(A glitch with WordPress caused the original December 28 publication of this post to disappear today. It’s re-published below. Apologies for any duplication or inconvenience.)

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As 2023 draws to a close, it marks the end of my first full year in Portugal as a legal, tax-paying resident. It’s also the first tax year for which I will need to file a return with Portugal’s Finanças tax authority in 2024. More on that next year.

With money on my midlife mind, I thought others might be interested in what I ended up spending as a solo expat and full retiree my first year here. I previously detailed my expenses and timeline for preparing for my immigration to Portugal in this post.

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2,000 Euros/Month

My spending on essentials — rent, food, utilities (electricity, gas, water, phone, Internet, cable TV), health insurance, and transportation (bus and taxi fare to get around without having a car here) — totals slightly less than two grand a month in euros. With the current crappy exchange rate, that equals about $2,200 a month. I expect my spending on essentials to remain about the same next year.

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400 Euros/Month

My “splurging” on discretionary expenses averaged a bit less than 400 euros ($440) a month. This includes my visits to the hair salon; manicures, pedicures, and Brazilian bikini waxes; massages/osteopathic manipulations; date and event clothing/shoes I did not need; and bi-weekly house-cleaning service. This amount will be reduced next year, as I’m already transitioning to DIY YDI (You Do It, Honey) mode. My honey is multi-talented and fun. More later on the joys of at-home pampering.

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1,065 Dollars/Month

This is what my total spending on my U.S. credit card averaged in the 14 months I’ve lived here. Roughly $10,000 went to the one-time set-up of my furnished rental home, to replace mattresses, window treatments, lighting, and buy small appliances, electronics, rugs, plants, accessories, and additional interior and exterior furniture. This was a surprise to me, and far exceeded the budget I had in mind before I moved here. But I originally planned on a two-bedroom flat. I ended up in a three-bedroom, four-bathroom, three-story townhouse with three outdoor spaces. Going forward, I expect that this spending on the house will be significantly reduced.

Another $4,900 went for travel throughout the year to Malta, the Canary Islands, the Algarve Jazz Festival, several overnight Lisbon events, the United States, and, this month, Barcelona. While air, train, and bus transport within Europe is quite affordable when traveling from here, the associated costs for hotels/accommodations, restaurants, special event fees, sightseeing tours, and Uber/Bolt/taxi fares add up quickly. I expect this spending on travel to be about the same or even slightly higher going forward. I already have a solo trip planned for 2024 to three countries in the Middle East. Solo travel plays a big part in my retirement plans — it’s what launched my move to Portugal — and I continue to budget for it.

I purposefully charged everything to my U.S. rewards credit card. I pay everything in full every month, never carrying a balance or incurring interest charges. I have zero debt as I continue to live off the proceeds from the sale of my U.S. house in 2021, without taking any income distributions from my retirement account. My cash-back, bonus points, and statement credit rewards have amounted to as much as a thousand dollars off a travel bill.

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I have loved every minute of 2023 here, and am looking forward to 2024. I’ll close with photos of my recent holiday trip to Barcelona with my Portuguese namorado. Wishing you a new year filled with love and joy. Feliz Ano Novo!

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Thank you for reading ❤️. This marks my 200th The Hot Goddess post since I began blogging for the first time in 2021. Cheers to 200 more!

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All images are my own, except as noted.

The Hot Goddess

Instagram: retired_rewired_inspired

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