Unplanned, Unavoidable Expenses this year

[foxfirev5]

Great thread. Lots of stories. Gosh, do folks just keep $100k around in cash for this stuff?

Yes. While I would like to be a 100% equity guy I know that real life comes along on a regular basis. And it's not always negative. Some of our best deals have been a result of having the cash to close in 10 days on a real estate deal. However not so much in the last 10 years.

 

[Music Lover]

On the subject of unexpected and unavoidable expenses, I think a lot of the instances we are quoting aren't completely unexpected. We know that things like A/C's, roofs, cars etc are going to need replacing at some point. We just don't know exactly when. It was the same with my dental work. As much as I'd like to make it through the next few decades with just periodic cleanings, I know that's unrealistic. I spent $5K on my teeth about 5 or 6 years ago, and had a feeling another big dental expense would happen in the future.

Most of these expenses we call unexpected, are not really that - and that's why we save.

I agree. If you own a house things like roofs, furnaces, AC, etc. will have to be replaced/serviced on a regular basis. If you own a car that's getting up in years/mileage it will need parts replaced. For the most part they're not really unexpected expenses.

We bought a cabin in January and then spent about $5000 in addition to the purchase price but those were upgrades we wanted to do. I supposed the initial purchase of the cabin was unexpected as we had no intention of buying one.

 

[Aerides]

Great thread. Lots of stories. Gosh, do folks just keep $100k around in cash for this stuff?

I keep about 3 years in cash/equivalents for expenses, so I don't even get stuck selling at a bad time (recession ride-out thing).

Yeah it would hurt more if I'd have to do anything other than auto-pay the credit card, or hand over a check, for things I'm usually annoyed at to begin with.

 

[braumeister]

Sweet! General Motors does do a few things right

Yeah, that's as beautiful as many Ferraris IMHO.

 

[Dtail]

Yeah, that's as beautiful as many Ferraris IMHO.

Exactly. From further away, I sometimes think ah there is a Ferrari approaching.

 

[FLJim]

We always like to remind others to include wiggle room for lumpy expenses in their budgets, and often see folks projecting plans for retirement that seem to miss the irregular big things that can crop up. For us this year was a doozy. I figured this might be a good place to capture them to just to show how things can result in Blowing That Dough even when you didn't want to, but had to:

$1200 - moved our water main line to accommodate a new pool (found out after the dig started...)

$900 - shower repair. The tiles lining our stand-in shower - 18" square travertine - were coming loose. No way to DIY that safely.

$5500 - new AC. Our compressor died, 13 years, beyond repair as the factory welds were corroded

$600 - new washing machine...would have been $300 parts to repair

$1800 (this one hurt) correcting/reinstall of our new pergola after the first one was botched. In reality it's the original, planned, $700 that was the sunk cost, as the $1800 is what we should have paid to do it right to begin with

$300 - garage door springs broke/replaced

~$5000 - a medical emergency left DH meeting his full high deductible on our health plan (he's fine now). We do always expect to have some expenses beyond premiums, and have HSA money, but I see a lot of folks look at the costs of healthcare and only plan for premiums in their budgets. We're 52 so, yeah don't tell me you're young so you don't have to worry yet!

So... yeah. 15k of stuff we had no reason to expect on Jan1! (not the best year for me to have also decided to get lots of new furniture as well...)

Anyone else have some of these?

Life happens. Always has & always will.

 

[Cobra59]

Great thread. Lots of stories. Gosh, do folks just keep $100k around in cash for this stuff?

I had to move a few things around, but no equities sold to finance the car obsession this year

I had said I would get a mid-engine Corvette, but I did not plan to buy a new one. Plus I had to wait 8 months from the time of deposit down to car delivered, so there was time to line up the funds. Fortunately, my waiting time was October to May, so not much lost driving time.

Thanks for the comments on the C8 Corvette HTC. This is my third Corvette and the best one by far.

 

[CCdaCE]

THAT's where the money went!

• Over $1k in DD's last holdout wisdom tooth extraction. 2 visits
• $900 dishwasher. Drain line ruptured, could've replaced, but, I had already repaired the front at least 5 times and a hinge recently. 20+ yrs. old. Did the "$200 installation" myself.
• $1500 out of pocket in medical for my "checkups". Ongoing, but, hopefully not this much annually. Wife and daughter had other minor OOP costs, as well.
• Over $4k in DS's braces. Not unplanned, but, unknown exact timeline.
• $800 water heater. Not unplanned, but, "bottom was getting paper thin". Thought it started leaking once, but it was furnace condenser. 20+ yrs. old.

In other "planned" expenses:

Drilled a well on the property we bought 4 years ago. $5300. Didn't need it this year, but, tried to beat the price increases expected this spring and the future. Quoted $4800-5600. Remote location but less than 100' deep. They acted like they didn't need the work.

Need a new fence but didn't blow this $7-9k awaiting lower prices, after what I saw as a $4k replacement for 165'. Maybe this/next spring.

 

[ElizabethT]

$8000 in unexpected expenses, but I do need to say that we have a 'whatever' fund that we set each year for just this type of stuff. If it doesn't go toward 'eh' stuff like it did this year, then we get to have fun at the end of the year deciding where to spend it.

-Medical deductible reached for the first time ever. No illnesses, just some pretty significant issues that needed to be addressed: a badly infected thumb, and a large benign cyst needing removal. $6000

-Pricey auto repair work on a 10 year old SUV. $2000

Well, make that $10,500 in 'unexpected' expenses for 2021. Both the garage door opener and washing machine went out this week, both are ancient and we thus replaced. And, because the laundry room is viewable from within our home, and, because, yes, these things matter to me, a new matching clothes dryer to go along with the new washer.

 

[simple girl]

Unexpected dental implant for an old root canal that became infected and fractured. About $6K.

I had absolutely no pain as part of my symptoms. Just a little pimple on my gum that was strange. Crazy the things you learn about as you age.

Oh and broken garage door spring. Yippee! LOL

Still under budget overall though...hmmmm...hope I don't jinx myself!

 

[Major Tom]

Unexpected dental implant for an old root canal that became infected and fractured. About $6K.

I had absolutely no pain as part of my symptoms. Just a little pimple on my gum that was strange. Crazy the things you learn about as you age.

Bingo! This is exactly what I am going through, including the amount it is costing me. I had a small water blister on the gum. Every few days, I'd pop it with my finger (which the doc said was a good thing to do). Mentioned this to the dentist, who x-rayed it, and told me that the root canal on my #2 tooth (molar) had become infected. I had the extraction and bone graft done on Monday. The oral surgeon put me under completely for the procedure, and it was a most enjoyable experience. As I slowly came round, I have vague memories of telling the nurse that I'd had a most wonderful time, and asking whether I came back the next day, if we could do it again. She replied in the negative, while firmly steering me towards the recovery room.

Although no-one wants to have to spend sizeable chunks of money on their teeth, I am still doing so happily. Sound health is a great luxury, and a good set of teeth is an important part of that equation.

 

[MC Rider]

For that price range it's no wonder so many people walk around missing teeth.

 

[Major Tom]

For that price range it's no wonder so many people walk around missing teeth.

Yep. My dental "insurance" is more of a discount plan. The premium is minimal, but on anything other than basic cleanings, the occasional set of x-rays, and fillings, I have to pay a fairly big portion of the cost. Dental insurance that has good coverage, has much higher premiums. Either way, it seems that you end up paying about the same amount.

Many Americans can't easily come up with a few thousand. If their teeth go bad, they just have them extracted, and live with the gaps. If they can't even afford the extraction, they wait for the bad teeth to fall out, which is a risky way to go. Better hope the infection doesn't spread, and cause more problems. It really *is* scary stuff.

 

[MC Rider]

Dental should be included with medical insurance, imho.
What, your teeth are not part of you?


Yes, I have spent plenty on beyond basic dental work.
$300 oop for a "deep cleaning" coming up soon.


Include Vision Ins too.

 

[Sunset]

....
Although no-one wants to have to spend sizeable chunks of money on their teeth, I am still doing so happily. Sound health is a great luxury, and a good set of teeth is an important part of that equation.

+1
My Mom used to smile and tell folks her car was in her mouth, as she sold the car after Dad died and the $5,000 paid for her big dental work bill.

 

[Major Tom]

+1
My Mom used to smile and tell folks her car was in her mouth, as she sold the car after Dad died and the $5,000 paid for her big dental work bill.

Just this morning, a friend said to me that, with all the money she's spent on her teeth over the years, she could have bought a really fancy car by now. However, she would be a toothless old lady with a flashy car. I told her that she made the right decision!

 

[FIREd]

Now that my car has gone through its annual inspection, I can say that the only truly unexpected expense this year (so far, fingers crossed) was a tire repair for 35 euros.

 

[Retired Expat]

We always like to remind others to include wiggle room for lumpy expenses in their budgets, and often see folks projecting plans for retirement that seem to miss the irregular big things that can crop up. For us this year was a doozy. I figured this might be a good place to capture them to just to show how things can result in Blowing That Dough even when you didn't want to, but had to:

$1200 - moved our water main line to accommodate a new pool (found out after the dig started...)

$900 - shower repair. The tiles lining our stand-in shower - 18" square travertine - were coming loose. No way to DIY that safely.

$5500 - new AC. Our compressor died, 13 years, beyond repair as the factory welds were corroded

$600 - new washing machine...would have been $300 parts to repair

$1800 (this one hurt) correcting/reinstall of our new pergola after the first one was botched. In reality it's the original, planned, $700 that was the sunk cost, as the $1800 is what we should have paid to do it right to begin with

$300 - garage door springs broke/replaced

~$5000 - a medical emergency left DH meeting his full high deductible on our health plan (he's fine now). We do always expect to have some expenses beyond premiums, and have HSA money, but I see a lot of folks look at the costs of healthcare and only plan for premiums in their budgets. We're 52 so, yeah don't tell me you're young so you don't have to worry yet!

So... yeah. 15k of stuff we had no reason to expect on Jan1! (not the best year for me to have also decided to get lots of new furniture as well...)

Anyone else have some of these?

But really are these all unexpected? Home appliances heating cooling systems, tvs etc have a useful life. Is it unexpected that they will due eventually? I had to buy a new laptop this year as keyboard issues were getting unbearable. But I got 8 years out of it. Expected life is 5 so I think I did okay.

I know my house has a thatch roof and they will last 15-20 years where we are. Is that an unexpected cost when it needs to be replaced? Or do I budget and set aside $1000 a year for the roof? And build up a reserve?

Same for many things like the shower walls of the OP. We need to budget for these kinds of things and carry forward any savings we might have to pay the cost of the eventual replacement. I recently bought and renovated a home. Despite all new electrical, plumbing, heating etc I still carry a $2500 budget line item for home repair and will increase that 10-15% a year as things will age so in 10 years when things really start to fail it will be covered

 

[Aerides]

But really are these all unexpected? Home appliances heating cooling systems, tvs etc have a useful life. Is it unexpected that they will due eventually? I had to buy a new laptop this year as keyboard issues were getting unbearable. But I got 8 years out of it. Expected life is 5 so I think I did okay.

I know my house has a thatch roof and they will last 15-20 years where we are. Is that an unexpected cost when it needs to be replaced? Or do I budget and set aside $1000 a year for the roof? And build up a reserve?

Same for many things like the shower walls of the OP. We need to budget for these kinds of things and carry forward any savings we might have to pay the cost of the eventual replacement. I recently bought and renovated a home. Despite all new electrical, plumbing, heating etc I still carry a $2500 budget line item for home repair and will increase that 10-15% a year as things will age so in 10 years when things really start to fail it will be covered

Well of course anyone with a house knows the approximate life of their roof, major appliances, etc.

But I had two points for this thread:

1 - starting on Jan 1, none of these were in my "line of sight" of things I really expected to come due this year. Sure I always know stuff will crop up - this is just my list this year

2 - a lot of folks planning ER overlook lot of this stuff, and/or undercount it. I thought it might be helpful for others - in addition to cathartic for me! - to lay out some real examples.

 

[athena53]

Bingo! This is exactly what I am going through, including the amount it is costing me. I had a small water blister on the gum. Every few days, I'd pop it with my finger (which the doc said was a good thing to do). Mentioned this to the dentist, who x-rayed it, and told me that the root canal on my #2 tooth (molar) had become infected. <snip>

Although no-one wants to have to spend sizeable chunks of money on their teeth, I am still doing so happily. Sound health is a great luxury, and a good set of teeth is an important part of that equation.

Wow- I thought I'd had every possible dental issue but none ever started with a pimple on the gum.

I agree on being grateful that implants are an option- I just got my 6th and 7th over a period of about 15 years. I eat a lot of fresh and stir-fried vegetables and a heavy fiber diet in general- I need those teeth and can see how missing a lot of them would make it harder to eat a healthy diet.

Still... if my oral surgeon had a loyalty program I'd think I'd have earned a free implant by now!

 

[ElizabethT]

Now that my car has gone through its annual inspection, I can say that the only truly unexpected expense this year (so far, fingers crossed) was a tire repair for 35 euros.

The year's not over yet, but I for one sure wish it was. See my post above.

 

[simple girl]

Bingo! This is exactly what I am going through, including the amount it is costing me. I had a small water blister on the gum. Every few days, I'd pop it with my finger (which the doc said was a good thing to do). Mentioned this to the dentist, who x-rayed it, and told me that the root canal on my #2 tooth (molar) had become infected. I had the extraction and bone graft done on Monday. The oral surgeon put me under completely for the procedure, and it was a most enjoyable experience. As I slowly came round, I have vague memories of telling the nurse that I'd had a most wonderful time, and asking whether I came back the next day, if we could do it again. She replied in the negative, while firmly steering me towards the recovery room.

Although no-one wants to have to spend sizeable chunks of money on their teeth, I am still doing so happily. Sound health is a great luxury, and a good set of teeth is an important part of that equation.

Oh wow, someone else with the same weird story! lol! Crazy that there is no pain when you have an infection and fracture - because the root is dead and gone due to the root canal. Funny your reaction to being put under - I was knocked out, too. I paid extra for that...didn't want any horrific memories as I've heard getting molars pulled is pretty intense. Unfortunately the surgeon missed part of the root of my tooth, as seen on x-ray weeks later. So I had to have the rest of it pulled, not sedated, right before they put the implant in (I switched to his partner, who has more experience). Quite an ordeal!

I had the crown implant made (by CEREC, highly recommend) and placed with the abutment on Tuesday, and I have a BEAUTIFUL new molar. It's amazing to have a tooth again - and like you - I am ever so grateful to have the means to afford this expensive beautiful tooth!

 

[aja8888]

My recent implant on tooth #9 was brought about by an infection above it that the dental cleaning tech saw. No pain ever.... But that tooth was damaged in a car accident in 1976 (before airbags) and the root had solidified over the years so a root canal to get at the infection was not possible.

Well, pulling, bone graft in May, implant in September, and now the tooth is supposed to be arriving between Christmas and New Years! This was a $6 K adventure and third implant. Lots of crowns over the years too!

I'd hate to add up what I have spent in my mouth over the last several years, but I am sure it was enough to buy a nice pickup truck!

 

[finnski1]

Dental should be included with medical insurance, imho.
What, your teeth are not part of you?


Yes, I have spent plenty on beyond basic dental work.
$300 oop for a "deep cleaning" coming up soon.


Include Vision Ins too.

I agree. I have spent more on dental than regular health in the last few years. I don't know where along the lines in history this all started but it did and then just became the "norm". Maybe it all started when they used to pull teeth in the barbers chair? Maybe it was considered cosmetic?

 

[athena53]

I don't know where along the lines in history this all started but it did and then just became the "norm". Maybe it all started when they used to pull teeth in the barbers chair? Maybe it was considered cosmetic?

A bit OT but I think you've got it. According to this article, dental work was considered rather primitive compared to care for the rest of the body. Medical insurance was developed to help with the high costs of surgery and hospitalization; dental costs were more routine, mostly filling and extractions, and thus more manageable.

Dental insurance developed later as a benefit for some unions, but it was seen as just a reimbursement for costs that were pretty much predictable and somewhat controllable.

I'd be very wary of folding dental benefits into a medical plan now. As we've observed here, good care can get very expensive. Other discussions have had posts telling of dentists recommending extensive and unnecessary treatment. If implants were covered 100% or even 90%, I can see the less-scrupulous practitioners doing them when a more conservative treatment would work, or doing them for people who smoke or take bone density meds (both of which can make you a poor candidate) or who might not have regular cleanings afterwards to keep the sites around them healthy.