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I’m really surprised at some of the things people are saying here and all the assumptions being thrown around. Most people I know that have all their retirement figured out, live some of the most boring and empty lives. I mean, why do people sacrifice so much during the healthy and young parts of their lives for when they are 70 years old or older (if they even live that long).
Oh the "people who save are boring and live empty lives" argument. That's original.
I know a man who is still working (traveling sales) at age 82! -- He says that he is doing so because he really enjoys the relationships he has with his customers. He also says that he is paying about $50K for life insurance, which will be used by his daughter to care for his disabled son. He has no plans to retire in the near future, even though he has a 40-year retirement (pension) from a major company.
Maybe he represents the alternative to 'saving for retirement'.
Not quite true. They are sinking their money into housing and retirement accounts leaving them little to no discretionary money.
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What's the alternative to 'sinking' their money into housing, living on the street? Are you sure you want to classify housing costs as a sunk cost? Don't people need a place to live aka shelter?
I’m really surprised at some of the things people are saying here and all the assumptions being thrown around. Most people I know that have all their retirement figured out, live some of the most boring and empty lives. I mean, why do people sacrifice so much during the healthy and young parts of their lives for when they are 70 years old or older (if they even live that long).
"Retired" just means no longer need to work for a paycheck. Some people want to "retire" young so they can spend their time doing whatever they please. For some people, doing without extra stuff so you can afford to do as you please isn't really a sacrifice.
Frugal does not equal "empty and boring". Certainly it is possible for a person to be both, but it's not a foregone conclusion.
Last edited by Petunia 100; 08-12-2014 at 01:14 PM..
Reason: Clarity
I know a man who is still working (traveling sales) at age 82! -- He says that he is doing so because he really enjoys the relationships he has with his customers. He also says that he is paying about $50K for life insurance, which will be used by his daughter to care for his disabled son. He has no plans to retire in the near future, even though he has a 40-year retirement (pension) from a major company.
Maybe he represents the alternative to 'saving for retirement'.
Many older people are effectively forced out of the labor force long before their intended retirement date.
I am talking about small town America . . . and I have direct experience with that market and the demographics.
Houses are sitting EMPTY and in foreclosure. Because a senior comes in and buys a foreclosed property to live in, you are somehow equating this to rents going up?
Maybe you would prefer what has happened here in Charlotte, where property under $175K has been bought up by out-of-town speculators, using special HUD loans (and for pennies on the dollar) and changed from private residences to Section 8 properties. Now, that's a solution. Ask law enforcement how this has changed the crime map in my city.
Why this sounds fascinating and intriguing!
One day the crime rate is X, then speculators come in buy property go Section 8 and now the crime rate is 3X.
What is it about Section 8 housing that causes people to commit more crime?
There are 50 states. If you don't like the way the majority of folks vote in the state where you live, then find one where you approve of how your money is being spent.
And stop with the hyperbole. About 43% of the people in this country pay no income tax. Of those folks, 14% pay no taxes at all. When we talk about taxes, we also include Social Security and Medicare taxes, and most folks who work WILL pay those taxes, as they SHOULD, as they will be using those systems later in life.
I'm 28 and have absolutely no confidence these systems will be around in their current form forty years from now when I will be using them. As it stands now, I look at these social assistance programs as nothing but government confiscation.
I can totally understand this. My son is 30 and he and I have had quite a few discussions about what life will be like when he is my age. No definitive way to know that, of course, but there are reasonable assumptions and the facts are plain: our government is in mind-boggling debt; states like mine are struggling to figure out how to work with our budget and keep the state out of bankruptcy. And of course, any time something that has become a "given" is put on the table -- subsidies, entitlement programs, raises -- those affected typically demonize the folks trying to figure out a terrible fiscal debacle.
You are wise to assume that your future will not include healthcare as we now know it nor will it include social security as we now have it. How to plan for that? Enjoy your life and regularly save. You have the beauty of compound interest on your side. So even setting aside a modest amount consistently will pay off at 65. Other than that, assume that your generation - filled with such bright, technically savvy, globally minded young folks -- you will find new solutions. I have faith in that.
One day the crime rate is X, then speculators come in buy property go Section 8 and now the crime rate is 3X.
What is it about Section 8 housing that causes people to commit more crime?
You can try to play the obtuse card all you want. If you want to believe that Section 8 housing isn't typically a hotbed of crime (where I live) then continue in ignorant bliss, my friend.
The majority of folks on Sec 8 where I live are not hard working individuals who are trying to get a leg up and better themselves. Nor are they the elderly. Nor are they the temporarily displaced or underemployed.
We have a terribly disturbing phenomena here in my city. The crackheads, thugs and gangstas move in on their girlfriends, their baby mommas, their elderly (and frightened) grandparents . . . and deal drugs, steal from the neighbors, jack cars, get drunk or wacked out on drugs and get violent, etc, causing problems for the decent folk trying to simply live their lives.
Doesn't matter to me if you believe me or not. I am the one dealing with it. If it is different in your hood, good for you.
Not complaining about the way money is being spent, rather about how it is being taxed.
I make minimum freaking wage and I pay income tax - WhoTF are all these people who pay no income tax?
If you qualify as being in poverty, when you file your taxes, you will get a refund. However, as I noted earlier, such things as paying for FICA/SS and FICA/Medicare, should be something that all people pay. After all, you are paying into a system that (supposedly) you will one day use.
Of course, I understand that you may have your doubts as to whether or not you will actually see that money. It is what it is. No different than my sending my kids to private school (or having no children to take advantage of K-12 education) but still having to pay taxes which underwrite my local school system.
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