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Why WOULDN'T You Move (Back) to the USA
Dh and I have always said that after the 2012 Olympics here in London that we would head back to the States to live on a more permanent basis, at least until our kids are grown and at least in university.
But, lately, I dunno, I keep thinking that maybe it may not be the best idea. Dh is sort of on the fence now too. The thing is, besides mil, we have no family here. Dh grew up only seeing his extended Greek family in the summer time when mil took him and his bros to Greece while fil stayed back in Lebanon and worked. If we moved back to the States, particularly back to PA, Leo and Jax would grow up with tons of family around him.
The biggest thing holding our thoughts back right now though are the lack of available vacation days compared to here. Right now, including Bank Holidays, dh gets over 30 days/year. When I was working, I also had that. I don't think we'd get anything like that back in the States unless we've been working for years and years.
What are the reasons you're not going to move back to the US or what is holding you back from moving back?
Re: Why WOULDN'T You Move (Back) to the USA
Price of healthcare, uncertainty about healthcare with the new laws.
Lack of pension and the fact that Social Security won't be around for me. Worse than that, Medicare's impending doom.
Polarization of politics, and people thinking it is actually OK to impose their religious views onto laws.
Jobs, jobs, jobs. Corporations are raking in the money but not hiring. Why would they? They've gotten leaner and are reaping the benefits. Joe Schmo is not.
Widening gap between rich and poor. The middle class is disappearing and life (healthcare, education, housing if you were unlucky enough to lose home value) is getting too expensive for Joe Schmo to afford.
I could go on but I don't want to depress myself too much.
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What I'm looking forward to in 2012:
Eating our way through (northern) Italy on vacation
<a href="http://www.thenest.com/?utm_source=ticker&utm_medium=HTML&utm_campaign=tickers" title="Home DI forgot maternity leave. 6 weeks unpaid if you're lucky?
No thank you.
Vacation days - For EH, it would have been 15 there vs 25 here. I've been with the company so long that at least I would get 20, but 25 sure is nice.
Medical care - Routine and non-emergent care may be awkward to use here, but it's nice to know I'm completely covered if anything major comes up, and I don't have to mess with the horrible insurance company our company deals with. Actual dialog: "We won't be covering the cost of that second nurse during surgery unless it's shown to be medically necessary." "WTF? I'm a programmer?! Why don't you take this up with the surgeon's office who set up the procedure?!"
Travel - Besides Europe, Asia and Africa are both so close! And the low-cost airlines make for some great unexpected affordable adventures!
Public transportation - I don't want a car. I don't want to need a car.
Maternity leave - just in case.
Well I can give you our pro/con list. We talk about why we do/do not want to move back to the UK all the time.
Pros to US: bigger house/more land, more room for upward movement in the housing market, this is where DH's company's HQ is, better weather (this is subjective and we feel the opposite in winter when it is MISERABLE here but that won't be true of all US climates), we have friends now and my family is somewhat close to us (2 and 3 hour drives), school for the kids - I prefer the US system even if we go private.
Cons to US: We really miss our lifestyle in the UK so that includes sick time/vacation time, ease of travel, community, the green-ness of our life was better over there.
Things that come our sort of similar: $ - we've figured out that we'd be forking out similar amounts in each country for taxes & healthcare. If you add our healthcare costs into what we pay in taxes it is roughly equal to our taxes alone in the UK so this wasn't a huge issue for us. BUT we did realize that even if DH negotiated a higher (much higher) salary in the UK to move back we'd have to live so far out of London to make our lives comfortable (comfortable on the standards we're used to NOW) that his commute would be AWFUL.
I think everyone covered what we've said - basically, health care, maternity benefits and holiday time. DH figures we actually might spend more time with our families living here than when we lived in the states. I had ZERO holiday days my first job out of uni and it was bumped to 5 after 1 year.
I went without health insurance for a year and I wouldn't wish that on anyone.
My friend just posted this on FB (about a man who committed a robbery so he could get arrested and get health care in prison). I find the whole situation so, so scary.
http://tinyurl.com/3nru58y
BFP Apr 2012, EDD Dec 19 2012 * twin h/b at 6wk, 9wk scan * Baby A lost at 12wks, Baby B was my rainbow born at 36wks
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Definately the healthcare. I read that people are often denied the medication I am taking because it is insanely expensive, but it works. I talked about this with my aunt, and she said that it could be appealed with the ins. company. I don't want to fight battles with insurance companies just so that I can have total use of my hands.
We are actually here though because DH has incredible business opportunites here that he would not have in the States. His parents own a business, and they have long-standing customers. Poor DH doesn't have a university degree, so it would be extremely difficult for DH to earn in the States what he earns here.
1. My DH's parents live in London and he's it for them. My family have enough support in the States (surrounded by younger family who will look out for them).
2. Vacation time - there's no way I could pull my DH away from the UK's vacation to go to two weeks. No way.
3. I already have suffered through co-pays and whatnot for a major surgery which added to my debt in a major way - I don't want to do that again.
4. I would have to find a job somewhere that my DH could find a job and it wouldn't be near family anyway...so all I'd be is perhaps a bit closer, but perhaps not all that closer. And there's no guarantee that we'd both find a job.
5. The perks of where I work and my current lifestyle are better than anything I had in the States.
6. I'm not sure I'd really feel like I'd fit in the US any more than I fit anywhere else.
7. I love London. LOVE IT!
8. And I haven't finished exploring Europe by a long-shot. (We are finally financially able to do this more)
I know we will move back eventually, but at the moment, a lot of the reasons mentioned:
-healthcare, including NHS and private through DH's company
-vacation time
-ease of travel... I love to travel and I'm not done yet. It is easier to do from London
-career opportunities, we've both had major career growth in the UK
-maternity leave and I do plan on taking advantage of that
-I love city living and no car to worry about payment, insurance and gas
-also the exchange rate between the dollar and pound. Most of our money is in pounds, I'd like the exchange rate to be better if that is possible.
I know we will move back because I want our future kids to know our close friends and family, but I plan on having both here hopefully.
Agree agree agree. That is what makes me question staying in the US. The simple tought of getting sick one day and losing almost everything gives me ulcers.
We're moving back, so I guess I'm not the best to respond, but I really do love it here and am really going to miss DH's family. I hate that our kids won't be able to bond with this side of the family as much when we move back, but that is what summers are for!
If DH would have gotten a job offer here, I think the decision to stay or leave would have been much harder on us.
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Moving is a PITA and my dog won't like it.
That said, we will move back to the States at some point. It's got pros and cons-- nice to be closer to family; sucks to be so far away from everything else
!
Right now, the only big things keeping us here is DH's job contract (through 2013, at least) and travel. Otherwise...he gets the same amount of vacation here as back home, the taxes + medical insurance we paid back home pretty much equal what they pay here, and while I like public transportation I detest living in the city and miss being back home in the country.
Sure...the vacation days are nice, but if DH made what typical workers here make for a salary, we'd hardly be able to afford the travel to use the vacation days. And the maternity leave is pretty spectacular, but doesn't apply to me yet. I don't know...I just don't have any overwhelming pros to staying here permanently. It all just sort of comes out in the wash for me.
When we lived in Vancouver my British DH said that he wouldn't move back to the States if McCain was elected president. Good thing he wasn't elected because I got my BFP on election day and can't imagine being far from my folks right now.
If we go back to the UK I would imagine it would be something family-related again keeping us from moving to the US.
My life up north.
many of the same reasons as others have listed...and:
the amazing work/life balance NZ has to offer
i absolutely LOVE my job and am so spoiled that i could never work in the states ever again
no need to deal with american airport security
NZ is an awesome place to raise kids
I'm in a different situation from most people.... I get 20 vacation days plus basically unlimited sick days and holidays (assuming I don't have to work, which can always come up. I've worked on Thanksgiving, Christmas and vacation before). My insurance company can be a PITA to deal with, but I got into the best hospital in NYC for what I had, had a 60k surgery and hospital stay and paid nothing. So I can't complain too much.
Granted, American politics bugs me SOOOO much, but I think every country has its whiners and idiots.
I just like living overseas still. I have no reason other than that. I only see my family once a year when I'm on the east coast and they are on the west coast, so that doesn't make a difference. So far in Dubai and here in Turkmenistan I've had a better lifestyle than in NY in some ways, but not others.
Basically, I don't want to move to the US, but I don't have any big reason not to. I'm not sure on kids and we get a few months off, and we wouldn't really need the money anyway, so that doesn't do it for me, either. I'll be sad if we end up having to go back to NYC after this, not because there is anything I particularly dislike about the US... I'm just not ready to go back yet. We would try to expat again in a few years if we did go back.
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