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I can't imagine how two people could live on $1000/month in the U.S., even with VA medical benefits.
Actually if you owned your home and property taxes weren't significant I could see it, but heaven forbid you have to pay for an expensive home or car repair.
I can't imagine how two people could live on $1000/month in the U.S., even with VA medical benefits.
Actually if you owned your home and property taxes weren't significant I could see it, but heaven forbid you have to pay for an expensive home or car repair.
My mother is 83 and lives on barely $900 month. Her home is paid for, as is her car, but she still has insurance and taxes on the home and insurance on the car. She makes it work! I help her out, when I can...mostly by paying rent on her guest house, which is included in that $900 mo.. She gets food stamps, which helps some and through that she also gets health insurance to help pay what Medicare doesn't.
Last edited by AZDesertBrat; 12-09-2010 at 08:21 AM..
You guys aren't thinking out of the box enough. Get a little used motor home and live in it parked on city streets, but move it every day. I kid a little, but if people are desperate enough they will have to do that.
My plan is to never retire. I will save what I can for emergencies, medical expenses and if I'm disabled. I hope to have a few 100k at least. But I must have a decent income stream even when I'm a senior. I think i could live off of $1,000/mo, but I will avoid it. I can't imagine not having much to do all day and not having cash to help entertain myself.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FelixTheCat
You guys aren't thinking out of the box enough. Get a little used motor home and live in it parked on city streets, but move it every day. I kid a little, but if people are desperate enough they will have to do that.
...
This is a very common way of living these days, In fact certain cities avail parking lots for one-night use, and change everyday to avoid an established 'dignity-village' Dignity Village, Tent city - Home (which works well too BTW)
< $1000 k / month is very common in many areas around the USA. It certainly is easier in a mild climate and with some subsidy in housing. Lots of communities allow senior deferral of property taxes and also provide assistance with utilities. You are eligible for free food distribution with income below poverty level. In some cases I'm sure it is beneficial to have <$1000 / month income.
I am always impressed when helping the impoverished in the USA and abroad, as they can be very content and have a decent quality of life (maybe not to our standards ). Safety (personal security), clean water, subsistence food, and available emergency medical for dental and physical needs can keep folks very content and well. They can also be very creative in their housing solutions.
Now if the gov would just let an active group of benevolent seniors take over some of the closed schools and military bases, things would really shape up .
Property tax, home insurance, HOA, food, utilities, medical insurance, auto insurance, maintenace/repairs, registration and gas all total $2100. Not including a daughter in college. This is before I open my wallet and spend one penny. My semi-frugal living cost $3500/month.
Property tax, home insurance, HOA, food, utilities, medical insurance, auto insurance, maintenace/repairs, registration and gas all total $2100. Not including a daughter in college. This is before I open my wallet and spend one penny. My semi-frugal living cost $3500/month.
Ouch.
You would have a hard time on a pension of $1,000/month then.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jkern57
... all total $2100. Not including a daughter in college. This is before I open my wallet and spend one penny. My semi-frugal living cost $3500/month.
Ouch... Mine is very high due to $1,000 / month prop taxes, but under $2500. I suggest college students get loans, and parents fund the payments / payoff AFTER graduation, especially in the current economy of low rates. My kids consolidated their loans (~$15k each at 2.7% for 20 yrs). If I was a nice person I would pay their payments, but.... They each started college with $30K in their ROTHS (which I provided by matching 1:1 since age 12). They also each had ~ $70k equity in homes that they had to build from scratch while in Jr High (with LOTS of FREE help from me). They did college instead of High School paid for by WA state (me as taxpayer, since I homeschooled k-10), thus only 2 yrs to pay themselves. Both done with undergrad before age 21, head start on 'earning' Oh, Boy !!
They are VERY bitter about this (paying for college)... Darn
Life is rough all over... kids these days Probably a lifetime of mental counseling ahead for them. - Thus, DON"T follow my advice
We have a paid off townhome here in Phoenix, property taxes are also low maybe $1000/year.
If we really needed to turtle up we could probably get by on $2000/month, that would include $500/month for private high deductible health insurance for two since we're both about 25 years away from medicare.
I guess could switch to Keystone Light and maybe do $1900, but where do you draw the line?
Assuming a retiree is in decent health, there should be no reason to have to live on 1000 month pension/SS/investments alone. One can dog sit, babysit, do yard work, work part time at Home Depot or other job, do consulting work, teach a class, etc, to bring in another 500 a month or so. You could also have a housemate sharing expenses.
I would think that $1000/month would be a very worst case scenario. You would have to have some subsidies like food stamps to make it, unless your property taxes are extremely low and you grow quite a bit of your own food (but seed, etc costs $).
Resourcefulness is always possible, but those "fixed" expenses will rise every year during a lifetime.
Assuming a retiree is in decent health, there should be no reason to have to live on 1000 month pension /SS /investments alone. One can dog sit, babysit, do yard work, work part time at Home Depot or other job, do consulting work, teach a class, etc, to bring in another 500 a month or so. You could also have a housemate sharing expenses.
I agree.
Quote:
... I would think that $1000/month would be a very worst case scenario. You would have to have some subsidies like food stamps to make it, unless your property taxes are extremely low and you grow quite a bit of your own food (but seed, etc costs $).
We have a few neighbors in this area whose income is below that level, not wealthy by any stretch, but not on food stamps either.
Health care is the difficult topic.
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). Safety (personal security), clean water, subsistence food, and available emergency medical for dental and physical needs can keep folks very content and well. They can also be very creative in their housing solutions.
.
Not a chance
Probably a lifetime of mental counseling ahead for them.
- Thus, DON"T follow my advice 
