[OldRich]

I made the biggest decision of my life yesterday. I've decided to just stop thinking, stop regretting and will just pack my bags and go. I've spend way too long waiting for the perfect time to leave and there is always something that is holding me back, be it responsibility to the family, getting sick or business opportunities.

I've realize the only way that I'll be able to live my life the way I wanted is to just act now, be a little selfish and just dive in head first.

I plan to leave in 5 months and this is the goals I must meet. Mainly I need to raise my monthly income by about 2k/month to support my family at home. I really only have a budget of around $500/month max for the first few months until I bring my income up to comfortable range.

-raise my monthly income to 5k/month through my Internet business
-sell most of my valuable items
-buying whatever I need such as laptop, travel gears etc...
-taking care of all the logistics at home so the family can function while I'm away
-set the business on automation so that it runs while I adjust to living abroad

While doing all this is a huge challenge in itself since I have never left the country, there is so much to do-I don't even know where to start but I'm confident I can do it.

The country in question that I want to go to is Thailand, I've heard so much rave about this country and how awesome it is. It just seems like a logical location to set it as my home-base while I explore neighboring countries. Here are my questions.

Can I live on $400+/month with everything included comfortably? I've done a bit of research about Chiang Mai and it seems that people are able to get by with this budget. Granted it's not exactly living like a king but I'm not asking for much, just being away on my own is enough.

$150 - rent and utilities
$100 - food
$50 - MISC
$100 - Night outs

Where can I find the cheapest flight?

How do I go about finding a cheap place to rent on a monthly basis? I checked at a few listing online and they are pretty expensive. I assumed to get the cheap rent you have to be on the ground. Should I just walk around the city randomly and look for vacant sign?

Any advice is appreciated!

[LoveBug]

400-500 dollars a month? US? Never been to Thailand but that sounds inexpensive, although I have read of some people doing it

Anyways, good luck on your trip and congrats for taking the steps to live out your dreams

[cherico88]

Congratulations on your move. This guy JC on You Tube seems to have Chiang Mai dialed in. He's a retired American that speaks Thai and runs a "Living in Thailand" website. He lives in Chiang Mai and has lots of videos on renting apartments and cost of living. Nice rentals are unbelievably cheap if you take your time and look.

http://youtu.be/txoJzTYd4DU

[WanderingSoul]

I spent 3 months there and you COULD live there on that, but it won't be fun. I absolutley would not do that. No way you will only spend $100 on food. A cheap Thai meal is $1. Eating 3 of those a day for an entire month will put you at your budget, and you will be damn near starving.

Isaan is cheaper than Chiang Mai. You could live there a bit cheaper, but still wouldn't want to do that on $400 a month. I think 7-800 is the minimum I could do it on and still have a little bit of fun. If you are extra frugel type person, maybe $600 would be ok.

[Wayout]

OP...you don't sound like you are ready! Your numbers are way off! You need about 1k/month to live comfortable there. You'll be tempted to spend money on girls, things, food there.
Where do you find a cheap flight? Are you serious? Try Kayak maybe?
Good thing about Thailand is that you can teach English and support yourself that way.

[OldRich]

cherico88 - I actually checked out his videos before making this thread. I know it's possible but I wanted to know how comfortable will $400-500 get you. He has a lot of other great info too. Thanks for the link anyway!

Wayout - I appreciate the advice but no need to be condescending. I read there some trick to find cheap flights that does a little detour or promotions if you leave on certain dates so I hoped to find something like that. Again, I'm new to all this.

I'm actually extremely frugal. At one time in my life, I lived in NYC for $800/month for a year. It wasn't pretty but I was comfortable enough. If I can manage it in NYC, I should be able to manage it in Thailand. The main reason for me moving to Thailand is just a change of scenery, I'm not looking to live it up so to speak (not yet).

When I was training, my diet consist of the same thing everyday and I was able to do that for an entire year so eating the same thing everyday is not a problem. Also my focus will be on making money and network with other entrepreneur. If I wanted to game girls and party, I'd probably go to BBK.

I'm not completely set on the budget though, it's more of a guideline for me.

[TheBulldozer]

Chiang Mai is so fantastic that you'd be doing your lifestyle harm by living on that. Seriously, Thailand is cheap, but not that cheap. You'd be living well away from the gate, or in an unspeakable shithole by western standards for that money and be eating rice for months at a time. Another year of saving will make life exponentially better when you arrive in CM.

I'm not sure of the angle of living a dull life in a foreign country. Most move abroad to live a life previously unattainable within the western world, and this is absolutely attainable in CM.

Living in Chiang Mai, as amazing as it is, seems like a serious downgrade living in threadbare conditions.

That extra 6 months living in the western world could do your lifestyle a world of good.

[IainMuirs]

I doubt you can live there for $500 a month, that's extremely low. I spend around $2400 a month when I'm there and I don't exactly live like a king, not a pauper either though.

I'd get some more money in the bank and do it properly, if you aren't able to enjoy it then what is the point? You talk about having family back home you have to care for etc, what are we talking about here as in a wife and kids?

[OldRich]

(09-17-2012 10:32 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

Chiang Mai is so fantastic that you'd be doing your lifestyle harm by living on that. Seriously, Thailand is cheap, but not that cheap. You'd be living well away from the gate, or in an unspeakable shithole by western standards for that money and be eating rice for months at a time. Another year of saving will make life exponentially better when you arrive in CM.

I'm not sure of the angle of living a dull life in a foreign country. Most move abroad to live a life previously unattainable within the western world, and this is absolutely attainable in CM.

Living in Chiang Mai, as amazing as it is, seems like a serious downgrade living in threadbare conditions.

That extra 6 months living in the western world could do your lifestyle a world of good.

People move abroad for different reasons, I'm not moving to Thailand for a vacation. I'm moving as a form therapy to my extremely stressful life right now. Being young (relatively) and having to take care of a family of 5 is not easy to say the least. Think of a bird stuck in a cage. I really could care less if I have to eat rice every day (I do that anyway) or live in a dingy apt.

[OldRich]

(09-17-2012 10:39 PM)IainMuirs Wrote:  

I doubt you can live there for $500 a month, that's extremely low. I spend around $2400 a month when I'm there and I don't exactly live like a king, not a pauper either though.

I'd get some more money in the bank and do it properly, if you aren't able to enjoy it then what is the point? You talk about having family back home you have to care for etc, what are we talking about here as in a wife and kids?

Nop, just being an older brother. My parent don't work and the siblings are still in school.

What exactly are you spending on with $2400?

[TheBulldozer]

(09-17-2012 11:28 PM)OldRich Wrote:  

(09-17-2012 10:32 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

Chiang Mai is so fantastic that you'd be doing your lifestyle harm by living on that. Seriously, Thailand is cheap, but not that cheap. You'd be living well away from the gate, or in an unspeakable shithole by western standards for that money and be eating rice for months at a time. Another year of saving will make life exponentially better when you arrive in CM.

I'm not sure of the angle of living a dull life in a foreign country. Most move abroad to live a life previously unattainable within the western world, and this is absolutely attainable in CM.

Living in Chiang Mai, as amazing as it is, seems like a serious downgrade living in threadbare conditions.

That extra 6 months living in the western world could do your lifestyle a world of good.

People move abroad for different reasons, I'm not moving to Thailand for a vacation. I'm moving as a form therapy to my extremely stressful life right now. Being young (relatively) and having to take care of a family of 5 is not easy to say the least. Think of a bird stuck in a cage. I really could care less if I have to eat rice every day (I do that anyway) or live in a dingy apt.

Have you been to CM? I'm lookin' out for you brotha'. I worry that the reality sometimes portrayed of Thailand misses the reality, especially in terms of cost.

Yes, things are cheap, but when vice surrounds you every second of every day and you are primed to take advantage, it can and will add up.

[OldRich]

(09-17-2012 11:39 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

(09-17-2012 11:28 PM)OldRich Wrote:  

(09-17-2012 10:32 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

Chiang Mai is so fantastic that you'd be doing your lifestyle harm by living on that. Seriously, Thailand is cheap, but not that cheap. You'd be living well away from the gate, or in an unspeakable shithole by western standards for that money and be eating rice for months at a time. Another year of saving will make life exponentially better when you arrive in CM.

I'm not sure of the angle of living a dull life in a foreign country. Most move abroad to live a life previously unattainable within the western world, and this is absolutely attainable in CM.

Living in Chiang Mai, as amazing as it is, seems like a serious downgrade living in threadbare conditions.

That extra 6 months living in the western world could do your lifestyle a world of good.

People move abroad for different reasons, I'm not moving to Thailand for a vacation. I'm moving as a form therapy to my extremely stressful life right now. Being young (relatively) and having to take care of a family of 5 is not easy to say the least. Think of a bird stuck in a cage. I really could care less if I have to eat rice every day (I do that anyway) or live in a dingy apt.

Have you been to CM? I'm lookin' out for you brotha'. I worry that the reality sometimes portrayed of Thailand misses the reality, especially in terms of cost.

Yes, things are cheap, but when vice surrounds you every second of every day and you are primed to take advantage, it can and will add up.

I've never been outside of North America :/

Thanks dude. I definitely agree there are many uncertainties but it's being scared of those uncertainties that has kept me in a rut for years. If things don't turn out the way I thought it would, at least it'll be an adventure trying to figure out how to adapt.

[WanderingSoul]

Are you a native English speaker with a college degree? My old roommate in CM made around 30-35,000 baht a month teaching English and lived on that fine. If you live just a 5 minute motorbike ride away from the gates you can get a decent little place for 4,000 baht or so. The place he moved into was right by his school and decent enough from what he said. My friend had a little 2 bedroom house in a Thai community, about 5 minutes motorbike from the train station, for under 5,000 a month.

[lavidaloca]

$500 a month is like what 16 dollars a day. You'd be living like a peasant compared to what your accustomed to. Also going from 500-5000 a month with any type of business is not as easy as it sounds. You're attempting to multiply your income by 10. It's a lot easier to go 5000-10000 than it is to go from 500-5000. Goodluck with your goals but it seems as though you have nowhere near enough savings if that's what your planning to live on. Perhaps consider teaching or doing some work when you're there to provide you with additional steady income that would allow you to make ends meet and enhance your lifestyle. Right now you're planning to spend only $6,000 a year. I spend atleast half that a month when travelling. I can't imagine living on 500 or even 1000 a month but it depends what your accustomed to. If OP has lived in the slums in a US city before maybe what he finds comfortable will be different than what I'd find comfortable..

I have to say I'm curious how this work outs for you. Keep us updated, I hope it does work out and you have a great time and success with your business.

[RawGod]

I say go for it. A few years ago I just decided to move overseas and I did so within a couple of months.

You might have to revise your budget or timetable a little. But the idea is good.

I understand being at a point where even living in a cheap ass room in Thailand and eating rice every day will be better than your current life. And some people just don't care as much about living in a nice condo and being able to live a certain lifestyle. $2400 a month is Thailand is nice, but absolutely not necessary.

Have you seen http://www.cedonulli.com? This guy just doesn't give a fuck, lives in Cambodia on peanuts, and is having a great time. It helps that he's crazy, I guess.

[OldRich]

(09-18-2012 12:00 AM)RioNomad Wrote:  

Are you a native English speaker with a college degree? My old roommate in CM made around 30-35,000 baht a month teaching English and lived on that fine. If you live just a 5 minute motorbike ride away from the gates you can get a decent little place for 4,000 baht or so. The place he moved into was right by his school and decent enough from what he said. My friend had a little 2 bedroom house in a Thai community, about 5 minutes motorbike from the train station, for under 5,000 a month.

I'm not a native English speaker and I dropped out of college to run my Internet business. I don't really have an interest in becoming an English teacher, not that I'm qualified to anyway.

Making money isn't the issue, it's just the amount of time I have to do it in. I'm doing around 3k/month now and I want to be able to do 5k/month in 5 month to relief some of the debts I have before I leave. Maybe I'll surprise myself and make more than expected. My budget will surely go up then.

I'm just using the $500 as a conservative number in case I fall short of my goals.

I totally expect to be able to find a place for around 4000 baht, but I'm having trouble finding something with that price online. I suspect this kind of price point is what the locals pay and you'll have to find a local to get this deal for you with the landlord. Any advice where I can find a local to help me find a place? perhaps the couch surfing community can help.

[WanderingSoul]

Couchsurfing may be able to help, or you can stay at a hostel run by Thai people and ask them for help. You could also try posting on the ThaiVisa.com forums.

[TheBulldozer]

CM is one of my favorite cities in the world. Without knowing you on a personal level, I want you to be as successful as possible.

I'm pretty adaptable to any situation and carry credentials that would find me gainfully employed within 72 hours in most parts of the world. With that said, I would still save between 7-10k in USD to prepare myself. You never know what you'll encounter, and what you'll need to deal with your first year there.

I've got a pretty wide scope of traveling, and one of the most useful assets I have is the 10k saved away to bail me from weird situations. Cash is king in the 3rd world, and there's not a second where I didn't regret that stash of money.

[OldRich]

lavidaloca - I sure will, I'll definitely write a datasheet when I'm here!

RawGod - Great blog! the wearing a suit is beta post had me in stitches

RioNomad - Thanks dude

MaleDefined - Thanks, normally I would agree but not this one. If things were to go wrong, I would happily accept the consequence. I want to stop being the guy that regret on the things he didn't do.

Honestly, I could just go right now and not wait 5 more months. If I want 10k, I can get 10k with my credits. I won't be out of debts any time soon. Whatever I make, I can just put it into paying off debt but where does that leave me with living my life? Just thinking about being 40 years old and still have not lived his life scares me.

[bface]

Yeah your numbers are off.

My expenses were like this on average:

220$ serviced apartment (with electricity+water calculated in)
300$ food and random expenses
300$ muay thai

I did only drink little and did not rent a bike, those two things can add quite a bit to the budget.

500$ can be done, but not if you spend 100$ on going out.

[the_conductor]

I'd agree with the others on having cash to fall back on, but if you want to do it, do it. But if I had $400/month to live on, I'd totally forget about alcohol and nights out and girls. Divert that $100 you partitioned into living expenses. Wait till you have at least 600-700 to even consider partying.

A Thai salaryman fresh out of college can get $400 - $600, depending on his degree and institution; factory workers typically $250 - $300 per month, tradesmen $300 - 400. Note that they all typically live with parents or roommates at this point. So it is doable - depends on perspective and what kind of lifestyle you can be comfortable with.

Are you prepared to

Live with other people?
Eat street food every day?
Have no nights out, movies, etc?
Not buy additional clothes, fancy shit?

Note that I've seen people on <$15 a day that seem genuinely happy though.

If not, your budget would be stretched further in Laos or in say, Korat.

[scotian]

(09-17-2012 10:32 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

Chiang Mai is so fantastic that you'd be doing your lifestyle harm by living on that. Seriously, Thailand is cheap, but not that cheap. You'd be living well away from the gate, or in an unspeakable shithole by western standards for that money and be eating rice for months at a time. Another year of saving will make life exponentially better when you arrive in CM.

I'm not sure of the angle of living a dull life in a foreign country. Most move abroad to live a life previously unattainable within the western world, and this is absolutely attainable in CM.

Living in Chiang Mai, as amazing as it is, seems like a serious downgrade living in threadbare conditions.

That extra 6 months living in the western world could do your lifestyle a world of good.

Can you elaborate on why you prefer Chiang Mai to other cities in Thailand? I'm fairly certain I'll be over in Thailand sometime later this year and am still undecided as to where I'm going to set up shop for my 2-3 month trip.

[TheBulldozer]

(09-18-2012 03:42 AM)scotian Wrote:  

(09-17-2012 10:32 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

Chiang Mai is so fantastic that you'd be doing your lifestyle harm by living on that. Seriously, Thailand is cheap, but not that cheap. You'd be living well away from the gate, or in an unspeakable shithole by western standards for that money and be eating rice for months at a time. Another year of saving will make life exponentially better when you arrive in CM.

I'm not sure of the angle of living a dull life in a foreign country. Most move abroad to live a life previously unattainable within the western world, and this is absolutely attainable in CM.

Living in Chiang Mai, as amazing as it is, seems like a serious downgrade living in threadbare conditions.

That extra 6 months living in the western world could do your lifestyle a world of good.

Can you elaborate on why you prefer Chiang Mai to other cities in Thailand? I'm fairly certain I'll be over in Thailand sometime later this year and am still undecided as to where I'm going to set up shop for my 2-3 month trip.

I really liked CM in the sense that it oftentimes would feel like a small city to me. The people were over the top friendly, especially once you became a 'regular' at a shop or restaurant. It was cheaper than Bangkok as well.

The nightlife is decent, but I could see it getting a bit boring as the options are limited. However, I'm probably not the best person to ask about the nightlife as I didn't explore student bars apparently located on the Western side(I think?) of the gate.

The food is excellent and very diversified. I would go to the market located toward the south end of the gate, (I think? I don't remember the name of the market) and have a hodgepodge of 'that looks good' and get out of there with 100 bhat less and a full belly.

Getting out of CM is very easy as well. Air Asia flies out of CM direct to many locations throughout SEA and the airport is very near to the center of the city. A night of heavy drinking meant I woke up to a mess of a hotel room and a flight that was leaving in an hour and 10 minutes. I was able to stuff my shit in my bag, get to the airport, go through security and make my flight with time to spare.

Overall, I enjoyed the 'feel' of CM as much as any city I've ever visited.

[scotian]

MaleDefined, whats the visa situation in Thailand? I see that I can go there for 30 days then would have to leave the country to get a new one, is CM better situated than a southern city for a quick run to Laos by plane?

I can apply for a 2 month tourist visa at a local consulate in my city, but I won't be there (in my city) for almost a month, can this visa be obtained within 2 weeks once I get down there? I'm looking at going to Thailand in early November and want to have all this visa shit figured out, I'll go on visa runs if I have to but would rather not.

[IainMuirs]

Quote:

What exactly are you spending on with $2400?

Accommodation, food, internet, beer, taxis, club entrance, dates. It adds up. I didn't feel like I was living the high life at all but I do drink a lot and even though beer is cheap that adds up.

While I would recommend getting some more cash together first I think if you really want to go you should make it happen regardless of the budget, better to have had the experience than never experienced it at all. Best of luck!