Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Retirement
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 03-13-2018, 09:53 AM
 
107,125 posts, read 109,484,448 times
Reputation: 80524

Advertisements

it all adds up . but like i said who cares . i really don't care what the average check is . i care what mine is. people have been living on whatever they get since ss started , debating what an average check makes little sense to me .
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 03-13-2018, 09:59 AM
 
Location: NC Piedmont
4,023 posts, read 3,809,914 times
Reputation: 6550
Quote:
Originally Posted by mathjak107 View Post
it all adds up . but like i said who cares . i really don't care what the average check is . i care what mine is. people have been living on whatever they get since ss started , debating what an average check makes little sense to me .
The other poster seemed to be suggesting that we should not feel sorry for people who don't get much because they brought it on themselves by dropping out of the work force. Other posters imply that they are lazy and/or have no ambition. That is true of some of them, but I don't think it is true of most of them.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 10:01 AM
 
Location: Denver CO
24,201 posts, read 19,302,067 times
Reputation: 38273
Quote:
Originally Posted by charlygal View Post
Can't people see their estimated SS payment online at age 30 and make adjustments like earning higher wages?
You think it's that easy to just decide to earn higher wages, particularly if you live in an area of the country where wages are low?

Newsflash, it's not that easy. Many people lack the skills and education to get higher paid jobs, and many people are not in a position to relocate to another area of the country where they might earn more. And cost of living would be higher anyway, so they wouldn't necessarily be doing all that much better on an ongoing basis, although yes, they might be able to increase their eventual SS payments, which would help if they then moved back to a lower cost area.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 10:02 AM
 
107,125 posts, read 109,484,448 times
Reputation: 80524
Quote:
Originally Posted by ReachTheBeach View Post
The other poster seemed to be suggesting that we should not feel sorry for people who don't get much because they brought it on themselves by dropping out of the work force. Other posters imply that they are lazy and/or have no ambition. That is true of some of them, but I don't think it is true of most of them.
it really is not my problem to worry about . like i said i have concerns , i try to pass on what i did to over come the obstacles i had . but that is about the extent of it being something i dwell on . i don't care what others have , don't have , or live on . they have to solve their own problems , make it work or go change the gov't or policy .

like i said i made sure i did what i had to do so we could stay healthy financially , others are not my problem , just a concern . .
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 10:14 AM
 
107,125 posts, read 109,484,448 times
Reputation: 80524
Quote:
Originally Posted by emm74 View Post
You think it's that easy to just decide to earn higher wages, particularly if you live in an area of the country where wages are low?

Newsflash, it's not that easy. Many people lack the skills and education to get higher paid jobs, and many people are not in a position to relocate to another area of the country where they might earn more. And cost of living would be higher anyway, so they wouldn't necessarily be doing all that much better on an ongoing basis, although yes, they might be able to increase their eventual SS payments, which would help if they then moved back to a lower cost area.
we were going to relocate to the poconos in pa.where we had a second home . we could make do with about 1/3 less income . but pay was 1/2 or less .

we were better off here in queens in nyc . not only that but we now have a lifetime of higher ss from the higher wages which we can take anywhere we move .
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 10:33 AM
 
7,898 posts, read 7,135,835 times
Reputation: 18613
Quote:
Originally Posted by emm74 View Post
You think it's that easy to just decide to earn higher wages, particularly if you live in an area of the country where wages are low?

Newsflash, it's not that easy. Many people lack the skills and education to get higher paid jobs, and many people are not in a position to relocate to another area of the country where they might earn more. And cost of living would be higher anyway, so they wouldn't necessarily be doing all that much better on an ongoing basis, although yes, they might be able to increase their eventual SS payments, which would help if they then moved back to a lower cost area.
Lots of people have lots of excuses. Successful people find a way to make things work out. That might mean moving, or getting an education, or finding a niche business, or even working 2 jobs. Obtaining an education and skills ought to be high on the list. Guess what society helps make that possible by providing free and even mandatory schooling through 12th grade.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 10:36 AM
 
11,337 posts, read 11,083,327 times
Reputation: 14993
Quote:
Originally Posted by mathjak107 View Post
that is false , social security is never dumped in to the general funds . they can't be by law .

they can only go to fund ss retirement ,ss disability or survivor benefits . anything extra can only buy special interest paying treasury bonds which never defaulted .

just like when your mutual funds , pension funds or you buy bonds , the borrower is free to use that money however they like .

for the record ss disability went broke from all the claims since it bacame the new unemployment insurance and so many are on it . they had to move billions from ss retirement to ssdi .
If they are borrowing against it, they are raiding it. That needs to stop.


But the bottom line is people would be far better off if the 13.5% or 14% withholding were deposited directly to their own account from the time they first enter the workforce. And could be invested in stocks and bonds and mutual funds. The benefit at the end would far exceed the puny and putrescent benefit they now receive.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 10:41 AM
 
11,337 posts, read 11,083,327 times
Reputation: 14993
Quote:
Originally Posted by ReachTheBeach View Post
The other poster seemed to be suggesting that we should not feel sorry for people who don't get much because they brought it on themselves by dropping out of the work force. Other posters imply that they are lazy and/or have no ambition. That is true of some of them, but I don't think it is true of most of them.
It doesn't matter whether it's true for any of them. Taking money from one group to hand to another group is morally improper and not compassionate to anyone. If all social security withholdings were deposited to an individual retirement account for the individual in question, he or she would amass a nice fortune by retirement age. That is how we handle this. People need to earn their own retirement, not steal it from others because they decided they were immortal and did not plan rationally.


Old age is a certainty. You don't have a choice NOT to plan for it. If you decide not to exercise Reason, you will be a victim of your own incompetence.


Financial planning should be taught in schools BEFORE any of the humanities. It's the most important think to know after basic spelling and math.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 11:37 AM
 
Location: NC Piedmont
4,023 posts, read 3,809,914 times
Reputation: 6550
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marc Paolella View Post
Financial planning should be taught in schools BEFORE any of the humanities. It's the most important think to know after basic spelling and math.
And apparently before vocabulary to help with word choice...

It's too late to change what has transpired with a large part of the population at or approaching retirement age. They are going to be taken care of; enough of the electorate is at least somewhat compassionate and we have a safety net. But it is underfunded and something will have to change before too long.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-13-2018, 12:33 PM
 
13,395 posts, read 13,559,975 times
Reputation: 35712
Quote:
Originally Posted by emm74 View Post
You think it's that easy to just decide to earn higher wages, particularly if you live in an area of the country where wages are low?

Newsflash, it's not that easy. Many people lack the skills and education to get higher paid jobs, and many people are not in a position to relocate to another area of the country where they might earn more. And cost of living would be higher anyway, so they wouldn't necessarily be doing all that much better on an ongoing basis, although yes, they might be able to increase their eventual SS payments, which would help if they then moved back to a lower cost area.
I'm a solutions person. In my brain, what comes to mind is get better skills and yes, move for the job. More people can relocate than those that can't. A strategic 2-3 year move to a place like NYC will result in a good pay bump. Then after a few years, take that higher salary back home.

In any case, there is usually something someone can do to improve their situation.

People moved from Europe to the New World and we can't get folks to move two states over?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Retirement
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 05:29 PM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top