[WeWantOut] 50sM, 50sF tech writer USA -> Anywhere

We are pretty sure we want to go to Mexico, but I'd appreciate input on other countries to seriously consider and why. If anyone of a similar age has done this already, I'd be super interested to hear what they decided and why.

I'm a technical writer with a Masters in English. I've worked closely with engineers and/or lawyers to simplify extremely complex ideas into common language that can be read by anyone, focused on International English. I *don't* have a programing background and *haven't* worked with software companies. Even so, I can edit the back-end websites in a pinch and easily handle basic graphic design tasks. In other words, I am not usually going to land work with software development degree requirements listed in the USA due to competition; I don't know if that's the same case in countries desperate for skilled workers too or if my age will be a roadblock. Most of my career has been centered on companies with high-risk liability at stake, like insurance companies or manufacturers that make equipment that is extremely dangerous/deadly if operated or repaired incorrectly.

My current company does not have any offices abroad for me to transfer to, but I can work remotely. My wife is disabled without a degree and gets SSDI. I'd like to continue working for another 10+ years to invest more money up for retirement, so we'd prefer not to do a retirement visa even though we qualify for those in some places. Plus I actually like working, as weird as that may seem.

We have enough investments to qualify for residency in several places I've researched, however, I don't want to disrupt our current retirement accounts to move to a place until we're sure we want to be there long term. Even though we have some means, we're not rich enough to do a "golden visa" in the more expensive European countries.

The extreme heat in the Asian countries I've looked into isn't ideal. We actually prefer colder weather and I'm not sure if we can get high enough in the mountains to be comfortable there. We are not even beach-goers at all, which seems to be the main appeal of those locations for most people. We're not completely rejecting some of those locations, but travel back from there to where family is would be far more complicated as well.

As it stands now, we think we're likely to retire in Mexico, especially since it's easy to travel back to see family. We don't speak very much Spanish yet, but we're excited to learn and plan to take classes. If not Mexico, we think maybe another Spanish-speaking country might work too.

My wife and our (adult, independent) son used to speak German and could probably get to at least B1 levels pretty quickly again, so that's made us consider Germany. I hear it's costly to live there with lower wages though and that's a bit off-putting, since building our retirement nest egg further is important. My wife thinks I could learn German because she and our son (who may follow us when we leave) would be able to practice with me at home, so I'd get plenty of practice.

As I understand it, the DAFT visa might be possible, but I hear it's super costly there. Learning Dutch doesn't seem impossible, yet it's harder than German from what I understand. I don't fully understand if our age will make European immigration impossible.

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Other info:

-I doubt we'd qualify for any citizenship by descent anywhere. My wife knows literally nothing about one entire side of her family though, so maybe that's a last-ditch option?

-Starting a small business might be alright, but if I can, I'd actually prefer working for someone else until we're settled.

-Our son is working on his Masters right now and wants out too within the next couple of years. He's unmarried and has no kids.

-We have a dog that's not super old, but not young either so we hope to find a good fit and stay put on a continent so we don't have to stress him out with lots of flights!

-I might consider getting certified to teach English to adults as a backup plan, but as I understand it, it doesn't always pay really well in many places. I don't know my work experience/degree might change that and/or if it might make me an appealing hire to teach English to adults though. My bachelors was in teaching, but I let my (US/state) certification lapse almost tens years ago.

-We have people we love in Spain, Costa Rica, and Japan. Costa Rica was at the top of the list, but the cost of living seems to be skyrocketing there according to our friend.

-We'd love to go to Finland, however the language seems extra daunting. We also don't know if we're considered too old to get in there.