Dollar Keeps Going Down

For people interested in living the dream abroad, the fall of the dollar over the last few years has been a dream crusher. In several low cost retirement venues, the value of the dollar has fallen by 20 to 30% over the last few years. What does this mean? Retirement money doesn’t go nearly as far as it once did.

The Forex (foreign exchange) markets have been hitting expats on US based income quite badly and some are even rethinking where they will go to live next. A few are even considering a move back to the states. Those who earn their income in local currency have managed to benefit from the forex markets since any imports they buy from the US have decreased in price.

Expats are spending less money in their adopted countries and are looking to be more frugal in order to deal with the severe reduction in buying power. At the same time, European expats are benefiting with a reduction in costs due to the very strong Euro and Pound.

What will the future hold? I am not sure, but I have a feeling the dollar will bounce back in next year or two. I don’t know if the bottom has been hit yet, only time can tell, but I think the dollar is a better investment long term than the baht or peso for sure.