Retire on 3k per month thoughts...

I hope to hang up the spikes soon and have planned
on 3000.00 a month income. That consists of:
1. 1k from SS for me
2. 1k from wifes SS
3. 1k from savings ( 300k saved with 4% withdrawl rate)
$36,000 a year to "git r done", live in Wisconsin were
cost of living is not terrible. Also believe that cost will
eventually come down as more people retire/lose jobs/
etc.. Lets face it, who can really afford 40K cars if you are retired or unemployed... Thoughts

That is a reasonable plan as I posted in your other thread. Don't plan on costs coming down, although they could as the U.S. wages will go the direction of China's instead of the other way around.

The CEOs of the U.S. will have little trouble affording $40K cars - Heck I'm even going to buy one myself!

Re. "who can really afford 40K cars?' Cut-Throat?

Seriously, I think your plan is fine. I lived in Wisconsin for 11 years, and while I did not care for the politics,
the COL was okay. Anyway, your plan is similar to ours
except we will never see $36,000 per year.

John Galt

As long as they (The Crooks in Washington) don't change Social Security benifits for those over 55,
I think I can Git R Done...

[FunGoals]

36K a year is possible however there should be room for inflation, the unexpected & just having fun during the ENTIRE retirement. It also depends on how much of the 36K is currently leftover after expenses & whether some of the expenses can be decreased as others rise

I received a severance for over a year after I retired & deposited the entire amount every 2 weeks in Ingdirect. I retired to live on a pension - the severance was temporary. I intended on making an investment in real estate or stocks. The money was liquid it started looking like a 2005 corvette or mustang gt. Luckily I found an ad in the Sunday paper for a 7 month 3.1% cd. Something needed to be parked & it wasn't a corvette or mustang.

[retire@40]

36K a year is possible however there should be room for inflation, the unexpected & just having fun during the ENTIRE retirement.

Inflation is already account for in the 4% SWR since it is assumed that average inflation is 3% and average earnings will be 7%. And SS benefits are increased each year for inflation.

I agree that the 36K budget should have a line item for "unexpected" expenses. I would say $100 to $200 a month as a minimum.

I also agree that if you can't have fun in ER then you shouldn't ER until you can. If you have to worry about where you spend every cent, ER life will be to stressful to be worthwhile.

Never ask of money spent
Where the spender thinks it went.
Nobody was ever meant
To remember or invent
What he did with every cent.

Robert Frost

[gratefuled]

On a certain level this thread stands out as very odd.

I keep my EMT-B certification up-to-date because I enjoy volunteering for the Red Cross, and, less altruistically, because it's easy to find full-time work with benefits in the EMS field Which is to say that if I find myself in a pinch, within a couple of weeks I can get an ambulance job that carries a subsistence wage and medical insurance.

(Many interesting sidebar items about the healthcare system deleted.)

But it's that "subsistence wage" thing that makes this thread stand out. My wife and I are planning to ER to a rural town in the Southeast where the municipal EMTs start at $28K per year. Before taxes.

Which is obviously less than $3K per month. Yet these people still do OK; I've talked to some of them. They get married, rent an apartment, have a couple of kids, drive a decent car, go fishing, etc.

It's interesting to see what people can get by on, eh?

Ed

[FunGoals]

In my retirement planning I have SS increases being canceled by rising medicare costs.

I have several accounts I can access quickly for the unexpected & the expected. The primary account is nicknamed " Next BIG Thing " where about $400 is maintained. If I know in advance that I need more I make transfers from weekly spending money. Other accounts that can be used are " HouseHold Repairs ", " LongTerm Bills " as well as " Vacations "

Unexpected items are not always unpleasant. Sometimes its a really good sale or having fun. When I " borrow " part of the $400 I know I have to replace it in about a month from pocket money.

Will the principal remain the same or decrease with the 7% SWR & will the 7% vary?

[haha]

But it's that "subsistence wage" thing that makes this thread stand out. *My wife and I are planning to ER to a rural town in the Southeast where the municipal EMTs start at $28K per year. *Before taxes.

Which is obviously less than $3K per month. *Yet these people still do OK; I've talked to some of them. *They get married, rent an apartment, have a couple of kids, drive a decent car, go fishing, etc.

It's interesting to see what people can get by on, eh?Ed

No doubt you will be fine Ed. OTOH, many people want more than a working class SOL in the rural south. So for them, it would maybe not be a good plan.

Mikey

[renferme]

My Dad is retired (for many years) in Clearwater Florida and living on about 1200/month ss and 370/month from a CD.
So, if you can't make it in Wisc., then move to FL.

We could live on 1200/month SS and 370/month CD
interest and not break a sweat. But, that's just us.
We don't get anal about it. We just know how far we
could cut back, which provides a lot of security. On a
related issue.............today on the Rush Limbaugh
program, they spent a lot of time talking with people
who were into dumpster diving. These were not bums,
but people with money who understood there was gold
in the dumpsters. We don't do that, but we could.
Getting something for nothing is a rush! You just need
to have the right attitude. Same with your lifestyle.
If most of us could cut back 50%, we would still be in
the top 1% world wide. Think about it.

JG

I heard the dumpster divers too - steaks, chicken, chips etc.

I didn't hear any of them say they scrounged up free health insurance though...

[Zipper]

Mrs. Zipper is still working, I'm retired.

$C4000/mo net is good.

You guys scare me with your healthcare costs down there.

[Zipper]

.............and John, if I might?

Anyone who would listen to Rush Limbaugh is a freakin' idiot!

.............and John, if I might?

Anyone who would listen to Rush Limbaugh is a freakin' idiot!

Actually, I don't think John really enjoys Rush, He just gets his news and information from him, so that he can keep atop of world events

[Bob_Smith]

Rush Limbaugh - the Tokyo Rose of the right wing fringe.

[bruce1]

You guys scare me with your healthcare costs down there.

Me too.

Bruce

[indymom]

Same here

Rush Limbaugh is a great man. He has brains and guts,
qualities which are in short supply these days. My
main area of disagreement is with his eternal optimism.
He thinks the leftist drift can be fixed. I do not.
Only time will tell which of us is right.

JG

[Martha]

You guys scare me with your healthcare costs down there.

The only, absolutely only, reason I haven't joined my husband in early retirement is the big unknown of where health care costs are going. He thinks that a million dollars worth of assets basically should be considered for health care and our other expenses come from the rest.