Stephanie Synclair kinda-sorta took a leap of expatriation in 2022 after visiting Sicily, Italy for her own Eat, Pray, Love moment where she quickly discovered that living abroad was not only doable but actually fit her budget.
Synclair didn’t just drop everything to move to Italy. According to CNBC. It would be 10 years after her initial travel to Sicily, leaving her corporate job after 10 years and becoming an entrepreneur before she purchased a 4000-square-foot home in the European country.
“I knew it was time to quit corporate America when I was sick of people telling me when to take a lunch break,” Synclair told CNBC. “I wish it was deeper than that.”
Many aunties can identify with Synclair, and are quite familiar with the wear and tear and mental toll working within the corporate structure might have, not excluding lower wages and micro aggression. The Department of Labor reported that the percentage of Black women in the workforce dropped in 2020 to 58.8 % from 60.5% in 2019. These statistics are an indication of Black women’s willingness to walk away from bullshit that no longer serves them.
After stepping away from the corporate world, the Atlanta native started LaRue 1680, a tea company that earns her an $80,000 annual salary. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Synclair set out to buy a home and take advantage of low mortgage rates. The 41-year-old mom was quickly disillusioned about becoming a homeowner in Atlanta due to exorbitant home prices, and began to look outside of the United States.
“I started looking outside the country for just what was available,” Synclair said. “It really was more so just curiosity, just looking. I don’t think in that moment that I knew it would actually lead to a purchase.”
In March 2022, Synclair closed on a three-bedroom, two-bathroom, home in Italy for around $62,000 in US dollars far below the $450,000 budget she had reserved for a home in Atlanta. As for living expenses, the business owner spends a fraction of the she shells out monthly as a current renter in Atlanta. To occupy both homes as a transcontinental resident, Synclair’s fixed monthly living expenses are roughly $5196.
While living abroad while Black isn’t novel for Black women, Stephanie Synclair’s experience is a testament of how to do so fearlessly, successfully, and fashionably. Has
living abroad been on your mind? Is it on your to-do list? Would you take the leap? Where would you go?
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