100K a year tax free is not an exaggeration, also with the fact that their income is unreported they can apply for medicaid and public housing, which many of them do. Some of them become "kept women" if they can find a sucker to avoid the social stigma of being a real hooker. For the mongerer who needs time to travel, I would say the more laid back European and Ozzie way of life is much better than what most experience in the US, unless your famous or ultra rich its going to be hard for the average American to travel the world, most folks work longer hours with fewer vacations and make less money.
My own personal story, I was nearly in debt in New York City, by far the most expensive city in the US, not earning enough to be a player. I got fed up and moved down under, now I am a home owner and actually live better in Australia than I do in the US, I also work about half the hours(30 versus 60 for my big corporation in the US of A). Unique experience yours may vary.