I paid $45,000 upfront to rent this Bali home for 10 years. Here’s what it cost me to retire there.

This is an as-told-to essay based on a conversation for our Cost of Living video series with Debbie Welsch, 57, an American who retired to Bali with her 82-year-old mother.

It has been edited for length and clarity.

My 10-year lease for my 1,100-square-foot house in Bali is $4,500 a year — that is $375 a month in rent.

The one caveat: I had to pay my landlord the $45,000 upfront.

I also had to budget around $3,500 a year for renovation costs, totaling $35,000 over 10 years.

In total, my housing costs for a year average $8,000.

I moved from Los Angeles to Bali with my 82-year-old mom over seven years ago.

Before I moved and retired, I worked as an interior designer, earning $120,000 a year.

Back then, I couldn’t afford to live in my house because my mortgage and property taxes were too high.

For a time, I rented out my house and stayed in a room at one of my friends’ homes.

This was when I decided to change my lifestyle.

I met with a financial consultant who told me that, based on what I could cash out from my house and grow through investments, I could live on a budget of $2,000 a month.

So I decided to travel to five different places in the world to see if I could live there full-time.

Bali’s always been my happy place, and a lot of it has to do with the people.

I sold everything I owned — My house, my car.

After moving here, I felt like a big weight had been released.

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The money comes from savings, especially from the sale of my house back in LA.

In total, my retirement savings are around $550,000, which are now in investments.

I also earn around $4,000 a year from my hobbies, including my work as a contemporary romance writer and my own YouTube channel.

My monthly house maintenance costs are around $60, and that includes pool maintenance, air conditioning, water delivery, and waste management.

I also have a maid who cleans once a week, for $11 per cleaning, which totals about $45 a month.

My monthly utility costs are about $75, including water, gas, electricity, my phone bill, and internet service.

My mom also has her own house in Bali.

We had to pay $16,800 up front for the four-year lease, which averages about $350 a month.

Before my mom moved from Los Angeles, her rent was going to be raised to $1,500 a month — with her $2,000 a month income, that wasn’t sustainable.

I have a two-year visa, which costs $732.

My mother’s visa costs about $1,000 for one year.

Here, we are within walking distance of the beach, as well as many cafés, boutiques, and art galleries.

I also do yoga and meditation at home using an app.

My international health insurance plan costs $124 a month, covers Bali and other parts of Southeast Asia, and has a $10,000 deductible.

The cost to go to a local clinic here is about $15 on average for the visit.

Aging in Bali’s pretty easy — as long as we have each other.

I’m seeing my mom have more energy because she’s getting her exercise in and eating healthy.

My mother has Medicare, at $200 a month, but it only works in the US.

I feel blessed to live here because if my mom were to get sick, I could hire a full-time person to care for her, and the cost would be nominal, maybe $500 a month.

To get around, I use a $500 scooter; gas and maintenance usually cost $6 a month.

I also take taxis and rideshares, which aren’t very pricey; an hourlong trip costs about $7.

Overall, I spend around $22 a month on transportation.

We do cook at home a lot, and I typically spend $310 a month on groceries.

Local items are a lot less expensive than the imported Western items.

We go out to eat two to three times a week, and an average meal is around $7.

I also have a dog and two cats, and I spend more on the cats than I do on my own food.

My dog’s food costs about $1 a day, while cat food is $0.55 a can.

A vet visit to the house costs $10, or $50 with vaccinations.

In LA, my job was my purpose and my identity.

When I moved to Bali, I was able to shed that.

It took a while, but now I’m just me.

I would not recommend that other people do what I did, and sell everything and move to Bali.

First, dive into the culture here, live in a local village, and connect with the local people.

If we don’t adapt to their culture, we don’t belong here.

I adore the Balinese and the way they live: their rituals, their ceremonies, everything is just brilliant.

I feel so safe here, especially being a single woman.

I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.

I feel extremely financially secure for the first time in my life.

Even when I had property, I always felt like the taxes, my insurance, and food kept going higher.

There is no way I could afford this lifestyle in the US.

I have abundance now — and it’s not abundance of money, and it’s not abundance of food.

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