Retirement spending changing by decade?

[JoseSantiago]

Hi friends,

Hopefully I can get an opinion from some older folks here but anyone is welcome to chime in. You retire at age 50/60, you are traveling and you are doing fun stuff maybe you buy toys, the boat, whatever. I imagine age 60/70 this may decrease. Age 70/80 what are you doing how is spending changing for those who have been retired longer?

Has medical been all around the same if nothing catastrophic happened?

Thanks to anyone who replies.

 

[RetiredHappy]

We have been traveling like crazy even when we were working and we are not slowing down. We still travel about 3 months a year, my husband is in his early 70s and I am almost 60. We still get new cars as often as we want to. We rejoined the country club here and golf alot whether home or traveling. We have been retired for 5 years. Our total spending is probably up from when we were working. I think we will slow down when my husband gets to mid-80s, which is another 12 years. Nothing catastrophic has happened to us medically.

 

[RobbieB]

My spending is twice what is was when I was working. Don't see it going down anytime soon. I'm 66.

Have fun!

 

[RetireeRobert]

I retired at age 54 when our kids were then ages 7, 11, and 17. Wife had been "retired" since birth of our oldest daughter 17 years prior. Spending in the first decade after I retired was some family travels on cruise, cross country train trip, Disneyland visits, and the like. Spending in that first decade was also getting kids through college debt free and established in their own lives with used cars and funded Roth IRA accounts (as allowed by their earnings limits). Spending in that first decade was also buying our dream land parcel and having built our dream, self-designed and spec'd, custom home. Next decade the spending on kids dropped off as they achieved independency, but then included international travel by me and wife. Wife hit unexpected serious illness which ran up $136000 (rack rates) of medical bills but they were covered every single dollar by health insurance. Sadly, DW passed four months into the unexpected (and first ever for her in her life) serious medical problems. Starting in third decade out from retirement now and I myself am in good health, so spending has shifted to charitable activities. No needed spending on family/kids, except for giving them unexpected wads of cash now and then. And charitable gifts are not "required", but given nothing else requiring my resources, I feel good making QCD's from my IRAs in the amount of my required RMDs each year. My RMDs would provide a good more than livable income, but I already have a good income from state government pension and SS.

For the future, I do not foresee any increase in my needed spending pending continued good health until my eventual, hopefully quick and short, demise.

So, I consider myself now to be a philanthropist. That's how I "dispose" of my money. I feel blessed by God to be in this enviable position.

 

[JoseSantiago]

My spending is twice what is was when I was working. Don't see it going down anytime soon. I'm 66.

Have fun!

What went up that made it double?

 

[chris2008]

8 happy years of retirement at 63/69.
We have travelled and lived well before ER and continue so thereafter.
No significant change of expenses so far.

 

[RobbieB]

What went up that made it double?

More time to travel, indulge hobbies, start dating (first wife died) and have fun!

 

[Koolau]

What went up that made it double?

Not to answer for RobbieB, but in our case, we essentially quit "saving" and started spending. When you save half your w*rk income, then retire, and your retirement income is as big as your w*rking income, you can save or spend half. We decided to spend. So "double" was the old savings being spent. YMMV

 

[ncbill]

Sounds about right...my great uncle retired mid-50s & trawled the world with his spouse until his mid-60s...dead in his early 70s.

My in-laws retired early 50s, lots of domestic travel for 15 years (no desire for overseas), then done with traveling before age 70.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

What went up that made it double?

RobbieB's consumption of Wagyu beef.

 

[Souschef]

I retired in 2009 at age 70. I had to keep w*king to keep the medical coverage for my late wife.
Two days later I was on a 2 week tour of South America. I had remarried to a lady who wanted to travel. We traveled with a vengeance until 2016, then, having seen much of what was on our bucket list, we slowed down.
We also were not getting any younger, and we gave up on trans Atlantic flights, even in Business Class. By the time Covid hit, we had done 18 cruises, 52 trips, and 511 travel days.

The last 2 cruises were done a year apart, and were round trip to LA, near where we lived, so NO airports.
Our travel spending has decreased tremendously. Now, at 83 and 77, we are hoping to do a cruise to Hawaii next year as probably our last long trip. We may do some short driving trips, but that is about it.
We are in relatively good health, and hope to be that way for a while.

 

[2017ish]

Not to answer for RobbieB, but in our case, we essentially quit "saving" and started spending. When you save half your w*rk income, then retire, and your retirement income is as big as your w*rking income, you can save or spend half. We decided to spend. So "double" was the old savings being spent. YMMV

Yeah, this is us as well. Our "income" is not yet close to our work income, but our post-tax spending is indeed about double when we were working. As long planned, travel is the reason. We are on the road/air/sea 6 months or more each year (only 5 months in 2020 though). Travel spending alone is equal or exceeds pre-retirement spending (after taxes).

 

[brett]

Retired at 58 ten years ago. Spending changed due to a welcome lifestyle and residence change.

Pre covid two months of international travel twice a year plus last minute trips and in country trips in between.

We expect our travel and our expenses attributable to travel to increase over the next ten years (hopefully). Post covid we anticipate travelling more and spending more. Covid has taught us two things....spend more and do not be afraid to splash out as it were.

Medical not an issue for us. We have universal health care. Drugs covered by pension plan.

Dental...yes. 15K over the past several years. Hopefully one time only but who the hell knows until the dentist decides he/she needs a first class trip to Hawaii for spouse and family and I am the ticket.

Our issue will become health before it ever becomes financial.

 

[scrabbler1]

Hi friends,

Hopefully I can get an opinion from some older folks here but anyone is welcome to chime in. You retire at age 50/60, you are traveling and you are doing fun stuff maybe you buy toys, the boat, whatever. I imagine age 60/70 this may decrease. Age 70/80 what are you doing how is spending changing for those who have been retired longer?

Has medical been all around the same if nothing catastrophic happened?

Thanks to anyone who replies.

Since I retired in late 2008 at age 45, medical has been my most volatile expense. It began somewhat high, then rose by 50% in 2 years (pre-ACA rate increases through 2011), then dropped a lot when I downsized to a bare-bones policy until the end of 2013. It rose in 2014 when the ACA came in and I regained a more comprehensive policy. Big rate increases and dwindling premium subsidies ruled the day through 2019 until I finally changed my portfolio to get back on the subsidy train. In the meantime, I had some major health issues in 2015 which spiked my medical expenses.

Income taxes have risen and fallen as I had some income spikes through the end of 2019. But they are nice and low again, too. The rest of my expenses have been quite stable. I am 58 now.

 

[JoseSantiago]

Since I retired in late 2008 at age 45, medical has been my most volatile expense. It began somewhat high, then rose by 50% in 2 years (pre-ACA rate increases through 2011), then dropped a lot when I downsized to a bare-bones policy until the end of 2013. It rose in 2014 when the ACA came in and I regained a more comprehensive policy. Big rate increases and dwindling premium subsidies ruled the day through 2019 until I finally changed my portfolio to get back on the subsidy train. In the meantime, I had some major health issues in 2015 which spiked my medical expenses.

Income taxes have risen and fallen as I had some income spikes through the end of 2019. But they are nice and low again, too. The rest of my expenses have been quite stable. I am 58 now.

What were you paying? Because I too will be retiring before medical care. Unless i go to Europe I'm fairly certain medical is gonna be a big bill for me even though I have no healthcare issues for now.

 

[scrabbler1]

What were you paying? Because I too will be retiring before medical care. Unless i go to Europe I'm fairly certain medical is gonna be a big bill for me even though I have no healthcare issues for now.

It has been all over the place. It began (prior to the ACA) at $470, rose to nearly $700, then dropped a lot with the lesser policy. With the ACA, I got back to around $400 in 2014 for a better policy before it rose a lot, offset by a small subsidy when it existed, to $700 a month. Now, thanks to better income management and a recent law change expanding the subsidy, I am paying $247 a month.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I was married when I retired 9 years ago and we traveled and spent more money than when working. Our HI through my employer skyrocketed when retired. It was our biggest expense. At 67 I haven’t traveled only because of Covid. My mom took a yearly 2 week vacation through her middle 80’s despite 3 different types of cancer from 78-87.

 

[kcowan]

Been at it for 19 years. Frugal for the first 5, then gradually higher. Now no limits but old habits die hard. We drive a Mercedes now and only a Kia down south where we seldom drive. Upgraded our condo in 2018 50% bigger and custom built to our specifications.

Travel was curtailed but we are now planning a trip to Prague, Budapest, Vienna, Madrid and Lisbon with a Duoro River cruise in 2022. Local trips to islands visiting friends. Friends from the east visiting us this month.

Main issue is how to pass on $ to kids and GCs. Already helped pay for three UNI degrees with two more to go. Two gifts of $50k to kids ten years ago from Uncle's estate. Considering another $100k each but looking for a reason. (Not charity as they are proud!)



Still not eating out as much as pre-Covid.