My goal is to spend 3 months a year abroad and 9 months in Finland. I realize that the biggest question to solve is the housing arrangements. How can I practically fulfill the dream of avoiding the darkness and slush from November to March? Let’s compare different options.
Option 1: Renting an Apartment for About €1,000 per Month
Currently, my equity tied up in an owned apartment (€170,000) could be invested in funds, stocks, or rental property. Assuming a 3-5% return, that would be €5,100 – €8,500 per year. So, the annual housing cost would be 12 x €1,000 – investment returns = €3,500 – €6,900 per year. If the housing costs were entirely covered by these invested funds, the investable capital would decrease yearly, and the housing costs would increase, so additional income would be needed to cover housing expenses.
During the months abroad, it might be possible to rent a larger apartment and perhaps rent out a room to travellers, covering some housing costs. However, it would be necessary to check whether this is possible and whether the rental activity should be conducted as a private individual or in the name of a business.
How easy is it to find a rental apartment in Finland from February to October at the desired price and location? Landlords probably prefer longer leases. Is there better information on this? I looked at Airbnb and saw that there are at least monthly rental periods available at reasonable prices.
As a traveler, the problem would be where to store and how to transport the equipment I need for making music and my other belongings. Storage hotels are quite expensive (about €200 per month), and in this lifestyle, I wouldn’t have my own car, so I’d have to include rental car costs for moving items. It’s unlikely I could become so minimalist that all my possessions would fit in a suitcase. What solutions have nomads come up with for these challenges?
One option could be renting a room in a shared apartment, where the monthly rent would be around €400 – €800. But honestly, my music-making requires my own quiet space, and after living through an active family period full of “compromises,” I’d prefer a space that feels like my own. Where is that adult commune with individual small houses in a shared yard?
Option 2: Owning an Apartment in Finland, Renting Abroad
Buying an apartment in Finland would be more straightforward for me than in a country whose bureaucracy I don’t know. Staying in growth centers would likely also find a property whose value doesn’t decrease, making the apartment a reasonably safe investment. Renting apartments abroad offers the opportunity to safely try different destinations and change places freely. If I bought a small enough apartment not requiring a mortgage (€170,000), the housing costs (maintenance fee, electricity, water, insurance, savings for renovations, and appliance replacements) probably wouldn’t exceed €900 per month when living in my own apartment.
But what to do with the Finnish apartment during the winter months? If kept empty and renting another abroad, the costs could rise close to two thousand per month. Keeping it empty is thus a major expense, but can a good tenant be found for a few months, especially if I’m in another country and can’t help if needed? I quickly checked that renting a small apartment could ask for about €700 per month, and an agent handling tenant issues and apartment maintenance would take 35%, or €245. I would get €455 per month if the apartment is rented the whole time. So, housing costs for me would be €445 per month for the owned apartment and €1,000 per month for the apartment abroad.
In this option, too, it would be possible to offset some costs by renting part of the apartment abroad to others dreaming of working in the warmth. This should be checked for feasibility and whether the activity should be done in the name of a business or as a private individual.
This seems a more stable but also more expensive option than Option 1.
Option 3: Owning an Apartment in Both Finland and Abroad
Honestly, I can’t afford this option, and I would see owning and managing properties in two different countries as a risk, at least until I have trusted partners to help with the operation. So, I wouldn’t start with this option.
Option 4: Owning an Apartment Only Abroad
I don’t honestly know yet where I want to live. I enjoy Finland greatly from spring to early autumn. I’m not ready to lock in a location elsewhere without at least trying a lighter housing commitment first. Of course, this option would probably be the most affordable. Also, other living costs such as food and services are cheaper in Southern Europe than in Finland. It’s not entirely unrealistic to think I could cover the costs of renting abroad almost entirely with my investment returns. However, cutting roots with Finland completely feels like something that needs more consideration, especially because of all my work and business arrangements. Spending a few months a year in the EU is different from moving permanently.
SUMMARY
I estimate that living alternately in two different countries would require at least €1,500 per month for housing costs. For food, services, and transportation, I should probably budget around €1,000 – €1,500 per month. So, for a basic dream life without much extravagance, I would need about €3,000 per month.
Next, I need to consider whether this amount of money is available now? What about in the future? What needs to be achieved to make the dream come true? Follow the blog, and I’ll update you on how things develop!
Ps. If you wanna know more about my current income and costs of living, I’ve shared this information in this blog post.
