2019 was our 2nd tax year under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), 3rd year using the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE), and 7th year of paying ~$0 in income tax on dividends, interest income, and blog revenue.
For us, going back home (to the United States) means enrolling in an ACA health insurance policy and potentially stepping into the clutches of a State tax authority (e.g. California.)
Going back to Cali, stylin, profilin
Growlin, and smilin, while in the sun
Paying taxes and health insurance premiums
Driving to the mountains in the vintage Escort
We have been having the Forever Home discussion for some time now… Is there somewhere we love that would be a good place to raise a kid or two?
We have a few International destinations in mind, but several places in California rank high on our list of criteria.
I hear California is an expensive place to live, with high taxes, costly health insurance, and sky high housing prices. I figured I should at least crunch some numbers before we consider putting some California cities at the center of our radar.
The end of 2017 marked the completion of 5 full years of early retirement and world travel.
It’s been a fun ride so far… we’ve traveled a bit, had a few good meals, and taken many naps.
But how effective have these 5 years been in terms of implementing our tax minimization strategies? Are Roth IRA Conversions and Capital Gain Harvesting just fantasies we keep while working, or do they actually produce results in the real world?
Let’s do a financial check-up and see how we are doing.
