Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
Nov. 10, 2022- A disturbing statistic emerged in 2021. In that year 10.7% of America's over 65 population lived in poverty, up from 9.5% in 2020. While that is a lot better than the third of elderly Americans who were in poverty before Medicare came along, it is an alarming trend. Although poverty among the elderly in the U.S. is low by historical standards, we have one of the highest rates in the developed world, per the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Unfortunately, there is a long list of reasons why so many older people face economic hardships.
The pandemic was a big reason for the poverty rate uptick in 2021. People lost their jobs and businesses. One person in the marriage might have died from Covid, or they faced big and unexpected medical expenses. But there are many other reasons beyond the pandemic too. People retiring today are much less likely to have a pension than in the past. Some might not even had had a chance to participate in an IRA or 404(k), or make enough to amass significant savings. Think of someone who made the minimum wage or just above it, how were they going to even get by, much less save for retirement? Many other workers were doing OK, only to find their jobs ending well before they wanted to retire. Debt, medical problems, having to take care of elderly parents or adult children, etc. can mean a retirement in poverty for others.
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Published on November 9, 2022
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
November 9, 2022 -- Even though the Sunshine State typically adds 900 new residents every day, it still has plenty of detractors. You have probably run into many of them, often at a party where people are discussing retirement locations. "I hate the bugs, the humidity, the hurricanes, the sprawl, and the traffic"; that's a pretty good summary of the usual complaints. So if you are one of those who wants to avoid a Florida retirement, where else should you consider?
One of Florida's obvious attractions is the warm winters it provides. For those who have to have that climate requirement, geography creates some limitations. Fortunately there are some possibilities, which we will discuss here, along with some of tradeoffs and comparisons with Florida.
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Published on November 8, 2022
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Category: Family and Retirement
November 2, 2022 - Thanks to everyone who took the time to take last week's instant poll on spousal compatibility around retirement decisions. The good news is that the vast majority of you all are either extremely compatible (25%) or mostly compatible (41%). Luckily, only a handful are extremely incompatible. Many of you added insightful comments to explain your particular situation, and offer lessons learned to others. We have incorporated some of those into this article, along with ones from previous articles. (see Further Reading below to see all of them).
The worst situation
The biggest problem is when two partners disagree on major issues about retirement. If they can't agree on when and where to retire, how much money to spend, how close to family, or what is the right climate, somebody might end up extremely unhappy. Let's hope that didn't happen to you. But if it does, here are some tips on how to make the best of it, along with some of the common pickles that couples find themselves in.
Get started early
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Published on November 1, 2022
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Category: Health and Wellness Issues
October 29, 2022 -- The sad fact is, many men don't do so well in retirement. After a lifetime of working, the loss of purpose can lead to depression and inactivity. So when our guide in Scotland last month started telling us about the Shed movement, and the Shedders who use them, we got pretty excited. "The Shed What?", we said. Then, as she told us how men's sheds have been proliferating in the British Isles because of the enjoyment, as well as improvement to their mental and social health, they provide to retired men (mostly) and women. The movement seems to have a lot of potential here in the U.S. Here is what the Shed movement is all about.
Men's sheds or community sheds are non-profit local organizations that provide a space for craftwork and social interaction. Think of it in some ways as a YMCA for retirees, without the gym. Precursors to the movement originated in Australia around the 1980s as a way to improve the health and wellbeing of older men. Since then many sheds have expanded to anyone regardless of age or gender, with similar aims and functions to hackerspaces. There are over 900 shed located across Australia, with thousands of active members. Men's sheds can also be found in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, United States, Canada, Finland, New Zealand, and Greece. Objectives of Men’s Sheds include advancing the health and well-being of the participating men and creating opportunities for the men to contribute to their local communities.
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Published on October 28, 2022
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Category: Family and Retirement
October 26, 2022 – The topic of spousal compatibility around retirement planning is an intriguing topic. We are not talking about how you and your spouse or partner get along day to day, but more specifically about retirement planning. Did you/do you have the same ideas about when and where…
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Published on October 25, 2022
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Category: Downsizing
Our thanks to the NY TImes best-selling author HALLIE EPHRON for allowing us to reprint this amazing story from JungleRedWriters.com. Decluttering, ridding out, downsizing, whatever you want to call it, is hard. This is a wonderful and touching tribute, thank you! Note: Jerry, with whom I share a birthday, was one of the most interesting people I have ever met.
HALLIE EPHRON: My husband and I reached a detente early in our marriage. He could go to all the yard sales and buy whatever he wanted (mostly books), and I wouldn't nag him about it, as long as I didn't have to look at his piles of stuff.He celebrated this arrangement in one of the anniversary (our 30th) cards he drew for me.
When Jerry died, with my daughters' help I gave away his clothes. I enlisted a used book dealer (of Antiques Roadshow fame, Ken Gloss) to take his sizeable and variable book collection.
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Published on October 25, 2022
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Category: Adventurous retirement
October 20, 2022 -- Our retired friend EZ loves a great train trip, and hates everything about flying. He resents getting to the airport hours early, parking in a remote lot, shuffling through security lines, worrying that some delay will make him miss the flight - all to have the airline delay or cancel it anyway. So when he visits his grandchildren in Colorado, he takes the EZ way. That means the Shoreline Express to New Haven, where he switches to the Acela to Washington. From there it's the Capitol Limited (with roomette) to Chicago. There he pickes up the California Zephyr. He enjoyes everything about that train trip too - resting in his roomette, eating in the dining car, chatting up interesting passengers, and enjoying the view from the observation cars. It takes a little longer, but is so much more pleasurable. BTW, his wife flies out to Colorado separately!
Many people in retirement are looking for an adventure, and a train ride makes for an exciting one. From around the world, here are 10 of the best train rides you might want to try in retirement. Some are fairly short and not that expensive, while others can go for days and can be quite costly. One advantage that most train rides offer is that you can get off and spend a day or more at as many stops as you would like.
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Published on October 19, 2022
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Category: Medicare
October 17, 2022 – Medicare’s Open Enrollment Period just started on the 15th, and runs through Dec. 7. In case you forgot to enroll in Medicare when you first became eligible, now is when you can sign up for it, and either avoid a penalty, or minimize it, if you…
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Published on October 17, 2022
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Category: Active adult communities
October 13, 2022 -- Retirement communities can be interesting and intriguing places. Although a lot of people think there is only one kind of active adult community: places that offer cookie cutter homes, a clubhouse, golf course, swimming pool, tennis and maybe pickleball. Commonly these retirement communities are restricted to 55+, are located a car ride away from town, and all provide the identical lifestyle. Yes, that does describe many active adult communities (where millions of retirees are actually having the time of their lives), but it is not the whole picture. There are many intriguing communities for active adults that break the mold; offering features, amenities - even an attitude - that can make for an interesting, unusual retirement. They might not be the most popular, but here are 11 of the most interesting communities we came across recently. (Note: Use the Further Reading links at bottom for ideas on many more).
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Published on October 12, 2022
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Category: Medicare
October 13, 2022 — It has been four decades since the Social Security COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) was this high. The government announced the increase today, which came in as widely expected at 8.7%. The rate was calculated on a formula based on current rates of inflation. For a…
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Published on October 10, 2022
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