Perhaps some members of this network can share their experiences concerning the cost of their mobile lifestyle? Certainly, it all depends on the location. What are your experiences? Which locations are a bargain to live in, which ones are a luxury? Would just staying in your home country be more wise, from a financial perspective?
Also: How do you find accomodation? Are there any networks that make it easy to find non-hotel accomodation? I faintly recall that there's something for backpackers.
I think this mostly depends on what your alternative was...
Compared to living in the SF bay area, you can get the same lifestyle
for a fraction in other places... some greatly simplified examples:
-Argentina: 1/3 for food, 1/2 for accomodation
-Bolivia: 1/3
-Thailand: 1/4 for food, 1/3 for accomodation
-Bali: 1/4 for food, 1/4 for accomodation, but internet is expensive!
-Philippines: 1/3
-China: If you're not staying in Hotels, but renting: 1/2 for accomodation, 1/5 for food
Hotels are very expensive.
In some places you can live disproportionally cheaper if you settle with a simpler lifestyle.
But personally, if I think at some point it no longer matters. If I can pay $5 for a 3-course meal
that would cost $30 in San Francisco, or get a simple meal for $1, I usually end up choosing
the better option.
So -- one way to put it is that you can have a better lifestyle for less money.