Glad to see my city of Montpellier, France in first place on the list! I really think it's under appreciated. You have the same great weather and openness culture as California, lots of great nature easily accessible and very close, you can go to Paris, Marseille or Toulouse very fast by train, even to Barcelona and Madrid!

This article is a bit refreshing - focusing on the things that actually matter logistically when choosing a place to live rather than buying into various hype trends....

> Where your money comes from. Dollars earned and euros spent is the winning formula. A local paycheck is the one that breaks everything.

The problem is finding housing with foreign income. Both renting and buying is significantly harder. To reference the article, €700 to €1100 isn’t going to get you a 1BR in Malaga on foreign income. Think €1500+ minimum.

Also good for adding bits about healthcare. Unlike what many Americans think, you dont magically have healthcare when you move to Europe. Really depends on the country and system.