Interesting stuff here...
Long time lurker, with a question.
I don't believe I've ever seen a discussion of how costs go down, over time, during retirement.
Cheers!
Firecalc has an option under the Spendiing Models tab for Bernicke's Reality Retirement Plan, with a link to the article on which that is based. It assumes declining expenses due to lifestyle changes up to a point after which things level out and then need to keep pace with inflation.
But in another sense, depending on lifestyle choices and also depending on what point in life you are using for comparison, I think there are a number of places where spending can go down over time. The accumulation phase for some of us hasn't only been about money, but also about stuff we buy once and will continue to use for the rest of our lives. How many times do you need to buy a good socket wrench set, cookware, china, furniture, piano, etc. Many of these can be bought once and then you're pretty much set for life. Sure there may be additions and upgrades for some - electronics being the perfect example - but durable things acquired with an eye for quality may only need to be in your budget once in a lifetime.