensez vous faire une video sur la GRANDE différence de notre rapport au religieux. Tres présent au USA?
MERCI A VOUS
C'est une idée vidéo intéressante à laquelle nous n'avions pas pensé. Merci de votre attention et de votre gentillesse. 🙂
Just tuned in to your channel & loving it! Esp appreciating that y’all are sharing the links to resources you’ve found along the way as we are shortly behind you on this crazy l’aventure (our flight with us and 2 chiens is in April, but feels like next week with all we have to do!) Which int’l moving service did y’all use & would you recommend? We’ve heard UPakWeShip lots but would like to comparison shop…Bisou from Texas!!
How exciting!!!
We didn't use a moving service, so unfortunately, I don't have any specific recommendations. I will say I too have heard good things about UPakWeShip.
Good luck with everything!
Your videos make me appreciate my home turf in Europe even more. The challenge is to compare the values of the dollar and euros... they can't be compared 1:1 (due to the exchange rate; everyone does do that though ;). So you pay less in Europe, but you also earn less in Europe. Still, from what I have seen on my travels, the USA can be very expensive, even for average Americans - especially when you get chronically ill, or if you need a good education. Much of the taxes in Europe go to infrastructure, health systems, social benefits system, or schools/education; things that benefit society or people.
Hi guys ! LOVE your channel! Thanks so much for what you're doing to share your experience as a family living in France. In this video you referenced longer-term car rental. Is it possible you could provide more information on this? How do you get the good rate for, say, a monthly rental ?
So happy for you !! when/if you'll become french citizens, healthcare will only be your taxes and "mutuelle" (insurance) which cost somewhere between 30 to 100 €/ person (and theres some family pack too). So instead of 1500 you'll spend 100 to 300 max with better benefits. Keep it up !
What is the healthcare cost for the other person living in another EU country, but spending time in France?
@ not sure, 🤔 I believe that persons has the healthcare from the country he/she is. The insurance covers what the universal healthcare doesn’t cover. And I guess there’s some agreements between European countries. I
Also there like an EU insurance. CEAM
But honestly if that persons come live in France it’s better to get French insurance. If that person only visit, then her country’insurance should be enough.
Like when I travel in Europe , hospitals and doctors don’t have the same cost but my insurance should get some.
But if it’s gonna be several visits per year that person should take the European insurance coverage: CEAM
Hey Jason, Raina - How do taxes work for retirees in Francee. As you know in the U.S. Retirees pay zero taxes on capital gaines upto the first 40k if you are single and double that if you are married. And then you have your single and married deductibles. Would that apply in France ? Considering France and the U.S have a tax treaty. Or would retirees have to pay french taxes first ?
Bonjour! You are correct that France and U.S. have a tax treaty and the great news is it's actually more favorable for Americans than the tax treaties the U.S. has with many countries. This is because there are specific provisions for retirement accounts.
We are not tax professionals, so here is a resource Jason found helpful in understanding the basics of how American expats are taxed while living in France.
Thanks for watching and your comment!
www.hrblock.com/expat-tax-preparation/resource-center/country/france/guide-to-u-s-expat-taxes-in-france/
The car rental price is a revelation! Thanks for this info! My first trip is this fall for 7 weeks to find the region to retire to (on a budget) and I’m even more confident now that I can make it work! Have you signed up for the Carte Vitale?
Yes, it took several months to get processed, but it's great.
Can we have a video about what you think of french vacations and national day off, please? 😊
Hi can you tell me where you got your car as I like the subscription option and would be near your area
Check out the description, you'll find all the links. Thanks for watching!
super cool! glad i found your channel. I am tired of toronto canada and always interested in somehow getting out! subscribed to learn more. Can you shed a little light on how you make a living? I assume you are still working on your french and since not living in Paris or large city maybe there are not as many english speaking companies etc. ? thanks!!
I'm self employed as a professional and personal development coach. I help small business owners with life planning, productivity and time management. This was my work before France and what my entrepreneur visa is based on.
If you'd like some ideas for businesses you can run in France to support yourself, check out my friend Valerie at www.startbusinessinfrance.com/
And you are correct there is much less English spoken in the countryside, which definitely helps your French get better faster!
Great, thanks for the reply. Really helps in the transition when you are already remote and business is up and running. Enjoying your content, best wishes to you guys! Thanks for the link, will check it out. Looking forward to learning more about different visa types@@BaguetteBound
@@JJMA52 Why don't you check the french government websites for that? Or do you think everything is in french on the internet? I am unsure in how many languages it is translated, but i seem to remember there is an english version.
@@nox8730 Darn it, you are right. i assumed everything is in french on the internet. D'oh!
Beautiful *Video ❤️ I think the pandemic has taught people the importance of multiple sources of income, unfortunately having a job does not guarantee financial security. I really appreciate the transparency and giving people a fighting chance during these difficult times.
So True! I'm into stocks Investment, Forex trading, cryptocurrency investments, Real Estate Investments and I am making good profits from them all. I always encourage Investments.
I am interested in forex trading and stock investments, any recommendations? And much can I start with?
Most failures and loss on Investment usually happens when you invest without proper guide. It is best to have an investment *manager* who has in-depth knowledge about investing, to help you make money on your investment on your behalf.
Any reliable professional manager? I would love to communicate with them. Thank you so much.
I went from 3000 to 500,000 in 3 years.
Sending you a virtual hug, you seem like such geniuine people who are raising a daughter the right way.
Can you tell me some more about the longterm car rental in "some grocery store"?
Wow. Thank you for sharing this. I am in Boulder right now and prices in Boulder are worst than Connecticut, where I live part time. I hope to do what you are doing by the end of the year. Thank you for sharing!
Good luck with everything!
If you spend the double in the US in one year you must both earn zn income of 95.000 dollar or more.
47500 euro(gross) is in Europe an average income for 2 working people, but a lot do not earn that amount with 2 people working and have less than 45.000(gross)
Is the 47.500 euro also your income for both in a year or is your yearly netto income higer than 47.500 euro, I think if you spend 47.500 in one year and your netto income iis the same in one year than there is something wrong.
Did you have a salary like the French or do you have an US salary?
I may have missed it but do you have a video on visa regarding how you stayed for a year? Thanks for sharing!
Not yet, but it's coming! As you might already know, It's a whole thing. 🙃 To answer your question in short though, Jason has a long stay visitor's visa, and I'm on a entrepreneur profession libéral visa. A great reference for the requirements and details for each is Allison Lounes book "Foolproof French Visas".
Stay tuned and thanks for watching!
Thanks so much for sharing this info! For the past year, my husband and I have been seriously looking into moving to France. I’m Canadian and he’s American. Our main concern is making money there, and whether or not we’ll be able to earn enough to sustain ourselves until retirement in about 10 years from now. It seems most likely that we’ll get similar visas to yours. Do you mind if I ask how you pay the bills, and whether or not this was a concern for you as well?
@@nadynekasta this is a great question. I just told Jason we should probably make a video about this because I know it's a major concern for people, and probably one of the biggest hurdles. Stay tuned for that, but the quick answer for our first year is we had/have a mix of savings, my business income (www.rainawillick.com), and a small income from a rental house in the US.
In most cases we've seen, your best bet if you still need to work for a few years before retirement in France is to be self-employed on an entrepreneur professions liberal visa.
My favorite, favorite, favorite source for info on this is Valerie at www.startbusinessinfrance.com/ - if you don't already have a business and need a place to start, check out her download on "100 Business ideas to create a business in France:" ---> news.startbusinessinfrance.com/100-business-ideas-france
@@BaguetteBound Thanks so much for this super helpful info! I will definitely be looking into your recommendations, and looking forward to watching your future videos. All the best to you!
Any estimate on what it would cost for one person (with about the same rent but no car )?
GREAT information. Now I’m asking WTF are we still doing here? Ugh! I’m ready for market day shopping. Good for you happy and healthy food and the love I sense when there are what draws me to France. Thank you for sharing you experience with us.
They live as upper middle class... you can enjoy a nice french life for $25k if needed 😉
Its cheaper than you think because most non-Americans don't know how expensive America is. American salaries are high for a reason. Add the horrendous costs of food and eating out to the cost of medical care, car insurance, taxes, travel and education, you end up with a very expensive country.
My wife and I live in Thailand on less than half their French costs.
I'm curious how you spent twice that budget in CO? I live near Seattle, married with 3 kids and using your same metrics only spend just over $50k/year
I have heard that a Social Security check for each person, provided it comes to that amount in a year, is also acceptable.
What is process for getting a driver license?
Is not only how much it cost but how much you make. When I moved to France from Florida I research that if making 10 bucks there needed 15 in Paris, well they paid me 25 and i ran without ever looking back already 22 years, salut de Bretagne !!
I enjoyed your videos a lot.Can you please tell me where to rent a car ?
What about utilities for the home and gas for the car?
I have a question regarding the school lunches for your daughter - you said you spend only 200.00 a year, but when I looked up french school lunches they range from 3 - 4.00 per lunch - very curious about this.
Did you say you are still working or you are living on passive income already or savings ? Are you having to pay French income taxes?
Yes we are working (running a business) in France and paying French taxes. Thank you for watching!
@@BaguetteBoundAh, but the real question is are you also having to pay taxes in the US. It’s one thing I worry about if I was to move abroad.
Do both of you work and what kind of work do you do? If you have a lot of “general” skills is it easy to find a “good” job?
Thanks from Atlanta.✌️
Really nice channel even for a European!
You looked puzzled when you said medication in France costs roughly 10% of the USA prices.
When you think about it, please consider - the French companies selling these medications to pharmacies still make a profit..!!
And the people running a pharmacy are normally upper middle class income.
It's great that the cost of living is lower than in the US....but what about average salaries in France, are they comparable to US salaries or less? Just curious if local folks also think the cost of living is low or if this opinion only applies to folks from the US who are considering moving to France. Perspective is important. US had high inflation over the past few years, what about France? Didn't they have a similar situation?
sign me up sounds fantastic,,, thank you and all the best
Can you please tell us the name of your health care insurance
We used IMG global for our international plan we refer to in this video for our first year. (www.imglobal.com/). Fortunately, we never had to use it during that first year, as it's mostly catastrophe/hospization coverage. We paid for Dr visits and medication in cash until we were on the French system. But that means I can't tell you much about what it would be like if we had to use it.
I can tell you it was easy to get quotes, easy to get the paperwork we needed to submit with our visas, the coverage for the price was good, and we knew they had a good reputation as a well established company. AXA is another company you might check out.
We got quotes from some of the big US companies (like Cigna, BCBS, and Atnea) but their quotes for international insurance were much more expensive.
Make sure you note, these plans usually will NOT cover you in the US. Some will cover for two weeks (so for example if you're home for a short visit during your time abroad).
Good luck!
I just went on the IMG site and cannot find anything near what you are getting. I see monthly $502/month. $1000 deductible no coverage in about half a dozen countries including the US. Clearly I am doing something very wrong. We are in Thailand, have 3 kids, and would be OK with a big deductible, but it doesn't seem to go down much with a bigger deductible. What are we missing. Excellent/cheap healthcare here, too. It's a place people come for medical tourism. Any idea what I am missing?
@jacalynmeintz2438 dang, that's disappointing. I don't know what might be different there, but you could also take a look at AXA. www.axaglobalhealthcare.com/en/international-health-insurance/
@@TheMeierTheMerrierupdate: we just went back and checked and the policy we had is called "Patriot International Lite". We can still find it on the site (make sure you're on IMG global site). We entered 4 people based in Thailand and got a quote for around $2100 for the year with a $1000 deductible. There wasn't a way to share a link though. That's really frustrating, I'm not sure why it's not showing up for you. Hopefully the plan name is helpful. Good luck!
@@BaguetteBound THANK YOU SO MUCH. You are very kind to help us out.
Enjoyed your video. 👏😀❤️🙏
I pay about $1000 USD per month just for property tax and fire insurance in California
You have to mention that you live in area that is not so expensive. Living in a large town or in paris would cost more. Especially for restaurants
Very interesting. Where I live in a small city in Canada in 900 sq foot 2 bed/2 bath, with 2 people eating quality food and health care bills supposedly 'covered' (although this is not true in the way some Canadians like to brag about)--45K euros or 66K Canadian sounds like a dream. I wonder if this has to do with quality local food in France + subsidized health care? Curious what accounts for the dramatic difference.
Hi, I would be interested in hearing more about your experience with the vehicle subscription. The link in the description is broken. Do you need to qualify for it, like a lease in the US? What criteria is applied?
Link has been fixed, it now points to the French language version but you can use your browser to auto-translate. The car subscription services ("abonnement" in French) do not involve a line of credit like a auto-lease and don't require any financial qualification other than a credit card to pay for the monthly rental charges. You will also need a valid drivers license, some require an international drivers license which you can get at various places in the US, check with AAA.
We used 3 different subscription services and were happy with all 3. Different companies will offer different rental lengths, some are fixed lengths that give you the option to buy the car at the end but you cannot renew the rental, others allow you to continue the monthly rental indefinitely. We received good service at the pickup and good service during the rental with billing and repair questions. They have all been very, very easy and greatly simplified our first year+ in France.
May I know is the insurance travel insurance or global health insurance? Year round travel insurance requires you to flown back to US for major issues then the policy ended? Not sure how thing works. Can you provide more details? and which insurance company? Thanks.
It all depends on the plan, but the one we purchased meant if we received treatment it would be in the country we were in (in our case, France). We felt comfortable with this considering France has an excellent healthcare system.
It's correct that these plans usually will NOT cover you in the US. Some will cover for two weeks (so for example if you're home for a short visit during your time abroad). Not to be morbid, but I think the option for being flown home is primarily if you were to die and wanted your body repatriated to the US. Because of exactly what you said, it's hard to imagine being flown home for care just to go to a place where you don't have medical coverage.
If you DID want to be flown home to the US for treatment if it was major, these policies would cover getting you home, but then you would need to have some kind of existing medical coverage in the US. I think there are policies that would cover both, but they are more expensive.
We used IMG global for our international plan we refer to in this video for our first year. (www.imglobal.com/). Fortunately, we never had to use it during that first year, as it's mostly catastrophe/hospitalization coverage. We paid for doctor visits and medication in cash until we were on the French system. But that means I can't tell you much about what it would be like if we had to use it.
I can tell you it was easy to get quotes, easy to get the paperwork we needed to submit with our visas, the coverage for the price was good, and we knew they had a good reputation as a well-established company. AXA is another company you might check out.
We got quotes from some of the big US companies (like Cigna, BCBS, and Atnea) but their quotes for international insurance were much more expensive, and since we didn't also need US coverage (which they could have included for a price), they made less sense for us.
Good luck!
@@BaguetteBound thanks for the detailed reply. Much appreciated. We visited Bordeaux pre pandemic and we loved it. Happy retirement to you!
It's beautiful isn't it??? I love Paris, but Bordeaux to me feels like a more "people-sized" city, a little more compact overall for day to day living. Good luck with everything!!
How did you manage the job situation? Is it easy to get a job there?
I am self-employed and qualified for the entrepreneur professions libéral visa. We'll have an interview coming out soon with an expert on ideas for starting or moving a business to France.
which area did you eventually buy your home?
I was surprised that income tax was not included as a cost.
What insurance company would you recommend to get insurance while we are in France for the winter (3 months.)
Great info!
Great video, so informative too :) I'm moving on my own over to France in a month's time which will be so exciting! I'm looking forward to having a lower cost of living compared to being in the UK!
One thing I'm now trying to organise is a long term car rental, you went over this in the video - would you mind advising what company you used and if you have any advice? :)
Congrats! Check the description of the video for the car links. I will say the one we used originally is unfortunately much more expensive now that it was in 2022. E'leclerc is still a great option as long as you're staying in the same area and aren't driving crazy miles.
Good luck with the move.
The most important qualification for living in France is French fluency. I'm not yet fluent, and living among the French didn't help at all. So I'm returning to the US, where I can improve at my own pace.
Funny enough, our video next week is actually about learning French, because it is definitely a big thing!
Enroll in French classes maybe at a university. I took 4 yrs of French in college, but that was 30yrs ago. I can still read and understand a bit of French but definitely no longer fluent in French. If I were to move to France, I'd definitely enroll in university French classes . I found apps completely worthless !! They don't teach proper grammar, at all , just cutesy phases , like Can I have a coffee, where is the beach . Just learning phases you will not be able to converse freely and easily with French speakers of France . Good luck, Bon chance mon ami !! ❤
Thank you so much for sharing such an enlightening info; I find myself yearning for your video’s; I’m learning from your journey and other expats. I’m trying to move to France, and planning to take sabbatical hoping to leave next month, and figure out where to live. I’v so many questions, as single to move abroad sometimes I find it worrisome, hence sure must be easier when you’ve someone troubleshoot with if obstacle arises; maybe I’ll address some of my questions via your email. I’m immensely grateful for your info-much love.
How or who did you use to find housing? Thank you.
This can be a tough one, we'll make a bidet on it in the future, but in the mean time check out the description of this video for links to places to look outside of airbnb.
Thanks for watching!
@@BaguetteBoundi cant wait to see that bidet! 😂
So you have bought a house since this video came out. Are you going to be permanent residents of France now? May I ask what part of Colorado you are from? I live in southern Colorado.
Great video! My wife and 10 year old daughter are planning to move to France when I retire next year. We’d prefer to live in the country, but our daughter doesn’t know French although we plan to have her taking lessons soon. Did your daughter speak French before enrolling her in public schools or were they accommodating to her? Our biggest fear is we’d have to live in a city and pay for international school which would be tough on my pension income.
Check out our school playlist and Juliana, our daighter's playlist. We talked about all these topics. Good luck!
As french I can tell you no problem with that. We have many kids from entire world at school in countryside (actually maybe at least 1 or 2 ukrainian kids per school in France). Please consider that catholic private schools are more attentive than public schools for only $1000 per year. 😉
My husband and I want to do this when he retires next year. We'll have a 9-year-old. Did you do this to eventually move there or just for an adventure?
It started as a year adventure. As the year was ending, we weren't ready to leave. It felt like we had just gotten settled! So we're in our second year now. But the longer we're here, the more we love it.
@@BaguetteBound ♥
Thank you so much for your reply.
Good luck @@cruizdiaz1740!! 😊
If you liked thr public school, why did you switch to a private it one? If you don't mind me asking.
We moved
That's a good surprise because your cost of living is on the upper bound in France and you are still paying less than in the US.
hello and the taxes ? you pay the France government or still US
46k for 3 and you were not restraining yourself. driving a nice car and having a pretty big house.
For people short on money, you can probably make it for 33 to 36k for 3 people. considering the minimum salary is at almost 17k net a year and you would get some governement support for a few things.
From a French POV, I'm shocked by the amount you needed to spend in Colorado. 😱
Yeah. Us too. Our health care costs in Colorado alone were $12,000 a year while Jason was working (pemiums plus deductibles and co-pays), then $24,000 a year when we were paying completely out of pocket. The modest house we rented was $36,000 a year. We were in a higher cost of living area in Colorado, but a small suburb 40 minutes from Denver, not New York. Even in Paris, you could rent a nice apartment for $3000 a month.
Can you use your US drivers license in france to buy a car and get insurance?? I rented a car in ireland, it was no problem for a month kinda pricey but the round-a-bouts and driving on opposite side of car (right) was a crash course. My friend said im too scared to drive , so I drove the whole trip all of west Ireland Sligo to Cork to Dublin and back to Cork 🤯 after day 2 I got used to it . 👍
Oh my gosh, I can't imagine driving on a different side of the road after so many years. You're a brave soul!!
Your US drivers license is valid in France for one year. You'll want to get an "international" license to carry with it, which is basically a translation. You can get them from AAA.
After a year, you need to have either exchanged your US license if you are from one of the 13 states with reciprocal driving agreements, OR take the French driving test.
Either way, after one year, you need to have a French driver's license to continue driving legally.
@@BaguetteBound fyi there is alot of UK expats in Brittany area and Normandie fyi 😉 English speakers ❤️👍.
Musing now about bringing my 2023 EV with me when I make the pond hop, or not. It won't be completely paid for yet, and there are tons of EV charging stations all over Europe. Do you know anyone in your expat circle who brought their ride with them?
I realize that this video is from a year ago, but you don't mention taxes. I am a little confused about the tax treaty between U.S. and France and what is and isn't exempt in France. Any guidance, or video on that issue? I also note that France, unlike Italy (except for luxury homes), has property taxes. If I understand your situation at this point, you rent, so I guess you aren't concerned with that.
Trick question: How much do you spend on tipping in France?
Ugh, glad you said trick question so i know you already know the answer. For everyone who doesn't: tipping is not a cultural norm in France in the same way as in the US. So we tip exactly what we want for service that's out of the ordinary or in a bar we frequent often. It feels like something I do to genuinely express my appreciation here in France vs in the US as obligatory to pay part of someone's salary or a box i have to constatly decline or feel guilty and confused about at counter service places where I'm not even sure WHO or WHY I'm tipping. 🙄 (edited for typos)
Hey Guys! Please explain something for me: “€17,000 per person of income” ?! 😱😱😱Does it mean they want you to make at least €17,000 (per month I guess) or do you have to have €17,000 in your bank ? And how is this average income? It is a lot of money in the USA so how is it cheaper in France. Am I missing something???? Thanks!
That is per YEAR per person. It's gone up slightly since we made the video, but I dont remember the exact number right now. Yes, you could show either that much in the bank in total or that you have an income source coming in each month to meet it throughout the year, around $2000 a month with the new minimum and current exchange rate.
It sounds more and more like the question isn't "can I afford to go," but "can I afford not to?"
Je pense que l'on peut bien vivre en France pour moins cher, y compris dans à proximité d'une grande ville, y compris dans le Sud-Ouest.
Really enjoyed this as I think we can spend nearly half of what we spend in the US for better quality of life. But how is it politically? Isn’t that a push for nativism and anti immigration throughout Europe? What have your experiences been on that front?