What have been/will be your big money spenders in retirement?

[Diogenes]

The thread was supposed to be about fun expenses, but as noted, that wasn't made very clear, and thread drift is what we do here. We're retired, what else do we have to do, hehehe! ...

In "barista FIRE" mode, my "fun" expenses are... zero. Zilch. Aim is to pay my taxes (sorry, had to reiterate), cover unsubsidized health insurance (taxable dividends too high for ACA subsidies), figure out what to do for housing, and hope that my adjunct academic job can go to higher hours next semester, so that maybe I'd have a bit more discretionary income. Goal is to not dip into the portfolio, just to cover the taxes... hence Barista FIRE.

Not to sound facetious, but wealth --> poverty. Something that didn't sink-in before! A larger portfolio means higher taxes, plus crashing out of healthcare subsidy eligibility. I had a phone call with a "covered California" rep, who was initially gushing with ebullience to rescue me. Then when I explained the problem, she fell silent.

 

[RetiredHappy]

In "barista FIRE" mode, my "fun" expenses are... zero. Zilch. Aim is to pay my taxes (sorry, had to reiterate), cover unsubsidized health insurance (taxable dividends too high for ACA subsidies), figure out what to do for housing, and hope that my adjunct academic job can go to higher hours next semester, so that maybe I'd have a bit more discretionary income. Goal is to not dip into the portfolio, just to cover the taxes... hence Barista FIRE.

Not to sound facetious, but wealth --> poverty. Something that didn't sink-in before! A larger portfolio means higher taxes, plus crashing out of healthcare subsidy eligibility. I had a phone call with a "covered California" rep, who was initially gushing with ebullience to rescue me. Then when I explained the problem, she fell silent.

Yep, when you cannot "manage" your income to get ACA subsidies, a decent health insurance plan is very expensive. However, if your taxable accounts are throwing out that much dividends, you are in pretty decent financial shape. Don't despair!

 

[doneat54]

7.5 years FIRE'd, but 2 years since DW retired. Travel and dining out are huge budget items for us. We value them highly. We budgeted $30k annually for travel 2 years ago, we spent all of it last year, and will probably hit $40k this year. Dining out budget is $1000/month and we very often blow past that... but still manage to pay the bills and the portfolio math still works.

 

[HI Bill]

1. New home, just prior to ER
2. Audio/Video Gear
3. Car
4. New furniture for the new house
5. Purses and Jewelry
6. Travel. This would have been 2nd on the list, had it not been for COVID travel restrictions.

 

[pjigar]

Homestead setup, hobbies, and tools in that order so far and ongoing! As they joke, I got my first egg after I spent $2500.

 

[aja8888]

I guess taxes since after my wife died I lost the marriage benefit (filing single). The second biggest expense is helping DD out since her husband has a worsening illness and may become disabled in the very near future.

Other than that, everything is just peachy around here.

 

[Koolau]

Our biggest "spend" is funding our favorite charities.

Our "indulgence" so to speak is living in a HCOL area (I like to think that we live "on vacation" year round.) By far that is our biggest actual "expense." We could cut our living expense by 2/3 if we chose to.

 

[RE2Boys]

Raising my two sons. They were one and three years old when I retired from my career job 24 years ago.

 

[imjustawarrior]

Retired last year with 1 in college and 2 in HS. Early on the largest expense will be college.

We also give our kids a 2 year old car when they turn 18. DW and I get the new car and then pass it down after 2 years. This means 2 new cars in a couple of years. I also want to get the new 4Runner that comes out soon. This means 3 new cars in the first couple years of retirement.

Behind that is medical insurance. No ACA subsidy. We did not like the ACA options here.

 

[6miths]

Windows. Maybe landscaping if I can’t convince DW to sell soon.

 

[Tom52]

Two years ago it was home improvements, last year it was a gift to DD for a condo down payment. So far this year it is new vehicle. Next year it will likely be federal taxes as I have to take my first RMD or cost to re-roof the house.