I think renting a house is one thing, it doesn't require your daily attention, which I would consider very manageable. Running a daily business abroad is another thing entirely. One of the hardest businesses is the restaurant business. A good friend of mine runs a group of restaurants in the city of London and commutes back and forth from Spain every week. However it really depends on who you leave behind in charge of the operation. He has his brother as a partner and a very established management team so it works for him. As far as his family is concerned, they just have to put up with it. They would rather live in Spain and he is away 4 days a week. Sure it is not ideal but they have become used to it and it works for them. naturally the business was already established and running for years before he got married and he met his wife in Spain so they had to find the best solution to the situation under the circumstances. My brother in law has business interests in several countries and travels all the time. Naturally they are businesses which do not necessarily need daily attention as they also have consolidated management teams, such as a golf course, holiday rental properties and so on. The only businesses I have personally experienced that have worked are ones that have daily reporting from a responsible management team. That is the key, finding these people and also that your business allows you to hire these people, a loyal management team isn't necessarily cheap. If it is a small business, forget it, you need to be there to run it and keep the workers on their toes. If I have a small local business I would never consider running it from a foreign country, it is a recipe for disaster. If the business can not truely run with out you for at least one month, you can not leave it. Otherwise you will find youself going back and "putting out fires" as they say in Spain, constantly. This doesn't mean that you have to disconnect from the business for a month, it is just that you have to have a team of people responsable enough to carry the business on, that means a team that has been established over years where there is a common understanding between the owner and the manager.
How will it affect family life? well it will undoubtedly turn into a nightmare if this isn't set up this way and will eventually cause so much stress in the household you will eventally wonder why on earth you left in the first place. The way I see it is if you have the people and the type of business that lends to it, give it a try, if you don't, don't even think about it! it will destroy you.