Average Retiree Spend

[jebmke]

Not trying to make an assumption, but very few of the retirees that I know have ANY kind of car payment. My direct/indirect costs (purchase price, taxes, fuel, maintenance, the ENTIRE COST to date) for my current car (purchased new in 2009) has totaled $52,110 or averaged, $501 a month. This is for a car that cost $34,000 out the door. *IF* I had purchased a Honda Civic, or similar, those costs would have been substantially lower...So, I don't think that the $567 is a number that is that far off.

Normally I'd agree but we recently bought a car and are taking advantage of zero percent financing even though I could have written a check for it.



When I track my expenses I reclass this out since it muddies the water with historical spending data. This is the first time I have ever "financed" a car in my life.

 

[brett]

Averages are meaningless to us.

They are also dependent on place of residence. My guess is that NYC or SFO are both considerably more expensive than East Rubber Boot, Iowa.

 

[NW-Bound]

But is the $200K/year guy going to live a long healthy life compared to the $20K guy? No, that takes luck more than money.

I agree to some extent. Money can't keep you from getting Alzheimer's or pancreatic cancer. But- the "luxuries" I have include:

-Gym membership
-Dental implants, meaning I can still crunch my way through fresh fruits and vegetables (poor nutrition can be a serious side effect of dental problems, and they can affect your overall health as well)
-Groceries not dominated by fatty meats and processed foods, which is what many people with limited funds buy
-The means to get medical attention if I need it, rather than waiting till I can't stand it and going to the ER
-The ability to pay most out-of-pocket prescription costs. I have my limits ($80K for a round of Hep C treatment would be a shock) but I'm not likely to have to stop medication because I ran out of money.

And yes, I DO know how fortunate I am. I'm in remarkably good health (running a mile race tomorrow at age 65, and doing the 7-km bicycle portion of a team duathlon Sunday) and part of that is because I can afford it.

Sure. There's no drawback to having money, as I see it.

Between being diagnosed with a terminal illness at 60 after spending $200K/year and living on $20K till 90, I know what most people would choose. However, the choice is not ours to make.

But some really poor souls may get less than $20K/year, and still die early. Now, that's bad.

My point is simply that above a certain point, money does not matter that much. I do have enough so that I do not have to worry about money, and can spend the time to worry about my health instead.