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I do get it. Basically, they wonder why I can afford to live in a one-bedroom when they can't. That's not about whether or not they would qualify - that's up to them to decide if they want to spend that much money.
Just curious, if someone can't afford to rent a 1 BR apartment in a low income complex where rents are calculated on income, and if their income is lower than your then so would be their rent, so if they can't afford a lower rent their yours then what type of living situations are these inquiring individuals from your complex living in now that they can afford ?
Thanks for telling us. I like reading about how well other people are doing.
I think we're going to have a small mortgage on our new home going into retirement.
Well now, that introduces another angle to this story.
Let's say you said this to the OP, sitting out on the park bench chewing the fat.
You didn't ask her opinion.
How would the other Pro-Nosy-Body posters feel if I said this:
"A mortgage? Why? I never took out a mortgage in my retirement years. Why retire when you still need to pay a mortgage? That's poor financial planning"
My guess is that wouldn't go over very well. The reverse busy-body effect LOL.
In fact has ANYONE ever received that type of "advise" without getting butt-hurt? (nope)
I guess people want to have sympathy for the assumed broke guy (which there is no evidence of that, he could be sitting on a chunky retirement account or own real estate).
But the person who's "better off" is expected to be what? The "bigger person" with no boundaries?
As someone else pointed out, there is NOTHING the guy can do to substantially change his situation at this late date if in fact, he can't afford a one bedroom. Unless of course he's squirreled away some savings and doesn't want to part with it.
He's paying 30% of his income and whether that can afford a studio or a one bedroom - so what?
It would be a different scenario if the guy asked NMSFM "Hey how can I get into that building?"
NMSFM has been more than generous taking time to explain how HUD housing works here for a long time. That's different than being expected to reveal personal financial details.
Just curious, if someone can't afford to rent a 1 BR apartment in a low income complex where rents are calculated on income, and if their income is lower than your then so would be their rent, so if they can't afford a lower rent their yours then what type of living situations are these inquiring individuals from your complex living in now that they can afford ?
A studio/efficiency.
When you apply/get accepted into that arrangement, you get to pick a studio or one bedroom or whatever. Some even have 3 floor plans of efficiency layouts. Different layouts or square footage may be larger.
For example, it might not be a new building and some used to be all efficiencies when the property was purchased under the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program....and the owners got a HUD grant so you can't vary the layouts all that much. Like a former nursing home or something. Some used to be a one bedroom with a den or dining room and the new owners make it a two bedroom. Some properties may go to the trouble of combining TWO units into one or just do nothing and leave it as is. AND BONUS sometime all utilities are included. Sometimes even cable or a cheap rate like $10.00 per month.
Now it depends on which type of grant the place got from HUD but basically:
The properties have a certain amount of units in each category of rent, too, usually.
There's a formula with your income and the property rates. For example they may have X amount at 30% of income, then 50%, then 80% or market rates. The rates are based on Median Area Income. So the guy COULD move to a different county and afford a one bedroom, perhaps.
He CHOSE the very expensive county they live in.
There's one near me with $320 as the cheapest unit and it jumps to $625 for the larger one but that is an outlier in terms of drastic increase. Both super cheap compared to the market rates in my county.
The $320 has a ten year wait. The $625 one year.
A really nice complex here in FL I checked out and I didn't even know it was income restricted or what that even meant until they explained it to me. Clubhouse, pool etc. They said in their case, you can't be a penny over $x.00 per year and if you have assets, it's okay but you may be assessed a small surcharge. It depends on the grant.
Also in many, your NET WORTH doesn't matter. So it's just your income. You have to re-certify every year. I read an article that one place had three buildings and got a new grant to renovate one.
The conditions were 27K per year max income.
Some of the ladies were just over that amount but already living there for years.
They had to shuffle residents around to other buildings to keep in line with the terms of the grant!
You can also find that your property's grant was for only FIVE YEARS so that the terms or level of service may change in five years. But most of them I see by long standing private property companies are more like 20 years. And some are NON-PROFIT.
99% sure this guy knows EXACTLY how it works, unless his kids got him into there and kept him in the dark about where he was even living LOL.
It IS possible. Most places look like "normal" housing with the word "senior" thrown in occasionally.
Last edited by runswithscissors; 02-16-2018 at 05:18 AM..
i do agree with whoever it was that mentioned men looking for a sugar momma, or caregiver. I think it was RunsWithScissors. I do think this is true. Creepy, but true.
I'm single, available and willing to relocate. How much did you say you were worth?
When you apply/get accepted into that arrangement, you get to pick a studio or one bedroom or whatever. Some even have 3 floor plans of efficiency layouts. Different layouts or square footage may be larger.
For example, it might not be a new building and some used to be all efficiencies when the property was purchased under the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program....and the owners got a HUD grant so you can't vary the layouts all that much. Like a former nursing home or something. Some used to be a one bedroom with a den or dining room and the new owners make it a two bedroom. Some properties may go to the trouble of combining TWO units into one or just do nothing and leave it as is. AND BONUS sometime all utilities are included. Sometimes even cable or a cheap rate like $10.00 per month.
Now it depends on which type of grant the place got from HUD but basically:
The properties have a certain amount of units in each category of rent, too, usually.
There's a formula with your income and the property rates. For example they may have X amount at 30% of income, then 50%, then 80% or market rates. The rates are based on Median Area Income. So the guy COULD move to a different county and afford a one bedroom, perhaps.
He CHOSE the very expensive county they live in.
There's one near me with $320 as the cheapest unit and it jumps to $625 for the larger one but that is an outlier in terms of drastic increase. Both super cheap compared to the market rates in my county.
The $320 has a ten year wait. The $625 one year.
A really nice complex here in FL I checked out and I didn't even know it was income restricted or what that even meant until they explained it to me. Clubhouse, pool etc. They said in their case, you can't be a penny over $x.00 per year and if you have assets, it's okay but you may be assessed a small surcharge. It depends on the grant.
Also in many, your NET WORTH doesn't matter. So it's just your income. You have to re-certify every year. I read an article that one place had three buildings and got a new grant to renovate one.
The conditions were 27K per year max income.
Some of the ladies were just over that amount but already living there for years.
They had to shuffle residents around to other buildings to keep in line with the terms of the grant!
You can also find that your property's grant was for only FIVE YEARS so that the terms or level of service may change in five years. But most of them I see by long standing private property companies are more like 20 years. And some are NON-PROFIT.
99% sure this guy knows EXACTLY how it works, unless his kids got him into there and kept him in the dark about where he was even living LOL.
It IS possible. Most places look like "normal" housing with the word "senior" thrown in occasionally.
You are in a low income apartment building you both live in. To me this conversation made more sense in that environment than somebody asking you in the grocery checkout line how much take home pay you have each month.
Ok I'm going to be the outlier here. Maybe they are genuinely interested in trying to better their situation.
I understand your point. I'm affluent, and among other affluent friends, sometimes the conversation turns to investments, especially in light of the increases in the stock market since Hillary was defeated. Discussions turn to asset allocation strategies, risk tolerance, etc. Sometimes it turns to discussion of investments in individual corporations or with specific asset managers. Sometimes it is about the mechanics of being a landlord, or maintaining a many-decades-old classic car. Sometimes the discussion turns to Cryptocurrencies and if they are real.
At the same time, no one asks "how can you afford that" or "how much money do you have" -- which I sense is the gist of the OPs point.
I have had a few incidences of nosy residents of my 55+ community asking too many questions about my finances. All of them were from old guys who were looking for a Nurse with a Purse ...
It might have been interesting to see the look on their faces if you had turned the tables on them:
* "How much life insurance do you have? Who's the beneficiary?"
* "Do you have a heart condition?"
* "What are your cholesterol numbers?"
* "What's your Hemoglobin A1c?"
* "How's your prostate? What's your PSA?"
* "Do you have a written Power of Attorney for medical care?"
* "Have you been tested for Alzheimer's?"
* "Do you have a will? When was the last time you updated it?"
* "Do you have your assets in a Trust?" Who's the beneficiary?"
* "Do you still have a mortgage?"
* "Do you receive a pension? How much? Is it a Public Sector (safe) or private sector (less safe) pension?"
* "How old is your car? Is it in good condition? Do you own it outright or do you still make payments?"
and then, of course, if they still don't get the hint ...
* "Do you have anything against 3-ways with one woman and two men?"
* "Do you use Viagra or Cialis?"
and finally
* "How long is your Johnson?" And then frown when he answers.
I understand your point. I'm affluent, and among other affluent friends, sometimes the conversation turns to investments, especially in light of the increases in the stock market since Hillary was defeated. Discussions turn to asset allocation strategies, risk tolerance, etc. Sometimes it turns to discussion of investments in individual corporations or with specific asset managers. Sometimes it is about the mechanics of being a landlord, or maintaining a many-decades-old classic car. Sometimes the discussion turns to Cryptocurrencies and if they are real.
At the same time, no one asks "how can you afford that" or "how much money do you have" -- which I sense is the gist of the OPs point.
I think I have to understand how the conversation is going. I know on my job, a few of my coworkers know I am planning on retiring when I turn 59 (18 months. yoohoo!!!) so I do get asked how I can afford to retire way before social security, pensions or medicare.
I really don't mind discussing that. we talk about cost of health insurance without an employee kick in, having a mortgage in retirement etc etc. now I can do it without pulling out my portfolio and giving them dollars and cents so imo it's really not intrusive.
If someone I knew was retiring at 45, I would absolutely be picking their brains and asking them how they saved enough to do so.
My boss just asked me if I still had life insurance. I think that is a perfectly reasonable question if as you get older you don't have dependents that you have to provide for.
Now I will say I haven't had perfect strangers at the bus stop ask me financial questions but I did go to a seminar on real estate investment and I got into a conversation with some of the participates on Long term care insurance, a few of us are self insuring so we did talk dollar amounts in savings. I certainly wasn't worried that someone was going to bop me over the head and kill me.
Well now, that introduces another angle to this story.
Let's say you said this to the OP, sitting out on the park bench chewing the fat.
You didn't ask her opinion.
How would the other Pro-Nosy-Body posters feel if I said this:
"A mortgage? Why? I never took out a mortgage in my retirement years. Why retire when you still need to pay a mortgage? That's poor financial planning"
My guess is that wouldn't go over very well. The reverse busy-body effect LOL.
In fact has ANYONE ever received that type of "advise" without getting butt-hurt? (nope)
I guess people want to have sympathy for the assumed broke guy (which there is no evidence of that, he could be sitting on a chunky retirement account or own real estate).
But the person who's "better off" is expected to be what? The "bigger person" with no boundaries?
As someone else pointed out, there is NOTHING the guy can do to substantially change his situation at this late date if in fact, he can't afford a one bedroom. Unless of course he's squirreled away some savings and doesn't want to part with it.
He's paying 30% of his income and whether that can afford a studio or a one bedroom - so what?
It would be a different scenario if the guy asked NMSFM "Hey how can I get into that building?"
NMSFM has been more than generous taking time to explain how HUD housing works here for a long time. That's different than being expected to reveal personal financial details.
I don't know about anyone else, but I'd laugh my head off if some John Q attempted to give me financial advice. We are doing well, thanks to planning and careful spending, don't think we need a stranger's help. I wouldn't be butt hurt by such advice as I take nothing like that personally.
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