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Just FYI for those interested in comparing various states you may be interested in: Taxes on Retirees: A State by State Guide See how each state treats retirees when it comes to income, sales, property, and other taxes...

Me and my spouse only. Groceries about $800-1K/month. Dining out is my hobby, and we travel specifically to dine around the Northern CA region where we live. It's a major expenditure, probably $1500 to $3K, depending on how often we eat out and where we are. On average we dine out 220+/yr...

When I read these kinds of threads, I think to myself, "OMG, we sound like our parents!" Does anybody else feel that way? LOL!

From our local media: The most recent estimate on people with long COVID in the US is 11%. However, the new variants are much more infectious even though milder. Studies are confirming that "It's "clear in our data that reinfection contributes additional risk." " (from the STAT newsletter, which...

I think you might want to actually talk to a professional Geriatric Care Manager (there are 2 professional associations certifying their members) to discuss the limits of what in-home health aides can do and cannot. It is not unusual for an accident/illness to require specific medical equipment...

Ugh - one more thing I forgot: On the survivor's "to do", medium-term at the very latest: update all legal docs including Healthcare PoA and Financial/Legal PoA. This is one of those things there is a strong tendency to procrastinate on - reminders of death, unfortunately - but it is really...

The problem with a spouse who is going to truly need help going it alone, is that they don't know the right questions to ask. We have an independent CFP firm for that precise purpose. Are they expensive? Yes, but less than an investment bank. And far more knowledgeable on issues like elder...

Our WR was 3%, but a meeting with our CFP firm convinced us to up it another couple of grand, monthly. With the increase in the std deduction and being the last 2 yrs of the Trump tax cuts, it was suggested we front-load our cash withdrawals since Spouse doesn't have to take an RMD until 2025...

American Standard Champion 4 is rated excellent for a low flush toilet. AS had a cracking issue a few years back which resulted in a mfg fix. Toto Ultramax 2 is an excellent toilet - I've had the older model for years and love the design, which cleans the bowl very well for a low-flush (get...

Just FYI I wouldn't say inflation is not worth considering. Healthcare inflation has always risen higher than CPI #s, and that is still true today. Our LTCi policies started with $125/day benefit at 5% compounded per year, and are now $399/day. Also, be aware that in many HCOL areas...

It's always wise to ask ahead of time, and maybe even ask more than once. A Wells Fargo op offcr told us our trust documents with POA weren't enough, they wanted authorization on their own form. But a few years later, when I asked again - I was told, oh no, we accept your own POA. !!!

Saving starts from fear. Then it becomes a habit. And like smoking, it isn't easy to break a habit, especially since having the security of enough $$$$$$$ gets emotionally tied to your sense of well-being. Many people feel the same as you do. You have invested a great deal of effort, time, and...

One has to perform an honest self-assessment of one's health risks, in view of what LTCi costs vs [your area] cost of senior healthcare in the three major scenarios: home healthcare aides, Asst Lvg, Skilled Care Nursing/Memory Care. I worked in insurance in several segments and judged both my...

Equal preferences, so I didn't vote in the poll. - Red wine: good Cabs, Barolos, Bordeaux (especially Pomerols) - Dry, yeasty champagne like Lawson with chocolate truffles - Ruinart's Brut Rose NV Champagne with multi-course meals; it literally goes with almost anything - Bourbon, but...

Was so nearsighted my driver's license listed me as 'blind w/o vision correction', LOL. Slowly developed cataracts and had surgery done, both eyes at once, at age 70. Spouse had cataract surgery a year earlier and chose the 'close-in' single focus lens as he reads a lot and paints miniatures as...

>>If you include Fidelity's 6 year estimate of long term care @ $113717 per year, I think this fails.>> Well...it would be interesting to see what Fidelity includes as its parameters of LTC. There are so many variables it's difficult to make a "one size fits all" estimate, anyway - which, yes...

+1. We retired on schedule on Dec 31, 2009. Except for the multi-millionaires we knew, we were the ONLY ones in our middle-class group of family/friends who was able to retire early. Not a single one of the other Boomers were able to retire for at least another 5 years, and most worked for 7-9...

Age 71 and yeah, a little more cautious than I used to be. One big reason why I bought a 2017 with the complete safety package. Would love the new 360-degree camera views now available but our front/rear cameras, plus blindspot warning lights, are good enough for now. Driving at night is harder...

Once your work record is established, it carries less weight as time goes by. What counts most over time is your average monthly debt to credit limit percentage, and how fast you pay it off. Income counts to establish your charge card credit limit, but has nothing to do with HOW you are...

I'm just curious (and you don't have to answer) what you are calculating for medical expenses as you age. What's the size of your emergency fund? Will you be regularly adding to it through retirement? As has been published many times, the average cost for retiree medical expenses NOT covered by...

I read recently in our local paper that the fastest growing group of homeless is...the elderly. I would guess this is especially true for those who rented most or all of their lives - my parents fall into the latter category. No pensions, little or no savings, no home. Family took care of them...

We dine out often at moderate/moderate-high price points, altho unfortunately haven't been able to do our usual regional travels as much this year, so can't speak to hotel prices past June 2023. Fast/casual local restaurants with an regular clientele say business has mostly stayed the same, or...

Re SF loss to Browns: Yeah, some of us fans were worried because Jim Schwartz, Browns DC, has always had Kyle's #. Long history between the two and Schwartz has usually come out ahead. Sigh. Kyle has done this before. No sooner does he do an A++ job on scheming a game (vs Dallas), then he seems...

That was my job, LOL. It's why I HATE virtual keyboards, they're so fricking slow.... Touch-type 85-100 wpm, 3-5 errors.

Just FYI: I'd like to ask participants in this discussion to be more careful about confusing MEDICARE with MEDICAID. There are at least three posts where the program "Medicare" is referenced, when I think the post is referring to "Medicaid"? The two programs are quite different, and many...