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I arranged my life so I could live on a Social Security check if I had to. It would easily cover all my home ownership costs plus maintenance, transportation, health care, and food. It wouldn't cover all the lifestyle things that double my burn rate. That's why I keep working for the moment. I don't want to give up the lifestyle things.
That's my situation in retirement. I get above-average SS (Survivor benefit on DH's record, waiting till 70 to get mine) plus $1,800/month total from a couple of non-COLA pensions. My necessities are pretty modest and I don't spend a lot on the typical "wants"- clothing, restaurants, a fancy car, redecorating the house, buying stuff for the house. I was extremely fortunate not to have any major medical expenses during the ACA years before I started Medicare, since I had a $6K deductible. The last couple of years, Travel plus Charitable donations (including a church pledge) were about 40% of my spending. So- the investments are a cushion against emergencies as well as funding for niceties. I suppose I could have retired years earlier than I did (I was 61) but I'm darned happy to have that extra.
I had to laugh at the autocorrect. I hope I don't have to resort to burning my library.
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(Chuckles) thanks, obviously I missed it.
My GAS WALL HEATER is a few hundred dollars, and my WOOD COOKSTOVE is my primary heat (it's the rare dual use.... Heat and cook.
..autocorrect tried to turn "rare" to "rate" BTW.)
My folks both live on just SS paychecks, about a year before my mother was near retirement age they purchased a ground level 2bd condo near a beach town in Dominican Republic. I believe it was around 65k USD at the time, they purchased it cash after selling the house we grew up in. They take home about 3600/mo USD from SS but they have no mortgage or property taxes in the DR, so from what they tell me they are living very comfortably probably more comfortable than when they were my age lol. I believe their biggest expense is the car and fuel but other than that things are very affordable there, they also travel quite a bit.
They did NOT plan on retiring to their country but seeing how much mom wanted to travel things would get for them if they stayed stateside. They still visit during the summer and crash at my place so it works out.
Not being able to keep your hands off The Money: I call that The Fatal Flaw.
I won't point fingers, but I will speak up for the benefit of the younger members of our forum. You MUST keep your hands off your savings, regardless of the way you save money. You absolutely MUST.
My step daughter has The Fatal Flaw. At age 53 she makes 150K+ and has a net worth of very little. 3 cars, condo at the beach, 3000 S/ft home, and endless appliances and toys. No savings. This is not going to end well.
There are lots of ways to save and invest, Boys and Girls. Pick one and stick with it. You don't have to have a 401(k). We don't.
Maybe she sees the home and beach condo as her future investments? If she is building up equity, she may be alright by retirement.
I know exactly what you mean. The spouse of a long-distance relative of mine once told me that she would "never accept charity, like you [meaning me] did during your cancer treatment." What she was referring to is the program offered by the manufacturer of the very expensive chemo drug that I needed, to those who are uninsured and also meet certain income and prognosis guidelines. Patients cannot even apply directly, it has to go through their doctor.
Anyway, in this person's mind it didn't matter (although she knew perfectly well) that if I hadn't qualified for that program by which that particular drug was supplied to my doctor at no cost for me, I wouldn't have been able to afford it (not having an extra $100K in my back pocket.) And the program only supplied the drug, not any of the myriad associated costs which I paid in full. Even with the "handout" (as she perceived it) of that one drug, my treatment ended up costing in the six figures. And it was the ONLY drug on the market (a biologic) for my specific type of aggressive cancer so it wasn't as if there was any effective alternative treatment. I was stunned by her holier-than-thou attitude at the time but in subsequent years I saw that she applies it to other things as well, including the ethnicity, national origin, ancestry, etc of people who differ from herself.
Kind of ironic because she also prides herself on having come from a farming family "where money was very tight, but unlike those who had things easier, it gave us a strong character." Because I came from a middle class blue collar family in the suburb of a major city, she has more than once made it clear that I fall into the category that I've put in italics. So I guess to her I am an immoral reprobate on many counts, LOL
An occasional 10 percent off something isn't going to make or break my finances but it's kind of fun to get once in a while. I do find it odd that since seniors are the wealthiest group demographically, we are given random discounts.
As I said, I don't think the discounts are offered to seniors because everyone thinks elderly people are poor.
I rather think they are offered to seniors as a sign of respect and in recognition for having lived a rich, long life.
$120 isn't 30% of her income, or is it somehow?
anyone know how they count income? thanks
It is $130 (still dirt cheap!) and I don't know if there are additional state and local subsidies in that figure to get it down to the $130. Her housing cost is only around 9% of her total income though, and that is really cheap housing - and the place is nice! I was actually surprised by how nice it was...
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