Is it even POSSIBLE to live in the mountains in Hungary?

..... Portugal and taxes?

Not sure what the issue is?

If you have dual US/EU citizenship you can live anywhere in the EU, sadly not in the UK, but in Ireland.

    I have US/EU citizenships (one of them is Hungarian citizenship). I used to live in Hungary but this was 30 yrs ago when I was a child (I still speak the language though thank goodness... but OMG (very sad how fast time flies. Truly depressing). I need to move. I cannot handle living in the US anymore for numerous reasons.
Since it has been 500 years since I have been to Hungary (I plan to visit Hungary next year and talk to real estate agent) to see if it is even possible to live in the mountains off grid.

From what I recall Hungary is mostly flat but has rolling hills. I am OBSESSED with mountains... I need mountains in my life or life is simply not the same. Rolling hills is not the same as mountains

Is it even possible to live in the Mountains in Hungary on at least 3 or more acres where neighbors are NOT squashed next to you? So more remote areas needed.
I know Hungary has these mountains: [link under review] but is it possible to live in the mountains there? I know in Portugal there are many houses for sale in mountains... is it the same for Hungary?
I have looked for houses for sale online in Hungary (where I could live off grid on at least 3 or more acres) and I can't seem to find one in Hungary in the mountains or very close to mountains... it appears the terrain in Hungary is very different from Portugal unfortunately in that regard?

   

    -@juliet1980

If you need mountains, you need to look at the Matra mountains.  They aren't that high.  Also they are a national park - click here.  The nearest big town I know of is Gyöngyös.  You might also want to look at Bükk.  Skiing is sometimes possible.  There are some web cams you can look at - Google it.

You can be as isolated as you want there but you will have a miserable time with no water or electricity.  Couple of places there have small villages with many empty houses and for good reason.  If you want a  bottle of milk, you'd have to drive ages to get it. Winter, you could easily be cut off for a long time. If anything is a problem in these places, it's water.  Any place in HU without water is a problem. Personally I would never buy a property that doesn't have utilities accessible on site and by that I mean absolute minimum - water and electricity.  Forget about having water laid to your property, it's insanely expensive. And you cannot rely on the neighbours either.

Might be worth thinking of the Danube Bend area.  Rolling hills but not quite mountains.  Lot easier to get to and plenty of isolation possible.

There are no property taxes at the moment.  Where I live, they were all suddenly cancelled by the local government with no explanation.

    ..... Portugal and taxes?
Not sure what the issue is?

If you have dual US/EU citizenship you can live anywhere in the EU, sadly not in the UK, but in Ireland.
   

    -@SimCityAT

I am simply trying to eventually decide between Hungary or Portugal. That is the issue.

This couple live in, I believe, in Amarante area of Portugal. Would you call their surroundings hills or mountains? https://youtu.be/B0tMQ61K1Og?si=w-B0KRI6xYdLYWFT (are their surroundings large hills or it is mountains?).

It is beautiful where they live and to be surrounded by mountains (or hills) whichever of the two it is. If I could have similar in Hungary then I rather live in Hungary but I fear that I cannot find similar terrain in Hungary.

I know mountains are at least 3,000ft tall but I still have difficultly telling the difference between mountains and large rolling hills.

I know mountains are at least 3,000ft tall but I still have difficultly telling the difference between mountains and large rolling hills.
   

    -@juliet1980

You're not the only one who cannot tell.

The biggest mountain is Kékes  which is only 1000m high. 

You can see what is going on there by looking at various webcams.

    I know mountains are at least 3,000ft tall but I still have difficultly telling the difference between mountains and large rolling hills.        -@juliet1980You're not the only one who cannot tell.The biggest mountain is Kékes  which is only 1000m high.  You can see what is going on there by looking at various webcams.        -@fluffy2560

It appears the highest mountains in Portugal is 2,351 meters compared to Hungary's 1000m. When I look at videos of people living in rural areas of Portugal it looks amazing. The terrain looks awesome even if it is only large hills I am seeing (they still looks like mountains to me). Sadly when I watch videos of same for Hungary it's not the same All I see is flat, flat and more flat!

I am hoping when I visit Hungary next year so that I can possibly find house (to renovate) in more rural areas where I at least might be able to have something similar to this: https://youtu.be/qgtl2MfIjk0?si=KethiR20YEkOpkhN

I am preferring Hungary for tax reasons, my mom will also live there, I speak Hungarian language etc... but I need mountains or large hills in my life. I rotted half my life away in Florida. It was miserable!!! Flat and awful humidity. Never again. I cannot stand flat terrain. 

It appears the highest mountains in Portugal is 2,351 meters compared to Hungary's 1000m. When I look at videos of people living in rural areas of Portugal it looks amazing. The terrain looks awesome even if it is only large hills I am seeing (they still looks like mountains to me). Sadly when I watch videos of same for Hungary it's not the same All I see is flat, flat and more flat!I am hoping when I visit Hungary next year so that I can possibly find house (to renovate) in more rural areas where I at least might be able to have something similar to this: https://youtu.be/qgtl2MfIjk0?si=KethiR20YEkOpkhNI am preferring Hungary for tax reasons, my mom will also live there, I speak Hungarian language etc... but I need mountains or large hills in my life. I rotted half my life away in Florida. It was miserable!!! Flat and awful humidity. Never again. I cannot stand flat terrain.          -@juliet1980

You can live like that in Hungary but you will need money to do it. 

If you have independent income from the USA, you may find the HU-US tax regime less than friendly from 2024.

You don't say how old you you are? 43?  Is your Mom a HU citizen?  How old is she?  Do you really want to do all that outside work?   If your Mum or you are sick, you need to be able to get to medical care, possibly quickly.

You can do all that stuff in your video if you are so inclined but it's a lot of work and as you get older, it gets more difficult.   I noticed the people in the video had bananas on their breakfast cereal so they must have local shops/stores somewhere.  They will need a car to collect their bananas.

It won't get humid anywhere in Hungary. It will get hot, but not tropical hot.  Mid-30s is about the upper limit.  Winter could be very cold (like -20C) but that's unusual. Below zero, very often.  I used to live in a very hilly area.  It's obviously cooler in the hills and if you are not on the top of them, you will end up in shadow some of the time which can be a pain.  Between about November and March, outside work is more or less over.  It gets better around April but rains a fair bit.  Hardly rains at all between about late May and October.  Sometimes there are violent storms.

Be extremely careful on renovating property.  Apart from the ownership and boundary issues, In many cases, it's easier to knock down an existing building and build all new with modern and efficient materials. Keep any decent outbuildings.  In the hills/mountains one needs good heating and insulation and even triple glazing.  It can get windy and rainy. External insulation on new builds is a legal requirement.

My view is having at least two heating possibilities - like heat pump and wood burner or gas central heating and a wood burner or some variation.  If the power is off due to storms, you won't die of cold as you can fall back to the wood burner. 

Our gas boiler is broken now and needs repairing but we also have a heat pump AND a wood burner.  So we aren't going to die of lack of hypothermia whatever happens as the heat pump works very well.  We deliberately installed multiple sources to mitigate the risk.

And as I said before, existing properties will (usually) have water and electricity (both minimums) already on site. The others are gas, sewage and phone. The phone is for the Internet but could be had by mobile if signal is good enough.

If a "large hill" will do, take a look at my favorite town in Hungary: Esztergom. Quite a dramatic setting with the massive basilica set atop the "large hill" with the Danube flowing below.

The town has character and is an easy jaunt to and from Budapest.

    If a "large hill" will do, take a look at my favorite town in Hungary: Esztergom. Quite a dramatic setting with the massive basilica set atop the "large hill" with the Danube flowing below.
The town has character and is an easy jaunt to and from Budapest.
   

    -@zif

I agree, the forested area around the Danube Bend is interesting, like south of Visegrad.  Not really mountains though.

While we don't go to Esztergom so much (been there, done that many times),  we sometimes drive up to that area to the look out of the river.  Have lunch etc.  Dog likes it but can be busy on a sunny day even in winter. 

It takes about 1h to 1.5h to get there due to the windy roads.

If in a hurry, I also know it takes about 15 minutes to fly there from my village (haha).

I am only 43 (a gymnast and athlete with the energy of a 12 year old) I have ZERO concerns about managing a home on several acres (have done it before). I firmly believe that is the only and best way to live! Grow you own food and be self sufficient as possible. No, I would not be living with my mother who is in her 70s.

I am certainly not about to sacrifice my dream way of life just because "something might get more difficult once someone gets old!". I have decades before any of that happens... I am not going to force myself to life my life in a miserable way just because I will be old some day. That makes no sense to me at all. Some places in the world have centenarians who are still active growing their own food, maintaining the land... they are like that because they EXERCISE and are active majority of the day. Keeps you HEALTHY and mobile. You want to age horribly and get sick... do what most people do... sit on your butt majority of the day, don't do yoga or stretch, don't do manual labor and just rot away. Exercising two hours a day as you sit on your butt for the rest of the entire day... does not make up for all that sedentary lifestyle.

If what these people have exists in Hungary then that's great... they have about 3.5 acres and look at their surroundings.... they are in Amarante, Portugal... I wish to find this in Hungary with those types of hills or mountains whatever they are:

[link under review]

Unless someone is a cripple there should be no reason why an old person would not be able live in a house where those people live (shown in above video) and are building a new house on that land.

What exactly do you feel would make it difficult for an old person to live like those people in the above video? My grandmother lived exactly like that and died at 96 (why could she do it and NOT me?).... she grew her own food in her backyard, like many people in Hungary do.

My concerns are not "will I be able to do this or that when I get old".

My concerns are....

1.Taxes (compare taxes in Portugal vs Hungary). Income tax, property taxes etc etc... 

2.I know Portugal has the hills "mountains".... I would love to live in but does Hungary.

3.The only place I should worry about medical care is in the US!! It's one of the many many reasons I want to get the heck out of the US.

    It appears the highest mountains in Portugal is 2,351 meters compared to Hungary's 1000m. When I look at videos of people living in rural areas of Portugal it looks amazing. The terrain looks awesome even if it is only large hills I am seeing (they still looks like mountains to me). Sadly when I watch videos of same for Hungary it's not the same All I see is flat, flat and more flat!I am hoping when I visit Hungary next year so that I can possibly find house (to renovate) in more rural areas where I at least might be able to have something similar to this: https://youtu.be/qgtl2MfIjk0?si=KethiR20YEkOpkhNI am preferring Hungary for tax reasons, my mom will also live there, I speak Hungarian language etc... but I need mountains or large hills in my life. I rotted half my life away in Florida. It was miserable!!! Flat and awful humidity. Never again. I cannot stand flat terrain.          -@juliet1980You can live like that in Hungary but you will need money to do it.  If you have independent income from the USA, you may find the HU-US tax regime less than friendly from 2024.You don't say how old you you are? 43?  Is your Mom a HU citizen?  How old is she?  Do you really want to do all that outside work?   If your Mum or you are sick, you need to be able to get to medical care, possibly quickly.You can do all that stuff in your video if you are so inclined but it's a lot of work and as you get older, it gets more difficult.   I noticed the people in the video had bananas on their breakfast cereal so they must have local shops/stores somewhere.  They will need a car to collect their bananas.It won't get humid anywhere in Hungary. It will get hot, but not tropical hot.  Mid-30s is about the upper limit.  Winter could be very cold (like -20C) but that's unusual. Below zero, very often.  I used to live in a very hilly area.  It's obviously cooler in the hills and if you are not on the top of them, you will end up in shadow some of the time which can be a pain.  Between about November and March, outside work is more or less over.  It gets better around April but rains a fair bit.  Hardly rains at all between about late May and October.  Sometimes there are violent storms.Be extremely careful on renovating property.  Apart from the ownership and boundary issues, In many cases, it's easier to knock down an existing building and build all new with modern and efficient materials. Keep any decent outbuildings.  In the hills/mountains one needs good heating and insulation and even triple glazing.  It can get windy and rainy. External insulation on new builds is a legal requirement.My view is having at least two heating possibilities - like heat pump and wood burner or gas central heating and a wood burner or some variation.  If the power is off due to storms, you won't die of cold as you can fall back to the wood burner.  Our gas boiler is broken now and needs repairing but we also have a heat pump AND a wood burner.  So we aren't going to die of lack of hypothermia whatever happens as the heat pump works very well.  We deliberately installed multiple sources to mitigate the risk.And as I said before, existing properties will (usually) have water and electricity (both minimums) already on site. The others are gas, sewage and phone. The phone is for the Internet but could be had by mobile if signal is good enough.        -@fluffy2560

I am confused... you mentioned "You can live like that in Hungary but you will need money to do it. ".

I can easily find that in Portugal for cheap (cheap compared to many places in the US where average house price on few acres of land in Idaho/Montana/Colorado etc is 500+K!!). I can get few acres of land with or without a house for 250k or less with the "mountains" or hills (whichever it is LOL I do not know anymore) but I can get this in Portugal for cheap (aka 250k or less). I consider this cheap.

Or it at least appears that I could get this in Portugal for 250k or less... am I wrong? I would specifically looking or house needing renovation.

... but you are saying in Hungary this would not be the case... it would be more expensive?

I am confused... you mentioned "You can live like that in Hungary but you will need money to do it. ". I can easily find that in Portugal for cheap (cheap compared to many places in the US where average house price on few acres of land in Idaho/Montana/Colorado etc is 500+K!!). I can get few acres of land with or without a house for 250k or less with the "mountains" or hills (whichever it is LOL I do not know anymore) but I can get this in Portugal for cheap (aka 250k or less). I consider this cheap. Or it at least appears that I could get this in Portugal for 250k or less... am I wrong? I would specifically looking or house needing renovation.... but you are saying in Hungary this would not be the case... it would be more expensive? -@juliet1980

Apart from the property and land, it's the renovation and material costs. 

Houses are different in Hungary to the USA.  In HU, they are usually made out of reinforced concrete and brick whereas North American houses are mostly made out of wood.   Windows are usually uPVC. 

It's heavy labour and you'll inevitably need helpers. Bags of cement weigh 25kg and you need many of them.  And you need the machines. Building techniques are different.

Not only that, your building plans have to be approved AND followed.  You cannot even live in a house unless it's approved by the local government.  Same for your water, electricity, gas and sewerage - all have to be compliant.  Your roof has to be sufficiently strong to take snow on it.   That means heavy tiles.

We've had some serious issues with the cost of building materials.  The prices were way up.  Wood has always been really expensive and to be avoided.   You should check it out to make comparisons.

We just had our garden landscaped - driveway, fences, gates, steps, paths and patio/deck. It took 3 to 5 workers about 4 months to do it on and off.   No way we could have done that ourselves in any kind of reasonable time frame.  It could have taken years.  The only thing I did myself was all the electrics for lighting, sockets, gate and security cameras/entry door locks.

As I said, utilities are a problem in Hungary.  You need water and electricity on site if you are serious. 

Sewage could be a septic tank but they are frowned on now and a last resort.  Gas and landline phone maybe you can live without. 

    I am only 43 (a gymnast and athlete with the energy of a 12 year old) I have ZERO concerns about managing a home on several acres (have done it before). I firmly believe that is the only and best way to live! Grow you own food and be self sufficient as possible. No, I would not be living with my mother who is in her 70s.I am certainly not about to sacrifice my dream way of life just because "something might get more difficult once someone gets old!". I have decades before any of that happens... I am not going to force myself to life my life in a miserable way just because I will be old some day. That makes no sense to me at all. Some places in the world have centenarians who are still active growing their own food, maintaining the land... they are like that because they EXERCISE and are active majority of the day. Keeps you HEALTHY and mobile. You want to age horribly and get sick... do what most people do... sit on your butt majority of the day, don't do yoga or stretch, don't do manual labor and just rot away. Exercising two hours a day as you sit on your butt for the rest of the entire day... does not make up for all that sedentary lifestyle.If what these people have exists in Hungary then that's great... they have about 3.5 acres and look at their surroundings.... they are in Amarante, Portugal... I wish to find this in Hungary with those types of hills or mountains whatever they are: [link under review]Unless someone is a cripple there should be no reason why an old person would not be able live in a house where those people live (shown in above video) and are building a new house on that land. What exactly do you feel would make it difficult for an old person to live like those people in the above video? My grandmother lived exactly like that and died at 96 (why could she do it and NOT me?).... she grew her own food in her backyard, like many people in Hungary do.My concerns are not "will I be able to do this or that when I get old". My concerns are.... 1.Taxes (compare taxes in Portugal vs Hungary). Income tax, property taxes etc etc...  2.I know Portugal has the hills "mountains".... I would love to live in but does Hungary.3.The only place I should worry about medical care is in the US!! It's one of the many many reasons I want to get the heck out of the US.        -@juliet1980

Not really interested in Portugal. I've been there a few times.  Spain might be more interesting - bigger country and more to do.   

Anyway, I'm not saying don't do it, but so long as you have weighed up and mitigated your risks in the HU context, then sure, whatever you want.   

We know HU people who were commercial farmers out in the sticks. It was almost impossible to make a living so they stopped doing it and have started disposing of their land.  They had many years of experience and knowledge but they couldn't out compete the supermarkets on cost.  It was cheaper to buy grapes from India (for example) in the supermarket than grow them at home.     

BTW, I'm 20 years older than you, former military and I certainly do not sit around doing nothing. 

But I am a realist. I'm not going to make my or Mrs Fluffy's back worse doing heavy lifting. I didn't expect to hurt my back working outside but it did happen. So I'd rather hire someone else younger whose back can take it.  That's not laziness, that's insurance.

We know many people in Hawaii who live off the grid.

Water catchment systems and solar pannels.

Not sure how much rain fall you'd get in the Matra Mountains or how sunny it is year round.

I agree, enjoy it while you can.

Never know even at age 43 when the grim reaper will call you out.

Most areas in Hungary seem set up with groups of homes near each other and the land being set off from the house.

They still have those tanya style homes on the land people work.

Issue with them is they are mud homes that wash away or fall apart if not redone all the time. Had a friend who was given one by his parents, he didn't visit HU for a couple of years and found the tanya totally down with the roof off when he came back to HU.

I'd think you'd find 3 acres of land in Hungary for far less then $250,000.

My MIL worked her double lot of land with her garden into her 80's.

It going to be lonely living far off but then again not eveyone likes being around people.

In remote areas though, you may discover that your closest neighbors also are the sort who need or wish to hide out.

Big issue on the Big Island of Hawaii, many wanted crimmies from the mainland hide out for years in the forests.

Even if you speak Hungarian it will not matter if your a newbie in the area.

We found in Hawaii if you drove up a lane in a remote area, half the people would come out to see who was there.

Of course in Hawaii there were allot of growers of pot.

Not sure if that's happening in Hungary in remote areas but that is something to consider.

Just a warning with checking out who else lives in your area before buying anything.

We lived in a house in Hilo, nice up high on a mountain but the land was well groomed with grass. We couldn't make a garen out of it because we just leased the home on 40 acres. Had cows and a bull fenced on the land. The owner came a couple times per week to feed the cows, check out the lawn and mow it for us.

We had to buy tanks of gas for our clothing dryer as everything was electric in the home except my dryer, my fault to ship it over.

Trash was a hassle,had to pack it up and take in oursevles to the dump yard.

You may find a trash service that will haul your trash away for you.

My friend in Hilo and her husband did that as a side job for more income.

Anything is possible if you're willing to try but please seriously make sure the people living around you aren't red neck crazies or crimmies hiding out.

Not everyone living off grid is health minded and wants to do it themselves for the enviorment.

A single lady by herself is a target.

We might of enjoyed living off grid but honestly at this stage, no not for us.

Our son moved to Japan, everyone has to follow their dreams but do it with information.

I may be repeating myself but I suppose it depends on just how off grid you want?

My friend in AZ gets water delivered by truck and had tanks that are filled up.

I suppose there is a way to do just about anything.

We knew a couple in Hawaii, they guy was Hungarian and the women was a native from Alaska.

They built a literal shack on land that wasn't even theirs on paper. Just an agreement between a drug buyer and the HU guy to settle on his land since he was off Island.

It was set up near a forest.

No toilet or bathrrom. bathtub. They had a water catchment and hosed down outside and did the toilet business in the forest. It was a big deal to drive over to the nearest shopping mall and use the toilet inside the mall.

God only knows how they raised 2 baby boys that way.

I saw it once, wow rough living for sure.

They lived off of welfare and subsized their incoome as growers in the forest. Very protective of their growing spots, that's about normal for Hawaii and could be a thing here too.

Everyone had dogs there for protection.

My husband once pinted out a village where he said some relative came from, it was near the Matra Mountains. Very pretty but it was a group of homes close to each other with land set off from the village area.

I suppose people felt safer living close to each other s build close to each other?

Our neighbors brother and his wife live in a remote village in Hungary. They grow mushrooms. Years ago he was using a power saw and chopped into his leg. The local medical center was going to just remove his leg because they had no experience with such a thing. He got very lucky that by word of mouth they found a visiting doctor in the village who was able to save his leg at the small medical center in their village.

It's risky being off grid at times.

@fluffy2560 … I agree 100%. Best to hire someone to do the very heavy labor than injure yourself or put unnatural wear on certain body parts. I am obsessed with renovations, have been through more than one. The house I am living in right now, I gutted the entire inside of it myself… the kitchen, bathrooms etc. In my prior home I tore down the entire wall after gutting the entire kitchen… but I fell off a 10 foot ladder and broke my wrist. I revoked my ladder privileges after that. I no longer allow myself on ladders as dumb as that sounds. Idiots like me do not belong on ladders. It’s the truth LOL

Yes, I have noticed they build houses PROPERLY there unlike in the US! I did lots of research in how to make a house wild fire resistant.... because you see all those people rebuilding their houses in the EXACT same way it was before it got burned to the ground by wild fires (this defies all common sense! It will eventually be burned down the the ground again of course). Some people rebuilt their houses properly but majority did not.

In the US they use cheapest materials possible etc. If I lived in the north west of the US I would NOT feel comfortable living in a house unless it was solid concrete with fire resistant roof etc with roof top sprinklers with super strong windows and I had house built myself. The way houses in the US are built is embarrassing… if termites don’t destroy and eat your house a hurricane or wild fire will because houses ae thrown together without any regard.

1.    This couple moved from the US to Portugal. They are off grid… this video shows how they built the roof on this house and it appears it would withstand wild fire?

https://youtu.be/d1HMoL1AbCk?si=vazW9xbfpvlVCqR7

…but I wonder are their windows going to be your “average” weak windows (fire can easily take out) or do they also use much stronger windows in the EU in wild fire prone areas?

2.    You mentioned “Sewage could be a septic tank but they are frowned on now and a last resort”. They are frowned about? Why is this? What do they use there then… a bucket or incinerator toilet? Sorry if my question is dumb but I am confused. No matter where I live I don’t think I would be happy without plumbing… I looked into incinerator toilets but I don’t know if I would be ok with that long term. A compost toilet is a definite no for long term use.

@Marilyn Tassy … Thanks for the heads up! Yes I have those concerns since I would be by myself...

To be honest, I don’t really “need” to be completely off grid. I just wish to have a certain number of acres in order to have a buffer between neighbors is what my real issue is. It’s so unsettling to look outside your kitchen window only to have your neighbor’s window “staring” back at you (it’s unsettling)… talk about ZERO privacy!  I am ok with having neighbors so long as I have at least a few acres to myself.

It seems I will have to give up going completely off grid in Portugal or Hungary due to cost, safety and practical reasons. I am fine with that.. I just need a few acres, hills or “mountains” so I can live a simple life in solitary growing my own food. A simple life!

What is what I fear about Hungary is it seems houses are in clusters very close to each other. That is my worst nightmare. I need peace and quiet… no screaming kids, noisy neighbors, barking dogs etc. I am a loner, always have been. I do not even know what it feels like to be “bored” or ”lonely” even when I had no pets... and I have NO friends either! I am very thankful to be this way because it appears others would “suffer” in such situation whereas I am happier than a pig in you know what

I cannot stay in the US for so many reasons. Medical bills could easily wipe me out in the US one day. I cancelled health insurance last year because the cost for self employed to have health insurance is insanely expensive (and keeps getting more expensive!) so I REFUSE to have it anymore (very risky I know). I had melanoma 2 1/2 years ago, caught SUPER early (thank goodness!!).

But I will NEVER have peace of mind in the US for so many reasons: Cost of living and also the health care system in the US is a huge one! I hope to find what I am looking for in Hungary or Portugal or somewhere in the EU that has cheaper cost of living than the US where I will have peace of mind in regards to healthcare not taking me to the cleaners. The fact that I had melanoma is truly terrifying… it changes a person forever. It can come back at anytime time... in fact it's said more than 20% of the time it does (OMG I need to stop reading things on google). I need to be in a country where I am not worried about healthcare costs like I am in the US.

    @fluffy2560 … I agree 100%. Best to hire someone to do the very heavy labor than injure yourself or put unnatural wear on certain body parts. I am obsessed with renovations, have been through more than one. The house I am living in right now, I gutted the entire inside of it myself… the kitchen, bathrooms etc. In my prior home I tore down the entire wall after gutting the entire kitchen… but I fell off a 10 foot ladder and broke my wrist. I revoked my ladder privileges after that. I no longer allow myself on ladders as dumb as that sounds. Idiots like me do not belong on ladders. It’s the truth LOL Yes, I have noticed they build houses PROPERLY there unlike in the US! I did lots of research in how to make a house wild fire resistant.... because you see all those people rebuilding their houses in the EXACT same way it was before it got burned to the ground by wild fires (this defies all common sense! It will eventually be burned down the the ground again of course). Some people rebuilt their houses properly but majority did not. In the US they use cheapest materials possible etc. If I lived in the north west of the US I would NOT feel comfortable living in a house unless it was solid concrete with fire resistant roof etc with roof top sprinklers with super strong windows and I had house built myself. The way houses in the US are built is embarrassing… if termites don’t destroy and eat your house a hurricane or wild fire will because houses ae thrown together without any regard. 1.    This couple moved from the US to Portugal. They are off grid… this video shows how they built the roof on this house and it appears it would withstand wild fire? https://youtu.be/d1HMoL1AbCk?si=vazW9xbfpvlVCqR7…but I wonder are their windows going to be your “average” weak windows (fire can easily take out) or do they also use much stronger windows in the EU in wild fire prone areas?2.    You mentioned “Sewage could be a septic tank but they are frowned on now and a last resort”. They are frowned about? Why is this? What do they use there then… a bucket or incinerator toilet? Sorry if my question is dumb but I am confused. No matter where I live I don’t think I would be happy without plumbing… I looked into incinerator toilets but I don’t know if I would be ok with that long term. A compost toilet is a definite no for long term use.@Marilyn Tassy … Thanks for the heads up! Yes I have those concerns since I would be by myself...To be honest, I don’t really “need” to be completely off grid. I just wish to have a certain number of acres in order to have a buffer between neighbors is what my real issue is. It’s so unsettling to look outside your kitchen window only to have your neighbor’s window “staring” back at you (it’s unsettling)… talk about ZERO privacy!  I am ok with having neighbors so long as I have at least a few acres to myself.It seems I will have to give up going completely off grid in Portugal or Hungary due to cost, safety and practical reasons. I am fine with that.. I just need a few acres, hills or “mountains” so I can live a simple life in solitary growing my own food. A simple life!What is what I fear about Hungary is it seems houses are in clusters very close to each other. That is my worst nightmare. I need peace and quiet… no screaming kids, noisy neighbors, barking dogs etc. I am a loner, always have been. I do not even know what it feels like to be “bored” or ”lonely” even when I had no pets... and I have NO friends either! I am very thankful to be this way because it appears others would “suffer” in such situation whereas I am happier than a pig in you know what I cannot stay in the US for so many reasons. Medical bills could easily wipe me out in the US one day. I cancelled health insurance last year because the cost for self employed to have health insurance is insanely expensive (and keeps getting more expensive!) so I REFUSE to have it anymore (very risky I know). I had melanoma 2 1/2 years ago, caught SUPER early (thank goodness!!). But I will NEVER have peace of mind in the US for so many reasons: Cost of living and also the health care system in the US is a huge one! I hope to find what I am looking for in Hungary or Portugal or somewhere in the EU that has cheaper cost of living than the US where I will have peace of mind in regards to healthcare not taking me to the cleaners. The fact that I had melanoma is truly terrifying… it changes a person forever. It can come back at anytime time... in fact it's said more than 20% of the time it does (OMG I need to stop reading things on google). I need to be in a country where I am not worried about healthcare costs like I am in the US.         -@juliet1980

We live in the burbs of Budapest (well, just outside the city limits) and our life is very suburban. If there's one thing I would like it's more space between us and the neighbours.  We need to be in the burbs because the kids have to go to school in the city and we have Budapest city buses serving the village.

We have miserable old guy next door on one side who hates us because of a land boundary dispute and at the back professionals who were clearly brought up not to have any consideration for others. I don't engage with them so much but I hate their stupidly large trees in autumn/fall as all their leaves fall on my garden and block my shed's gutters.  We've told them but their gardener doesn't have a ladder.  Well, I know the answer to that but obviously their brain cell is not that aware.

The ones opposite are very nice but they are further away but we're all friendly with them.  On the other side, we have an old couple who are very polite but of a different generation and thinking.  Of course, you don't know who you're going to get neighbour wise.

I'm quite familiar with renovating houses in Eastern Europe.  It's all very different to the USA and Canada.  The techniques are what one might call "solid" but also quite basic.  It's not going to move unless there's a major earthquake (it has happened!).  Essentially they build a rebar reinforced box out of concrete and fill in the walls/gaps with insulating air bricks, then put substantial insulation on the outside.  Everything would be considered "heavy duty" by US standards. This kind of house is almost a one-off build for families and they will live in it with minimal maintenance for 40+ years.   You see variants on this with ket-generacio etc houses. Usually parents under the delusion their kids want to live with them.

It means that someone - like us or maybe you - comes along and has to strip the place to modernise it.   We did this to our current house.  I sometimes wish we'd knocked it down and built from scratch. It was too good to knock down but also marginal to renovate.  We chose to renovate because we needed to get out of our rented apartment as the owner wanted to sell (he was getting divorced) and we could incrementally modernise in stages.  Even after the house was fixed, it took us 5 years to get the garden landscaped. We had specific needs - mainly we needed a large car parking area for multiple cars.  We're still not finished. We've got a large outbuilding that needs fixing.  Maybe we'll have a go at that in the summer.   And don't get me started on the MIL's house (40+ years old, unrenovated, too big, large garden but prime location).  What to do with that?!

Regarding the sewage, there has been ongoing (since probably mid-1990s), a move to main drainage.  So that means, all the houses wherever practical will be connected to the local sewers. It was considered an environmental need, primarily I suppose to meet EU standards and to avoid pollution of the aquifers/ground water Budapest etc relies upon during the summer.   

In my village, there's a new sewage treatment plant and quite right too.   Water standards are high so there is great concern to keep it that way.  You can get yourself a well drilled but the only way you can use it is to have it tested. If it doesn't meet consumption standards, you'll need piped water on a meter - it's cheap  IF it's already on site (and horribly expensive if you need to lay pipes from somewhere - you cannot rely on the neighbours, ignore real estate agent claims).   You can water your garden with well water but only 6 m3 a day (which is quite a lot).  After that you'd need a license.  It's highly regulated.

You could collect water into a cistern but from about May until October, it hardly rains apart from violent thunderstorms sometimes. You'd need many thousands of litres of storage.   I am planning to collect rain water from my outbuilding so I can water my garden and if Putin invades, just to keep us going.  At the moment, I've started to factor in climate change, I've upped my water tank storage plans from 2000 litres to 5000 litres.  Mainly I've increased it because because I've noticed a change in the weather.  Summers are longer and drier at the moment.  We may get Spring weather around end of February.  Too early.  Usually it's end of March. Winter is not the same - no heavy snow like in the mid-1990s.

The only person I know who truely isn't bothered by neighbors is my old childhood friend who has 120 acres of land in N. Ca.

She also has a few bucks..

Her husband  owns/runs a slate mine so they have income still coming in.

He is super handy, got a tractor and all sorts of heavy equipment and made space in the forest for several homes for his children FIL and shelters for lambs and chickens.

He is an unusual person from Iran and an engineer by trade.

They live in moblie homes but from the photos I've seen they are just perfect. One is done up in all 1950's style with antique stoves and furniture.

Not everyone can afford to get exactly everything they want though.

My MIL in Erd bought land way back in the 1950's.

No neighbors at all in Erd and 2 large lots of land.

They started their garden before the house was even built ut there.

Every weekend they headed to Erd and worked in the garden and a couple times per week my FIl would ride his motrbike to Erd from Budapest to water and check things out.

He was a country guy and knew how to grow everything, how to palnt fruit trees, splice them to make different varities of fruits and most important knew how to make great wine and palikna.

Everyone in the countryside in HU seems to love to drink.

My freind in AZ has 3 acres of land but the house nearest her is super close even though they have 1 1/2 acres of land.

The property was built for 2 sisters at one time and they wanted morning coffee together so the houses were built super close by.

My friend hates it but she uses her back yard instead of her front.

Even with all that land and living in the high desert a good hour out of Kingman,Az she still has neighbor issues.

I understand about health insurnace in the US for the self employeed. We paid a ton years ago when we were in our 30's and our  son was young. It barely covered just a hospital stay with a $2,000 decutible and cost $500. per month in the 1980's! We cancelled after a few years and then within a month our son needed major arm surgery 3 times! No luck for us! 3 breaks and 3 surgeries in one year!

Still. can't be afriad of life. I am still in recovery sort of from a big cancer scare 2 years ago. Have after effects from radiaiton, chemo almost killed me. Was in the hospital in isolation for 5 days because they silly doctors here didn't test me before

giving me chemo.

In most of the world they test first but in Hungary sems they want to save that money, that extra $100. to $150 for the test...I would of paid for it myself if I had only known...

That's what is scary about the medical system here in HU. They try so hard to save a penny that it can cause a serious issue and in the end cost more anyways....

I was always in perfect , well nearly perfect health before this stupid issue came up out of the blue. ( I'm clear now but who knows what the future is?)

I know it's important to exercise, I even took my yoga mat into the hospital with me and practiced for 45 mins each day although I wasn't sure I'd make it out alive! Crazy me.

No one can predict what surprises life will throw you so one should follow their dreams but also have to be mindful of reality and be aware of ones surroundings.

My eldest sister was and is very independant. married 4 times but a stronger person then her husbands were. She used to hunt with a bow and arrow,  skined and prepped her hunt was a black belt in 3 forms of karate, rode a motorcycle and always worked and supported herself and sometimes her husbands too.

Still time catches up to everyone. She is now 76 and all alone with her pets. Sad to me but it's her life.

Being a strong women alone is not that common I don't think here in Hungary.

People tend to get into each others business here.

I know I wouldn't neve want to live here in HU by myself.

When I was 20 and 6 1/2 months pregnant I flew for the first time in my life to Maui alone.

My husband was waiting there for me.

As one gets older they do tend to see what can go wrong more then what can go right.

I would never do such a wild thing again.

Lately my friend in AZ is upset with her next door neighbor.

My friend loves the natural beauty of the brush and desert, their new neghbors took several days of going over their land with a plow, stirring dust all over and removing all the brush. just dirt now which blows all over in the high desert wind.

She moved away in the desert to find peace but no, not to be found. In fact about a year ago a neighbor down the road blew himself up in his garage working on his car. Almost had a wild fire.

I think most of us have to put up with people or buy our own Islands.

Now my friend is thinking of moving back to a condo in Vegas!

Thanks again for the replies. It will be very interesting to see what happens when I visit Hungary next year. I will update this thread on how it goes.

I remember when I was in Hungary (in Budapest) it snowed a lot during winter (this was 30 yeas ago)... but it seems things have changed a lot since then and it barely snows anymore there? That's sad, I love snow. I mean does the snow actually stick and does it last for at least a couple of weeks before it melts?

I certainly hope the medical system in Hungary is not a disaster. I would not put up with a test not being done if it to address a concern I have and to give me peace of mind. I am very blunt person and stand my ground. Especially when it comes to my health. I don't allow anyone to dictate to me what I can or cannot do in regards to a test I want done! I would raise hell. I remember the dermatologist was very hesitant when I told him I want mole removed and biopsied immediately. He later apologized when he called me with biopsy results (melanoma). Unbelievable. Had I not stood my ground I could literally be dead right now.

    Thanks again for the replies. It will be very interesting to see what happens when I visit Hungary next year. I will update this thread on how it goes.I remember when I was in Hungary (in Budapest) it snowed a lot during winter (this was 30 yeas ago)... but it seems things have changed a lot since then and it barely snows anymore there? That's sad, I love snow. I mean does the snow actually stick and does it last for at least a couple of weeks before it melts?I certainly hope the medical system in Hungary is not a disaster. I would not put up with a test not being done if it to address a concern I have and to give me peace of mind. I am very blunt person and stand my ground. Especially when it comes to my health. I don't allow anyone to dictate to me what I can or cannot do in regards to a test I want done! I would raise hell. I remember the dermatologist was very hesitant when I told him I want mole removed and biopsied immediately. He later apologized when he called me with biopsy results (melanoma). Unbelievable. Had I not stood my ground I could literally be dead right now.         -@juliet1980

It will snow in the hills. You can look on webcams to see what it looks like in the Matra.  But it hasn't really snowed a lot for some years.  We might have a snow shower or two and it hangs around a  couple of weeks, but it doesn't always stick.

There's a culture in Hungary of voluntarily saving YOU money and not telling you about it.  It means you have to watch out. It applies to any service.  So a builder or doctor will try and decide for you and not share.  One has to insist on whatever solution you need or want. 

Builders will insist they know the solution but you need to know what you want - example: builders didn't want to install access points to my new sewer pipes which now lie below my driveway.  I had to insist - not quietly -  they install manhole covers so we could rod the drains in the event of a blockage.  They wanted to save me $200, that's what it came down to.  Saving me small amounts of money could have cost me much more money later.  There's also an element of bodging (being  kontárs).  One has to monitor.

On the doctors front in the health service, they are kind, underpaid and overworked but do not always have the best equipment and tend to be conservative which could end up as dangerous. 

I had a medical emergency in March and while I was treated in the HU hospital as a day case,  I decided to get a second opinion and ended up being operated on - twice - as an emergency day case elsewhere.  They meant to do the right thing in the first instance but money/cost of treatment is always on their minds.  I wasn't going to die but it could have been life changing if they didn't get it right.  My second opinion docs had far better equipment and training.

    Thanks again for the replies. It will be very interesting to see what happens when I visit Hungary next year. I will update this thread on how it goes.I remember when I was in Hungary (in Budapest) it snowed a lot during winter (this was 30 yeas ago)... but it seems things have changed a lot since then and it barely snows anymore there? That's sad, I love snow. I mean does the snow actually stick and does it last for at least a couple of weeks before it melts?I certainly hope the medical system in Hungary is not a disaster. I would not put up with a test not being done if it to address a concern I have and to give me peace of mind. I am very blunt person and stand my ground. Especially when it comes to my health. I don't allow anyone to dictate to me what I can or cannot do in regards to a test I want done! I would raise hell. I remember the dermatologist was very hesitant when I told him I want mole removed and biopsied immediately. He later apologized when he called me with biopsy results (melanoma). Unbelievable. Had I not stood my ground I could literally be dead right now.         -@juliet1980

The thing is here with medical, if you don't know what can go wrong , they will not tell you.

I've had gyno exams and had to wait over a month for the test results to come back. Had a bacteria infection for a full month, 3 exams in a month and no anti-biotics till the results came back!

They don't have enough doctors in the system to handle all of the work.

I should at some point posts may experiences in the last 14 or so years here with the medical system. Some are good and many are just weird.

Lots of infections here for me, not sure why when they pour alcohol all over the place.

I personally do not turst doctors in any country. They do not make them like they used to.

I seems they have people going into that field who only see dollar signs and don't care much abut patients.

My biggest issue was when they gave me chemo.

No pre test and  I had no idea they did such a test.

Got a heavy dose mainlined 5 days in a row and the 6th day my blood test came back with my White blood count so low they had to isolated me or I could of got an infectin from anyone. Even my husband was not allowed to visit with me. Had to get shots everyday in hospital. It's called DPD defiency which I've never heard of before. It's a genetic condition that is very rare and most people don't even know they have it until they get chemo. The liver can't break down the drugs like most people's liver does. I'm 14%  mixed race with many different races. Black, Natvie Indian, Asian ,middle eastern.  Usually DPD is hard on natives and blacks. We've all heard about how some people can't process alcohol, well this is along the same lines with the liver.

Live and learn but not knowing can be a killer too.

I suppose my Rus side in my DNA came through and saved me in the end!! You know we eatern Europeans love our vodka! Just kidding it was very bad for a spell.

My cousin in the US has breast cancer and can't take chemo either. She tried 5 differnt types and none of them agree with her liver. Rare birds I suppose.

I agree! I do not trust doctors at all. I am not a fan of the medical system no matter where it might be. I think it is screwed up everywhere unfortunately. I do wonder how the healthcare system in Portugal compares to Hungary...

All I know is that I am not comfortable staying in the US (I do not want the stress of SKY HIGH property taxes taxing me death every single year on my home I supposedly "own" but really do not own. I don't want the stress of sky high health insurance and medical bills in the US. No place is perfect, that's for sure... hopefully I can find a good middle ground in the EU. Hopefully

    I agree! I do not trust doctors at all. I am not a fan of the medical system no matter where it might be. I think it is screwed up everywhere unfortunately. I do wonder how the healthcare system in Portugal compares to Hungary...All I know is that I am not comfortable staying in the US (I do not want the stress of SKY HIGH property taxes taxing me death every single year on my home I supposedly "own" but really do not own. I don't want the stress of sky high health insurance and medical bills in the US. No place is perfect, that's for sure... hopefully I can find a good middle ground in the EU. Hopefully -@juliet1980

I know an American women around age 65 who just retired and moved to Portugal.

She had been working as a language teacher in a small village in Hungary for 2 years.

Moved back to the states and next thing i know she is telling me she is in Portugal.

I'm not sure how she likes it yet. She wants to give it a year and then make up her mind.

She is a native American, I forgot her tribe but on the east coast of the US.

She was fine living in that village, most people signed up to work in and around Budapest but she wanted to live off away from things.

She is a bit private about how she gets along with daily life. I sort of have the impression she may be ,"gay" and not willing to share that with me but it's no big deal to me.

She has a couple grown children in the US and one is barely out of his teens.

I will have to check in with her soon and see how it's going with her.

It's a bit unusual for a mom in her 60's to just pick up and move so far away from her children.

At least it is to my way of thinking.

As far as I know she has no big savings or owned a home in the US.

Just living on her SS. It takes a person who is willing to do the unexpected to pick up and move to another country. Or someone with nothing to lose.

The thing is no matter where you live it's bet to never get ill!

My son moved to Japan wiht his Japanese wife 5 years ago. The meidcal system there seems really good and they don't pay too much for insurnace.

They do alternative treatments in combo with traditional treatments.

When I was ill, my son's in-laws were shocked that i was nt in the hospital for months until I was 100% healthy again. They seem to place sick people away from everyone else.

They also give suppliments as par for the course that I had to look into myslef and purchase.

My doctors here in Hungary were not for or against taking suppliments but they also didn't tell me much about anything.

If you ask to many questions they seem to brush you off as a nut case that doesn't respect their title of Dr.

For your small contribution into national health  , they allow less then 5 mins with you.