Financial freedom is amazing. And as someone who’s been enjoying financial freedom for more than five years, I’ve gotta say that it’s worth whatever “sacrifices” it takes to have it.

I actually went from below broke at age 27 to financially free at 33. And that was after growing up on welfare in Detroit, not having a college degree, and never having a high-paying job.

By the way, I explain exactly how I achieved financial freedom in just six years in my Early Retirement Blueprint. If you’re interested, you can download a free copy of my Early Retirement Blueprint using the link in the description of this video.

So I know a lot about getting to the finish line very quickly. Now, I’m not promising you a life of luxury here. But if you can’t stand the typical 9-5-till-65 thing and want financial freedom ASAP, I can tell you all about a way to make that happen.

In fact, I believe it’s possible to live off of just $10,000/year in passive dividend income. That is not a high threshold to meet, nor something that would take decades to achieve.

Today, I want to tell you about the fastest way to achieve financial freedom and how to live off of just $10,000/year in dividend income. Ready? Let’s dig in.

This article will not be discussing how to build up the $10,000/year in dividend income. I’ve already done a lot of articles on that. And you can also check out what I’m doing over at Patreon. Instead, I’m talking about what to do after that kind of annual income threshold is met so that you can kiss the day job goodbye.

There’s a secret I’m going to let you in on today. And it could change your life, as it did mine.

It’s a phrase. A passcode. A secret passcode that can open up all kinds of possibilities. But you have to be open-minded to it. If you want to stay in the Matrix and 9-5 it for most of your life, there’s nothing wrong with that. As I always say, to each their own. But this concept – the passcode I’m about to share with you – is not that at all.

The secret passcode is: geographic arbitrage.

Yep. Geographic arbitrage. Arbitrage is taking advantage of a price difference between two or more markets. This is doing it in a geographic manner. What I’m talking about here is, taking your $10,000 per year in dividend dollars and spending them in another country where those dollars go much, much, much further. In fact, when you live in another country and withdraw money from a local ATM, it won’t be dollars that are coming out. And that’s exactly the point.

So how much further can your dollars go in another market? Much further than you might think.

I moved to Thailand in 2017. I’ve been living here ever since. I moved here specifically for geographic arbitrage purposes. And what I’ve found, after living here for four years now, is that my local purchasing power has been tripled.

That’s right. My money goes three times further here than in the States.

That’s on an apples-to-apples basis. If you take my exact lifestyle here and replicate it in the States, it’ll cost you three times what I spend. What that also means is that my dividend dollars are amplified by a factor of three over here. Imagine instantly tripling the value of your portfolio and the income it produces. Wouldn’t that be awesome? Getting to the crux of the topic, that could turn $10,000 in annual dividend income into $30,000 in annual dividend income in US purchasing power terms. Now we’re working with some money, right?

Let me give you an example of what I’m talking about here.

Here are some pictures of my one-bedroom condo in Chiang Mai, Thailand from when I first moved in. I rent this place for 13,000 Thai baht per month. At the current exchange rate, that’s about $390/month. As you can see, it’s a nice, clean apartment. It’s located in the best spot in town, within walking distance to all of the places I frequent, including my favorite coffee shop, the gym, restaurants, shopping, etc. And check this out. It’s completely furnished. Comes with the couch, bed, television, etc. I get a pool, security guard, small gym, elevator, gated access, the whole nine yards. For less than $400/month.

How much do you think this place would cost back in the States?

In any desirable US city, in a walkable location, totally furnished? I think this place would go for more than three times as much. Much more, actually. And this is just one example. Transportation? I can get from one end of town to the other on less than a dollar. Food? My daily lunch costs less than $2. So on and so forth for the rest of my expenses. Almost everything has been cost compressed at a ratio of 3-to-1, or better.

So could you live, where I’m living, on $10,000/year?

Absolutely, if we’re talking about one person here. Since it’s a tripling of purchasing power, it’s like asking if you could live on $30,000 year in the States. Plenty of people do just that. $10,000/year is $833/month. Now, maybe you don’t have my exact condo. There are units all over town going for $150/month. If you can get rent – typically one’s biggest monthly expense – down to $150/month, that’s only 18% of your budget. You’re left with more than 80% of your money to spend on food, transportation, communication, and anything else you’d need.

And since I’m invested in dividend growth stocks, my dividend income has shot way up since I first moved abroad.

That’s right. All I talk about, focus on, make videos on, and personally invest in are high-quality dividend growth stocks. The dividends that these stocks are pumping out are reliably increasing, year in and year out, like clockwork. They’re like the golden geese that lay ever-more golden eggs. My dividend income alone is up by 40% since this time in 2017. Meanwhile, the prices of things like rent and food are basically unchanged since I first got to Thailand. Meanwhile, the exchange rate is the same as it was when I got here – about 33 Thai baht per 1 US dollar. Income way up. Expenses flat. Pretty sweet.

Geographic arbitrage doesn’t have to be Thailand. That’s just where I picked. You can do this in a lot of places.

The world is your oyster. There are so many options out there. Want an example? I actually think Mexico is pretty enticing in the current environment. Whereas pandemic-related lockdowns have taken a heavy toll on Thailand, Mexico has largely been open for business. Mexico offers a low cost of living, warm weather, delicious food, an easy visa situation, etc. Look, it all depends on who you are and what you want. But if you’re an American, with an American passport, that’s kind of a golden ticket to the world as it relates to visas and being able to live in other countries on a semi-permanent or permanent basis.

Now, we have to let this pandemic pass. After that, things will eventually normalize.

Sure, things look bleak right now. A lot of countries are closed off to tourists and expats. But if you can overcome recency bias and take a long-term view, which is something you should already be doing as an investor, the future for geographic arbitrage is bright. I actually think a lot of countries out there – the ones that are prime candidates for geographic arbitrage – will be desperate for tourists after the current storm passes. They’ll be throwing out the red carpet in the near future. Just have to give it some time. Meanwhile, if the country you want to move to is off limits right now, I’d be using this time as an opportunity to add to my stash and brush up on any skills and knowledge I might need for where I’m going – like, say, language and local laws and customs.

If you absolutely have to live in the States, that’s cool. This lifestyle isn’t for everyone. But if you are open-minded and want out as fast as possible, it works beautifully.

Will I still be living in Thailand four years from now? Hard to say. What I can say is, the last four years here have been incredible. It’s opened my mind up to the possibilities that exist beyond the US borders. If you can take those US dollars and spend them in a local currency where the exchange rate is extremely favorable, that supercharges your local purchasing power. It kind of works like a time machine in terms of speeding up the journey to financial freedom. It is possible to live off of just $10,000 in annual dividend income. If you want to  get to financial freedom ASAP, strongly consider taking advantage of geographic arbitrage.

— Jason Fieber

P.S. If you’d like access to my entire six-figure dividend growth stock portfolio, as well as stock trades I make with my own money, I’ve made all of that available exclusively through Patreon.

We’re Putting $2,000 / Month into These Stocks
The goal? To build a reliable, growing income stream by making regular investments in high-quality dividend-paying companies. Click here to access our Income Builder Portfolio and see what we’re buying this month.

Source: DividendsAndIncome.com