What is American Chee$e?
American Chee$e is a personal finance community for Americans living abroad.
My wife and I (both born and raised in the USA) moved from San Francisco, California to Berlin, Germany in 2015. We’d planned on staying for one or two years, which turned into ten years plus a kiddo. At this point, we have no plans to leave Berlin.
We’ve learned a lot about managing finances as US citizens living in Europe. We’re a lot savvier than we were a decade ago.
But we still make mistakes. We still struggle to figure out how to save and invest optimally while navigating the IRS, the German tax regime, online brokers’ policies, exchange rates, and so on.
Managing money while living abroad is still one of my unsolved problems. I have a lot of room for improvement. It’s something I’ve woken up in the middle of the night worrying about more than once. As recently as last week.
One reason I’m starting this community is that I hope readers will come along and say, “Come on, Mike, this is an easy one. How did you not think of XYZ?” Then I can start doing XYZ, and everyone here—myself included—will get a little smarter and a little richer.
As for content: I’m not going to publish stuff along the lines of “What is the difference between the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion and the Foreign Tax Credit, and which one is right for you?” Your favorite chatbot can manage those questions just fine, and many financial professionals (accounting firms, financial advisors, etc) have published detailed explainer blog posts on these topics.
Instead, I’ll focus on 2 things:
Sharing my personal finance blueprint (a living document that I’ll update regularly and that is open for comments)
Subjective personal finance experiences as a US citizen abroad: mistakes made, my favorite products and services, big open questions, and so on.
My writing will have a bias toward Europe (and especially Germany) because that’s where I live, but lots of what I cover will still be relevant a) to Americans living anywhere outside of America and b) citizens of other countries who live in Europe and are interested in making the most of their money.
One disclosure note: I might occasionally use affiliate links when recommending a product or service that I personally use and can endorse. Affiliate links will always be transparently labeled.
One disclaimer note: This blog is for informational and educational purposes only and reflects my personal opinions and experiences. I am not a licensed financial, tax, or investment professional, and nothing on this site should be considered official financial advice. Before making any financial decisions, please consult a qualified financial advisor or tax professional who understands your specific situation.
