In 2021, Kobi Smith packed his bags and left his family and friends to start a new life in Germany. Courtesy of Kobi Smith
After a divorce, American Kobi Smith moved from Washington, DC, to Germany in 2021. His hope: to start a new, affordable life.
He gave up his six-figure US salary as a lawyer to now work at a fast-food chain for less than half the money.
Smith appreciates the comparatively low cost of living in Germany and is happy to have left the USA.
This is a machine translation of an article from our US colleagues at Business Insider. It was automatically translated and reviewed by a real editor.
When Kobi Smith decided to move abroad, he didn’t think long about where: he would emigrate to Germany. The 52-year-old had already lived here for a short time in the early 2000s and worked as Attorney General for the US Army. “That time in Germany completely changed my world,” Smith recalls in an interview with Business Insider.
After a divorce in 2021, Smith felt at rock bottom and was determined to turn his life around. Remembering his life in Germany, he soon sold his house, quit his job – which paid him $110,000 (€99,100) a year – and moved to Nuremberg, Franconia.
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Today, Smith works as a manager in a branch of a US fast-food restaurant for $49,000 (€44,000) a year. That’s less than half the money he earned in the US, but he says he’s happier. He plans to continue living in Germany until he retires in ten years.
Smith is one of many Americans working in Germany who do not plan to return to the United States, preferring the quality of life in Europe. According to the most recent available data from the Social Security Administration, about 23,000 retired American workers were receiving Social Security benefits in Germany in December 2023.
In 2022, Germany was the fifth most popular place for American retirees abroad, after Canada, Japan, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. Many U.S. citizens have difficulty affording their retirement in the United States.
In search of happiness abroad
Smith is originally from the US state of Maryland and later built a career as an attorney in various firms in the Washington, DC area.
In 2003, the U.S. Army Reserves activated Smith and stationed him in Germany. It was here that he not only discovered his love of travel, but also met his now ex-wife. But after two years, his contract with the Army ended and he moved back to the United States.
Looking back, Smith says that he did manage to get a permanent job as a lawyer, but a career within a company was not fulfilling for him. At some point he started his own shoe sales business to try something new. He worked there for about seven years, but then returned to work as a lawyer: He and his then wife had had a daughter and now needed a more stable income.
In April 2021, Smith took a job as an attorney at the Small Business Administration, a U.S. federal agency that supports small businesses, overseeing COVID-19 pandemic-era loans. His salary rose to the equivalent of $100,000.
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However, Smith and his wife divorced during this time. A difficult period in his life followed, especially since the pandemic made it difficult to see friends and family in person.
“When people say money can’t buy happiness, it’s so true,” Smith said. At the time, Smith was traveling in the Dominican Republic with a friend. When he left the United States, he realized he could start a new life abroad.
His friends were shocked by his decision, especially at his age. Some even said he was making a mistake. But he was determined.
One of the biggest challenges of moving abroad was saying goodbye to his family, Smith said. But he knew that a big change in life would be good for his mental health. “Fear is a dream killer,” he says. “At that point, I said to myself, ‘This is what I want to do and I’m just going to let things happen.'”
Financial and personal security abroad
Smith moved to Germany without a job and initially lived off the money he earned from selling his house in the US capital. But after a few months he was hired as a foreman in the catering department at Popeyes fast food restaurant, where he earns 44,000 euros a year.
“I work at Popeyes for half of what I made in the U.S.,” Smith notes. “But I realized pretty quickly that the cost of living is lower here.”
Smith’s Popeyes branch is located on a US military base in Ansbach. That is why he has a work visa for civilians who are employed by the military. In Nuremberg he feels safeHis life is quieter and more comfortable than in Washington, DC, where he feared gun violence and street crime.
He also says that transportation is cheaper and more efficient than in the US. His rent in Nuremberg, including utilities, is about 700 euros per month, less than half of his monthly mortgage in the US, which was the equivalent of about 1440 euros per month. By halving these costs, he finally feels financially free.
In Nuremberg, he appreciates the relatively affordable lifestyle. Courtesy of Kobi Smith
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In addition, food is about half as expensive as in the USA. Smith says that he does not regret the move precisely because the cost of living in Germany is comparatively low. He therefore encourages other Americans who are dissatisfied with their careers to consider moving abroad.
“If you have $50,000 in Washington, DC, [etwa 45.000 Euro; Anm. d. Red.] you don’t live comfortably, you struggle,” explains Smith. “But here, where I’ve earned $50,000 in the last three years, I feel very comfortable. My bills are paid and I still have money left over.”
Read the original article on Business Insider.
