The UK Was Letting Us Down, So We Moved to Bulgaria and Bought a £23,400 Home

A family of six has found a new lease on life after fleeing the financial pressures of the UK and buying a home in Bulgaria for just £23,400, enabling them to live mortgage-free and drastically reduce their living costs. Amy Smerdon, 35, and her husband Jerry, 53, always dreamed of living off-grid but struggled to afford a mortgage in Britain.

Their journey began when they purchased a modest three-bedroom holiday home for £7,000 in Bulgaria in early 2024. After Amy inherited money from her late grandfather, the couple decided to make the move permanent. They invested in a larger property in Popovo, Bulgaria—a three-bedroom house with 2,000 square meters of land and a spacious 25m by 15m warehouse, which Jerry transformed into a livable space.

In March 2025, Amy, Jerry, their four children—including Amy’s eldest son from a previous relationship—and the rest of the family relocated from Wincanton, Somerset. Since then, they’ve been renovating their new home with a £10,000 budget, relishing a sense of freedom and control over their lives that eluded them in the UK.

“We’ve regained control of our life. We’re actually a family—not just surviving,” Amy said.

Jerry, who manages a vape shop and ice cream parlour back in the UK, expressed frustration with the UK’s system. “We couldn’t get any help with paying council tax—then there was a bailiff at the door. We were struggling just to survive,” he explained.

Amy initially explored off-grid living in the UK, even considering converting a shipping container into a home, but the costs remained prohibitive. Mortgage options were also limited due to their ages and credit histories. Renting felt like a life sentence with little freedom for personalization or long-term stability.

Having visited Bulgaria on vacations and drawn by its affordability and lifestyle, they took the leap to buy property abroad. Their initial holiday home purchase for £7,000 felt like no more than the cost of a vacation, and they never intended to emigrate. But as mounting bills and daily pressures in the UK became unbearable, they made the move permanent.

Amy shares that Bulgaria offers a far more relaxed environment where her children can play freely without constant surveillance or judgment. The family’s monthly living expenses dropped dramatically, from almost £2,000 in the UK—including rent, bills, and council tax—to just £198.50 in Bulgaria, with no mortgage payments at all.

Though the transition hasn’t been without challenges and feelings of being unsettled, Amy has no regrets. “It’s like going back in time. Everything is simpler and more relaxed. If you want to do something, you can achieve it—no one is telling you no.”

Here’s a comparison of their monthly costs:

UK: