I would recommend not buying a place in the US, but somewhere else. I sold my house in the States (my home country) after I left to teach internationally a second time, and invested the money from the sale with Vanguard instead. It was the best financial decision I ever made.

Six years later, for a fraction of what the US house cost, I bought a house in Southern Europe where I can go during school vacations and where I will retire. Not only was it much cheaper than anything comparable I could have found in the US, but the costs of maintaining it are so little I still can't get over it. No more paying county, local, and school taxes that added up into thousands of dollars every year when I wasn't even there, just because I owned the property. I now pay less than 100 euros in annual property taxes and 35 euros a month for a property manager to make sure there are no problems when I'm not there. I don't rent it out. And to top it off, it's in a stunning location with a near-perfect climate, friendly people, and a quality of life I'm not sure I can find in the US anymore.

Of course, if you need to be near family it's another story. Everyone has their own reasons for choosing a place to call home. My experience was that the cost and bother of maintaining a home in the US was not worth it. My family is spread out across the globe and we all travel to see each other anyway. But as others have said, it is nice to have a place - somewhere - to go to if you suddenly need it.

chemteacher101 wrote:

> Where in Spain did you buy property? I'm curious. I have considered that, but simply
> don't know where. I would like s place that is not in the middle of nowhere, where
> there are things to do, but cannot afford anything in the big cities like Madrid or
> Malaga. Then there are many empty towns close to Malaga, but that would mean having
> to drive everywhere, and I do want to live somewhere where you dint need to take s
> car and go somewhere else simply to have dinner...

I bought a house in a tiny but exquisite village about 12 km inland from the Mediterranean coast near Denia and Oliva. It's a two minute walk to the local bar/restaurant, but a car is necessary for anything else. That's fine with me, because I prefer a rural area and should have been a farmer anyway. The northern Alicante area is great for several reasons. It's cheaper than much of the rest of Spain, has mild winters and a great climate without being too dry, and the people are friendlier. There's quite a large expat population, which I didn't think I'd like, but actually I'm enjoying it. The closest big cities with an airport are Valencia and Alicante - you might want to look into them if you prefer a city. I love Madrid, Castilla, La Mancha, Leon, all of the north from Galicia to the Costa Brava, but for living a relaxed, pleasant life, I think this part of Spain is best. I'm not a fan of Andalusia. I can always travel the country by car (huge road trip fan) or train (great discounts once you're over 60) and take advantage of it all. Just thinking about it makes me want to retire now!

Spain. No doubt about it. I've already bought property there so when the time comes, I'll be ready. In the meantime, it's where I go for school holidays.
The weather (Med coast), the food, the cost of living, the people, the culture and history - it checks all the boxes and then some. I've lived there before and speak the language fluently so I have a pretty good idea of what I'll be getting into.
Italy checks the boxes as well, but after living there two years I found it to be too dysfunctional in too many aspects. So Spain it is!

ILMathTeachr, with 100k coming in, you can do it. But I'd recommend first visiting again and staying for a month or two to try it out. Living in Italy is not at all like visiting it. Outside of tourism activities, almost nothing works smoothly. Decent housing is difficult to find. Workmen never come when they say they will. In Rome, at least, most apartments available to rent for 700-1,000 euros are old, shoddy, small, and furnished with grandma's discarded stuff. If you want something picturesque in a nice neighborhood, be prepared to spend 1,800+ euros a month, and that's if you're lucky enough to find something. As a foreigner, you might even get a special deal - higher rent. Driving is crazy, and public transportation is in crisis. (The trains are ok.) Taxi drivers are likely to rip you off. If you didn't get pickpocketed when you visited, a longer stay will most likely make it happen. You'll need to learn Italian, as English is not widely spoken outside of tourism areas. Depending on where you are in the country, the city may be filthy, with trash piled high in the streets. With a lot of money, you can avoid some of these issues, and put on blinders when you visit the countless sights. But living there can be frustrating and wears you down after a while. Be forewarned. Personally, there are other places in southern Europe I'd much rather live with a 100k income to keep me comfortable, or even way less (I've done it), and stick to visiting Italy on long weekends. Enjoy it and then escape. Oh, and then there's the issue of schools. I once asked a very experienced teacher who had taught all over Italy where the good schools were, because I was having a hard time finding one. Her answer? There aren't any. Go to Switzerland, she said.

No, the stories are true and are from US citizens.

US citizens working abroad are required to file every year with the IRS and report their foreign-earned income regardless of which country they are in. If that income is over $103,900 (in 2018), they must pay US taxes on it. Any taxes paid to the other country can be credited, which can bring down the amount you are taxed, IF you make over $103,900. You wouldn’t even come close to that working in Italy. If you make more, you could pay taxes to both countries. (Note: You will have to pay US taxes on any income you have in the US, such as interest, capital gains, or summer job income, regardless.)

The treaty you are referring to is not about avoiding paying taxes to both countries. The treaty is about teaching tax free for two years in Italy. (More countries are included in the treaty, by the way. Other nationalities are also included, not just Americans. and it goes both ways - foreign teachers from the countries on the list can teach in the US for two years tax free as well.) After the two years are up you start to pay full income taxes in Italy because you live there, just like non-teaching foreigners have been doing since they arrived. You can still file a credit with the IRS, so you would not be double taxed. It’s a nice tax benefit teachers (and some researchers) have for two years that others don’t.

The issue with Italy is that the salaries are so low it’s hard to make ends meet once the Italian taxes kick in, even though you’re not being double taxed. It’s a shame, but it’s reality.

Out of the dozen or so principals I've worked with, I would describe only two as outstanding. One had years of experience and the other was new at the job, but both approached their work the same way. The more experienced principal put it in words. At her first faculty meeting with us, she told us simply and clearly that she came with no agenda for change at the school. In conversations with individual teachers, she would regularly ask, "What can I do to help you?" Both principals, one male, one female, one in an international school and one in a domestic school, made it very clear they were there to support us and were not planning any surprises.

Obviously, this works best at schools that are already running well, but knowing that an administrator is there to support and help you do your best work, not just make you change everything you do according to the latest fad or obsession (been through that, too), goes a long way.

The worst administrator I've worked with insulted people to their faces, accused teachers of actions they did not do, gossiped and lied about teachers, and yelled at the faculty. The best never criticize anyone on the staff behind their back but work on helping a bad situation get better. They also don't punish the whole faculty for the mistakes of a few.

I've done carrying large amounts of cash (makes me nervous), using banks to send a wire transfer (don't like their exchange rates & fees), and now I'm sold on using CurrencyFair for money transfers. I've saved a lot of money with them, and the transfers have all gone smoothly and quickly. Worth a look. Very good customer service, too. I've checked out other companies but I like CurrencyFair the best.

I wanted to keep my house, but after having trouble finding a property manager willing to take on a house instead of an apartment, hearing more tenant horror stories than good stories, and realizing that an older 4-bedroom house with a lot of land was not what renters were looking for in my area, I decided to sell.

It was the best financial decision in my life. The house had doubled in value since buying it and had a very small mortgage. I sent all the money to Vanguard and watched it grow. There is no way the house would have made that much money in the same amount of time. Granted, the stock market has been doing very well, and in another scenario I could have lost money. I might still lose money, but so far, it's doing well. But at the same time, I'm not dealing with tenants, property managers, lawn care services, snow removal services, repairs, maintenance, state taxes, county taxes, property taxes, school taxes, accountants, etc.

With the money the sold house is making for me now, I will end up buying a much nicer one later on.

(This is where all the warnings come about investing: past performance does not guarantee future success, etc. etc.)

For medical, you might want to look into Seven Corners' Liaison International Travel Medical insurance Policy. It's good for trips from 5-45 days, and as long as your "true, fixed, and permanent residence" is not the US, you should be good. They have two other policies that cover longer stays (Continent and Majestic), and they state that for US citizens, the US will always be considered their home country no matter what for those two specific policies - but that's apparently not the case with the Liaison International Policy. It might be worth a look and maybe a call to confirm. I found this information here: https://www.sevencorners.com/travel-med ... ce/#/quote

I've gotten their travel insurance before but didn't have a claim then. I also had a Seven Corners group health insurance plan for two years as an expat, and did have claims. I found them very easy to work with and never had a problem. That's why I'd be willing to take a look at what they offer.

I haven't experienced this with a colleague, but I have with someone else. Can you take her out for a coffee, a meal, a park, a museum? Get her away from work, preferably outside in the sun. Talk about other things, not the bad situation at work. If she feels bad about herself, just having someone who doesn't dislike her be around can be supportive. If she wants to talk, let her, but don't force it. It would help if she feels she's not all alone but has a friend. You could also look up a suicide hotline or the number of a psychologist who works with expats where you are (assuming you're expats), and keep the number handy. Eventually the right moment might come up to share it with her. In the meantime, you don't need to give advice if it doesn't come to you or doesn't feel right. Just being there for her is important. Being an expat can be lonely and loneliness could make things worse. Good luck, and I sincerely hope things get better.

Normally I would say to take the job in the third tier school and get started in admin, except for this comment you made:

"I really don't think a 20 year teacher can contribute as much to the classroom as someone who has taught 10 years."

Wow. You're not ready. You need a lot more experience teaching if you make that kind of comment. Maybe it's a reflection of the experience you've had and the people you've worked with. Maybe you've had bad luck with your colleagues. You haven't been at this for very long. Try teaching in tier 1 schools and having those pedagogical conversations with teachers who have more experience than you do - teaching all kinds of kids, living through all kinds of experiences, and raising children of their own. You might learn something. Maybe then you can become an administrator, whose job is to understand and support teachers, not write them off based on having too much experience in the classroom.

It's really going to depend on the individual school, but I've seen more respect for older teachers in the Middle East than in Western Europe.

I agree with shadylane. For what it's worth ('cause anything can happen), whenever I see a large discrepancy between what is described on Search's database and what happens in reality, I stay far away from that school. There are plenty of flat-out lies (not mistakes, not out-of-date information) in that database, and the schools that post them are, in my experience, totally untrustworthy in other areas as well. I would see it as a warning. Good luck!

In a recent conversation with other international teachers, the topic of ageism in schools came up. This was not visa related (when a teacher can't be hired due to age restrictions in place for government issued work visas), but more about attitudes of other teachers towards teachers with more years of experience. Respect for experience seems to exist sometimes, but I also heard complaints. I was surprised at the negativity, especially since I know and admire several outstanding older teachers, and one in particular is more knowledgeable than most about the latest developments in education. By older, I mean from the late 40's and on.

What have your experiences with ageism in schools been, either domestically or internationally? Do you see it where you are? What are the reasons for it? Are older teachers threatening?

Another vote for the box & whisker graph!

My experience is that some of the school-provided information (it's not the agencies' fault) is accurate and some inaccurate. I once went through a whole series of interviews to be offered a contract with a salary so much lower than the one posted on Search I was shocked. I turned them down for that reason, and told them so. There was some squirming but no explanation. I figured if they lied about the salary on Search, who knows what else they'd lie about.

My current position pays me more than they have posted on Search. That was a surprise. Other positions have been spot on.

The best is when a school shares their salary scale with you, either during the interviews, or, better yet, on their website.