[poledaddy]

I recently negotiated a remote work agreement with my corporate employer. I'm racking my brain because now I finally have the opportunity to live a semi-nomadic lifestyle, which is something that has always been outside my reality. To achieve this freedom unexpectedly is a bit of a shock, I almost don't know what to do with it.

The only restriction with my employment now are:
1) I need to be mostly available during east coast business hours via phone and email. They indicated some flexibility there if I'm on west coast time they wouldn't ask me to wake up at 6am, but for the most part I need to be available when the office is open, 9am-5pm EST.
2) I need to fly back to Maryland once per month to work on-site for a few days, at least at first. They pay that tab.

I wasn't expecting this at all. It came about as a counter-offer to a job I had secured in Arizona. Originally, I was just trying to get the hell out of Maryland to set up shop in Arizona where I have some friends, and there is better weather and quality of girls.

But now I'm thinking of just taking a year and trying 60-90 days in a few different cities - LA, Phoenix, Vegas, Austin, Montreal, etc. Hell maybe even get down to Columbia, Peru, Brazil, especially if I can space out the visits back to Maryland longer than a month. The only tough places I can see would be Asia/Europe due to the time zone difference.

I wanted to reach out to the location-independent veterans on here about what resources to seek out and how to get started as a LI newbie.

What's your guys take/advice for me? So basically should I avoid buying a car, sell most of my shit, and figure out how to live out of a suitcase (or two)? Could I get by with something like ZipCar, Uber, etc in places like Phoenix that don't have good public transportation/are spread out - without taking a huge financial hit? What is the best method to find fully furnished short term stocked with kitchens, furniture, etc - AirBnB?

Any resources/websites/books you think you would help me please let me know. I've already read 4HWW obviously but that's more of a primer than actual guidance and I know the game has changed a bit since that came out.

[Safado]

It kind of seems like a waste to have location independence and then move to another US city. I've been to all the places you mentioned, except Maryland, and I just don't see the appeal of living in the US.

You'll be challenged more when you go to South America but you'll feel more alive. Right now you're so far plugged into the Matrix that you really have no idea what is out there waiting for you. The lifestyle you can have living in South America is going to make you a better man in ways that Austin and Vegas could never dream of.

For South America you'll want to tap into the digital nomad, location independent, permanent traveler, whatever you want to call it circles that exist in each of the cities you go to. There usually some blogger who has broken down the situation and tells you what the lowdown is in each place.

Since work is the priority for you, you'll want to stick to places that have good internet. Colombia would be the safest bet for you, and when you get there you can ask guys you meet what they think of other places.

Carry as little as you can. Try to fit everything in carry on. You'll enjoy the freedom that comes with being able to move around on a whim and the freedom from the mental clutter of having so much junk.

It's been stressed time and time again that logistics is everything. When you move to these places, pay a bit more so that you can be in the center of the city. try to move to an apartment that has everything you need within walking distance.

[Travesty]

Go to South America, learn Spanish.

Fuck Arizona.

You can always come back to U.S. when you get tired, or your options are taken away from you.

Enjoy it as long as it lasts.

[rudebwoy]

Well done, the question I have is where are you going to stay when you come back to Maryland.

[Alpha_Romeo]

How about Montreal?

The key to living the nomad lifestyle is one of minimalism. Getting rid of unnecessary crap and keeping it that way. The more stuff you have, the more hassle it is to relocate it.

Also, consider cities with either good public transport or that are walker-friendly/cycle-friendly. That way you can do without the car, which will eat up expenses.

If your company is footing the bill for your flights back to HQ, get a good mileage card.

[poledaddy]

Where I'll stay in Maryland- my parents house. It's a commutable to the home office. So my company only has to pay flight + rental car, which is another selling point I used.

I hear you guys on skipping the US cities and just going straight to international. It's tempting, but the story I told my company I wanted to go to Arizona because I always wanted to try living out west, and had accepted a job there. If I walk in tomorrow and say well I've changed my mind, now I want to live in Medellin, they are going to go "WTF is wrong with this guy?". I'm of the mind that I want to avoid scaring the cat on this one and prove that remote work is going to be mutually beneficial before I start pushing the envelope. My goal is to get them to bush the monthly on-site visit, to at least bi-monthly before I make the jump to total international living.

If I think I can peace out of the US right off the bat though that doesn't scare the cat, I'll do it. One question on that - as far as my office phone line - I have an work iPhone, which my company pays for voice and data, but I'm sure isn't an international plan. So I'll have to figure that out if I go international. What is the most reliable internet phone service out there so that people in the office could get in touch with me just as easy as they would in the USA? Appreciate any thoughts you guys have on that.

[poledaddy]

Another thing I'm trying to figure out is state/local tax issues. They are assuming I will switch my address to Maryland and pay Arizona tax. But doing the 60-90 day thing, whether or USA or abroad? Curious to hear how other guys have done it who have a US employer....

[presidentcarter]

(11-22-2014 04:04 PM)Alpha_Romeo Wrote:  

How about Montreal?

The key to living the nomad lifestyle is one of minimalism. Getting rid of unnecessary crap and keeping it that way. The more stuff you have, the more hassle it is to relocate it.

Also, consider cities with either good public transport or that are walker-friendly/cycle-friendly. That way you can do without the car, which will eat up expenses.

If your company is footing the bill for your flights back to HQ, get a good mileage card.

This is key. If you can't pack in 20 minutes and fit it in a couple suitcases that you can carry or roll yourself, I don't think you're really location independent...you're chained to your stuff wherever you are.

It's crazy really, I have only clothes, a few coats, shoes, bathroom stuff, and some electronics, and yet I stuff two suitcases full. It tends to swell when it goes into a bag so it's easy to underestimate how much crap you actually have.

I think if you just get whatsapp and viber, the phone won't be an issue.

[The_CEO]

One thing to bear in mind if you do the one year in diff. cities, there are some restrictions in some cities as to how long you can rent an Airbnb place before you become a tenant (in some it's less than 30 days). My point is that it can be hard to find long term Airbnb places because of this.
The multi city thing would be interesting but you need have a tolerance for the hassles of looking for, securing, and moving to new accommodations. If budget isn't an issue for you then it won't be a big deal (e.g. spending 3k/month or more on a furnished studio).

Since you need to report to Maryland physically once a month, then you should also take into a account the flight/travel time from wherever your destination may be (such as S. America). Europe might be a quicker flight.

Like the other guys have said, travel light. Don't acquire things that you can't pack or wouldn't leave behind.

[poledaddy]

^ Yeah I'm going to do a major purge. I don't have a ton of stuff by most standards. Clothes, and some kitchen appliances.

Looks like I can get a fully furnished 1 bedroom short term rental in Scottsdale for around $1400. Hopefully they'd negotiate if I agreed to 3 months or something like that. The car part will be difficult in Phoenix since there's nothing in the way of public trans.

I have a month before my lease in Baltimore ends. You guys got me really motivated to try to get out of the US entirely. I'm going to poke around more and see how flexible my employer is with this by asking indirectly and gauging their response. If I could make the jump straight to S.A. That would be sick making my US salary living in SA.

I'm anticipating one point of resistance will be additional air fare that would be required to get me back and forth for the on-site meetings. Maybe I could agree to pay whatever it took to get me to Miami, and they'd pick up the rest. I'd do that in a second for the ability to travel, especially with the lower COL...just need to think through how to approach the whole idea.

[berserk]

The best way to solve the accommodation issue is to have a solid buffer of about 3 months rent in advance, then use it for deposits and advance payments. A lot of landlords are willing to negate on their 12 month (6 month) minimum if you pay them several months in advance. If you're staying somewhere for 3 months, pay them all 3 in advance and leave one month deposit. That will get you talking with a lot of landlords, who might charge a premium. The problem without that money is that you will be limited to AirBNB, where most as mentioned are not willing to rent monthly, or to serviced apartments where you will pay a significant premium.

[presidentcarter]

(11-22-2014 08:31 PM)poledaddy Wrote:  

^ Yeah I'm going to do a major purge. I don't have a ton of stuff by most standards. Clothes, and some kitchen appliances.

Looks like I can get a fully furnished 1 bedroom short term rental in Scottsdale for around $1400. Hopefully they'd negotiate if I agreed to 3 months or something like that. The car part will be difficult in Phoenix since there's nothing in the way of public trans.

I have a month before my lease in Baltimore ends. You guys got me really motivated to try to get out of the US entirely. I'm going to poke around more and see how flexible my employer is with this by asking indirectly and gauging their response. If I could make the jump straight to S.A. That would be sick making my US salary living in SA.

I'm anticipating one point of resistance will be additional air fare that would be required to get me back and forth for the on-site meetings. Maybe I could agree to pay whatever it took to get me to Miami, and they'd pick up the rest. I'd do that in a second for the ability to travel, especially with the lower COL...just need to think through how to approach the whole idea.

I think if you show your cards and hint that you want to live abroad, it'll do a lot of damage. They'll see it as you having one foot out the door. Take it from me, when employers hear about your plans to move out of the country, not just a vacation, they will start to question your commitment, future availability, and overall sanity.

[Vacancier Permanent]

Congrats man on getting a remote agreement.
Here's what I'd do:

Stay in the US for the first 3 months and show them you can do the job as good if not better than if you were in the office. Then after that, having proven that location is no concern to the quality of your work, renegotiate it to being anywhere in the world. Start with places with the same time zone as the Eastern US coast.

Colombia would be dope. So will be Brazil but it would be more expensive by a long shot versus say Colombia. However, the fun factor in Brazil will be off the chart!

Don't disregard Europe since the time difference it is not that big deal. 9-5 EST is 1-11pm Western European time. Would leave you the mornings for you.

In summary, if you are keen on keeping your job, go step by step. Show that you can do the job as good if not better from the West coast. Then once that's done, do it from say SA or Europe.

Regarding airfare, after you've demonstrated you can do the job from anywhere within the U.S., negotiate with them that say they'd cover up to 800 for airfare and you'd cover the difference. This will show them that you are willing to make some concessions and will show that you're committed.

For a phone number where people/work can call you from overseas while having a US number, get a Google voice number and you'd be set.

I'd recommend during that time working remotely, that you start building an online biz based on your existence skills. Make it count man!

Keep us posted man!

[Marmite]

I think that the easiest way to gauge their response to your living outside the country would be to first establish yourself as being extremely reliable when working remotely, then say you'll be visiting family abroad for a little while. Prove that you can be extremely reliable during that time abroad and take it from there. So long as it isn't costing them any more to fly you back or to contact you abroad, and you can do the work you need then it shouldn't be an issue where you're based.

[WestIndianArchie]

(11-22-2014 04:46 PM)poledaddy Wrote:  

Another thing I'm trying to figure out is state/local tax issues. They are assuming I will switch my address to Maryland and pay Arizona tax. But doing the 60-90 day thing, whether or USA or abroad? Curious to hear how other guys have done it who have a US employer....

Your employer has a trained staff and lawyers to handle that.

Even if your company is not big enough to have it's own legal and accounting team, whoever they outsource payroll and taxes do.

This only becomes your issue if you start doing stuff on the side.

WIA

[poledaddy]

WIA - I definitely will be working on building up my side business. I don't want to get too comfortable with this at all. They could get bought out, have new people come in and change their mind. Having a corporate employer, no matter how you cut it, is a fragile position to be in. But I still want to maximize this opportunity while I have it as it's a giant leap forward from being stuck in Baltimore commuting to an office every day.

Hypothetical scenario I was thinking about at the gym today. Say I tell them I'm going to Miami instead of Phoenix. But instead of Miami, I go to Columbia (or wherever in SA). For the times they need me on-site, fly to Miami, and have them fly me from Miami to Maryland.

What's the worse that could happen there? The biggest issue I could see would be if they want to keep my on-site visits on a monthly basis - but they've indicated they are flexible on that. If I'm working remote and handling my shit, using Skype with a local number, etc- I don't see how they are going to even find out, or even care that much as long as I'm getting my work done...

[The_CEO]

^^^^^
And it wouldn't be that expensive to even rent a studio apt. N. of Miami if you actually want a physical base there between trips.
Which wouldn't be such a bad place to be anyway.

[Alpha_Romeo]

(11-23-2014 06:39 PM)poledaddy Wrote:  

What's the worse that could happen there? The biggest issue I could see would be if they want to keep my on-site visits on a monthly basis - but they've indicated they are flexible on that. If I'm working remote and handling my shit, using Skype with a local number, etc- I don't see how they are going to even find out, or even care that much as long as I'm getting my work done...

If you're accessing their computer network remotely, whatever IP address you're accessing the network from (ISP in Columbia, etc.) will be logged.

[VolandoVengoVolandoVoy]

If you really want to live like a nomad, you will need some animals and a yurt. The Mongolians keep it real.

[Alpha_Romeo]

Hey poledaddy,

Any updates? What did you end up doing?

[poledaddy]

There were no decent short term leases available in Scottsdale when I looked, because winter is when everybody is trying to come here (plus the superbowl and spring training). The cheapest stuff short term stuff was like $2000/month for a super tiny studio (when I called that $1400 place they were like - "oh sorry, those prices are not updated for our winter rates"). I ended up signing a lease for a nice 1 bedroom condo in south Scottsdale through October of this year, for $1K, the same price I was paying in Baltimore when I had a roommate.

Overall I'm fine with how it's worked out and sticking around here for a little bit longer. After going through the whole hassle of moving (I have an overdue datasheet on some of the stuff I learned), and spending a couple months here, I'm happy to put in 9 months and focus on building up my side business and enjoying the AZ lifestyle. If I ended up sticking around longer it won't be the worst thing. I love it here so far (talk to me again in July). The balance of low cost of living, outdoor activities, and hot women does it for me. If I wasn't a hiking/climbing junkie I would probably hit Miami, but it's incredible the amount of stuff here for someone like me that's really into outdoor shit. I could do NYC or LA if I wanted, but I wouldn't be able to save money like I can here, which is a top priority for me given my eventual goal of busting out of the US and I do need some capital for the business I'm looking at.

So my basic gameplan now is to enjoy Phoenix through October, and focus on getting my own business up and running, before I start seriously trying to push the envelope with my employer further. I've met some other entrepreneurs here in Phoenix that are successfully doing what I want to do and are actively advising/mentoring me as I get going, which is great.

I do great work at my day job - or else they never would have agreed to this in the first place. But no matter how good my numbers are, at the end of the day all it's going to take is some new C-level hire come in and see that I'm remote and say "fuck that we're outsourcing it" and I'm done. I was overly excited that I got this opportunity when I did the OP, but now I'm seeing things a little more methodically as far as how I want to get to where I want to be. Phoenix is not a bad place to be my "last stop" in the US and if I tried to do 90 days or whatever - it just wouldn't have been enough time.

[Brodiaga]

I would try to spend some time in Latin America because the time zone will be the same or very close. Maybe do some scouting trips for a few days to places like Cancun/Playa Del Carmen in Mexico, Sosua/Cabarete/Las Terenas in DR, etc. Or big cities like Mexico City or Santo Domingo if you prefer that. If you decide to move there, maybe you can negotiate with your employer to either pay for tickets from those places every month or give you a fixed amount and you'll pay the difference. Alternatively, you can ask them to fly you in from Miami and fly there from Latin America which should still be cheap.

[poledaddy]

(03-19-2015 08:22 PM)Brodiaga Wrote:  

I would try to spend some time in Latin America because the time zone will be the same or very close. Maybe do some scouting trips for a few days to places like Cancun/Playa Del Carmen in Mexico, Sosua/Cabarete/Las Terenas in DR, etc. Or big cities like Mexico City or Santo Domingo if you prefer that. If you decide to move there, maybe you can negotiate with your employer to either pay for tickets from those places every month or give you a fixed amount and you'll pay the difference. Alternatively, you can ask them to fly you in from Miami and fly there from Latin America which should still be cheap.

I definitely considered that - Latin America is a logical choice for working east coast business hours. It comes down to priorities and life goals. Without describing the specifics, I need to be in the United States while I get my business launched. For a variety of legal and logistical considerations. Once I get it going, travel will be totally fine. This is something I've always wanted but always put off - I don't want to make it any more difficult than it has to be.

As I get closer to October and my lease is over, I'll re-evaluate where I'm at but I think I want to have launching the business as the top priority.

[Deepdiver]

I am in the process of converting to Location Independent living... just waiting on my first Purchase Order from a major new client - I have found some great deals on priceline.com Also one option I am looking at is an income property 3 or 4 family or more in New England as a base with all tenants on direct deposit (and a resident manager at a discount rent to handle a small stuff - trash, yard work etc) so that I can do the multi flag multi country 90 day visa stay thing but still have a home base.

I would also consider living a more upscale lifestyle buy sharing a room in a retired persons home - not an invalid but someone who is looking for a house companion house sitter so that someone is in their home when they go travelling or visiting. Knew some folks in Honolulu when I worked there who did well basically paid to keep an eye on a beachfront property with a list of service providers to call in case of any maintenance issues or if someone dodgy drove up the driveway - to call 911 ... basically part time property manager house sitter - great way to live in very upscale space and often a separate living space on the property when owners in residence - have to be disciplined not to turn the property into a frat house as you will be blacklisted as a house sitter manager.

Bouncing around the world but still expected to make calls like you are next door quality wise - cell phone service can be spotty and most civilized places now have broadband internet (I would plug my PC into a Linksys router in Moscow and could talk to New England with near perfect sound quality) using a Vonage global phone plan and best of all you can have a primary number in your Employers City area code so all calls look like you are local and any calls to you are local calls not international long distance - the Vonage phone router has built in security and QOS (Voice over IP Quality of Service Protocol) so even on a sketchy ISP broadband you still sound great - much better than Skype which is peer to peer and can clip conversations in and out - can even use a wireless handset or headset with the vonage with mute etc ... so if you have to do business by Phone and want to globe trot multiple countries I would absolutely use vonage.

http://www.vonagebusiness.com

Vonage business offers a virtual receptionist, work from anywhere, Voicemail to Email, call forwarding etc.

Vonage International plans - several depending upon your needs https://phone.vonage.com/vonage-international.html

Also a new report on Nomad Capitalist dot com regarding the best international offshore banks for Americans - In Moscow I was amazed that Russians and Ukrainians love to carry a lot of cash but I would advise getting a good offshore bank with a prepaid Visa that can hold and convert to multiple currencies without the Corner money changers shop "vig" (loan shark level fees) Last thing you want is to have your $5k to $50K bug out bag cash stash swiped by corrupt police or customs etc.

Lastly I did some research on Sochi Russia and now that the $51 Billion Dollar Olympics build out over and Gold Rushers gone and Ruble at 60 to the USD - lots of great hotel deals there even small pensione type properties for $20 to $50+ a night including some new western 5 star properties (Yeah I was surprised too) and many Russian ladies more that willing to travel across Russia to Sochi on their dime (Russia's native Miami Beach) for a week or two to meet a Mysterious Nomad Businessman. Could be biz opps there marketing Sochi Post Olympic Tours for North Americans. Looks like lots of Olympic built modern hotel space available at bargain rates. A bit of US level IM skills, connect with reputable local tour operators - you mark them up and get first count of the money via paypal and you are good to go - basically lots of opps...

[username]

(11-22-2014 02:55 PM)poledaddy Wrote:  

Could I get by with something like ZipCar, Uber, etc in places like Phoenix that don't have good public transportation/are spread out - without taking a huge financial hit?

Phoenix metro is probably in the top 10 worst places in the United States to live in if you don't have a car.