Have you ever dreamed of living abroad, or retiring in Europe? It might not be as complicated as you think.
Juliet Huddy, travel vlogger and curator at Jet Set Juliet, is taking the leap herself soon with a move from South Carolina to the Netherlands. She joined the WBBM Noon Business Hour this week to discuss her plans and provide tips for others interested in the expat lifestyle.
“I think a lot of people are also just realizing you can live pretty nicely over in certain parts of Europe – not necessarily where I’m going, unfortunately – but there are a lot of areas in Europe, I mean beautiful places in Italy and in France where you can get a beautiful property with lots and lots of space, you know, and a building that dates back to the 1700s, 1800s,” Huddy said.
While The Hague, where Huddy is moving, isn’t necessarily one of the most cost-friendly areas of Europe for Americans to settle down in, it does have one big benefit.
“The Dutch American friendship treaty visa and allows people to move over there… people like me who are entrepreneurs,” Huddy explained. “I’m just going to move my business over there, and then my husband can move over immediately. We get temporary residency and in five years we… we can get permanent residency and then we can kind of move all over the if we want.”
She also noted that travel between countries is easier in Europe and that there is a different focus on quality of life.
“I think that that’s definitely something that’s been driving people,” said Huddy. “And now that there’s social media, you’re seeing a lot more people doing it, so it’s enticing a lot people.”
For others thinking about making a leap across the pond, Huddy recommends considering conversion rates and visas first. She also said they should expect a few challenges as they settle in, such as renting a home and moving over pets.
“You have to remember that it’s going to cost you money to get over there,” Huddy said. “And the biggest thing is that we’re dealing with euros… you know, if we say… we’ve got $100,000 dollars saved, it ain’t $100,000 when we go over there, so that’s really a big thing that you have keep in mind.”
