Residency Without a Pension: Property and Savings Routes Compared
Buy a home at that price and residence follows.
Quentin had already written to an agent in Spain about an apartment priced at €500,000. He and his wife Ottilie had set aside €600,000 from the sale of their house, and every article he had read said the same thing. Buy a home at that price and residence follows.
Ottilie was reading over his shoulder. "What year is that article from?"
Quentin scrolled to the top. He found a date from before 2025.
"Then let us find out if it is still true," she said.
It was not. Summaries of the law from a large accounting firm and a Spanish law firm both report that Spain's investment residence ended on 3 April 2025. Applications filed by 2 April 2025 were handled under the old rules. Quentin sat back. He thought of the email to the agent, already sent.
Ottilie kept reading. Spain still has the non-lucrative visa, for people who will not work in Spain. It asks for savings or income of about €28,800 a year, as reported, plus €7,200 for each family member. For two people that is €36,000. The proof is bank certificates, with the 31 December balance and the average of the last twelve months.
"So it asks us to show money we already have," Ottilie said. "It does not ask us to buy a building."
"Both ways cost something," Quentin said. "One asks for a purchase. The other asks for a record."
| Route | What it asks | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Spain, investment residence | Ended | 3 April 2025 |
| Spain, non-lucrative visa | Savings or income of about €28,800 plus €7,200 per family member, reported | 2026 |
| Greece, investment residence | Reported: property of €800,000 in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and islands over 3,100 residents, €400,000 elsewhere, €250,000 for converted or restored buildings. One property, at least 120 square metres, no short-term letting. | After Greece's 2024 law |
| Portugal, investment residence | €500,000 in investment funds or a business, with no real estate, reported | Oct 2026 |
| Panama, qualified investor | Real estate of US$300,000 on a first sale or US$500,000 on a resale, held 5 years, reported | From 16 Sept 2026 |
| Mexico, temporary resident | Average balance of about 1,344,373 pesos over 12 months. Mexico also has a property route: temporary resident status for real estate in Mexico worth more than 91,710 UMA days, about 10.76 million pesos. | 2026 |
Their friend Thaddeus had been looking at Greece. He wanted a flat that paid for itself through short stays. Ottilie read him the table. The Greek permit property, as reported, cannot be let short term, so his rental plan and his permit would pull in different directions. He told her he had not read that line.
Georgia shows how fast a number can change. The property threshold there rose to US$100,000 in July 2023. One law firm reports a rise to US$150,000 from 1 March 2026. Ask the office, or a paid professional, for the figure in force. Portugal's golden visa was once described as a path to citizenship after 5 years. For new filings from 19 May 2026, a new nationality law reportedly lengthened that to 10.
You could…
- Look for the date on every guide, and compare it with the consulate's own page.
- Ask the consulate for your state whether your savings route needs certificates, and which ones.
- If you plan to let a property, ask the immigration office in writing whether letting is allowed under your permit.
- Ask an accountant who works with Americans abroad how a purchase or a deposit abroad could be reported.
What did you find on a guide that was out of date? Write to us below, and name the year so the next reader can check it.
Figures are estimates for planning, based on public data. Rules change, so each figure shows the year it applies to; ask the official office before you act.
Sources: Spanish consulate in Los Angeles (page updated 11 February 2026); Mexican consulate sheet and the national statistics institute's 2026 bulletin; summaries of Spain's Organic Law 1/2025 by an accounting firm and a Spanish law firm; Greek, Portuguese, Panamanian and Georgian rules as reported by law firms, a bar association and trade press, which we could not check against official texts.
Tell us in the comments