Feeling Our Way

[Trailwalker]

My DW and I both turned sixty, and she pulled the plug on her profession in late 2020. I walked away from being a lawyer at 36, and have had a few income-producing endeavors after that. Our retirement situation is complicated with a severely physically disabled adopted adult son who we occasionally have to work for when his caregiving situation breaks down. During the pandemic, that meant he moved back home, and I was back doing that hard physical work full time. He is back at college this semester.

I don’t really have any pressing questions, I signed up for the forum digests a few weeks ago, and have been soaking up information. We are comfortably set for the future because we have always lived modestly. Caring for a disabled child was expensive so we are less well-off than we might be, but we will do fine. No pension or annuities. Our plan is to manage cash, investments and then social security. We are debt free, own our own house, and have some additional land in another location.

Our present project is tracking the money that we spend under our recently retired lifestyle. We are in the process of consolidating investment accounts to reduce fees.

 

[pb4uski]

Well, welcome and thanks for the nice intro post.

You might want to check out opensocialsecurity.com when deciding on social security claiming strategies. Be sure to check the little box at the top and the situations that apply to or interest you. I use the CSO mortality tables rather than the SS mortality tables and I use the projected real rate of return on the funds that I would use if I defer SS rather than the 20 year TIPS rate recommended by the author of the site... but recently they have not been very different.

Consolidating investment accounts is wise... less is more IMO. Ditto for investments (tickers). While you're at it make sure that you beneficiary designations are up to date.

Some posters here also have disabled adult children and have set up special trusts for them... I don't know much about the subject but I am sure that one or more of them will come along and weigh in soon.

 

[Out-to-Lunch]

Welcome aboard!

 

[Trailwalker]

Thanks for the welcome and the suggestion regarding "opensocialsecurity."

I was surprised that it optimized my filing date at 65. Because I have been out of the work force taking care of my son on an unpaid basis for a number of years, I thought that my optimal date for filing on my own record would be 62, but that's not the case.

Taking it at 65 probably works out better anyway for keeping our taxable income low until medicare, assuming the marketplace is a viable option. We are on COBRA for this year. We've done a ton of planing, but it seems like flexibility is really important the way the rules can and do change.

We do have a special needs trust that we set up years ago. It's been updated a few times, based upon changing circumstances. It will only be funded if we both die before my son, which isn't likely, but you never know. That's the reason for estate and trust planning.

He has an ABLE account now to supplement his ssi. He would like to work someday, but it will be tough. Duchennes muscular dystrophy is progressive and leaves very little physical function in young men. Mentally, he's completely normal. Well, as normal as most typical twenty-year old college students looking forward to his first tattoo next month.

Well, welcome...

You might want to check out opensocialsecurity.com...

...

Some posters here also have disabled adult children and have set up special trusts for them... I don't know much about the subject but I am sure that one or more of them will come along and weigh in soon.