1000 days

[Want2retire]

Well, actually I have a minimum of 1028 days to ER. But as you can tell, I'm looking forward to the transition.

I'm 58 and live in New Orleans, but plan to move north where the cost of living is lower. Frank (my companion) and I are thinking that southern Missouri will probably be our destination.

Meanwhile I'm living on less than 25% of my salary - - the rest goes to the taxman, retirement accounts, and other nestegg. Every day I work on my financial plans, budget, and so on in Excel and I check the balance of my accounts online. So far, so good.

I have already posted a few times, so it's past time for me to say "hi!".

[crazy connie]

Welcome aboard! Sounds like you plan to improve your quality of life when you pull the plug. Way to go!

[Nords]

Originally Posted by Want2retire

Well, actually I have a minimum of 1028 days to ER. But as you can tell, I'm looking forward to the transition.

Welcome to the board, Want2... you're almost a triple-digit midget!

[Want2retire]

Thanks for the welcome!

[Tomcat98]

Originally Posted by Nords

triple-digit midget!

I haven't hears that in years. What about 999 days and a wake up? Or I'm so short I'd have to stand on a matchbox to take a ______? Of course there is always the old stand by FIGMO

For the origional poster, Welcome to the board!

Tomcat98

[Moemg]

Want to retire ,
Didn't you mention in another post that you never wanted to live together ? So how does that work ? Do you and your So pick a retirement town and then live down the street from each other ? I guess a d!uplex would be a good idea .
Just wondering !

[REWahoo]

Originally Posted by Tomcat98

I haven't hears that in years. What about 999 days and a wake up? Or I'm so short I'd have to stand on a matchbox to take a ______? Of course there is always the old stand by FIGMO

And the old standby stress-relief mechanism of responding "Short!!!" to almost any "I can't believe we're having to do this" situation...

[Want2retire]

Originally Posted by Moemg

Want to retire ,
Didn't you mention in another post that you never wanted to live together ? So how does that work ? Do you and your So pick a retirement town and then live down the street from each other ? I guess a d!uplex would be a good idea .
Just wondering !

Yes, exactly. We both think we want to live in Springfield, Missouri (tentatively).

A few weeks ago Frank suggested the possibility of a duplex (with each of us owning one side of it). I don't feel like that's enough separation for me, though. I don't want my finances intermingled with his; what if I want a new roof and he doesn't? Ugh. And besides, I need to be alone sometimes. And what if I decide to move to a different house in the neighborhood due to possibly changing financial circumstances? He would be stuck in a duplex with a stranger on the other side of the wall, which he would hate. Or even worse, what if HE decided to move due to changing financial circumstances? I probably wouldn't like sharing a duplex with a stranger, either (especially if they like loud music).

Another possibility would be houses next door to each other or a block or two away from each other. I like this better and Frank told me that he thinks this sort of arrangement would be fine, too. Adjacent zip codes would be all right, but probably we should be within less than five or ten miles of each other for convenience. The ideal arrangement would be a cul de sac or country lane with no houses except our two, but that is more of a dream than something we could really expect to find and afford.

The nice thing about being next door to each other, would be that there would be no neighbor problems on that side. I would like that. He is into ham radio, and I wouldn't object to his antennas so living next door to each other would be an advantage to him, too. The disadvantage would be that it might be hard to get enough "alone time" that way, but we could probably work that out somehow.

I think a lot will depend on what's available. But no duplex!

(And yes - - even though I am 5'9" I am SO SHORT...!!! I'll be nice and wait for a couple of years before I start with the short jokes, though.)

[Dawg54]

Welcome! A 1000 days will go by faster than you think. I've got 74 days to go. My replacement starts Wednesday so I will have my hands full training him and working with our year end auditors. But the days should go by fast.

[Cattusbabe]

Originally Posted by Want2retire

Another possibility would be houses next door to each other

This may sound like a weird arrangement to some but I have friends whose living arrangement is just like that and it works out well. In this cade each has kids still living at home and have divorced. Rather than going through the whole blended family thing they went this route and it is working out beautifully. The ex spouses live within walking distance so the kids go between the houses with ease. It seems a win, win for the kids. When the kids are with the other parent the couple has "quality" time together. They have found that the kids had a better adjustment to the whole divorce situation this way. I think the kids are lucky to have "grown-ups" on their lives who put them first and made a bad situation as pain free as possible.

[AltaRed]

Originally Posted by Surreal

This may sound like a weird arrangement to some but I have friends whose living arrangement is just like that and it works out well.

This arrangment can work very well, even for married couples who no longer want to be in the same house very much of the time. Personal independence is a good thing. I like what the OP suggests.... at least a few blocks and preferably a few miles away would be a good thing. I don't recommend the duplex idea.

[Want2retire]

Thanks, Dogs52, and congratulations on your impending ER!!

Surreal, taking care of children is not part of the equation for us, although I have a grown daughter out on the west coast. Frank and I can have "quality time" together whenever we want, once we ER.

Hopefully we will have some quality time alone, as well. To me, some of life's experiences seem best when alone and this arrangement will allow for that. No need to smother one another. I love knowing (when we are together) that we are together because he wants to spend some time with me, and vice versa.

AltaRed, you were posting as I wrote the above. I think we are on the same wavelength, here.

[larry]

Welcome. You'll like Springfield. That's a nice part of the country but perhaps still a little too humid for a flatlander like me.

[Want2retire]

Thanks! We've been up there twice this year, and love it. The cost of living seems delightfully low, the people seem friendly, and we think Springfield is just the kind of community for us.

The humidity probably won't be such a problem for us, after living in New Orleans.

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

You can live somewhere cheaper than Louisiana?

[Want2retire]

Originally Posted by Ed_The_Gypsy

You can live somewhere cheaper than Louisiana?

Sure can. I wouldn't have said that a few years ago, but lately the cost of living in New Orleans has gone through the roof. http://www.neworleanscitycouncil.com...ws.asp?cid=168
Although the cost of living here is probably not as high as the cost of living in NYC or LA, it is high relative to America's heartland and is expected to remain so for quite some time.

Springfield was cheaper even before 2005.

Right now I can buy a house in Springfield that is similar to my present house for about 70% of what my house was worth two years ago prior to Katrina. (Housing prices in New Orleans have risen since that time due to the shortage of habitable homes, so this difference will more than pay for the move and redecorating and still leave some profit to add to my nest egg.) And the non-housing cost of living in Springfield is equally low.

Other things we like about Springfield are the size of the town (not too big for Frank or too small for my preferences), its relatively remote location, the beauty of the hills and lakes surrounding it, low crime, and healthy economy. There are walking trails all over town, and good hospitals and medical care are available. It's a peaceful, pleasant place. But hush! Don't let the secret out.

[Oldbabe]

Hi Want2retire,
Are you of the conservative pursuasion? Go to church? If so, you will fit right in. But, I hope you are prepared for the ice storms. They come around more often than one would think.


Welcome to the board,
Oldbabe

[Want2retire]

Originally Posted by Oldbabe

Hi Want2retire,
Have you spent any time in Springfield, MO? You are right that housing is a big advantage. But I lived in that area for a whole, Joplin and Carthage, and was not happy there at all. Are you of the conservative pursuasion? Go to church? If so, you will fit right in. But, I hope you are prepared for the ice storms. They come around more often than one would think.


Welcome to the board,
Oldbabe

Thanks for the welcome, Oldbabe! Frank and I are spending as much time there as we can during our limited vacation time, since we first discovered Springfield. But you're right - - it isn't as much time there as I would like. I've been following the ice storm going on there for the past few days, and it does indeed look serious. I'm taking the opportunity to learn as much as I can about how to cope with and/or survive such a storm.

As for me, I tend to be economically conservative, but not socially. I voted for Bush twice and was proud of that the first time, though I am fed up with him during this second term and wish I could take my vote back! I am agnostic and don't attend church. I know that the International Headquarters for the Assemblies of God is located in Springfield, and a lot of churches of many other denominations are located in this conservative community as well. So there is that. Hopefully the Bible-thumpers wouldn't be too aggressive. Being an agnostic, and not an atheist, I don't have a problem with religious beliefs, otherwise.

On the other hand, most of us have priorities in selecting a retirement location and political and religious climate are low priority criteria for us. Here are our highest priority criteria: Frank and I want to live in a town from 50,000-200,000 in population, with extremely low housing costs (including property taxes), low cost of living, and low crime. (Arizona is out because I don't want to live in the same state as my ex.) Among the subset of towns that meet those criteria, we'd like as warm a climate as possible but we absolutely will not consider any in a region where we feel we could be subjected to severe hurricanes. Although we realize that no place is immune from natural disasters, we simply refuse to go through another hurricane and that possibility is a deal-breaker for us.

(If anybody can think of some other towns that meet these criteria, I'd like to consider them as well. )

[larry]

Springfield is also home to a BUNCH of colleges and that offers lots of things to do if you like to keep active. You're only what, 30 minutes from a major entertainment venue (and to my thinking that is Lambert's but I'll give you Branson). And you can spend your days hiking them baldknobs!

You can have your share of tornado's but you can get them along the gulf anyway.

Don't know if it is earthquake prone but when you get down to Arkansas that can be a must have - earthquake insurance that is.