If you have AC in every room, you can run them in dehumidifier mode.
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Will being FI (Financially independent) fulfill all of my needs in life? Probably not. Will it allow me the time to do the things that I used to do before I started this life consuming, shift work based, high stress and injury job? Yes. That, and spend more time with my son while living in a place with less crime where he can be exposed to more of an international lifestyle.
It helps to think of what being FI allows one to do, and what you will do when you hit that point, not what it is saving you from. Now, am I depressed in that it is 4 years until then and hate my life? Not really. I still get paid really well, and get lots of holidays on top of it. Would I prefer to be somewhere else (ie Taiwan)? Absolutely. But for now I just have to wait for 4 years to be where I really want to be. It really isn’t that long in the grand scheme of things.
Where are you moving from?
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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I wouldn’t really call living in Taiwan an “international lifestyle.”
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Hehe I don’t know what Winnipeg is like for Taiwan to deserve that honour.
You have my condolences.
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If you are tall, Gogoro has a much lower platform than most scooters. Which will make it much more comfortable for you on longer commutes. Now in terms of carrying you, your wife and your son (all three of you) up Yang Ming Shan, that’s a different story.
I’m 65kg and with the gf at something like 55kg, we can make it up the mountain, but it does eat a lot of battery. Gogoro is really not made for exploring, but mostly city commuting.
I understand where the wifey is coming from with riding her bike everywhere, but it rains a helluva-lot in Danshui. So it may not be the cold that will stop her from riding everywhere. I hope that helps your battle with her about getting a car because you will need one!
You’ll probably also want to add a tap system. Bottled beer is not cheap here, but you can usually get good deals on kegs.
My wife refuses my request for a kegerator.
She thinks it will waste power.
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I get what you are saying, but compared to Winnipeg, Taiwan really is international (especially with sooo many countries in under a 3 hour flight). Getting anywhere from Winnipeg is an 8+ hr drive or 3+ hr flight. And with that, we can get to “gasp” Regina, Saskatchewan, or Fargo, ND. If we are really adventurous, we can go a fair bit farther afield, and get to Minneapolis (which is the best we have nearby really, and it is pretty good actually).
And without going into a Winnipeg bitchfest, what do we have in Winnipeg? Hockey. What else? Hmmm, hard to say really. Manitoba has nice nature in the summer, but unless you are into ice fishing (it is actually a thing!!!), it is difficult to do much outside when it is below -20C for more than 4 months of the year, and winter for a strong 6 months. As for diversity, we have lots of indigenous people (this is the term they prefer in Canada these days). And lots of closet hardcore Christians (and some not so in the closet), and robberies, and stabbings, and meth … Ok, I am stopping now. I can’t do it any longer without going into bitch mode. 
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It actually seems very exotic.
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Ahh, someone who knows Winnipeg.
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you need to admit that you are depressed. that’s the first step to moving to taiwan.
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We would actively look for furnished apartment to reduce initial spending as we figure out what we need. Thinking $5-10K USD for initial spending, which includes used gas scooter, cheap airbnb, rent deposit, minor home essentials, etc. Do not include plane tickets, and we will fit everything without needing extra bags. Kids will be in public school.
Below is my budget set up for family of 4, kids under 6. Not including travel.
Pretty confident with the budget as this is close if not more that our current budget (not on mortgage). Allocation might be off but will be tuned further as we stay.
you are close to what we spend (also 4 ppl) but I think you underestimate some items.
rent: furnished for 23,000 nt is hard to find in Taipei, where do you plan to live?
food: we mostly eat at home and spend ~ 20k on groceries and Costco.
education : if you plan on activities like soccer, piano, swim classes, summer camp you need to factor it in. for example summer camp or winter camp at the local sports center will be 5000 a week per kid
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How about New Taipei? Saw a lot under that budget in 591.
Hmm… food is subjective. We eat what the locals eat and don’t cook a lot of meat. We spend $500 a month in the states.
$5000NTD per week? wow… that’s even more pricier that the states. We haven’t put them in camps. Maybe swimming class or taekwondo lessons, they are still young. We like to spend more time with the kids ourselves, go camping or just road trips.
I don’t know about new taipei rents, we lived in the far districts of taipei and paid 28 to 30k for furnished apartments.
food: yes, depends on the family, but we also eat mostly local produce. we prefer to cook at home for health reasons and don’t eat out much. fresh fruit and vegetables can be expensive.
classes : our children go to classes at the local sports center, soccer for example is 450nt per class (2 hours ) , you choose how many times a week you go, but if you have 2 kids that go twice a week…
the winter camp is whole day (9 to 5:30) and was 5200 nt. we had no choice since the schools were off but parents still had to go to work.
for a family of 4 in Taipei, plan for 80K a month to be on the safe side, if you spend less it’s your gain, better than if you plan to spend 67k and end up spending 80…
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Thanks for the prices on the camps and classes. That was eye opening. I hope you can find more flexibility at your work. Do you teach english?
Agree for upping the budget on the safe side. I tend to be harsh on my spending budget, but more likely to blow it up by the end of the year. =P
Overall we are ready for a higher limit, but wanting to see what is the annual minimum if we don’t have income and have to dig into savings for a year, or more. Belts have to be tighten if that’s the case.
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no, I work for a company, regular office hours.
your budget is definitely on track, just be mindful of rent,food and kids where I think it’s on the low side.
good luck !
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