Job Discussion Forums

[SueH]

My perspective may be a little different from some, but I'd have to highlight Stephen Jones' point. I own a house outright but if I hadn't bought it in the 80's I wouldn't have had a chance.

When I left university I had absolutely no confidence and always knew I'd never have partner or kids, so I joined the usual corporate ladder. Being a misfit in many ways, and also unmotivated tended to lack of success but at least it didn't prevent house ownership!

Age, experience and change have all helped me and I now live in Italy where the new experiences abound, although I have tinges of regret that I didn't experience it earlier like Moore. No matter - you make do with the hand you are dealt. My personal short term hope is that it's a damn sight better snow year next winter than last, and I'm sure Denise can appreciate that.

It's never too late to change course.....

[mdk]

You know, I often hear this but it always seems to come from people who have lost their shirts or are looking at living out their old age in their brother's back room.

If you employ dollar-cost averaging into a good no-load index fund with a low fee, you are probably going to be OK after 20-30 years. There is risk in doing it, that is so, but then there is the opportunity cost of not doing it.

I did it for 30 years. It took faith and delay of gratification, but really, if you sock away 10% of your income every paycheck, you will live just as poorly as if you hadn't.

That little old no-load index fund and it's dividends went a long way to getting me through 4 winters teaching in Russia. You might lose your money in a total financial melt-down, but in that case, the money wouldn't have been of any use anyway.

[tedkarma]

I certainly agree with MDK! My older brother has made a very nice killing in the market over the last twenty years. Wish I had his skills!

Some people though, like me, just don't have the emotional make up for watching their investments "dive and thrive"! I don't mind the thrive, but I hate the dive.

Real estate, for me, has always had a nice stable feel to it. Even if RE prices dive - the rents keep coming in. And for me it is all about total income - not about total valuation of my assets.

[denise]

[william wallace]

I wonder how many ESL folks are or end up being economic refugees ? I know there are some who have an itch for wanderlust, but I believe much fewer than those who are many years away from their home countries.

ESL salaries are stagnant, or in many cases have gone down. Housing prices in Canada and Ireland have gone through the roof.

[tedkarma]

[Dipso]

Many people in Britain cannot afford to buy a house these days - overseas EFL teachers are certainly not the only ones to have missed the property boat. Several of my friends in the UK are well into their 30s and still renting despite being professional people - nurses, teachers, police officers, civil servants. Quite how someone earning an average-ish wage of 20K a year is supposed to buy an average priced 180K house is one of British life's great mysteries.

[gaijinalways]

Hmm, give it up? My wife an I are still saving money, and yes I would like to put more money into savings, (we save some every year) but my wife loves traveling. Buying property in Japan on our own is not a good option now, though to rent it out is an option, but we'd rather not retire here (high living costs, climate, etc.).

It's all priorities, and we will buy something, probably within the next 2-3 years before we get too old.

[mdk]

Hmmm, I had a house once. In retrospect, I wonder if I owned the house or it owned me. Certainly, my life is a lot happier with my money in solid bonds. They have the advantage of not making me worry about how to pay for a new water heater.

The important thing is to have a consistent approach to savings. At the start it seems it will never matter, but given enough time it eventually becomes a significant strategy.

[Mchristophermsw]

Great Post.

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and real estate prices are outragoues, even with the slow down recently....

I bought a condo for 120K in 1997 and it was worth 560K this time last year.
I think with the slow down, you might be able to chop 10-20K off it but then agian it is the bay are so there is no ryme and reason-it may well now be worth even more.

The bankers are the ones making the money. You buy a home-they win. You loose a home-they win. The game is fixed, so I am looking overseas in the future.

I agree with TED and many others who post here: PREPARE, PREPARE and PREPARE and you will be fine.

Presently, I am blessed to have a job that I enjoy and Iam able to average 20-25K per year in take home savings. ( It takes some discipline though). I get a month off every year and I am using that time to do reseach and visit other possible destinations. By time I plan a early retirement in 8 years, I should be squared away with my financial goals ( GOD willing) and ready to expat and start another career.

Work hard and plan accordingly and you can have a great life, so you don't have to miss the boat!

[mdk]

Dear Mchristophermsw,

You are an MSW perhaps? I was an RN and planning to retire at 65 and go teach in Spain. I remember I had a nice poster of Seville up on my cubicle at work and when somebody did something particularly repulsive I would count to 100 and look at the poster of Seville.... someday.

Then, by the grace of God, something happened and I ran away to teach in Siberia for a winter. I figured the cubicles would not all evaporate while I was out of the country. I was 56 I think.

Guess what? I learned that I did not need as much as I thought I did. You need some, but not that much. The point is...."Don't dream it, be it!"

Now I am back for a few months rebuilding the grub stake. I plan to go on like this until I am too sick to get back on the plane. So how much would renting out the condo throw off a month?

[Mchristophermsw]

MDK,

Oops, I forgot to mention, I got divorced and I gave it to her free and clear back in 99. STUPID, STUPID, STUPID!!!!

But you and learn.....and actually, at that point in my life, the condo without her ment nothing to me, too bad she didnt feel the same way LOL

[mdk]

You know, it's funny. My ex and I used to talk about being ESL teachers after we retired. The thing is, I realize that she would have been totally miserable overseas. That lady could smell a Nordstroms a half mile upwind. So it's odd how things work out. Someday I am going to write a book entitled, " I married a psychiatric nurse!"

On the other hand California being a community property state means that I get 3 years worth of her San Diego county pension deposited monthly. So is it better to be happily married or happily teaching in Spain?

The point remains if you have enough investment to throw off about a grand a month, teaching overseas will be a lot easier. If you want to teach ESL, once you reach that point, well, you aren't getting any younger.

Good luck

[Mchristophermsw]

MDK,

I agree, do it now if possible......this is what I would tell most people if they have their finances at least in some type of order....

Right now, I really LOVE what I am doing. I was abused as a child and now I am a Child Abuse Investigator/Forensic Social Worker.

The work is very purposeful and fullfilling. While I do bring kids into custody for protection I am also able to help families stay intact and I get to bring sicko's that hurt children to justice ...

There is a high burn out rate at this job but if I take care myself I have a few quality years left. When the passion is no longer there I will get out and then go teach overseas. I have lived overseas in the West Indies and Asia in the past and felt alive so it will be a good fit.

I am surprised you have not consider being a travel nurse? I hear they make real good money and have short assignments--If I was a RN, it would be Emergency Room for me

[mdk]

A travel nurse job would still end up in the USA. I like to go overseas.

In a way, this job is a travel nurse job. The DON asked me whether I was a night nurse or a day nurse. I told her I was a get the money together and go back to europe nurse. She agreed to that.

So, do they still do family reunification as first priority down there at CPS? It used to drive me nuts watching the court put kids back into some of those monsters hands.