"Heidi Dezell, 57, worked in sales for education-technology companies for almost two decades before she was laid off from her job in Seattle four years ago.
"I was an older woman and I couldn't get hired," she says. "I always wanted to travel the world, write and take photographs. I thought why not take 10 years and go? If I run out of money and I'm not a famous writer, I'll come back and be a Starbucks barista or a Walmart greeter."
Ms. Dezell, divorced with two millennial children, rented out her house in Seattle, put her possessions in storage, and traveled to 12 countries in 10 months, including Mongolia and South Korea.
After the pandemic struck, she decided to settle in Europe.
She read that Portugal was the easiest country in Europe to get a resident visa. At the time, Portugal's popular D7 visa, known as the passive income or retirement visa, was suspended due to Covid. But she got a student visa to study Portuguese at University of Coimbra.
She flew to Porto, in northern Portugal, in September 2020, but in trying to manage her four heavy suitcases, she dropped one on her foot, breaking her toe. "I was an emotional basket case," she recalls. A team of passengers put her in a taxi and the driver took her to a hospital, then to ATMs and then to a hotel, charging only about $55, after four hours. Her new landlord drove an hour and a half from Coimbra to pick her up and carried her heavy bags up four flights of stairs.
"Part of me just thought, I'm home," she says. "Everyone I met on my very first day personified my idea of making the world a better place."
She studied Portuguese online during lockdowns before moving to Sintra, a picturesque town with old castles, palaces and scenic beaches, just outside Lisbon. She found a two-bedroom apartment in a 250-year-old building for about $980 a month, and obtained a resident permit in September.
She's now planning to become a Portuguese citizen, saying, "I think Portugal will always be my home base."
Plenty of other Americans are making Portugal their home base. The number of U.S. residents in Portugal climbed by 45% last year to 6,921 and has almost tripled in the past decade. Many are drawn by a low cost of living, healthcare, a sunny climate, tax incentives and because Portugal's resident visa requires less income than many other countries in Europe.
"Americans have been pouring into Portugal for the past three years or so," says Louise Hudson, co-author of "A Worldwide Guide to Retirement Destinations." After writing the book, Ms. Hudson and co-author Simon Hudson, her husband, formerly based in South Carolina, decided to retire in Portugal themselves. In 2014, they bought a four-bedroom villa with a pool and sea view in Praia da Luz on the Algarve coast for about $230,000. Ms. Hudson estimates their home's value has more than doubled.
So many foreigners are buying property in Lisbon, Porto and coastal areas, that in January the Portuguese government took steps to protect locals and encourage more foreign investment inland -- by cutting those popular destinations from its Portugal Golden Visa program. That visa offers foreigners a path to residency and citizenship in five years in exchange for various types of investments including property.
While the national healthcare system is available to expat residents, and essentially free, many buy private health insurance for better access to doctors. Premiums range from about $55 to $360 a month, according to Serenity-Portugal, a service helping foreigners navigate the healthcare system.
"Insurance in Portugal is much cheaper than in the U.S.," says Michael Averbukh, an Israeli doctor who founded Serenity. He cautions that most private plans don't cover pre-existing conditions. "You have to be aware of what you're getting. We strongly suggest having the appropriate private health insurance."
The cost of living in Portugal varies, but consumer prices with rent are about 40% lower than in the U.S., according to Numbeo, an online database.
Another incentive encouraging the influx of foreigners is the Non-Habitual Resident program (NHR), allowing some foreign residents to apply for low tax rates and exemptions for a 10-year period. American expat residents are still required to file U.S. tax returns, but they can't be double-taxed under a tax treaty. Global Citizen Solutions, an international consulting firm, offers a guide to the NHR program on its website. James Cave, author of "Moving to Portugal Made Simple," has a useful website, too." [1]
1. Encore (A Special Report) --- Portugal Is a Hot Spot for Retirees. What's It Like? Americans are flocking to the country, drawn by a low cost of living, healthcare, a sunny climate and tax incentives
Hughes, Kathleen.
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 18 Apr 2022: R.9.
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