Cost of living changes since retirement?

[mathjak107]

Our food,and rent went up. Our Energy and healthcare costs dropped more than the other stuff went up though

[BuffaloTransplant]

Originally Posted by augiedogie

I think a lot of folks who are planning retirement are thinking that their cost of living might go down somewhat. Few new clothes etc, needed for work, as well as no longer traveling to work and wearing out your vehicles and spending money on gas and maint. to keep the car running. Some maybe get a smaller house if they move or they move to a city with a lower cost of living. My question is for those who have retired, how has retirement changed your cost of living.

My guess is that it might not change at all. Yes you might save money on the mentioned items I listed, but with more free time, folks might be spending more money playing golf or traveling. So how's your budget?

Our cost of living dropped like a stone. [We had pensions and SS. Between the 2 of them, we make a pretty decent % ( a lot more than I expected) of what we made pre-retirement. If you add all the taxes and FICA and things taken out prior to retirement? We honestly are not down much.] We also have the car as "leisure" on insurance ( it does not go to work), we spend less on clothes, the house is paid off and we are not moving. We are not big travelers; we do a lot of day trips. That adds all of food for the day. Other than that, there are family outings. No changes there. We have enough yard and garden work to keep busy and other activities which do not cost ( like dues for golf clubs). Honestly, I watch friends who retired and bought the new house or the 2nd house and wonder why they even retired -- because they are scrimping to pay a mortgage!

If anything, food went up. Utilities went down with a new furnace and windows and efficient appliances -- all done pre-retirement. Our items like phone and cable and internet have all floated along with everyone else's. Health insurance used to be from union; now its medicare.[ Using the cost of plan B every month, it is actually lower since we have the original plan as a secondary after Medicare]

It took us a lot of planning, but it sure was worth it and the money I see in the bank tells me I did it right.

[teachbeach]

Originally Posted by TheShadow

mortgage, utilities, taxes including car registration, gas, insurance, ...all down when we moved to a cheaper state

food ...stayed the same

clothes... went down some

entertainment, travel, ...up somewhat, will go up more in the future

home projects and furnishings...up because the new house meant needing new items, but now it should level off since most projects are finished

This is about like our scenario....

We moved to a different state to be near family, so taxes, utilities and smaller (no mortgage) house; expenses have gone down.

Insurance is slightly higher, but we don't drive as far or as much so it's a wash/even exchange with gas or wear tear/oil changes etc.

Food~ I cook more and we're more flexible about trying new places for lunch or with incentives (coupons, 1/2 price deals, restaurant.com, Groupon offerings etc.) Less "on the run" meals. The cost of food has risen drastically, but I now have the time to make and freeze meals, take advantage of savings, shop deals, hit the stores early in the AM when they are marking foods down from the night before (meats, produce), pick my own in exchange for picking for the food banks...overall I would say that our expenses here have stayed the same even with the cost of food (eating in or out) having gone up.

Clothes~way down. No longer have to purchase pantyhose or pay the cost of dry cleaning. Our part time jobs are business casual, so we're wearing many of the clothes bought in the later years of working. Clothes we do buy are more transitional and practical for everyday wear.

Entertainment/Travel~about the same, we seem to take more trips, but at times where we can take advantage of airline specials, accrue miles or points towards flights or snag discounts. The flexibility of being able to travel off the school year calendar is helpful.

Home projects/furnishings~we bought a fixer upper and hope this levels out within the next year or two. The expenses have been up for the two years we've lived here, two more major projects and we should be finished. Home maintenance is less, since we now have time to clean, mow lawns, do the garden work, paint, do minor repairs etc.

Health care insurance~up, since this is what I gave up when I retired and now have to purchase on my own until I reach medicare eligibility.

State of Mind~much improved: no anxieties, worries, less stress, time to exercise, nap, plan your day/week, read a book in a day, visit with friends, pursue craft projects, make gifts for birthdays and holidays, watch a video, stay up late, sleep late, finish a magazine in the month it was delivered. We both work part time, fun, fulfilling jobs where we are appreciated and recognized for our contributions.

Like others, we saved like crazy during all of our working years, lived well below our income, drove our cars for 10+ years, kept our track of our expenses, paid off a mortgage and continued to save that amount monthly. With a pension (mine from teaching), the down the road social security and IRA distributions...we plan to enjoy the years ahead.