Expats, What’s Your Biggest Challenge Living Abroad and How Can a Service Help?

Posted by jacksonsteven@reddit | expats | View on Reddit | 17 comments

I have a question for my past expat people...

For those living abroad, what’s been your biggest challenge as an expat, and what kind of service or resource would have made it easier for you?

Was it finding housing, navigating the healthcare system, learning the local language, or something else? If a service existed to help solve that issue, and make your process of settling easier - what features would you want it to include?

Finding jobs, financial discounts to start new life... etc

List whatever would of saved you time, money and stress/energy

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MPD1987@reddit

I would have loved to have help finding housing. Picking out a place to live, sight unseen, not knowing anything about the neighborhood/area, not knowing what’s a decent price for an apartment, etc., having to suss all that out yourself, is very stressful.

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jacksonsteven@reddit (OP)

What specific resources or tools would have made finding housing easier for you when relocating?

For example, would detailed neighborhood guides, verified property listings, virtual tours, or rental price comparisons have helped you feel more confident in your decision?

Also, what were your biggest challenges in securing housing remotely, such as lack of trust, communication barriers, or understanding the local rental market?

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MPD1987@reddit

Neighborhood guides, yes, as well as information on credit scores in my new country and how it works when you’re coming from one country to another and you don’t have a credit score in your new country. I was really stressing about that, and it turns out it didn’t matter. I would have loved to know crime statistics for each neighborhood, price comparisons, possibly what features the neighborhood has, like proximity to grocery stores, what kind of entertainment it has, etc. Price comparisons would have been probably the most helpful of all, second only to crime statistics. Maybe something where people can leave reviews on the specific neighborhood.

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jacksonsteven@reddit (OP)

So a potential solution would be guided virtual tours before coming to the country with a report on criminal, price differences, ethnicity stats and location details (full report)

I Appreciate the solid reply also.

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i-love-freesias@reddit

Banking with USD transfers/investments. The regulations are/change, resulting in expats having accounts frozen or closed.

Probably a way bigger problem than any one service can solve.

For example, Schwab recently told all American customers living in the Philippines they had to transfer all of their cash and investments out of their accounts, which would be closed by a deadline.

Thailand is not a problem. But even Canada is a problem. It’s security regulations and agreements, apparently, but this is the biggest challenge.

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jacksonsteven@reddit (OP)

You mentioned account closures due to regulatory changes. Could you elaborate on the specific challenges you faced, such as lack of alternatives, timelines, or communication from the bank?

If there were a service to help navigate these banking challenges, what features would you prioritize?

For example, advocacy, alternative account setups, or real-time compliance updates.

Were you able to use revolut or wise?

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Fat_and_lazy_nomad@reddit

My most annoying challenge (but not critical) is access to some vitamins and cooking supplies that are unavailable in my local economy. Shipping through FedEx and DHL is cost prohibitive.

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Fat_and_lazy_nomad@reddit

Remote Indonesia. (ie not Bali or jakarta)

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jacksonsteven@reddit (OP)

What specific area did you have this problem?

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p3chapai@reddit

Not sure how big the demand would be, but in addition to language courses, cultural courses would help so much for integration in a new country.

It could help expats adjust and understand their host country better, reduce isolation by introducing ways to communicate, etc. There's so many "expat bubbles" that echo negative sentiments about their host countries...

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jacksonsteven@reddit (OP)

I like this one - a expat community based program, but with the specialisation of introductory to the new country, learning the culture, understanding of rules and way of life overall, so there is no misunderstandings of cultural differences down the road.

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