[frugalgirl]

Some people move to other countries just so they can retire sooner and live better. That's too drastic for me. I want to stay in the United States! Beyond that, I'm still deciding what kind of tradeoffs I'm willing to make in order to retire.

How does everyone else feel? Would you downsize from a house to a studio apartment, or forget about vacations if it meant retiring sooner, or being able to retire at all?

[SarahSays]

There was a book that came out a few years ago called Your Money or Your Life. I haven't read it, but I think it's basically about this kind of tradeoff. My time is more important to me than things. I want a nice, clean, and safe place to live. But I've lived in tiny apartments before and they suited me fine. I would downsize before I would work myself to death.

[Mary]

I would work until I was tired of working if it helped me enjoy the lifestyle I wanted. But once I wanted to retire I would have no problem with downsizing or making changes so I could affords to retire.

[CheapChica]

I would find a way to increase my income without doing actual physical labor. There are too many opportunities now to increase your income online and offline. I think this is the best method to maintain your lifestyle in retirement without moving to another country.

[abbys2cents]

That's a good point about online income. As people age, they can't always keep going with jobs that are physically demanding. There are many types of work, with or without a computer, that are more suited to us as we get older. In the meantime, it always helps to save whatever you can toward retirement so you have more choices.

[R. Paradon]

HI! I am one of those people who decided to live in a foreign country and it is one of the best decisions I have ever made. People may call Thailand a third world country but in reality it can be as modern as the States or if you like a simple life it can be very quiet in the farm communities with less amenities. I have downsized to a single apartment and I really find it convenient compared to taking care of large home in the States.

There are of course, some adjustments to living in a foreign country but every morning I wake up with a smile...and that is worth any small irritation I may have.

[MakingCents]

At this point in my life I don't think I would want to change my lifestyle just so that I could retire early. What would be the point of retiring if you couldn't enjoy the lifestyle you were retiring into? I personally would work a little bit longer so that I could comfortably retire.