Switzerland‘s quality of life really is second to none. Almost everything works very well here, at least far better than in most countries. Quality is everywhere you look, from its public transit systems, to the buildings people live in and even the streets themselves. It’s obviously not perfect, but having lived in 5 countries (including the US), Switzerland is by far my favourite. But yes… it‘s expensive. Most people earn enough to lived comfortably though. For anyone considering moving here, learn at least one of the four official languages.
Switzerland is a great place to live, especially if you love the mountains and lakes and snow, but it is expensive, as you say, and it is not easy for non-EU citizens to get in permanently. For example one requirement I see is "You must have proof of a personal link to Switzerland (Swiss origin, spending a relatively long time in Switzerland, owning real estate, etc.)." A also saw estimates of needing $4000 a month to live there, but this seems like a best case scenario, and can easily be the double. You also need your own private health and accident insurance.
My suggestion was assuming OP wants to continue working, and not retire just yet. The job market here is very competitive and there is usually plenty of work, but it sucks right now. Otherwise moving here is doable—as long as you have a job. The cost of living is extremely location dependent, and it’s definitely possible to live with less than 3000 CHF/month.
nah the whole 'only wealthy people have done better' is just not true. The pie has gotten much, much larger over the last decades, as have all slices of that pie. Wages all across the spectrum have risen a large amount. Don't believe the myths.
we're all getting richer, but sure, rich people have gotten richer faster.
You keep saying "all", but none of your charts show what is happening below the median, and the stories are different between men and women, blacks, hispanics, college grads, etc. Even then your median chart still reflects slow wage growth for the median, which is the point.
Here are some (pre-Covid) articles which go into more detail about who is gaining, and who is not, including other factors and losses besides income:
nah the whole 'only wealthy people have done better' is just not true. The pie has gotten much, much larger over the last decades, as have all slices of that pie. Wages all across the spectrum have risen a large amount. Don't believe the myths.
we're all getting richer, but sure, rich people have gotten richer faster.
You keep saying "all", but none of your charts show what is happening below the median, and the stories are different between men and women, blacks, hispanics, college grads, etc. Even then your median chart still reflects slow wage growth for the median, which is the point.
Here are some (pre-Covid) articles which go into more detail about who is gaining, and who is not, including other factors and losses besides income:
ok yes, if you live in a red state, dropped out of HS, never went to college, work sporadically and use drugs, your income has suffered from the loss of factory jobs. You got me. Not everyone has done better.
I'm not going to hold the nation hostage to layabouts. They aren't the story. We'll never make everyone richer. there will be failures in any system.
Anyone who has been alive for 40-50 years knows how much richer this nation is now vs the 20c.
ok yes, if you live in a red state, dropped out of HS, never went to college, work sporadically and use drugs, your income has suffered from the loss of factory jobs. You got me. Not everyone has done better.
I'm not going to hold the nation hostage to layabouts. They aren't the story. We'll never make everyone richer. there will be failures in any system.
Anyone who has been alive for 40-50 years knows how much richer this nation is now vs the 20c.
We are rich now because of Tariffs. Tariffs are flowing into the United States at levels never seen before and are making America wealthy.
ok yes, if you live in a red state, dropped out of HS, never went to college, work sporadically and use drugs, your income has suffered from the loss of factory jobs. You got me. Not everyone has done better.
I'm not going to hold the nation hostage to layabouts. They aren't the story. We'll never make everyone richer. there will be failures in any system.
Anyone who has been alive for 40-50 years knows how much richer this nation is now vs the 20c.
We are rich now because of Tariffs. Tariffs are flowing into the United States at levels never seen before and are making America wealthy.
Tariffs are a tax paid by Americans. What a great way to become "wealthy".
You keep saying "all", but none of your charts show what is happening below the median, and the stories are different between men and women, blacks, hispanics, college grads, etc. Even then your median chart still reflects slow wage growth for the median, which is the point.
Here are some (pre-Covid) articles which go into more detail about who is gaining, and who is not, including other factors and losses besides income:
ok yes, if you live in a red state, dropped out of HS, never went to college, work sporadically and use drugs, your income has suffered from the loss of factory jobs. You got me. Not everyone has done better.
I'm not going to hold the nation hostage to layabouts. They aren't the story. We'll never make everyone richer. there will be failures in any system.
Anyone who has been alive for 40-50 years knows how much richer this nation is now vs the 20c.
You are either shielded from seeing the truth or willfully ignorant. The level of affluence among those in the top few percent (economically) has risen dramatically since the 1970s. Those who would have lived in the average neighborhood and been a little better off but not dramatically back in the 1970s, those people are fewer now but they are living in 3500+ sf McMansions in isolated enclaves, driving multiple luxury automobiles, sending their kids to private schools/care from before kindergarten, taking the entire family on luxury vacations to far away places, etc.
The truth is that there is an ever-shrinking group of increasingly affluent people who live apart from the rest of us. Meanwhile, 95%+ of the rest of us are simply hoping to hang in there and have enough money to not starve in retirement. Most of us are one medical emergency from financial catastrophe. Most of us know inflation will eat up most of our income and savings without even considering elder care.
I know plenty of people in their 50s and 60s who have one plan, which is to work until they die, or until they no longer can, and to hope they don't starve or become homeless in old age. The affluent mostly will never have to worry about a net to catch them, but most of us are facing a stark future in the US as we age. The truth is that the affluent increasingly do not care about those around them and hold little empathy for those less fortunate.
It's going to be interesting to see how American society deals with millions of elders who have no money, no pensions, no ability to work, and need help to survive in old age. I suspect that the American right, which is encouraging each other to abandon empathy for others, that empathy for less fortunate people is a bad thing, is pushing in this direction at least in part because those in power are gearing up to live with the abject cruelty toward its growing elderly population that will be required to support their demise.
I suppose the olds will be expected to drop dead, by hook or by crook, so that society doesn't have to pay for their care. We'll see soon enough, but the wave is coming. You tell me how millions of elderly with no pensions, little savings and no ability to work will not go hungry in coming years.
My suggestion was assuming OP wants to continue working, and not retire just yet. The job market here is very competitive and there is usually plenty of work, but it sucks right now. Otherwise moving here is doable—as long as you have a job. The cost of living is extremely location dependent, and it’s definitely possible to live with less than 3000 CHF/month.
Fair enough. Others were talking about retirement visas, but even for working, I think it is not easy for most Americans to get a job in Switzerland, unless they have some unique expertise or skill.
4000 USD Is 3200 CHF, and to be fair to my source, the article said $3500-$4000.
But otherwise, I agree that Switzerland would be a great place if you can. My son is going to school there now in Lausanne, living in an expensive apartment (with a roommate) and a great view of the lake, and looking forward to ski-season.
That's why southern Democrats became Republicans. They wanted to keep Jim Crow. That's pretty much the Trumper position on race today. White supremacy.
That's why southern Democrats became Republicans. They wanted to keep Jim Crow. That's pretty much the Trumper position on race today. White supremacy.
The South turned red because the Democrat Party had become left wing lunatics over a thirty year period.
If you think that it happened overnight due to race, why were southerners still electing Democrats to Congress and governerships in the 90s, and why did they vote for Bill Clinton, twice?
That's why southern Democrats became Republicans. They wanted to keep Jim Crow. That's pretty much the Trumper position on race today. White supremacy.
The South turned red because the Democrat Party had become left wing lunatics over a thirty year period.
If you think that it happened overnight due to race, why were southerners still electing Democrats to Congress and governerships in the 90s, and why did they vote for Bill Clinton, twice?
Southern Democrats swung to the Republican Party with moves to enfranchise blacks after the Second World War and with desegregation. It's a shame that public education hasn't extended to the right today.