PREP RETIREMENT...need the cold hard facts!

[kittyknits]

deleted.

 

[ittybit]

Retirement generally means dependency on government checks. They do not keep up with inflation, regardless of many congress critters bleating claims.

Over the past 50+ years in the USA, officially inflation has average about 5% per year (I believe it is far higher than that). If you have "savings" the purchasing power of the savings will be cut in half every ten (10) years. ($1.00 --> 50¢-->25¢-->12.5¢) This is one of the reasons that being on a fixed income and not being able to generate income is such a hardship.

IMO the #1 priority in any plan to go to a fixed income is to reduce ongoing expenses to as close to zero as possible. Second is to find a number of ways to generate "passive income" (IE - income that you do not need to do work to receive). Third is to find ways to "produce" and trade (barter) with others who "produce".

Once you have reduced your monthly cash outflow (bills) to the absolute minimum, then consider strategic investments of current income, investments or savings into things that can save you a bundle of money in the future: replace your roof with a metal roof (20-30 colors to choose from these days) that will last 30+ years, buy a good used car which will be repairable and usable for the next 10-15 years, add more insulation to your house roof and walls, replace windows with 20+ year windows, replace your appliances with sturdy, long lasting models, put up a cloths line for drying.

Notice that I did not mention expanding your garden. The reason way is because that takes continuing work to do and if you are of a mind to garden for your food, that will be self evident to you. The above relate to things that do not require you to perform labor, just to re-arrange money into a long lasting, low cost living situation.

Lastly, using your own two hands, make things and sell them. My mom used to buy fabric on sale and cut out "quilting squares", putting 6 in a bunch and sell them for $1 at yard sales and flea markets. She cleaned up, repeatedly. She knew that people would buy stuff for a buck, just because it looked interesting. "Everyone has a dollar", she would say.

One last suggestion: offer to teach young women how to do the basics. Offer this for a reasonable fee. You will use this to expand your social network and to keep tabs on the pulse of the world that is around you. It will also generate pin money without you needing to do a lot of work. It will also motivate you to keep your house clean :-)

 

[patience]

Ittybit is right on target. Inflation is tough to deal with. Many retirees worry about outliving their savings, and justly so, especially in these days of inflation and zero percent interest on savings. That is a double whammy for retirees with savings and low fixed income. They are throwing us under the bus to save the banks and govt. budget for just a little longer. There must be a special place in hell for such people.

To deal with this, the best we have come up with is to stay in the economy to some degree. That is, keep earning at least a small income. SS limits on earnings are going up and allow more than in the past.
____________

I have no idea how to navigate this forum. I had to search my posts to find this topic again. I would respond more if I thought I could possibly find my posts again, but it has been very difficult for me.

 

[WalknTrot]

Seems to me that SS recipients have gotten a lot more raises than I have over the past 35 years of employment.

I never understood the term "fixed income" except for people who have pensions that don't give COL raises.

 

[MountainBiker]

Seems to me that SS recipients have gotten a lot more raises than I have over the past 35 years of employment.

I never understood the term "fixed income" except for people who have pensions that don't give COL raises.

I've long wondered the same thing about why retirees who get cost of living increases are deemed to be on a fixed income whereas workers who (in recent years at least) often don't get any increase but the "fixed income" label isn't applied to them.

 

[Loon]

We're retired. Best advice I can give is to downsize your house to something you can manage in your old age. Make sure you use every inch daily. Any more than that is space you don't need. Heat bills will be cheaper. Fix it up while you're still working. Have it paid off and no debt when you retire.

The best advice I got when we retired was from another retiree. "Every time you leave the house it costs you money". He was right. Be content to stay home and have hobbies that don't cost a lot.

Another tip is to connect with folks looking for extra work but don't charge much. As you age, you will need help doing this and that. Ask around and find all the people who do work on the side and do a good job for little money.

 

[homepark]

I went out on disability at age 57. We have gone through a lot of financial 're-adjustment' as a result. That included a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy at the beginning while wrangling with SSA, VA and insurance companies. Believe it or not, the .gov agencies were easier to deal with than the insurance folks. Anyway, my wife and I have been a wake up call to our contemporaries. Yes, as others have said, you need to look at retirement differently.

This might sound overly simple, BUT, you need to find a way to live on less than what you have coming in. NOW is a good time to start that.

 

[WalknTrot]

I've long wondered the same thing about why retirees who get cost of living increases are deemed to be on a fixed income whereas workers who (in recent years at least) often don't get any increase but the "fixed income" label isn't applied to them.

Yeppers. My pension (when I decide to take it) guarantees a 2% increase every year - more if the plan is doing well with their investments.

Social Security has averaged about the same.

COLAs received in 1975-2013 are shown below.

Automatic Cost-Of-Living Adjustments

July 1975 -- 8.0%
July 1976 -- 6.4%
July 1977 -- 5.9%
July 1978 -- 6.5%
July 1979 -- 9.9%
July 1980 -- 14.3%
July 1981 -- 11.2%
July 1982 -- 7.4%
January 1984 -- 3.5%
January 1985 -- 3.5%
January 1986 -- 3.1%
January 1987 -- 1.3%
January 1988 -- 4.2%
January 1989 -- 4.0%
January 1990 -- 4.7%
January 1991 -- 5.4%
January 1992 -- 3.7%
January 1993 -- 3.0%
January 1994 -- 2.6%
January 1995 -- 2.8%


January 1996 -- 2.6%
January 1997 -- 2.9%
January 1998 -- 2.1%
January 1999 -- 1.3%
January 2000 -- 2.5%(1)
January 2001 -- 3.5%
January 2002 -- 2.6%
January 2003 -- 1.4%
January 2004 -- 2.1%
January 2005 -- 2.7%
January 2006 -- 4.1%
January 2007 -- 3.3%
January 2008 -- 2.3%
January 2009 -- 5.8%
January 2010 -- 0.0%
January 2011 -- 0.0%
January 2012 -- 3.6%
January 2013 -- 1.7%
January 2014 -- 1.5%

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/cola/automatic-cola.htm

That's WAAAAY better than I ever got working. Was lucky to get 2% every other year.

 

[Loretta Van Riet]

Thank you all for your replies and experiences. I am rethinking everything I do!

I had a recent health scare that I am working on that made me ponder what the heck will I do if I can no longer work my same job.
What a wonderful brain-pool we have here!

Sincerely,
Loretta V.

 

[TerryK]

Yeppers. My pension (when I decide to take it) guarantees a 2% increase every year - more if the plan is doing well with their investments.

Social Security has averaged about the same.

COLAs received in 1975-2013 are shown below.

Automatic Cost-Of-Living Adjustments

July 1975 -- 8.0%
July 1976 -- 6.4%
July 1977 -- 5.9%
July 1978 -- 6.5%
July 1979 -- 9.9%
July 1980 -- 14.3%
July 1981 -- 11.2%
July 1982 -- 7.4%
January 1984 -- 3.5%
January 1985 -- 3.5%
January 1986 -- 3.1%
January 1987 -- 1.3%
January 1988 -- 4.2%
January 1989 -- 4.0%
January 1990 -- 4.7%
January 1991 -- 5.4%
January 1992 -- 3.7%
January 1993 -- 3.0%
January 1994 -- 2.6%
January 1995 -- 2.8%


January 1996 -- 2.6%
January 1997 -- 2.9%
January 1998 -- 2.1%
January 1999 -- 1.3%
January 2000 -- 2.5%(1)
January 2001 -- 3.5%
January 2002 -- 2.6%
January 2003 -- 1.4%
January 2004 -- 2.1%
January 2005 -- 2.7%
January 2006 -- 4.1%
January 2007 -- 3.3%
January 2008 -- 2.3%
January 2009 -- 5.8%
January 2010 -- 0.0%
January 2011 -- 0.0%
January 2012 -- 3.6%
January 2013 -- 1.7%
January 2014 -- 1.5%

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/cola/automatic-cola.htm

That's WAAAAY better than I ever got working. Was lucky to get 2% every other year.

That's because when you are working a job, you are expected to be working your way up the ladder.
Anyone who works in the same job year after year without either a promotion or a change to a higher paying job, has no ambition or needs to find another company to work for.
I've never had a problem getting raises or promotions to new positions where ever I worked.
You have to stand out from the rest and demonstrate that you are making the organization more money than you cost them.

Basically if you are working a job and year after year are not keeping up with inflation, you need to either look for a new job or look inward at yourself.

Finally, many organizations that have very slow promotion paths do have cost of living raises.

 

[TerryK]

Thank you all for your replies and experiences. I am rethinking everything I do!

I had a recent health scare that I am working on that made me ponder what the heck will I do if I can no longer work my same job.
What a wonderful brain-pool we have here!

Sincerely,
Loretta V.

Start planning for that future today. So many people think they are going to be able to keep their same level of health and strength forever and end up with a house and property they can't maintain and can't afford to hire someone else to do it either.
Downsizing and simplifying are usually the right choice once the kids are grown. Not only does it assure that you can still live comfortably as you get older, it also frees you to do the things you always wanted to do but couldn't when you were working.
It's always better to anticipate changes in our life than have them forced on us.

Ittybit's advice and post are great.

 

[patience]

The big problem trying to assess income is the real rate of inflation. That varies dramatically with individuals, their location, and spending patterns, and is virtually always significantly higher than the published numbers. SEE: http://www.shadowstats.com/alternate_data/inflation-charts

There are several online alternative inflation indexes that give a clearer picture of what is really going on. A better thing to investigate is to look at buying power, that is, the real value of income as discounted by inflation. Despite COLA and raises of all kinds, real wages have been falling for some time now. SEE: http://www.shadowstats.com/article/consumer-liquidity-special-report

The above applies to any income, be it wages or retirement income of any kind. The Federal Reserve has been ripping off the entire country since its' inception in 1913, and lying about it in their statistics. Retired people need to be aware of how egregious this situation really is and plan accordingly.

 

[MountainBiker]

We're retired. Best advice I can give is to downsize your house to something you can manage in your old age. Make sure you use every inch daily. Any more than that is space you don't need. Heat bills will be cheaper. Fix it up while you're still working. Have it paid off and no debt when you retire.

The best advice I got when we retired was from another retiree. "Every time you leave the house it costs you money". He was right. Be content to stay home and have hobbies that don't cost a lot.

Another tip is to connect with folks looking for extra work but don't charge much. As you age, you will need help doing this and that. Ask around and find all the people who do work on the side and do a good job for little money.

I'm partly going against the grain. When I retired at age 60, I relocated to a property that requires much more work to maintain. I left a small town suburban type setting for a large property in the country. The new house is not small by most folk's definitions but it is smaller than what we had before. More importantly it's older than what we had before and required far more renovations and catch up maintenance than I anticipated. At this point I see it more as having bought me a long held dream rather than money pissed away. Better to laugh than cry as they say. I could never sell it and get my money back at this point but I now have a home in which I could become pretty self sufficient come TEOTWAWKI, and I have a place big enough for the kids to come here if it becomes necessary. After decades of a stressful job working 50 - 60 hours a week I don't really care if I run out of money when I'm 80 if I've enjoyed 20 years of retirement on my dream property. It'll be something to celebrate just making it to 80. My Dad was the picture of health, never sick a day and after 40 years in a chemical factory he retired at 62, relocated to what was his dream property, had a couple great years, then got sick and was dead of cancer at 67. Knowing how hard he worked and the sacrifices he made I still take comfort in his having gotten to live his dream for a couple years at least. I plan to live until I die.

 

[Loon]

I guess I should have explained better. We also sold our bigger city house and bought a 28 acre farm in the country. The house itself is tiny. It's exactly 800 sq. feet with only two bedrooms. When our son comes to visit he and the wife sleep in the small bunkhouse out back and the kids get the small second bedroom. Room enough to visit for sure but not enough room for adult kids to move back in on ya.

We bought this about 4 years before the husband retired. We came up weekends working on it. While we were working and had more money we fixed it up. Having a son who is a master plumber helped put in two new bathrooms and do a lot around here. Everything has been updated. The electric is all new and the pole barn we built is new. It's bigger than our house. We have put in over 40 fruit trees and have a large garden spot that has an 8 foot fence around it to keep out the deer.

We can still take care of the chickens and mow etc. but are getting to where we hire or barter for extra help. For example, yesterday I noticed while mowing our asparagus was all up. We had TONS of it. I planted too large of a patch. I called the neighbor down the road and asked if she'd pick it for me and we'd split it. She was happy to do that. Same last year when it came time to pick bushels of plums off the two plum trees. We get the work done and they get to share in the harvest.

There are lots of ways to manage the work and to make extra money. We sell extra eggs. I also have a lot of perennials to divide and barter or sell with. You just have to think it all out and do as much as you can while you are still working with good income because once you retire you have to get by on your pension and social security.

I'm bartering now with a farmer for half a cow. Meat is awesome. Make friends. Make connections with the locals and you will do well. Don't have debt when you retire.

 

[MountainBiker]

Loon, your story has many parallels to mine. We too bought the retirement place 4 years before retirement, and it took that long to get through all of the renovations/repairs and to clean up the property. I spent every weekend working on the place. My place came with a small apple orchard and I have since planted other fruit trees & bushes, started perennial beds of edibles, and am in process of establishing a very large veggie garden. I added a hand pump to my well to assure a water supply in a grid down scenario and my pond is stocked with brown trout and bullheads. My main heat comes from a wood stove with a cook top, and I could supply it from my own property if need be but currently I buy it cut split & delivered. I have worked to make myself part of the community and have a couple sources of moderately priced labor. It was the property that initially attracted me but having a place big enough for the kids was an important consideration too. To conserve energy I keep the upstairs shut off when its just us here. Our bedroom is on the 1st floor which was another attraction for us after observing our parents struggle with stairs as they aged. For now at least I do most of my own work, pretty much hiring out on a skills needed basis only, but I know someday I may need more help. I have been quick to volunteer to help others with their projects.

 

[marsh]

In my work, I have come across several sad tales of retirement to the country dream place. In three cases, the couple moved to the country and the husband passed on within a few years. The widows were left with a gold mining operation and two ranches. The mine simple shut down and was a millstone around her neck. The ranches were another problem as the woman had no idea how to farm and it became an animal health issue soon after.

I have watched many a retiree flee to the mountains where they can "live cheaper" and with self sufficiency. They become isolated, age and develop physical disabilities. They are too geographically isolated for services like meals on wheels, home health care, public transportation or the health care they need. They are physically unable to move themselves and have not developed a close relationship with their children by helping them with their families when they were younger. They live in what amounts to mountain town ghettos.

I recently went through the death of my mother and then my father and dealing with it all hundreds of miles at the other end of the state. Because they would not move, they aged in virtual isolation - 2 days journey from their nearest relative. I decided I would not make the same mistakes. I am retiring and I am cashing in the remote mountain home for a house in the suburbs near my daughter. I can declutter my own junk to downsize, pack and move my own stuff and I can move where services are closer. I can help her by babysitting the three kids when needed.

IMHO, older people have to face some realities and possibilities and make it easier for others to help them when they need it.

 

[TerryK]

In my work, I have come across several sad tales of retirement to the country dream place. In three cases, the couple moved to the country and the husband passed on within a few years. The widows were left with a gold mining operation and two ranches. The mine simple shut down and was a millstone around her neck. The ranches were another problem as the woman had no idea how to farm and it became an animal health issue soon after.

I have watched many a retiree flee to the mountains where they can "live cheaper" and with self sufficiency. They become isolated, age and develop physical disabilities. They are too geographically isolated for services like meals on wheels, home health care, public transportation or the health care they need. They are physically unable to move themselves and have not developed a close relationship with their children by helping them with their families when they were younger. They live in what amounts to mountain town ghettos.

I recently went through the death of my mother and then my father and dealing with it all hundreds of miles at the other end of the state. Because they would not move, they aged in virtual isolation - 2 days journey from their nearest relative. I decided I would not make the same mistakes. I am retiring and I am cashing in the remote mountain home for a house in the suburbs near my daughter. I can declutter my own junk to downsize, pack and move my own stuff and I can move where services are closer. I can help her by babysitting the three kids when needed.

IMHO, older people have to face some realities and possibilities and make it easier for others to help them when they need it.

Very well said.
People really need to plan more for their old age and the disabilities than anything else. It is the single most likely personal shtf event for all of us.
Don't get trapped at 70 by your dreams you had when you were 40.

 

[Laurane]

Don't get trapped at 70 by your dreams you had when you were 40.......

We bought our small country house in Sep 1999 just in time for Y2K - if it happened we would be in a better place than in the city, where we had already decided we had had enough of that lifestyle. At that time we were active and enjoyed gardening and puttering and improving and getting to know the neighbours.

Fourteen years later, with a husband with emphysema/COPD, who can't do much more than the tractor work, we have decided we need to change locations to somewhere lower so he can breathe better. Do you know how hard it is to make a move when you have found a piece of heaven, and your kids live next to you and you know they WILL help when they can.

But when we retired at age 60 and 53 and spent 1/2 time in AZ/Canada, we found we needed so much less for living space as we were busy doing things we enjoyed, so we are downsized in AZ and could easily do with less than that in Canada.......so there are many options for us.......buy a mobile home, modular, small house or one-level townhouse in a senior complex, or rent somewhere. It is the making the decision where and what to live in that is hard.

You have lower taxes generally when you live smaller.......depending on the area. Utilities are less and costs mainly fixed, and in a senior/retirement area you have support of friends who help or visit. Generally you are nearer a hospital and medical facilities and you don't have to drive or even have 2 vehicles, which we always have had.

A PLAN for what you want to do in your older age needs to be laid out if there are the two of you........and agreement on all points. If he wants to fish, not much sense buying in a desert, and if you don't walk too well, no stairs and more railings need to be part of the plan.

We see so many seniors in AZ who have homes in the North, finally make the decision (I think it is mainly financial, though we don't pry) to move to AZ fulltime. Maybe their families are spread out everywhere, and maybe their homes are now costly burdens.

But as a friend said "if you don't like a place, move......and keep on moving till you find the right place". Best laid plans at age 40 often don't work at 60 or 70.

 

[shinerbock]

We are pondering our "final move". This coincides with DW's retirement and mine come October. Our "retirement" will be a modest one by anyone's measure. DW can tutor college students so we'll be looking for a nearby campus. I would be restricted to a "sitting" position as I am not able to stand in place longer than 30 seconds. I can walk as long as I don't stop within reason. Haven't worked in years so not expecting a meaningful position, just enough to help us keep our heads above water.

We're having a terrible time finding a place with a roll in shower big enough to accommodate a shower chair and room to stretch legs. Have had no luck where we are and have been checking ads, Internet, Craig's List and drop ins @ local apartment complexes without any luck at all. We'd fall into the category of benefitting from local support services.

We have given ourselves a six week deadline to vacate current suburban rental house. Would stay if it was smaller, cheaper and did not include paying for lawn maintenance etc. We may move north to our state of origin to secure suitable housing with necessary amenities and to assure moral support from relatives and long time friends. We have no children of our own and have been out of state for twenty five years come August.

We have always lived simply and have no problem downsizing and further tightening our belts. We know a BOL in the mountains or desert is not feasible and yet could not adjust to big city living again. We're seeking small town living with good health care within reasonable driving distance. Have found a lot of good ideas on this thread. It's always helpful to have these mostly common sense notions altogether @ a single link for reference. For this we thank those who have taken time to share.

Any ideas about the shower problem would be appreciated as it is #1 "must". We'd like to have a garage and are used to attached one especially if we head north but as Loon suggested, we are used to staying close to home so we can usually wait out any snowfall to go out for any groceries or most other services. Thanks for letting me think aloud. We've been hashing this out for a few months and putting pen to paper, so to speak, is a welcome change of sorting things out.

 

[MountainBiker]

In my work, I have come across several sad tales of retirement to the country dream place. In three cases, the couple moved to the country and the husband passed on within a few years. The widows were left with a gold mining operation and two ranches. The mine simple shut down and was a millstone around her neck. The ranches were another problem as the woman had no idea how to farm and it became an animal health issue soon after.

I have watched many a retiree flee to the mountains where they can "live cheaper" and with self sufficiency. They become isolated, age and develop physical disabilities. They are too geographically isolated for services like meals on wheels, home health care, public transportation or the health care they need. They are physically unable to move themselves and have not developed a close relationship with their children by helping them with their families when they were younger. They live in what amounts to mountain town ghettos.

I recently went through the death of my mother and then my father and dealing with it all hundreds of miles at the other end of the state. Because they would not move, they aged in virtual isolation - 2 days journey from their nearest relative. I decided I would not make the same mistakes. I am retiring and I am cashing in the remote mountain home for a house in the suburbs near my daughter. I can declutter my own junk to downsize, pack and move my own stuff and I can move where services are closer. I can help her by babysitting the three kids when needed.

IMHO, older people have to face some realities and possibilities and make it easier for others to help them when they need it.

This is sort of like saying don't get the house with the in-ground pool when your kids are young because they'll grow up and you'll still be stuck with the pool. We're in our 4th house and each house served our purposes for that stage of our life, no different than we bought different kinds of vehicles to meet different needs across our lifetimes. Should the day come that my current home doesn't meet my needs, I'll sell it and move into something that does. I can't see living at age 60 as if I were 80 simply because my needs at 80 will be different than there were at 60. As I said in an earlier post I plan on living until I die. For me a little house on a small in town lot or in a retirement community at this stage of my life would be like a slow death. Maybe someday it would be the right fit but right now my country property is the right fit. If I keel over tomorrow I know that my wife will sell the place because she wouldn't be able to keep up with it, and that would be the right decision for her.

 

[TerryK]

This is sort of like saying don't get the house with the in-ground pool when your kids are young because they'll grow up and you'll still be stuck with the pool. We're in our 4th house and each house served our purposes for that stage of our life, no different than we bought different kinds of vehicles to meet different needs across our lifetimes. Should the day come that my current home doesn't meet my needs, I'll sell it and move into something that does. I can't see living at age 60 as if I were 80 simply because my needs at 80 will be different than there were at 60. As I said in an earlier post I plan on living until I die. For me a little house on a small in town lot or in a retirement community at this stage of my life would be like a slow death. Maybe someday it would be the right fit but right now my country property is the right fit. If I keel over tomorrow I know that my wife will sell the place because she wouldn't be able to keep up with it, and that would be the right decision for her.

I think you are not hearing what people are saying. On this forum there have been many threads in the past where people just stayed and stayed where they were when they were younger. Probably just because of inertia, but one day they finally faced facts that they probably should have relocated years ago.

I don't think anyone is saying to give up your plans for enjoying life now that you're older.
All they are saying is to plan for what is almost sure to come unless we die early.
Each person or couple have different levels of health and capabilities and financial resources. All of these should be taken into account.
Always hedge your bets when it comes to living the next 5 or 10 years in robust and good health.
It's what any good prepper should do.

Good luck to you whatever type of lifestyle you choose.

 

[Mixin]

shinerbock,
I found http://www.city-data.com/#data to be very helpful when I was looking at places to relocate to. It has a lot of good info on the towns; crime rates and racial makeup are among the major considerations for me. Also, unlimited access internet service; I was amazed that in an area just a half hour outside of Indianapolis, unlimited was not available.

Regarding your shower issue, have you checked with the ADA to see if they have any ideas? If they can't help, they might be able to point you in the right direction. http://adata.org/ There are also senior citizen services that are very helpful.

 

[TXKajun]

I am thoroughly enjoying this thread. Yep, I fantasize about moving to a place with some land, trees, pond/lake/stream, wood heated little cabin, place where I can raise chickens and guinea hens, hunt deer out my back door, raise an acre large garden, have a 10 acre orchard, and all the rest. No cows, tho! Too much work! LOL

The reality of it is, it ain't gonna happen. And I think that's a good thing. At my age and in the condition I'm in, I'd have to have help doing a whole bunch of stuff related to chores, upkeep, etc. I prolly ain't gonna get any younger, either! LOL Plus, I kinda like my central a/c and heat. And my flat screen tv with satellite and netfilx and Amazon Prime. Thanks for the nice dose of reality, ya'll. Add in that 3 of my co-workers retired and were dead within 3 years and nope, no hurry.

Kajun

 

[homepark]

Folks are jogging some more thoughts. Keeping active is key. AND you adjust that as time moves on. Many things people associate with age have more to do with inactivity. I go to the gym 2x week, tap dance class once a week, a deep tissue massage every other week, walk the dog daily. I have multiple projects going at any given time. I have really enjoyed being able to set my own schedule for the past 6 years. My wife has had mobility issues for over 20 years, so we already know about compact and single floor living. We live in a small village outside of a small town, but have the critical mass of hospitals, doctors, specialists, banks, movies, groceries with a 10 minute car ride. We moved back to this area about 3 years, so we already know our way around the area, and have long time friends (in one case, 50 year friendships).

To help with downsizing, I have two sheds out back. I will prolly get that down to one shed as time goes on. We are near an AMTRAK line, so rail travel is easy for us. I got active in a local parish, meet up with other local Vets regularly, so are able to keep our pool of friends and acquaintances fresh.

I do visit NYC on occasion. I can take a train up and back for under $100 roundtrip. I have a few friends up there. It is nice to get into the big city, but I like coming back to our mostly rural area here.

So, folks, even when faced with serious financial hardship, it is still possible to create a life that works for you.

 

[marsh]

I live on five acres of forest in a four bedroom house. I moved here in the 1980s. It takes me almost a week to trim, rake and burn a defensible space around the house and outbuildings. I have to clean gutters on the second story. I just don't have it in me physically and emotionally to do it any more. It is just too much and I have better things to do with my time. I just don't enjoy it like I used to. I dread getting in the annual fuel for the woodstove.

During the past several years there has been considerable deferred maintenance. I just stayed too long at the fair. I am grateful I realized it before I aged to where I would have to rely on my kids to make the move because I couldn't. As it is, it will take me almost a year to pack, move stuff to the new place and get the place ready for sale.

Of course there are tradeoffs. I have lived on the edge of a Wilderness area for almost 30 years. Now I will live two blocks from a Starbucks and I would likely be one of the first victims from a wave of EBT zombie hoards. But the new place has a lovely garden with raised beds and I have lived in the suburbs before.

 

[Loon]

Many great points made by all on this thread. I'd like to add some comments.

I worked as a hairdresser for 16 years at a high end assisted living/nursing home. I heard many tales of woe from residents who retired and moved to Florida with their spouses only to have them die and the kids have to move them back up north. It is a very common tale. One thing I learned is that you need to live near your kids when you get older. We actually moved up here because our son told us he was moving her to start his own plumbing business and if we wanted him to help us in our old age we'd best move here too. Well, we picked up stakes and sold our city house and moved here. He stayed for three or four years then moved back downstate where he can make better money. He's about 2 1/2 hours away so we still see him but I wish we were closer.

I love the term "deferred maintenance". We are blessed to find folks here who will work for $10 an hour. We hired a young man to clean out the chicken coop and run and put all the stuff on the garden. Very stinky and labor intensive job. He was done in two hours. Well worth the $20. My husband COULD have done it but would rather hire it out. There is no shortage of people looking for extra money here. It's sad really.

We have always known we'd never be able to stay on this farm till we die. We find the chores here push us and keep us active which is good. Just walking around here is good exercise. We know it won't last forever though. We hope to pass this farm on to our son and his family. He loves it here and loves to hunt and fish in our big fish pond etc.

There was a tiny white house for sale in the next town. It was across the street from the hospital and doctor's offices and almost next to the super Walmart store. I used to kid my husband and say that is where we need to move to when we can't hack the farm any more. I could get an Amigo and drive over to Walmart and get my prescriptions and groceries and take myself to the doctor. It was a ranch all on one level. We laughed about it but it got us thinking about the day when we need to move elsewhere to fit our needs.

Shiner, you can hire a plumber to come in and put a handicap shower in your place. My son is a master plumber and he put one in my house here. I had my elderly mother living with us till she passed and he put it in for her but it will be useful for us. Lots of grab bars and low 4" step in. I could have got a zero step in if I had wanted. He put me in an elevated toilet also. Much easier on the old knees.

 

[TerryK]

I live on five acres of forest in a four bedroom house. I moved here in the 1980s. It takes me almost a week to trim, rake and burn a defensible space around the house and outbuildings. I have to clean gutters on the second story. I just don't have it in me physically and emotionally to do it any more. It is just too much and I have better things to do with my time. I just don't enjoy it like I used to. I dread getting in the annual fuel for the woodstove.

During the past several years there has been considerable deferred maintenance. I just stayed too long at the fair. I am grateful I realized it before I aged to where I would have to rely on my kids to make the move because I couldn't. As it is, it will take me almost a year to pack, move stuff to the new place and get the place ready for sale.

Of course there are tradeoffs. I have lived on the edge of a Wilderness area for almost 30 years. Now I will live two blocks from a Starbucks and I would likely be one of the first victims from a wave of EBT zombie hoards. But the new place has a lovely garden with raised beds and I have lived in the suburbs before.

Marsh: remember Toby Keith's song
I'm not as good as I once was,
but I'm as good once as I ever was.

 

[MountainBiker]

I think you are not hearing what people are saying. On this forum there have been many threads in the past where people just stayed and stayed where they were when they were younger. Probably just because of inertia, but one day they finally faced facts that they probably should have relocated years ago.

I don't think anyone is saying to give up your plans for enjoying life now that you're older.
All they are saying is to plan for what is almost sure to come unless we die early.
Each person or couple have different levels of health and capabilities and financial resources. All of these should be taken into account.
Always hedge your bets when it comes to living the next 5 or 10 years in robust and good health.
It's what any good prepper should do.

Good luck to you whatever type of lifestyle you choose.

Thanks for explaining it this way. I understand. I've always been quick to say it's time to shift gears and sell the house when it no longer met our needs or fit our lives. Each house we bought was always assumed to be the forever house but then we change and the time comes to do it again. In buying our present home we had the advantage of having experienced our parents final years with their mobility and other health issues. What we bought had the master bedroom on the 1st floor and in renovating it the bathrooms got grab bars in all the right places, those higher seat toilets, and in one of the bathrooms a large walk-in shower with a bench seat built in to it. There was a pantry room that we converted into a new laundry so as to avoid needing to go down to the basement to do it, and the new units were front loaders on pedestals so as to make it ergonomically friendly as we grow older. The location however will only work so long as we can drive being there is no public transportation. Perhaps even more important it will only work so long as either I'm fit enough to care for it or we can afford to hire out the work. Just the lawn part of the property is about 6 acres of mowing every week (only takes 2 hours with my 60" zero turn mower) but a full weed whacking along the stone wall, around the pond, along the stream, and around structures and lawn trees takes me a full day every few weeks. Then there's painting, staining, flower beds, veggie garden maintenance, fruit tree trimming, stacking wood in the summer, moving it onto the porch in fall, and into the house all winter, and I'm pretty busy keeping up with it all. It is a labor of love now but I know whether I can do it at 80 is not guaranteed. My neighbor is about 80 though and he's maintaining a large property with apples trees, blueberries, beef cattle, haying and so forth, and caring for the large property across the road from him so being all used up at 80 isn't assured either.

 

[MountainBiker]

Many great points made by all on this thread. I'd like to add some comments.

I worked as a hairdresser for 16 years at a high end assisted living/nursing home. I heard many tales of woe from residents who retired and moved to Florida with their spouses only to have them die and the kids have to move them back up north. It is a very common tale. One thing I learned is that you need to live near your kids when you get older. We actually moved up here because our son told us he was moving her to start his own plumbing business and if we wanted him to help us in our old age we'd best move here too. Well, we picked up stakes and sold our city house and moved here. He stayed for three or four years then moved back downstate where he can make better money. He's about 2 1/2 hours away so we still see him but I wish we were closer.

I love the term "deferred maintenance". We are blessed to find folks here who will work for $10 an hour. We hired a young man to clean out the chicken coop and run and put all the stuff on the garden. Very stinky and labor intensive job. He was done in two hours. Well worth the $20. My husband COULD have done it but would rather hire it out. There is no shortage of people looking for extra money here. It's sad really.

We have always known we'd never be able to stay on this farm till we die. We find the chores here push us and keep us active which is good. Just walking around here is good exercise. We know it won't last forever though. We hope to pass this farm on to our son and his family. He loves it here and loves to hunt and fish in our big fish pond etc.

There was a tiny white house for sale in the next town. It was across the street from the hospital and doctor's offices and almost next to the super Walmart store. I used to kid my husband and say that is where we need to move to when we can't hack the farm any more. I could get an Amigo and drive over to Walmart and get my prescriptions and groceries and take myself to the doctor. It was a ranch all on one level. We laughed about it but it got us thinking about the day when we need to move elsewhere to fit our needs.

Shiner, you can hire a plumber to come in and put a handicap shower in your place. My son is a master plumber and he put one in my house here. I had my elderly mother living with us till she passed and he put it in for her but it will be useful for us. Lots of grab bars and low 4" step in. I could have got a zero step in if I had wanted. He put me in an elevated toilet also. Much easier on the old knees.

We thought about the living near the kids issue but concluded there was no assurance the kids would stay put. One is in NC and though they seem to love it there, we think they may come back to New England when its time for their kids to start school (just turned 2 and a new born last week). The other one is only 2 hours away but is looking to move closer and be only an hour away. We look forward to that.

 

[Milk-maid]

I tell everyone I know who is getting ready to retire, to get out of all debt before they do.

No car, house or credit card payments if they can help it.

I could live easily on only half our pensions. The rest is discretionary funds now.

I didn't think of any of this when I was still working. I just figured everything would work itself out. I had no plan except I knew I was going to get a pension.

Then suddenly I had a bad accident and had to take an early medical retirement. We had debt. I was now living on less than half my income and really struggling to make ends meet.

It was so stressful.

Sure was a wake-up call, so I changed how we lived. I made adjustments, simplified our lives, learned how to save and live frugally. Sold off things. Quit things that cost us money like subscriptions and investments. Then I paid down all our debts asap. I got out from under.

Sure made life a lot easier. Now I warn others to do this while they are still working because one never knows when work could be cut short. I was lucky that I could make adjustments to get caught up.


Others live so close to the edge now while they are working, how in the world will they ever make it on a reduced retirement income?

Just food for thought.

MM

 

[shinerbock]

shinerbock,
I found http://www.city-data.com/#data to be very helpful when I was looking at places to relocate to. It has a lot of good info on the towns; crime rates and racial makeup are among the major considerations for me. Also, unlimited access internet service; I was amazed that in an area just a half hour outside of Indianapolis, unlimited was not available.

Regarding your shower issue, have you checked with the ADA to see if they have any ideas? If they can't help, they might be able to point you in the right direction. http://adata.org/ There are also senior citizen services that are very helpful.

Thanks mixin - I've used the first website for years and it is a good resource. I will consult a friend who is an ADA advisor for a local university.

 

[lassiesma]

I tell everyone I know who is getting ready to retire, to get out of all debt before they do.

No car, house or credit card payments if they can help it.

I could live easily on only half our pensions. The rest is discretionary funds now.

I didn't think of any of this when I was still working. I just figured everything would work itself out. I had no plan except I knew I was going to get a pension.

Then suddenly I had a bad accident and had to take an early medical retirement. We had debt. I was now living on less than half my income and really struggling to make ends meet.

It was so stressful.

Sure was a wake-up call, so I changed how we lived. I made adjustments, simplified our lives, learned how to save and live frugally. Sold off things. Quit things that cost us money like subscriptions and investments. Then I paid down all our debts asap. I got out from under.

Sure made life a lot easier. Now I warn others to do this while they are still working because one never knows when work could be cut short. I was lucky that I could make adjustments to get caught up.


Others live so close to the edge now while they are working, how in the world will they ever make it on a reduced retirement income?

Just food for thought.

MM

Tackling debt and bringing expenses down well before retirement is very important as is setting yourself up to work within limitations that aging may bring.

I am considering purchasing a home and have started making my list of would like to have and must haves. On my list of must haves is a first floor room that can be a bedroom, a first floor bathroom wide enough to accommodate a walker or wheel chair, shower/toilet areas that can hold hand rails, a place for first floor laundry, a entrance door that could accommodate a ramp and near a bus line. I am not anywhere near retirement age but if I do buy a house I am going into it planning on it being my last residence. For many years I had a neighbor well into her 80's. I learned a lot from watching what she could do, what she needed help with, how she moved around in her home and areas she upgraded or stopped using.

 

[Kathy in FL]

Tackling debt and bringing expenses down well before retirement is very important as is setting yourself up to work within limitations that aging may bring.

I am considering purchasing a home and have started making my list of would like to have and must haves. On my list of must haves is a first floor room that can be a bedroom, a first floor bathroom wide enough to accommodate a walker or wheel chair, shower/toilet areas that can hold hand rails, a place for first floor laundry, a entrance door that could accommodate a ramp and near a bus line. I am not anywhere near retirement age but if I do buy a house I am going into it planning on it being my last residence. For many years I had a neighbor well into her 80's. I learned a lot from watching what she could do, what she needed help with, how she moved around in her home and areas she upgraded or stopped using.

Heck it is important well before retirement. The less you pay to other folks the more you'll have to save for any and all reasons. I don't believe in "retirement." I believe it to be a false construct designed by lib/progs to push older workers out to allow younger, cheaper workers in. It is a method of social control. However I do believe that by necessity we will all eventually slow down and probably shift to another career or way of making ends meet. In order to be as flexible as possible, we need to be as free from financial dependency as possible. To me that is what getting older should be about.

 

[Loon]

I hear you on the mowing. I mow 8 acres very week. Last summer while trying to climb up on my big Kubota diesel mower, I hurt my foot bad. I was laid up for two months. I was so depressed thinking I wouldn't be able to mow again. I love to mow. It's my favorite thing to do any more. I had my handyman/carpenter guy custom make a set of steps complete with handrail to go next to my mower. I can now climb up the stairs holding onto the handrail and get on the mower very easily. Sounds crazy but it works and is an example of how you can get around some of these challenges if you just think on it long enough. I told him we should market this invention because I can't be the only person out there having trouble getting up on a big mower. Everyone ages differently. I know some women who still are able to garden into their 90's and others who have to give it up in their 50's. Just take each day at a time and be thankful for all your blessings.

Thanks for explaining it this way. I understand. I've always been quick to say it's time to shift gears and sell the house when it no longer met our needs or fit our lives. Each house we bought was always assumed to be the forever house but then we change and the time comes to do it again. In buying our present home we had the advantage of having experienced our parents final years with their mobility and other health issues. What we bought had the master bedroom on the 1st floor and in renovating it the bathrooms got grab bars in all the right places, those higher seat toilets, and in one of the bathrooms a large walk-in shower with a bench seat built in to it. There was a pantry room that we converted into a new laundry so as to avoid needing to go down to the basement to do it, and the new units were front loaders on pedestals so as to make it ergonomically friendly as we grow older. The location however will only work so long as we can drive being there is no public transportation. Perhaps even more important it will only work so long as either I'm fit enough to care for it or we can afford to hire out the work. Just the lawn part of the property is about 6 acres of mowing every week (only takes 2 hours with my 60" zero turn mower) but a full weed whacking along the stone wall, around the pond, along the stream, and around structures and lawn trees takes me a full day every few weeks. Then there's painting, staining, flower beds, veggie garden maintenance, fruit tree trimming, stacking wood in the summer, moving it onto the porch in fall, and into the house all winter, and I'm pretty busy keeping up with it all. It is a labor of love now but I know whether I can do it at 80 is not guaranteed. My neighbor is about 80 though and he's maintaining a large property with apples trees, blueberries, beef cattle, haying and so forth, and caring for the large property across the road from him so being all used up at 80 isn't assured either.

 

[MountainBiker]

I hear you on the mowing. I mow 8 acres very week. Last summer while trying to climb up on my big Kubota diesel mower, I hurt my foot bad. I was laid up for two months. I was so depressed thinking I wouldn't be able to mow again. I love to mow. It's my favorite thing to do any more. I had my handyman/carpenter guy custom make a set of steps complete with handrail to go next to my mower. I can now climb up the stairs holding onto the handrail and get on the mower very easily. Sounds crazy but it works and is an example of how you can get around some of these challenges if you just think on it long enough. I told him we should market this invention because I can't be the only person out there having trouble getting up on a big mower. Everyone ages differently. I know some women who still are able to garden into their 90's and others who have to give it up in their 50's. Just take each day at a time and be thankful for all your blessings.

Yes we all age differently. A friend's mother in her 80's lives by herself on a farm (though her kids are all local) and prior to this past winter was carrying 40# bags of pellets by herself to keep her stove going. This past winter my friend made sure that she got 20# bags instead. She is very fit and active. Another friend's mother at age 90 hurt her foot when she dropped a storm window she was carrying. She was putting them in for the winter herself. Didn't keep her down for long and she was back working every day as a volunteer at the local hospital. Some folks just stay vital into a ripe old age. My FIL was still playing the saxophone in his band until he was 90. Some win the game of genetic roulette.

 

[Suzieq]

When someone reaches 65 and wants to keep working, do they have to sign up for medicare? If they change their mind and decide to sign up later that year, will they have to wait till their next Birthday rolls around, before they can sign up?

 

[Loon]

http://www.medicare.gov/sign-up-cha...parts-a-and-b/when-sign-up-parts-a-and-b.html

 

[nomifyle]

I gonna throw my two cents in on retirement here. Decided to retire at 62, had a long bad marriage and at 63 moved 300 miles away to rural family property. My sole income has been a modest ss check. For almost 4 years I lived in a tiny camper with a 20 gauge and three dogs. I have/had no debt, no house payment or mortgage. My utility bills were basically my monthly expenses. I've had directv (although I dropped it awhile back), internet, I budgeted my money with x-amount for each week and have never been broke. I've maintained a small emergency fund that I've not dipped into very much. I've been very blessed. Not to say I've not had problems because of course I have, but that's called life.

My decision to retire at 62 was because I wanted to have a life while I still had life in my body. At 67 I have a new life now with a new love, we are both blessed with reasonably good health and strong bodies for our ages. We both know that there will be a time when we won't be able to do so much, but, with God's grace, we'll manage it.

We work, we rest, enjoy our days together, have friends, a/c, good food to eat, and a comfortable bed, what more could we ask for.

Judy

 

[Publius]

Oh yeah retirement and the golden years!

I can't see,
I can't pee,
I can't chew,
I can't screw.

My memory shrinks,
My hearing stinks,
No sense of smell,
I look like hell.

My body is drooping,
I have trouble pooping.

The golden years have come at last,
The golden years can kiss my ---!

 

[China Connection]

Well I will keep doing some type of work once I hit 65. Pension system isn't that bad in Australia and Medicare is free.