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. The move was 100% worth it.
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. Life is just simple here.
What the cost of living in Bali looks like.
I live on $1,300 a month. 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. Walking is our main exercise. 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.
Feeling an abundance of life
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. It's abundance of life.
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Martina is an economy fellow at Business Insider. She reports for Cost of the City, a series exploring how New Yorkers afford life in one of the country’s most expensive cities and the financial and personal trade-offs they make to stay. She also contributes to Business Insider’s Cost of Living video series.She studied journalism and international relations at Boston University.
