38 Days to Go - Sharing 1 Car Makes Life Interesting

A big part of moving abroad involves selling off your worldly possessions.

If you are unfamiliar with Ambergris Caye, the island in Belize we are moving to in 38 days, the primary mode of transportation is via golf cart. The vast majority of non-cart vehicles are going to be construction or delivery trucks, or taxis, which inexplicably are predominantly Toyota Previa minivans, circa 2002. There are very, very few "private" vehicles, and it's pretty much impossible for a non-Belizean to get a permit to have a car on the island. We need permanent residency AND a permit to even buy a cart!

Running errands or commuting hits differently when you're riding in a cart, as you can see from our grins!

When I started my previous job in May of 2023, I had a company SUV, but held on to my roadster - the company had a lot of instability, and I kept my car, "just in case". 

Knowing that we would be moving this summer - and that my best odds to sell a 2-seat convertible was when the weather was gorgeous and snowbirds were in town - I posted it for sale in late January. That timeline also coincides with the big car shows in Scottsdale. 

It only took a few weeks to find a buyer; a woman probably close to my age, from Northern California. After we settled on the terms, she told me she had the same year, make, model - even color! - until around Christmas, when her adult daughter took it out for a spin and totalled it. She was beside herself...loved that car, much like I did. We had already told her why we were selling my car, which always sparks a ton of questions...I didn't realize she left us notes on the envelopes with payment for the car until after we parted - such a nice lady!

I still had my company SUV, until I quit on April 29th. Nathan works from home, so it's not as catastrophic as you might think for us to share a car, especially when I no longer commute for work.

It does, however, require quite a bit of coordination!

On occasion, Nathan will be asked by a client to meet at their home, which could be anywhere in the Phoenix metro area. 

I still have errands to run - grocery shopping, cat transporting, personal appointments, friends/family to see, etc. Plus we're trying to wrap up the annual medical appointments and gather documentation for our move.

We've been putting "car appointments" on our shared calendar to try to claim custody as needed. It has been a BIG adjustment for me - I've always had my own vehicle, so it's odd to have to "check with my husband" to see if I can use the car. We see it as practice for when we move; Nathan can work remotely, so he'll still work from home. There is no need for us to rent TWO golf carts for a year (at least!) until we can gain permanent residency and apply for a cart permit. We enjoy renting from Carts Belize - they are right across from the Tropic Air terminal on the island, and every cart we have had has been well-maintained. Renting a 4-seat golf cart for a month is $1108US. Aye! So we may have to shop that price a bit. 

Our one remaining car is older, and we think we're going to take it to CarMax a day or two before we leave and get cash for it, just make it easy, and on our timeline.

If you plan to expatriate, there will be many tasks and challenges that you may not realize until the time is upon you; selling and/or disposing of vehicles will certainly be one of them!