Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
April 7, 2020 - The FIRE Movement, Financial Independence Retire Early, got a huge boost from the roaring stock market from 2019 through Feb. 2020. People who had been cutting way back on their expenses and investing that extra money saw their portfolios go way up. For that matter, anybody with a 401(k) or retirement portfolio was feeling pretty good. Many young people in their 40s and 30s even "hit their number", quit their jobs and planned to live on their savings and non-traditional income sources, such as side gigs or rental income. Then the coronavirus hit, throwing a bucket of cold water on FIRE flames.
In just a few weeks during March stocks were down as much 40%. While that would not be fatal for a person with 20 or more working years or who did not have a big equity position, it would be devastating for someone who based their retirement on a booming stock market. Not only would they have less money to take out of their portfolio to live on each year, but they also wouldn't have the steady income of a job to help them rebuild those savings. What's more, studies show that the longer someone is out of the job market, the harder it is for someone with to yesterday's skills to re-enter it. Folks who built their dream on renting out an Airbnb or rental property are probably seeing their revenues go to zero in 2020, while expenses continue.
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Published on April 6, 2020
Comments 0
Category: Health and Wellness Issues
April 46, 2020. — The spectre of coronavirus and COVID-19 has us hunkered down in our homes. Senior centers are closed, the nets are down on pickleball and tennis courts, clubhouses are locked. Shopping trips are a pastime of …. time past. So what can you do – play golf!…
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Published on April 5, 2020
Comments 5
Category: Travel
Editor's note: Our thanks to Frank for sending over a detailed dispatch on what he and Caroline just went through. As Connecticut residents who visit their grandchildren in California for a few winter months each year, they had a lot of important decisions to make when their CA rental expired.
April 4, 2020 ---Just a few thoughts from our perspective, having recently gone through the “when to leave” conundrum when we were still in California. The debate as "to go or stay" was driving us nuts - this was in the early days of the virus hitting California. Unfortunately that also coincided with a diagnosis of bronchitis and an emergency room visit for me (more about that later). Of course the decision input included words of wisdom ( and I might add some panic) from our kids! After days and days of all consuming debate we finally said “today's the day “ and made a decision to fly home.
That decision was based on the following “best guesses":
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Published on April 4, 2020
Comments 1
Category: Travel
Update May 21, 2020 - Your editor just returned to CT from FL after agonizing about when and if to return. Part of the journey was by car (to Tallahassee) and the second part by air, which included a stopover in Charlotte). Car traffic in much of Florida is lighter than usual but with far more cars on the road than in April. In parts of FL along the Gulf Coast very few people wear masks, even in the supermarkets. In Miami the drivers are just as crazy and aggressive as ever, there are just fewer of them. The Tallahassee Airport was empty at 5:30 AM, and the Charlotte Airport jammed at 9:00 AM (see photos below). The planes were both full except for middle seats. We are glad to be up north again, our opinion is the situation is Florida is going to get crazy with everyone thinking the pandemic is over.
Charlotte Airport 9:00 AM
Tallahasee Airport 5:30 AM May 21, 2020
March 30, 2020 -- The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc in just about every corner of our lives. Now it is presenting snowbirds with another dilemma - when and how to return from their warm winter escapes. Those with a lease ending on March 31 or April 30 have an even more difficult situation.
But the problem of when to return is just one decision to make. There is also the issue of how - drive, fly, or train. They might have existing reservations for both themselves and their vehicles - if those haven't been cancelled yet. Let's explore the issues via a few examples.
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Published on March 30, 2020
Comments 54
Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
March 27, 2020 — The good news for people who get Social Security retirement or disability (SSI) benefits is that most of them are about to get a nice check as part of the stimulus package signed today. Social Security recipients are included in the bill to get $1200 (payable…
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Published on March 27, 2020
Comments 52
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
March 24, 2020 -- Thanks to the just under 100 community-minded Members and visitors who have contributed to our call to tell us where they are thinking about retiring. We really appreciate you selflessly taking a minute to share your hopes, dreams, and experiences for the benefit of this community. We wish more people had responded, but there is still time (which a lot of us seem to have right now!) You can see the original request and all of the Comments in their entirety here. Reading them is most interesting!
In all, 23 states and 2 countries were mentioned as potential retirement destinations. Many people mentioned regions rather than states. Multiple states and towns, some very different from one another, were often in the mix. Not all of the choices were predictable. We hope you find these real-world suggestions as useful as we did.
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Published on March 24, 2020
Comments 6
Category: Health and Wellness Issues
March 24, 2020 — Daryl, a longtime Member, suggested what he termed a “potentially explosive topic” for the Blog: Are our Members willing to sacrifice their lives for the economy under COVID-19? It arises because of the controversial comments by Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, who recently said: “‘As a…
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Published on March 24, 2020
Comments 26
Category: Baby Boomer Retirement Issues
March 21, 2020 -- This is an extraordinary time - a significant number of Americans have been ordered to stay in their homes. While painful and anxiety producing, at least with the Internet and TV we actually have it better than when we were kids and claimed to be "sick". Our mother, if she felt we weren't that ill, would make us lick green stamps and put them in the redemption book. If we were lucky, we got to watch Jack Bailey on "Queen for a Day". As for "Secret Storm" or "Search for Tomorrow", we had no idea why anyone would want to watch those soaps. Now at least, there are things worth watching. Today we have more high quality shows than we will ever have the time to view on Netflix, cable TV, HBO, Showtime, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Sling - and more.
So in the spirit of trying to have some fun and chase away the gloom, here are some TV show recommendations. Hopefully you will get some new ideas, watch the shows and movies you have always wanted to see (maybe again), and share in a discussion here. We would really like to hear from you: what shows do you love? This is also a great time to read a book. We would love to hear your favorite reads as well. One suggestion we enjoyed recently: "Educated" by Tara Westover.
New shows your editor has seen:
HBO just launched the third season of Westworld, a sci-fi western which some critics like a lot better than the first two seasons.
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Published on March 21, 2020
Comments 42
Category: Health and Wellness Issues
March 16, 2020 -- Wow, life has turned upside down in the last few weeks. A localized epidemic in one Chinese province of a new virus, COVID-19, has spread around the globe and landed as a pandemic in the USA and the rest of the world. The toilet paper aisle is barren (we’re not sure why!), and hand sanitizers and disinfectants aren’t available at any price. Just about everything is closing. Note: we have a separate Blog post with great Member input on “The Corona Virus and Your Retirement Portfolio: Buy, Hold, or Panic!”
The world is in crisis. Compared to other groups, the pandemic will not affect most of us retirees as drastically as it will the working age population. Our travel and social plans will be disrupted and our retirement portfolios are shrinking. We certainly won't be checking out any new places to retire, at least in person (although we will have plenty of time to do it online!). But there will be isolation, depression, and anxiety. It is also shocking to realize that as baby boomers, we are in the high risk category!
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Published on March 16, 2020
Comments 20
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
March 8, 2020 — Back in 2012 we ran an article that asked people to share their plans, thoughts, and dreams on where they might retire. It was phenomenally successful, generating over 700 comments (see link to that article and comments at bottom). We then summarized those comments by State…
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Published on March 8, 2020
Comments 80
