American Woman Moves to France: Cost & Lifestyle Changes

At 56 years old, Natalie Lynch decided to leave a four-decade career and her life in California behind. Driven by burnout and the high cost of living in the Bay Area, she sold her home in Oakland in 2021 and her home-staging business two years later. In 2024, she moved to Europe with her dog, Enzo, eventually settling in Audenge, France.

While Lynch is saving money and enjoying a less stressful environment, she admits the transition has its difficulties. As a single expatriate, she experiences loneliness and has encountered bureaucratic red tape. Despite these hurdles, she finds the cultural emphasis on living within one's means and aging gracefully to be a refreshing change from her previous life in California.

After working since she was 15 years old, Natalie Lynch reached a breaking point. Following decades in the real estate industry—first as a home stager and later as an agent—she described herself as burned out and lonely. The pandemic served as a wake-up call, highlighting the unsustainable nature of her lifestyle in California.

In 2021, Lynch sold her home in Oakland. A few years later, she sold the home-staging business she had owned for 24 years. Despite these sales, the high cost of living in the Bay Area continued to drain her savings, prompting her to seek a new life abroad.

"I honestly never thought that I would leave," Lynch said. "But after four decades, she did. "I just didn't find it sustainable anymore."

The move was a significant shift. "It was a huge leap to push myself out of my comfort zone," she explained. "I had owned my home for 17 years and was surrounded by a great support system of friends and neighbors, but I was in search of a new life."

In 2024, Lynch traded the American dream for life in Europe. She initially moved to Italy with her dog, Enzo, spending a couple of months traveling the coast. The journey then took them to Spain before they finally settled in Audenge, a small town in southwestern France near Arcachon Bay along the Bordeaux coast.

Her daily life now looks vastly different from her previous routine. Instead of managing a business, she spends her time taking Enzo on day trips to nearby towns and waking up without the pressure of an early start time.

One of the most significant benefits of the move is the reduction in living costs. In California, Lynch was renting a 1,000-square-foot 1980s condo for $3,000 a month. In Audenge, she rents a fully furnished duplex with a small pool for €1,200 a month (approximately $1,400), which includes utilities.

Her monthly budget for food and day-to-day expenses is roughly $1,000, with an additional $600 covering recurring costs like car insurance, storage in Antwerp, Belgium, and services such as her phone plan and Netflix. "Life is definitely more affordable here compared to California," she stated.

However, financial savings are balanced by bureaucratic challenges. Lynch noted that navigating French bureaucracy is notoriously difficult. "A lot of people, including French people, say the bureaucracy is especially complicated here," she said. Her primary experience with this involved registering her dog, Enzo, where a missing document resulted in a "curt email" that left a bad taste in her mouth.

Lynch has observed distinct cultural differences between life in California and France. She notes that Europeans prioritize quality of life over pretentious status symbols. "People here are less focused on the small stuff, and more focused on quality of life and living within their means," she said.

She contrasted this with her previous life, where she was surrounded by Teslas and felt pressure to maintain a polished appearance with regular hair dye and gel nails. In France, she finds it a relief that women are "aging gracefully," with more silver hair and fewer fillers.

Socially, the move has been complex. As a single woman without a partner, Lynch admits the experience can be lonely. She has to actively seek out connections through expat groups or local cafes. "It's definitely doable, but in the beginning, it's definitely lonely by yourself," she admitted. "I think it's because I haven't settled anywhere yet."

Despite the isolation, the reduction in stress is profound. Her previous workdays ran from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., which she normalized until moving to Europe. "Being in Europe, in general, has reset my nervous system back to baseline," Lynch said. "I feel way less stressed."