At 55, no idea where I want to retire: housesitting is helping me work toward an answer
A chance to explore
The writer once pictured being settled by 55, with a home, a garden, and a chest freezer. After gaining the freedom to choose where to live, the writer started housesitting at 52 in exchange for accommodation.
Over almost three years, the writer has stayed in dozens of cities, towns, and remote islands, from northern Washington to Mexico's Baja California peninsula. Stays generally last between two weeks and three months, making it possible to explore a community without a lease or home purchase.
Learning each place
To get a feel for a location, the writer talks with locals, visits libraries and grocery stores, and explores nearby trails. These routines help the writer picture what everyday life there might be like.
A housesit across from the writer's former high school in San Francisco offered a chance to revisit familiar streets and places. But the experience also showed that less traffic, more green space, and a slower pace now appeal more than city life.
Finding peace on an island
The writer then tried a remote island in the Pacific Northwest, where reaching the nearest grocery store required a ferry ride. Bringing frozen food home meant planning around the trip and using ice packs and a cooler.
Although the writer initially expected to stay only a few weeks, the island's solitude proved appealing, prompting several returns. The writer became willing to plan errands around ferry schedules and give up some conveniences in exchange for peace.
Considering life abroad
A five-week housesit in La Paz, Mexico, introduced the writer to life abroad through a stay at the home of an American woman who had retired there. The writer loved the time spent in the Sonoran Desert, though Mexico is not yet a definite choice for retirement.
The experience left open the possibility of retiring outside the United States and helped the writer see that moving abroad could be manageable. The search continues for a place that feels like home, even on a first visit.
Key points
- Housesitting lets the writer explore places without a lease or home purchase.
- The writer has stayed in dozens of locations over nearly three years.
- A remote island's solitude outweighed the inconvenience of ferry-dependent errands.
- A stay in La Paz made retiring outside the United States a possibility.