Around the world, there are towns and cities that are offering money in hopes of attracting people to live there. If you’re ready to pack it in at your current location, you can get paid to move to one of these beautiful and scenic locales.
Places in the United States
If you want or need to stay in the U.S., there are several places you can go and get paid to move there. The Northeast, for example, is particularly welcoming.
In Vermont, the state is trying to enhance its workforce with a relocation initiative called the Remote Worker Grant Program. It offers up to $5,000 per year for two years of living in Vermont in order to cover the cost of moving. The program operates on a first-come, first-served basis, and you have to apply—but if you’re successful, you’ll be able to keep your good job and enjoy the scenery, too.
Maine is the oldest and whitest state in the country, and they want to change that. Although you’re not exactly going to get paid to move there, the state is offering tax credits to recent college graduates who want to become Mainers. If you move to Maine, whatever money you spend on paying your student loans each year is subtracted from your state income tax: if you paid $5,000 into your student loan debt and owe the state $5,500 in taxes, you will only have to pay $500. People who studied science, technology, engineering, and math get an even better deal; they could receive money back from the government if their loan payments are higher than their tax.
The city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, is looking for remote workers to move there. As with Vermont, there is an application process, but if you apply and are accepted into the Tulsa Remote program, you’ll get a payment of $10,000 to get you started, a free housing stipend, and a desk at 36 Degrees North, a co-working space in downtown Tulsa. Although the 2019 participants have been selected, applications are open for 2020.
Looking for a bigger adventure?
If you’re interested in moving to Santiago, Chile, you can take advantage of the city’s growing status as a tech hub. Santiago is offering entrepreneurs $40,000 to move there and launch their business through its Start-Up Chile program. It offers two programs, one for startups with female founders and another for startups less than three years old. People selected into the program will be granted year-long work visas, a complementary co-working space, and a network of contacts. Applications for the 2020 program open in December.
Have you always dreamed of living on a Greek island? Well, you can—and you’ll get paid to move there! The Greek island of Antikythera is gorgeous and very close to Crete, but it only has 40 permanent residents. It has launched a repopulation campaign with the help and sponsorship of the Greek Orthodox church, hoping to attract new families to the island. The application process gives preference to Greek people, but those chosen will get a house, a parcel of land to start farming or build a business on, and a monthly check of €500 for the first three years they live there.
And then there’s Italy. Although you wouldn’t get paid to move there, the city of Sambuca di Sicilia, about an hour from Palermo, the capital of Sicily, is selling vacant homes for a mere €1. There is a catch, though: the homes are pretty run-down, and new owners need to make a commitment to refurbish the property within three years—at a cost of at least €15,000—and pay a security deposit of €5,000, which will be returned when the renovations are complete. You can find a list of the houses for sale here.
There are plenty more cities around the world that have programs that will pay you to move there. It just takes some research and some dedication (and probably some savings) to make the leap.
Photo: The village of Sambuca di Sicilia, Italy. Credit: Shutterstock