#geo-arbitrage

3 articles

Retire 7 Years Earlier in Lisbon: the FIRE-Abroad Math

$1.95M for US retirement vs $1.0M for Lisbon. Same lifestyle, half the savings target. The COL × healthcare double-discount that makes 'retire abroad' the highest-leverage FIRE move tech workers don't take.

Your Company Wants -15% to Move Remote: the Break-Even Math (It's 35%)

Companies offer 10-25% pay cuts on relocation, but break-even on a typical SF→Austin move is closer to 35-40%. The gap between 'company offer' and 'true break-even' is your savings rate boost. Math, scenarios, and the negotiation lever most engineers miss.

$200K SF to Austin: $36K/Year Savings Boost, $510K Over 10 Years

We ran the cost-of-living math for the typical SF tech worker considering Austin. The savings rate jumps from 25% to 38%. The 10-year wealth gap is $510K. The honesty correction: real moves usually capture 70-80% of theoretical savings, not 100%.