New survey shows only 4% of retirees living the dream.
 

A new survey shows that only 4% of retirees are living the dream.

44% are comfortable; 34% said they are not great; but not bad; 15% said they are struggling; and 4% are living the nightmare.

I think that we are lucky to be living in the Villages.

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Can you imagine how high the “living the dream” percentage would be if they only polled Villagers?

They only polled 2000 adults, including 500 retirees. Looks to be pretty much a classic bell curve distribution. The results are based on how the pollees "feel" rather than their realities, too.

A new survey shows that only 4% of retirees are living the dream.

44% are comfortable; 34% said they are not great; but not bad; 15% said they are struggling; and 4% are living the nightmare

Seems pretty much how society is, retired or not.
If you never made it during your best years, how the heck are you going to improve retired?

Also depends on what your dream is.

Wouldn't that depend on just what the "dream" is?

My "Dream" was to hook up with Barbara Eden (Dream of Genie) but I ended up with one better for the last 50 years.:icon_wink:

Why didn’t they poll exclusively retirees? Seems to me if you want a retired person’s opinion then . . .

Well
 

One person's dream is another's not so much. Much depends on the person and their expectations. We are in the comfortable/dream scenario which is nice for us. Lucky in decision making, taking appropriate chances and working with others to aid in the journey. Not having kids did assist in the process. Being able to help family at our point in life is a blessing.

That "4% are living the nightmare" that their talking about can be determined by your living with pain through health issues.

My wife had a uncle 85 years old some years back had a lot of medical issues and begged every day that he could die.
He had issues with his back and legs and always lived in pain and no doctor could help him.

He fell walking out to his mail box and died shortly after at 86 years old..

Now there's 4% I don't want anything to do with.

Living the retiree dream takes a lot of work, saving and planning. So grateful I was able to make it happen!

I hate these types of polls they give you some general percentages of whatever the topic is without ever really going into the specifics.
Is living the dream totally based on a dollar figure and if so, what is that figure?
100K per household member or more or maybe a point where you never again have to think about money?
Is it just a lifestyle where you play golf until the sun goes down or take four cruses a year?
I truly would like the people who conducted this survey to spell out what they consider living the dream is.
At the end of the day, I think we all have our own visions of what living the dream is.

Living the dream is a matter of expectations. The only thing you can take with you when you die is who you are. The most important thing you leave behind is who you were. Those who find satisfaction in who they are can live the dream regardless of material wealth.

True. I have a close friend here who is almost 71. She’s a recent widow. She’s lived here 23 years. She holds down two part-time jobs and rents out her guest suite as an Air BnB that is occupied all winter. She lives in a 2500 sq ft home in The Villages. Her Social Security check is under $2,000 a month, but she says she needs $6,000 a month. That’s why she is working and renting. If living the dream means being able to retire, she’s not living it. If she remarried and moved in with a man who owns a courtyard villa and has room for her, they could live the dream. But she loves her space. Her master bath is the size of my master bedroom, and her closet is the size of my guest room. Downsizing isn’t easy.

These polls are like medical numbers, one out of six has this, one out of five has that. If they were all correct, we would all have about twenty medical conditions. They are baloney. Do not listen to polls, listen to betting houses, they are more accurate.

A lot of people are in the bottom tiers because they didn’t save for retirement. I know people that was making really good money while they were working but they spent everything they made and some even went into debt to compete with the Jone’s.
We are very comfortable because we saved and invested everything we could. Have any of you calculated what you make per hour while you are retired? You should. For the last 6 months, my total income from investments and social security, we made $130 an hour, 24 hours a day, while we were sleeping, playing golf, playing in the pool, etc..

This is called Passive Income, what can you make on your investments while not doing anything.

It is her choice to have so many material things. She could easily be on easy street if she downsized. Simplify and be happy!

One of the 4%
 

Thank God I'm one of the 4%.

that’s tough , your health is everything , but many others with same issues push through and make the best of it . I’m thankful that I’m still living the dream , I’m 85 ,retired 25 years,,I still travel outside country alone ,workout at planet fitness in Leesburg 5 days a week and ride my bike , walk or run everyday and still shopping for clothes at the Mall of Millenia lol ,Yes I’m Still Living The Dream and Thankful Every Day

$130x24x365= $1,138,800 per year. Not bad! Congratulations!

So true. My "Dream" is youth, health for my wife and myself, and wealth enough to enjoy it. That ain't gonna happen. Still, we are comfortable and content, for now.

The dream life of a guy I served with in the Army was a pickup truck with a camper and 8 coon dogs.

Don't forget to find time to enjoy your savings.
Some on TOTV seem to want to be the richest person in the cemetary.

My mother, born and raised in Italy, came to the US immediately after WWII. One of many women abroad who married US servicemen, they were called "War Brides".
She had a clever little saying, which in Italian rhymed, making it more clever than the English translation, but it translated into,
"He lives on dreams, dies in sh!t"...
I think that was her way of telling me that dreams don't come true unless you buckle down and do the work.
Mom's are smart.

I've always questioned the rationale of sacrificing throughout your life with the anticipation of a 'golden' retirement. Working hard, saving and investing during your 'good' years to live well in retirement when health and longevity are questionable does not always seem like such a good plan. Some make that sacrifice for so many years only to die before being able to retire or after only a few short years of retirement. Many are in their retirement years with health issues that detract from their ability to enjoy life and also depletes the funds they have to weather retirement. We just don't know what will transpire in our lives.

Its difficult to plan for an unknown future. Many of us are here trying to make the most out of whatever we have left and finding that there's a lot more to deal with in retirement beyond the financial picture. I'm fortunate to be living beyond my expectations and still finding enjoyment in life. I don't know how much money I make in retirement nor do I care. I place more concern on staying active and healthy both in body and mind.

Longevity is a crapshoot. I have family members who lived decades longer than their parents, and family members who passed away while their parents were still living. It's not necessarily easy to find the balance between spending resources while young, and saving them for a lengthy retirement.

One thing is for certain. In the long run we all wind up in the same place.

Yeah we had done that. We were going to retire the following year. And then the department was eliminated and the job ceased to exist. Had already maxed out pay, were living within our means, and no one would hire a 55-year-old to become a brand new employee at a maxed-out pay. Getting a job at "entry level" pay would've meant getting paid less than Unemployment benefits paid. We couldn't pay the mortgage on that. So we sunk our savings into survival while spending 9 months trying to sell our house and move to a house we could afford to live in. Our dream for retirement was cut short ONE YEAR before we could grab it.

Living the retiree dream depends on the dream, and depends on circumstances.

The best layed schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft agley.

During my grade school years my father worked as a sales clerk at a Montgomery Ward store. He noticed that as long time salesclerks were nearing their magic retirement date, when their defined benefit plan would become effective, the company fired them. These were hard working people with years at the company. He saw the writing on the wall and found work elsewhere. This was during the late 1940s and early 1950s.

It's good that he had that opportunity. We didn't. No one got fired, in our case. The department was eliminated. It ceased to exist.

Sometimes dream turns into nightmare?:ho:

Well, that's life. Starts out alright. Then you have to go to school. Then you have to work for a living, raise a family, and deal with ever increasing pressures and age related issues. Finally you retire, but the years have taken their toll. Still, there is time (for some) to enjoy life a bit between the doctors visits and trying to adjust to the ever increasing pace of life with ever increasing costs, new tech, expanding populations, diminishing resources, all while getting older and more frail and expanding concerns about the ones you leave behind. You are faced with your mortality. Waking up in the morning is less a blessing then a surprise. And then you hear Peggy Lee singing, "Is that all there is?"
😏🤔🫣🫠🙃

If you can't retire at a comfortable or secure income level in America then it's not our country's fault. You just retire at a later age, period. History is full of failed persons that started over at a late age and then became successful.
Personally, I can't count how many different jobs/occupations that I have held, supported a family of six and put a couple of my kids through college, not having my own lower degree until after they obtained theirs. Of course, I had the support of a fantastic spouse that made the impossible, possible. I learned the hard way, to be careful with credit, sacrifice by driving old vehicles and eating cheaply. I also took jobs that I was NOT qualified for, but convinced those hiring me that I could work hard and become an asset. Many folks read a description of a job ad and think they don't or can't qualify. I took jobs that required college when my resume' stated that I did not have a degree (yet). I am not special. Many folks have done this, but today many do not have the confidence to attempt something that they fear they will fail. America is so full of opportunity that the only excuse for failure is a lack of motivation. How many successful millionaires/billionaires have failed multiple times before succeeding? The only/ONLY reason that I am not wealthy (as in rich) is that I was not willing to sacrifice more to get to the higher level. I am satisfied and comfortable living in The Villages at a middle income retirement level. In my opinion, it is at least 90% motivation and 10% ability.
"Living the Dream?" Never had much time to "dream" of my future. I just refused to stay down after being knocked down, many times. I never dreamed that I would be able to live in a nice home in some place like The Villages. Actually, I never dreamed of retirement.
Praise GOD! I have been blessed to live in the greatest country in the world.

Yet you're living the same lifestyle as those of us making $10 an hour. Your heirs will appreciate your accumulating such wealth for them.

Not everybody born with silver spoon in they’re mouth. Lots have NO opportunity or have no change of getting out of rut.

So many people sit on their butts, blaming the world for their problems, when getting up off it is the simple solution.

No silver spoon for me. I started from scratch as have most of us. I agree with Charlie Munger's observation and recommendation. Obtaining the first $100K is difficult and making sacrifices is inevitably necessary. At that point one then has some capital to invest and compound.

Many if not most people are simply unwilling to work hard and make enough sacrifices when starting out to accumulate adequate working capital. That is why they end up economically stressed later in life. Some sadly suffer misfortune through no fault of their own.

"Former Berkshire Hathaway co-chairman Charlie Munger, who passed away in November 2023, once told his shareholders that the secret to building wealth is amassing that first $100,000.

“I don’t care what you have to do,” he said. “If it means walking everywhere and not eating anything that wasn’t purchased with a coupon, find a way to get your hands on $100,000.”"

https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/charlie-munger-said-you-must-save-$100k-to-build-wealth:-10-tips-to-do-so#

So, the question is, why are they not living a comfortable lifestyle in retirement?
Poor planning is the answer for most. Sure, there could be other things that can derail your retirement plan but for the vast majority it will be that they did not enter retirement debt free.
Hard to imagine folks living in retirement with a mortgage or car payments or other bills that are not the normal day to day living expenses.

The vast majority of today's millionaires (like 85 to 90 percent) are self made. It only unsuccessful people that blame others for their lot.

I wasn't "born with a silver spoon in...." At one period of time in my life (supporting a wife and four children) I worked THREE jobs and was lucky to see home for a couple hours a day between those jobs. Maybe there is a very small minority of folks that "have no chance of getting out of a rut" but most of it is really just a matter of motivation, rather than ability. I've known guys that had little or no education that have made a good living. I know one friend that never made it past 7th grade and is doing better than me. Some folks get so used to gov. handouts that they are comfortable living off the "system" rather than enjoying the pride of making it on their own.

Depends on your definition of “living the dream”. Mine is being happy. Yep, I’m living the dream.