How are you living with consequences of not planning for future?

Kitties said:
I would stop spending on anything besides necessities and start saving now. Think about down sizing in the future. Your house payment is not high but could you afford it once you were both on social security with the small retirement? When my parents lived in a nice but not overly fancy mobile home park there was a retired MD and his wife living there. Why? Who knows. They were financially irresponsible? Or did they like the quiet and safety of an all adult park and wanted a simpler life. There are solutions, I don't think it's too late. Consider a big yard sale if you ever decide to move.
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We are making plans on moving out of Florida and back to Colorado, but this time in the northern part. Plan on a pretty big downsize, which will either be a apt. complex garage sale or send to the Goodwill. However, there are a few things we plan on taking with us.......our powerboat (if still in good operation condition, will have it shipped) and our freshwater fishing gear. We will be only on SS and Savings, but will TRY to get part-time jobs, if we can. Our boat will be much cheaper to maintain there than here. Saltwater doesn't do a boat engine or body good.
 

Kitties said:
I would stop spending on anything besides necessities and start saving now. Think about down sizing in the future. Your house payment is not high but could you afford it once you were both on social security with the small retirement? When my parents lived in a nice but not overly fancy mobile home park there was a retired MD and his wife living there. Why? Who knows. They were financially irresponsible? Or did they like the quiet and safety of an all adult park and wanted a simpler life. There are solutions, I don't think it's too late. Consider a big yard sale if you ever decide to move.
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One's house should be paid off before retirement. Mine was and I was a single working mother. If I could do it anyone can.
But my house in Texas would have cost four times as much in a high cost area of the country. Which begs the question...
why retire in a high cost area ??

Many years ago, I knew a colonel who retired to a nice adult mobile home park in El Paso [close to military infrastructure.]

If you are selling your home and also have a lot of "stuff" to to sell... usually, you will make more money on your "stuff"
by using professionals to conduct an estate sale.
 
KingsX said:
One's house should be paid off before retirement. Mine was and I was a single working mother. If I could do it anyone can.
But my house in Texas would have cost four times as much in a high cost area of the country. Which begs the question...
why retire in a high cost area ??

Many years ago, I knew a colonel who retired to a nice adult mobile home park in El Paso [close to military infrastructure.]
Not just lower income people live in mobile parks which to some is a belief. People may want to travel knowing their home will be completely safe with very close neighbors who will watch their home.


If you are selling your home and also have a lot of "stuff" to to sell... usually, you will make more money on your "stuff"
by using professionals to conduct an estate sale.
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Retire to a lower cost area. Sounds good. I'm in California but not in a high cost area. However I'm stuck here do to my step father. Would I look into leaving. I would. Where would I go, I have no idea how I would even start to answer that. There are thousands of places to live. I could but don't even research it at this time because it would be of no use. I've owned a stand alone house. Hated every second of it and would never want to live in one again. Nutty noisy neighbors (my apartment is quieter) Not what it's cracked up to be.
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Kitties said:
Not just lower income people live in mobile parks which to some is a belief. People may want to travel knowing their home will be completely safe with very close neighbors who will watch their home.
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That is exactly what the colonel and his wife did. They knew so many ex-military people,
after their retirement, they spent months traveling around the country visiting military friends
as well as relatives.

.
 
ClassicRockr said:
We are making plans on moving out of Florida and back to Colorado, but this time in the northern part. Plan on a pretty big downsize, which will either be a apt. complex garage sale or send to the Goodwill. However, there are a few things we plan on taking with us.......our powerboat (if still in good operation condition, will have it shipped) and our freshwater fishing gear. We will be only on SS and Savings, but will TRY to get part-time jobs, if we can. Our boat will be much cheaper to maintain there than here. Saltwater doesn't do a boat engine or body good.
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Curious; moving to the front range (eastern) side? Horsetooth is a good place for boats, and there is Lake Granby, but I can't remember a lot of good open water in the western side. Course, I haven't been to everything there! Sounds fun; I loved CO.
 
NewRetire18 said:
Curious; moving to the front range (eastern) side? Horsetooth is a good place for boats, and there is Lake Granby, but I can't remember a lot of good open water in the western side. Course, I haven't been to everything there! Sounds fun; I loved CO.
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Yes, aka The Eastern Slope. Lived in both Englewood (south) and Parker for total of 5 1/2 years and basically loved it. Boated and fished on Chatfield Reservoir a lot of weekends in the summer. Sometimes would go to Cherry Creek Reservoir to cruise around the lake. When not at a lake, we’d be at a rodeo.

This time looking at northern Colorado to move to. Loveland or possibly Cheyenne, Wyoming. Will be visiting both this summer. If not either of those, somewhere away from Florida, the South and the Eastern States. We like mountains much more than beaches
 
I goofed off until I turned 31. I then left the ice cold Chicago area and searched for a place and way of life I needed. I hired on to a world wide construction company and made decent money. I was taught by my father life was much better with money and I was fairly frugal even in my wild boozing youth. I started investing and saving for retirement when I was around 35. I was driven again by the words of my dad to retire with money. Going in to the offshore energy industry twenty years before I retired allowed my to build my next egg working 12 hours a day, six to seven days a week when all my co-workers said I was nuts for doing so. I have been single all my life so family is no issue. I take care of my self and see the doctor every year for a checkup because I never want to know my death/disease could have been prevented with a simple physical exam annually. Several of my friends have died young because they never gave up the party life. I'm 70 and feel like a young man and thankful for every day of life. For the most part we choose the lives we have.
 
Mr X said:
My wife had a blood infection and needed an IV for awhile to really clean things out. I went to place to learn how to change bag, irrigate PIC line, etc. I was talking to the nurse (he was outside smoking) and somehow we got on to the subject of lifestyle. He said "the biggest - and most cruel - joke is that all the people who don't drink, don't smoke, eat right and exercise are the ones that eventually end up in one of my chairs taking Chemo." I'll never forget that.
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With all due respect the nurse was either stupid or stupider. There I nothing nice about being ill, lying in bed like a bag of last week's trash. Avoiding check ups is crazy. I don't like going but I don't want to hear "you have cancer and it is too far advanced to treat. I suggest you get your affairs in order". You will never forget that quote either
 
.

One of my closest friends age 65 recently died of lung cancer [he was a heavy smoker.]
He first went to the ER with breathing problems at the end of July, was diagnosed with
terminal lung cancer and died the beginning of December.
 
KingsX said:
One's house should be paid off before retirement. Mine was and I was a single working mother. If I could do it anyone can.
.
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many do not pay off their home today and that is a strategic decision . in fact at 65 if we can get a mortgage for when we buy a co-op i will gladly take one .

there is no rule that says "good debt" is bad in retirement . that is an individual choice and not a blanket rule . having liquid cash can be more important sometimes than trapped equity . you can't pay medical expenses or buy food with a living room .

far to many seniors end up house rich and cash poor and without a sale or loans they have no way of easily getting to the money later on if they need it ..

the other problems it presents is that many tend to pump extra dough in to the house accelerating the mortgage . then they attempt to fund their retirement .

the problem is time is your friend . they lost to many years and now they have to be a good timer , which of course few of us are . the less time you leave for investing the less your odds are of doing well .

then of course we have been averaging over 12% a year for a decade in markets while a mortgage cost 4% .

so each situation will be different and general statements like mortgage debt is bad in retirement can be quite poor advice depending on someones circumstances .
 
So we spent Saturday with a Realtor looking at some places upstate. Trying to stay under 100K might be difficult, but there were many choices below 130K. We figure we can get a place now (while our credit and debt/income are excellent) and just move what we need. We can then sell this place and either save proceeds or pay town new place. My wife can keep working for school district forever, which would allow me to get on her insurance, if needed. Who knows, maybe my job will last for another 10 years. In any event, it looks like we can get settled in a place that we could handle on our combined benefits, alone, if need be.

It was kind of a "culture shock." In the "big city" there is enough social diversity that it doesn't feel like we're living in the "Divided States of America." That may not be the case out in the sticks. Good news is that area is growing, which means there is job growth - I've noticed that companies are loath to move to areas where the majority holds that the Earth is flat.

The flip side of the medical argument is that science has reached the point where we can be kept "alive" with most of our original parts in a furnace. I just don't know that living in diapers with a bag, waiting for the next painful appointment to see what else they are going to slice off is a life worth living. I know people in that condition and the looks on their faces says that if it wasn't for family obligations and other superstitions, they would just as soon take the pipe.
 
Down size and start saving sounds like a good idea and start for making a change. As far as the end of life issues, look into putting this all in writing. While married each spouse is the decision maker but if one is gone, then who? Having an advance directive for health care will help solve this. You can list the people in order who you want to make decisions and put in writing NOW what you do and don't want done. This is an expense that is worth it.
 
Interesting how old habits die hard. Our search for a new place has degenerated into looking at listings for properties that aren't going to save us much money.

It went from seeking a place we could support on a Walmart greeter's salary, to wondering why we'd move to some backward, toilet of a town, in order to save $300/month.
 
AZ Jim said:
You receive more in benefits than you "paid in" on average.
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One should get more than he "paid in." He should also get interest.
Has anyone ever calculated the return of the money he paid in plus
all the interest that money would have made over the decades ??
[remember, interest rates in the 70s and 80s were high]
 
mathjak107 said:
many do not pay off their home today and that is a strategic decision . in fact at 65 if we can get a mortgage for when we buy a co-op i will gladly take one .

there is no rule that says "good debt" is bad in retirement . that is an individual choice and not a blanket rule . having liquid cash can be more important sometimes than trapped equity . you can't pay medical expenses or buy food with a living room .

far to many seniors end up house rich and cash poor and without a sale or loans they have no way of easily getting to the money later on if they need it ..
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It is not smart to be house poor. Before retiring one should move to a reasonably priced house that he can pay off and still have plenty of liquid funds. That is what I did. I first bought a small old house that I paid off in a few years. When I sold that house for a profit, I rolled that money and more into a nicer bigger house that I also paid off several years before retiring at age 55.

Since I've been retired the value of my home and the value of my entire nest egg has increased.

I plan to live in this house for many more years. Then after I turn 70, I may seriously think about moving into a seniors apartment which will free up the money invested in my house.
 
Before the tech bubble burst in the mid 80's I was on chat rooms with young people that were stating how far they were going indebt to buy internet stocks and funds. They were signing up for as many credit cards as possible so they could buy more. As a seasoned investor I pleaded with them to stop but they responded that I was a stupid old man that knew nothing and that I was jealous of them and they were all going to be young multimillionaires on internet stocks alone. I did not get through to a single one of them and then it burst. After the crash I could not find any of them online. I often wonder how they made out but I'm certain it was not good. So much for get rich quick.
 
as long as your draw is low enough from your savings no reason you can't do okay with no equities .

but not something i would care to do nor the thing most retirees should be doing since with almost no risk and just some volatility to deal with they can make much more efficient use of the same savings amount.

there is a 25% difference in pay check not to mention a huge difference left over between just using fixed income vs what you can get with a 50/50 mix . most retirees need to get their portfolio's as efficient at creating an income as they can since it is so hard for them to save enough not to need equities . no equities can support about a 3% draw rate , while 50/50 can support at least 4% . while it does not sound like a lot you are talking a 25% bigger draw and a whole lot of difference at the end left as well as raises along the way if things are better than worst case . .

so , no not everyone needs equities but depending on the draw you need they become mandatory at a 4% draw .
 
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fmdog44 said:
Before the tech bubble burst in the mid 80's I was on chat rooms with young people that were stating how far they were going indebt to buy internet stocks and funds. They were signing up for as many credit cards as possible so they could buy more. As a seasoned investor I pleaded with them to stop but they responded that I was a stupid old man that knew nothing and that I was jealous of them and they were all going to be young multimillionaires on internet stocks alone. I did not get through to a single one of them and then it burst. After the crash I could not find any of them online. I often wonder how they made out but I'm certain it was not good. So much for get rich quick.
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betting on the next microsoft or hot sector is speculating not investing . betting the ranch on individual stocks and the whims of a few companies is speculating , that is risk .

betting on the natural cycles of the market over long periods of time is only volatility. even at 65 we have money we will not eat with for 20-30 years . there is a big difference between volatility and risk .

50/50 has never ever lost money over a 10 or 20 year period of time , it has also made it through 96% of of the 30 year retirement cycles out of 117 so far without failing and left you with more than you started 90% of the time . fixed income has already failed to last 64% of those 117- 30 year cycles .

so while diversified equities can be volatile the real risk over the long term wiould have been betting on fixed income at a 4% draw
 
Well, after reading the last few replies, a lot of you, including my wife, made darn good salaries thru the years........,that I absolutely DID NOT.

I got caught up in the low wages of small companies, low meaning around $8.50 thru $10.00 per hour. When I was 32 yrs. old in 1982, I worked for a division of a large company (Bell & Howell), but I was a Stockroom Clerk making $5 an hour. The highest salary I ever made was on my last job, as a Materials Coordinator, for $14.74 per hour after 4 1/2 years. When I left that job, I was 58. Really kind of embarrassing to be making that low of wage at that age!

To a point, it’s no wonder I couldn’t save money or live a more descent lifestyle.

Unfortunately, once my wife retires, semi-retires most likely, and we move, we most likely won’t have the lifestyle we currently do.
 
in the end everyone makes do with what they have . they may hate the lifestyle but they make it work . when incomes are low enough there are usually public programs that help make that income bigger . here in nyc i know we have loads of things from utility bill assistance to rent freeze programs .
 
I planned later in life say about 15 years before retiring.. I wished I could have started earlier, but I was the sole bread winner and had 6 children to raise! My oldest son, who will be 53 this year, realized what I had to go through (and do without) and he questioned how I did it.
 
mathjak107 said:
in the end everyone makes do with what they have . they may hate the lifestyle but they make it work . when incomes are low enough there are usually public programs that help make that income bigger . here in nyc i know we have loads of things from utility bill assistance to rent freeze programs .
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I never needed Public Assistance when I made the low wages, but really watched the money I spent (well, sometimes LOL).

Don’t know if we will ever need Public Assistance, but know it’s there if needed.

I will probably stop my Medicare and Supplements and just go with my VA Medical. I use my VA Medical a lot right now, so it wouldn’t be much of a change......if I really need to stop Medicare and Supplements later.

Our lifestyle will darn sure change though.
 

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