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It's amazing how many homeowners have mortgage payments - including taxes and insurance - lower than my room rent.
Yes... IT BUUURRRNSSS!!!
(Will be paying $1510 a month for a 2-br. 2-ba. in Manassas, VA starting in January. Far from a "luxury" apartment complex, too. It's a 6 month lease).
I've spent a lot of money in the last few months due to multiple health issues, but more typically I can get by on < $1200/month. The key is to find the cheapest room for rent near work and walk. Cutting out all the little things while ignoring the biggest ones - "H and T" - doesn't work so well. (Housing and Transportation).
Knowing how to look for good housing deals is really a useful skill - in terms of proximity to work and cost - and one picked up through experience.
Of course this doesn't work so well if you have multiple jobs within the household or kids.
I'm not sure where the 'skill' is in that endeavor; I manage to keep a roof over my head through sheer persistence in pavement-pounding and ad response (CL, newspapers).
When we inherit some money, this is our realistic goal. Even if we inherit nothing, within 3 years this is very realistic. Everything has been priced out, there is always land for sale here and we've been attending church in this location for 2 years. Have lots of friends there.
We will buy land outright, place 4 very tiny cabins (sold as sheds but are nice mini studio cabins) for $4000 a piece. This includes installation! We were going to buy a saw mill and build ourselves but after attending the local Fair and seeing the miniature homes, we saw these and the price is so reasonable. One cabin will be our bedroom with extra room inside for a tv, small table and such. The other cabin will be the kitchen, another cabin will be the bathroom/ shower & laundry facilities and the last cabin will be an extra cabin for guests.
We'd Build a covered bridge walkway in between each building. We'd also place two of the cabins close together and lay concrete in between, add a roof which will make for a storage area. Add a few walls and a door.
These will be mini unpermitted buildings and ever since google maps came along, you can see larger houses now from the sky. So this will keep it low key. I'd like a treehouse but my husband won't consider it. We'll use Solar Panels, batteries + a generator. But overall, most of the power will be free.
We will rince and repeat, then rent out the two little cabins. A shared kitchen, one shared bathroom/ shower with covered bridges in between them. Power and water included profiting about $400 a piece so $800 a month.
We are keeping our social security very low due to my husbands health issues. We want to qualify for some low income medicare program down the line so we both must retire at the first opportunity. To wait to retire was an option but there are ways we could go totally belly up that way so it's a real risk. So our income would be $1325 Combined SS (todays dolalrs)+ $800 rentals=$2125 per mo.
Monthly expenses
internet-$75,
Garbage-$35,
Car Insurance-$50
Property taxes $100 or less.
Food-$500 (<-over-inflated. It will be less as we'll grow much of our food)
Gas-$125
Misc-$100
Travel-$50 per mo
Eating out-$100
Tithes-$100
----------------
$1250 per mo.
We were planning on moving to the coast to have cleaner air to help avoid further health issues but our 24 year old son won't move with us.
We've been attending church in this small offgrid town located about 30 minutes from two larger towns. One town has population of 2500 and the other nearby town, 1500 people. The town we'd reside has about 75 people. If we inherit a 2015 tesla which is a possiblility, we'd not have any gas costs. We cycle many places we choose to go and he fixes all of our cars. So we have no mechanics, generally buy a car and drive it a few years then he sells it for more than we bought it for.
Right now we both work full time. He is a Painting Contractor and I am a Supportive Living Supervisor. Hell work another 9 years, I'll work another 15 but plan on making very little money. Just working 20 hrs for the medical plan mainly. Half of my income now is 20 hrs and it comes with a killer medical plan. Hence why I'd love to work well into my mid 70's but we cannot afford it. So the short of it is, we'll be able to afford to live on $1325 per mo (our SS combined). But will have $800 more per mo along with that.
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Last edited by OutdoorsyGal; 11-26-2015 at 05:12 PM..
. Hi I'm receiving SSDI and have moved from WA State to Portland,OR-I have family here,I was wondering if you knew if there is a town/city near Eureka that has a Kroger owned grocery store.My son works for a chain here called Fred Meyers & he could transfer to one in Cali,The only help I get from family here is possibly a ride to the grocery store or doctors office,mostly my son helps me-pays 1/2 the bills:rent,electric,internet,& helps me around the house with things that I can't do anymore-scrub floors,take my dog for walks when I can't. The weather here in Portland,OR is pretty much the same as it was in WA state,lots & lots of RAIN & I hate it!! It's really starting to bother me-physically with my arthritis as well & I would love to move back to California,but the only way I could is if my son moved with me & helped me out-Any help would be appreciated.
You just need to google kroger and fred meyer and see all of the different stores under their umbrella. Then see if any are in Eureka.
There is a Fred Meyer in Brookings. If you want to live in CA, you could live just across the border in Del Norte County. I live in Crescent City, and it's about a 30 minute commute to Brookings, OR.
Crescent City is a very small town with not a lot going on, but it's cheap. If you'd prefer Eureka, just see if there's a Kroger store there. I know there are some Food Maxes in CA, which I believe are a Kroger store.
Another affordable area, though the weather is very hot for a long summer, is Redding, CA. There is a Food Max there.
Has anyone read $2 A Day in America? These are people who have me beat by a long shot. It is an eye opener about the truly poor in America. Good read if you really want to understand.
I have lived on much less for many many years. Part of those years was as a Military wife. Ex didn't get any of those extras so many other branches get.
After that, I was living on my own with my high school daughter. I got NO child support, earned $8.50 an hour with a 32 hour work week.
After that....it was just me on $900.00 a month. Two jobs.
You learn how to budget, scrimp and save.
Pare down expenses, utilize any free stuff that comes along, shop in thrift stores (I have done that my whole life though),
see what you can live without, and figure out how to pay for those things you can't live without.
Has anyone read $2 A Day in America? These are people who have me beat by a long shot. It is an eye opener about the truly poor in America. Good read if you really want to understand.
I read it. One of the more fortunate was a family of 22 (including children and grandchildren) living on grandpas $1025 disability. That works out to under $2 a day for each. That's in Cleveland. And a family of 3 in Mississippi a family of four on $150 a month.
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