Would you put your kids in public schools in El Salvador, 40 to a class and no English spoken, to give them a future you couldn't see in Canada? Charity Hagenaars did. Her family of five lives on $3,000 to $3,500 a month, and if you've searched cost of living in El Salvador you've probably seen her videos on living in El Salvador. What you can't see from a video is whether rent in El Salvador comes with a stove, or whether a public school takes report cards printed in Ontario.

I sat down with Charity, a retired Canadian government worker, former foster parent, and YouTuber who moved her family from Ontario to Lourdes in August 2024. Her $850 house has four bedrooms and sits in a complex with pools and soccer fields, where six families of expats living in El Salvador have built a small community. Getting there meant Marketplace listings that were photos of posters on telephone poles, and leases where leaving early costs the full year.

Car shopping took a friend, a mechanic, and seven phone numbers, because the Chivo ATM caps withdrawals at $1,000 a day per number and she needed $7,000 in cash for a car she ended up passing on. Opening a bank account took a residency card and an hour in the waiting room, and then Banco Agrícola made her wait three months before YouTube could wire her a dollar. Bitcoin and Wise carried the family's money down instead. She'll also tell you what happened at Dollar City when the cashier skipped Lightning.

The school story is the honest one. Her daughter got the same classmates two years running, was bullied, and stopped learning, so she's in a homeschool hub now. Her older son is out too, halfway through grade 11. Charity funded the school's parking lot and paint through her channel anyway. Then there's the spare bedroom. Two months ago Maria, the grandmother of two boys from Charity's Saturday English class, lost her home, and Charity offered the room. The boys swim every day.

Her WhatsApp group grew to almost 200 members, about 30% already here, four more arriving this week. Some came to retire in El Salvador on a pension, and young families came because they couldn't see a future where they were. If you want an expat El Salvador group that screens out the salesmen, she runs one. Charity describes what it costs a foreigner to live here so nobody arrives with the wrong picture, then chose to stay and put eight people under one roof. That's what belief in this country looks like! If you're weighing moving to El Salvador with kids or a pension, listen to this one.


—Bitcoin Beach Team


Learn more about Charity Hagenaars:
X: https://x.com/HagenaarsFamily
WhatsApp: 503-7291-1480
Website: https://hagenaars.com/
Email Address: YouTube@Hagenaars.com
YouTube Channel(Main): https://www.youtube.com/@HagenaarsFamily
YouTube Channel(2nd): https://www.youtube.com/MakingItInElSalvador


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Browse through this quick guide to learn more about the episode:
00:00 Intro
02:53 Why are Bitcoiners moving to El Salvador from Canada?
07:23 Is Canada safe for Bitcoiners after frozen bank accounts and the trucker convoy?
09:10 How to rent a house in El Salvador as a foreigner
12:47 Where do expats live in El Salvador: Lourdes, the beach, or San Salvador?
15:47 How to buy a used car in El Salvador and what to check first
25:40 How do expats move money into El Salvador with Bitcoin, Chivo ATM, Wise, and banks?
35:46 How much does it cost to live in El Salvador for a family of five?
42:15 What is life like for an expat family in El Salvador?
48:15 Are public schools in El Salvador good for expat kids, or is homeschooling better? 

Live From Bitcoin Beach