u/CG-Expat

I have been living in France for the last few years, but have a job opportunity in Costa Mesa that pays 220k USD a year. I’m not trying to be naive, because on paper that sounds amazing, and definitely the most I’ve ever seen in my career so far.

But, I’ve always heard just how expensive SoCal is, and wondering if that amount is enough to actually have a lifestyle upgrade (buy a house, take some nice vacations, etc) vs what I have here now in France. I lived in the Bay Area from 2019-2023, and was always blown away how expensive housing was there (3000 USD for a studio apartment expensive).

Any insight on this would be genuinely insightful. Thank you!

I'm an American and a U.S. Coast Guard veteran who has been based in Europe for the past few years finishing a business degree, and I'm now entering my final semester. My wife is European and this is a long-term, settled move, not something I'm looking to change. I'd like to stay based here, but I'm also open to working for US-based companies or federal roles remotely, or with security and intelligence firms based elsewhere in Europe.

My background is in maritime security and intelligence work, specifically counter-narcotics interdiction, law enforcement coordination, and intelligence collection and analysis. I've found a fair number of UK-based firms whose roles line up well with that experience, but post-Brexit, working legally in the UK has gotten a lot more complicated for me.

Any insight on where I should be focusing my search, whether that's remote roles with US companies or federal agencies, security or intelligence firms elsewhere in Europe, or other paths I haven't considered, would be really appreciated.

I have been living in France the last few years finishing up a business degree at a university in Monaco. I am now entering the last semester of the program and have been began searching for work. Ideally, I would like to stay in Europe (my wife is French), but it would be great to work with US companies or potentially work a federal job from overseas. Anyone here doing that, or have experience with this?

When I was in the Coast Guard, my career mostly revolved the counter smuggling mission. My experience was LE/intel collection and dissemination/etc. Ive found quite a few UK based maritime security firms where my experience often matches their job openings, but since Brexit it makes my pathway of working in the UK a bit more complicated.

Any insight on where I could potentially shift my search towards would be greatly appreciated.