The US has the best earning potential, but I don’t like living here. We have elderly parents on my husbands side who won’t leave with us, or can’t go where we’d like to move because of the visas. The quality of life is better elsewhere.

“Daddy said we’re summering in France this year!”

I think that the general way of life in other places is attractive for many (not driving everywhere for example, guns, easy access to healthcare, fresher food, more relaxed culture, less focus on consumerism) & the ability to be near more structural beauty. The US is pretty ugly in many cities imo

Because they can.

Because this is a hickocracy. If I could afford to leave I would. The US is wonderful geographically and I would love to visit on a regular basis, but goddamn I can’t stand the average American.

For me - Better quality of life, better environment for kids, better outlook on future prospects; especially in Asia pacific countries like Japan, Singapore, China. Barrier to entry is a bit higher than European states, but if you’re upper middle class with a solid career it’s easier to break in.

I am definitely on the train that US is in decline though, and I don’t see a path out. Things just seem never to move forward and in many aspects are just decaying. I thought this incompetence of governance was a normal thing until I started living in Europe then Asia where many things just worked and things got done.

If I was an order of magnitude wealthier I’d have multiple bases across the world, and likely live in the US as a primary as I can create a pretty big bubble to ignore all the decaying parts of society.

Taxes

Top 1% and life outside the us is def better. Come back from time to time for friends and family but generally us lacks culture, safety, quality of life, lack of obsession with social media(!), and strangely freedom to move around and just live… you can live like a king and money stretches a much longer way. also harder to get served with frivolous/fraudulent lawsuits!

I hate this take. Why can upper middle class not want to experience the expat life the same as everyone else?

1. Taxes on capital gains.
2. Healthcare access problems even with good insurance.
3. Crime, drugs, filth is now slowly permeating HCoL areas.
4. Inflation. Rich people don’t want to waste their hard earned money. You can live quite well for a lot less.

I’m not upper middle class, medically retired from the military though. My money goes phenomenally farther outside the US. Why I picked South America. But other expats I have spoken too, that are wealthy, retired, very successful and prominent former engineers, real estate investors, etc. there was one thing they all said and that I’ve also come to personally notice.

The quality of life outside the United States is far better and costs very little. I’m renting a one bedroom with a balcony in a new building in Buenos Aires in a affluent quiet part of the city, 25 minutes from down town for 400 USD. Fine wine and steaks every night, clean organic healthy food, very nice fancy gym 20 min walk away, eating out at nice restaurants a few times a week.

I used to work in South Florida a lot for many years. The way I’m living now in Argentina had it been in Fort Lauderdale or Miami I’d need to make a minimum of 5-6k a month to live how I am now.

Counting my rent, going to restaurants a few times a week, grocery hauls with plenty of ribeye steaks nice wine, gym membership, I maybe spend around 600-750 a month.

Milei recently being elected doesn’t affect me and am not worried about it. People here are hardy and is not the first time they dealt with recession and an unstable economy.

3 weeks after I retired I sold everything and moved abroad.
The US is a disaster.
The culture is toxic.
The crime is dangerous and out of control.
The police are violent, corrupt and lie.
The people are unhinged and entitled.
The government is disfunctional and corrupt.
The media is useless and paid off.
The medical/insurance system is a scam.

Morality.

My top reason was because I could. I had wanted to for years but wasn’t financially able to.

USA probably still has the best quality of life globally for middle class.

You’re right it’s not a great place to be poor (unless your goal is to get out of poverty and you’re willing to work for it then it’s an excellent place)… But it’s still great place to be middle class.

Middle class in USA can still buy a detached house with a good sized yard. Can still own a car, go on vacation, save money for retirement.

You’re lucky if you can even do one of those things as middle class in any other first world country globally.