I can't figure out how I'll spend $40,000/year in retirement

[syd03]

$5000 for 4 yrs dental care + multiple adjustments + equipment .... shows the value of dental insurance

Not 4 years. Less than 2. Dental insurance pays less than 50% but I'll take it

 

[NW-Bound]

I think it's time to start clipping coupons and start shopping yard sales and flea markets.

I see that the OP has corrected the mispelling from "flee" to "flea".

Is that one of those markets everyone runs away from?

Is it really that bad, because you may bring home fleas, lice, bedbugs? Darn.

We have been lucky I guess, the times we did that. We even walked though flea markets in vacation places like Paris, for fun as we were not looking for and could not buy anything.

And talking about yard sales here, one of my brother-in-laws and his wife love to go to yard sales, and they often pick up good deals. One time, they got some real gold jewelry that the seller thought was costume jewelry.

Man, I told my wife to be sure to let my daughter know about the "stuff" that will be left to her. Selling diamond rings for the price of trinkets? That happens all the time.

 

[NW-Bound]

By the way, who clips coupons anymore?

Within 5 miles of us are all the big grocery chains. And they bend over backwards to get our mailbox stuffed with weekly ads. They come out on Wednesdays. On Thursdays, my wife makes a round and hits all these stores for their loss-leaders. No coupons needed. I do not know how many are doing what we do, but if I were these grocers, I would cry "Uncle" and quit offering deals.

Another reason I cannot live full-time in the boondocks 2nd home as I originally thought. It costs too much to live in the boondocks, compared to the suburb of a metropolis.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

By the way, who clips coupons anymore?

Within 5 miles of us are all the big grocery chains. And they bend over backwards to get our mailbox stuffed with weekly ads. They come out on Wednesdays. On Thursdays, my wife makes a round and hits all these stores for their loss-leaders. No coupons needed. I do not know how many are doing what we do, but if I were these grocers, I would cry "Uncle" and quit offering deals.

Another reason I cannot live full-time in the boondocks 2nd home as I originally thought. It costs too much to live in the boondocks, compared to the suburb of a metropolis.

I usually use coupons for meals out, like buy one meal get one free. For groceries I mainly go to Grocery Outlet and fill in with 99 Cent Only stores and the loss leaders from the retail stores. I don't cut coupons like save 25 cents off two boxes of cereal.

I stopped going to yard sales for lack of time and finding too many bargain in the past. So I'm decluttering now instead. But I like the thrill of the hunt. It is cool finding items like a never used $50 purse with the tags still on being sold for a $1. I still like library used book sales and the occasional thrift shops. I shop at a thrift shop that is near stores like Tiffany & Co. as I realized people drop off donations near where they shop. I got a nice piece of artwork there the other day with the tags still on for a few dollars.

 

[FUEGO]

Another reason I cannot live full-time in the boondocks 2nd home as I originally thought. It costs too much to live in the boondocks, compared to the suburb of a metropolis.

+1

Living in a lower COL part of a city has it's advantages. Tons of competition for all kinds of goods and services. We're within 3 miles of pretty much any kind of grocery imaginable from mom n pop ethnic groceries, mega-ethnic groceries, flea market veggie stalls, costco, trader joes, Aldi, and all the major grocery players. Though we don't hit more than 1-2 stores per week, there's money to be saved just by following the loss leader strategy you're talking about. Hard to do if you're out in the sticks with a 15 minute drive to the nearest grocery store of any kind (that might be a convenience store!).

 

[karen1972]

By the way, who clips coupons anymore?

Within 5 miles of us are all the big grocery chains. And they bend over backwards to get our mailbox stuffed with weekly ads. They come out on Wednesdays. On Thursdays, my wife makes a round and hits all these stores for their loss-leaders. No coupons needed. I do not know how many are doing what we do, but if I were these grocers, I would cry "Uncle" and quit offering deals.

Another reason I cannot live full-time in the boondocks 2nd home as I originally thought. It costs too much to live in the boondocks, compared to the suburb of a metropolis.

I don't clip coupons, but I use the online digital coupons. An app like Ibotta which gives you cash back for buying things like bananas, onions, eggs, which is on top of whatever loss leader price you found in the brochure. I'm lazy so I only do the ones that link to my loyalty card so its automatic all I have to do is spend a few minutes clicking on rebates to load them.. less time than looking through the weekly ad.

 

[youbet]

The OP has his healthcare covered, so he can do $40K a lot easier than I can.

Yep. Non-cash income such as free/subsidized health insurance is often omitted from discussions like this and that makes the rest of the numbers close to meaningless.

Likewise for assets. One poster has one million bux in their FIRE portfolio and also has a newish (unlikely to require repairs or maintenance soon) paid-for home and a brand new, reliable car. Another poster also has a one million bux FIRE portfolio but rents a home and is driving a beater car that needs repairs or replacement. Two very different scenarios but sometimes discussed as though they were the same......

Knowing the whole financial picture matters.

 

[youbet]

The private market plans we looked at for dental insurance were not worth the cost for us. In an average year we would have paid more in premiums than we spend normally on dental care, and even if we did have a high expense year the max caps were very low.

If there was such a thing as high deductible, high max dental insurance at a reasonable cost, I'd buy it. I can afford to pay a few hundred bux a year for my routine care and minor issues. But I could use some help the year something really bad happens and is going to cost $10k - $20k. Dental insurance doesn't seem to exist for this.

In fact, is dental insurance really "insurance?" Or are most policies just a "pre-pay" arrangement?

 

[NW-Bound]

Yes, we discovered Grocery Outlets when on our RV trek last year, and loved it. They are only in CA, OR, WA, and Nevada. Really good bargains can be had.

I am also a sucker for $1 book sales by the local public library. Some are not used books discarded by the library but never-read books donated to the library. Why, I just bought 3 yesterday. I often run across non-fiction titles that have little public appeal but are on subjects interesting to me.

 

[Focus]

In fact, is dental insurance really "insurance?" Or are most policies just a "pre-pay" arrangement?

Previous thread:

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f38/crappy-dental-insurance-80726.html

 

[daylatedollarshort]

I often run across non-fiction titles that have little public appeal but are on subjects interesting to me.

Same here. Really cool, out of print, $1 or less books on timeless subjects are some of my favorite purchases. I like to collect ethnic and whole food recipe books, and then make up interesting dishes with whatever is on sale that week at G.O. for cheap thrills.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Yep. Non-cash income such as free/subsidized health insurance is often omitted from discussions like this and that makes the rest of the numbers close to meaningless.

Likewise for assets. One poster has one million bux in their FIRE portfolio and also has a newish (unlikely to require repairs or maintenance soon) paid-for home and a brand new, reliable car. Another poster also has a one million bux FIRE portfolio but rents a home and is driving a beater car that needs repairs or replacement. Two very different scenarios but sometimes discussed as though they were the same......

Knowing the whole financial picture matters.

I have widowed acquaintances who told me they have a hard time spending $30K in the Bay Area, but they have paid off homes, Medicare for health insurance, they fixed up their houses before they retired and their property taxes are low because of Prop 13. So they ended up spoiling the grandkids with their extra income.

 

[audreyh1]

Yeah - make sure you set aside a few $1,000 each year for these occasional big time expenses.

 

[audreyh1]

I'm just getting started in this dental work game. Within the last two months 2 crowns and a root canal and ~$4k. Maybe I need a vacation in Mexico. I half remember reading somewhere that there is a town in Mexico near the border that specializes in good quality dental work at reasonable rates?

If on the TX border, that was probably Progresso. Most popular cross-border dental destination around here, and the only town considered "safe".

 

[Mulligan]

Yes, we discovered Grocery Outlets when on our RV trek last year, and loved it. They are only in CA, OR, WA, and Nevada. Really good bargains can be had.

I am also a sucker for $1 book sales by the local public library. Some are not used books discarded by the library but never-read books donated to the library. Why, I just bought 3 yesterday. I often run across non-fiction titles that have little public appeal but are on subjects interesting to me.

So the Najarian brothers Options trading book wouldnt have been one of the 3 books by chance then?

 

[btdt22]

"I can't figure out how I'll spend $40,000/year in retirement..."

Get a boat

Well said! Add some exotic travel and you are easily into six digits

 

[Major Tom]

Yes, we discovered Grocery Outlets when on our RV trek last year, and loved it.

There is a Grocery Outlet 3 blocks from my house. It's pretty handy for a frugal ER!

 

[NW-Bound]

So the Najarian brothers Options trading book wouldnt have been one of the 3 books by chance then?

I recognize the name, but did not know about their book.

You must have meant this book:

Just searched, and found that the library does not have it.

Amazon says "Used from $3.65", and reviewers give 2 stars out of 5. Comments say the book explains the mechanics of options, but not the secret sauce.

There is a Grocery Outlet 3 blocks from my house. It's pretty handy for a frugal ER!

They are good for anyone who is frugal, whether ER or not.

 

[Fedup]

I have no problem spending $40k. That's how much I plan on spending for travel this year. It's not an extravagant budget. My husband likes live concerts and has been on a buying spree for a few concerts overseas. Good think the dollar is strong otherwise it will cost more.

 

[Dreaming of Freedom]

I am starting to think that we need to budget $40,000/year just for healthcare related costs. Between the threat of ACA being revoked by politicians or just imploding on its own, i fear we could be stuck with substandard or no health insurance at all and have enormous out of pocket expenses. We are both pretty healthy at this point in life, but as we get older, I am sure things will start breaking.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

They are good for anyone who is frugal, whether ER or not.

The G.O. receipts, at least in our area, have amount saved off Safeway type prices, and they seem to be pretty accurate. For this month I spent around $220 and saved $260. Shopping there has really saved us quite a bit. Lately the local store has had a large inventory of organic produce, eggs, meat and other types of natural and organic foods, so we feel we can eat pretty health and save money, too.

I'm not down to $40K a year in expenses, but we keep chipping away.

 

[NW-Bound]

My wife likes to shop for bargains, and when I join in the hunt I understand the thrill of it. We eat less and less, so the substantial savings still do not add up to a large dollar amount. But it is fun, and often entices us to try something different. "What's this? How do we use it?".

For a family with ravenous teenagers still at home, knowing about these discount stores will really help. You save money, and may even get higher quality. What's not to like?

 

[Mulligan]

I recognize the name, but did not know about their book.

You must have meant this book:

Just searched, and found that the library does not have it.

Amazon says "Used from $3.65", and reviewers give 2 stars out of 5. Comments say the book explains the mechanics of options, but not the secret sauce.




They are good for anyone who is frugal, whether ER or not.

Yep, thats the one...They occasionally try to give it away for free on commercials. A 2 Star huh? I will cross it off my reading list.

 

[W2R]

My wife likes to shop for bargains, and when I join in the hunt I understand the thrill of it. We eat less and less, so the substantial savings still do not add up to a large dollar amount. But it is fun, and often entices us to try something different. "What's this? How do we use it?".

For a family with ravenous teenagers still at home, knowing about these discount stores will really help. You save money, and may even get higher quality. What's not to like?

With only one in my household, I am not too inspired to bargain shop for groceries. I'd rather go for convenience than a low price since I live alone, and don't save as much from low prices as would families with multiple people to feed. Sure, convenience costs more but I am inclined to say, "so what", as long as my WR provides me with more than I am spending overall.

What's money for, anyway? Well, convenience is one thing that money can buy, and that some retirees appreciate even more than the thrill of the hunt for bargains.

My (Great Depression Era) parents, on the other hand, when alive used to spend all of their Saturday mornings hopping from grocery store to grocery store, with ads in hand, shopping for bargains. It was not unusual for them to stand in the long lines at up to half a dozen large grocery stores each Saturday. They didn't need the savings, but despite that had a lot of fun doing this. I think that was great, but it's not fun for me.

 

[NW-Bound]

There's no Grocery Outlet where we are. In our RV travel in western coastal states, we liked to visit a store whenever possible. They have different local brands that we do not know about. And from the same producer, say the "Laughing Cow", we would find an unusual flavor of cheese spread. I understand that the stores often carry over-inventory or items that are discontinued. So, some of these novel items might not have sold well, or made for a test market, and are now liquidated. We do not pay the regular price to try something new that we may not like, but for 1/3 the price we are willing to take the chance. And it often turns out not that bad, just unusual.

I try to remember something unusual we have bought. For example, a spicy flavor of the Laughing Cow cheese spread, or a coffee-flavored Dannon yogurt. So, it's not just the savings, but also the sampling of some unusual food items that we do not see in local stores.

At home, we tend to fall in the same old rut and keep buying the same things days in days out.