[billethkid]

you can also live in TV.
My sister's ONLY income is SS and she lives in the historic section.
People who have had to live within their means know how to do it and they also do it successfully here in TV.

As has been said some where above....it doesn't matter whether you have a manufactured home or a custom million dollar house, the occupants ALL get to use the same amenities in TV.

btk

[jebartle]

Originally Posted by Pturner

We did not get a land line in TV, where we are snowflakes, and we cut it out a couple of years ago in Atlanta, where we still live.

I agree with Ohiogirl's numbers, as well.

We did just the opposite...Land line only.....Had smart phones with EVERY ADD-ON but found out we were DUMB after reading the fine-line of taxes etc. on bill.....Also found out that 99.9% of calls made could have been made at home after we retired, no rush, matter of fact, that is an understatement, giggle....I will agree that it is good to have a cell phone for emergencies, and will get one when that happens, ha ha, giggle, just kidding!...Really will probably get one of those cheapos at Wally-world at $7.00 a month...Saved about $200 a month.

[collie1228]

Making savings last through the retirement years is something we all are concerned about. T. Rowe Price has a tool that anyone can use, based on your own circumstances, that will calculate the probability of your savings never running out. It's called a Monte Carlo analysis, and the software looks at thousands of possibilities and is used throughout the financial services industry. It helps you understand how much you may have available to spend each month from your retirement savings, the likelihood your retirement savings will last throughout your retirement, and options to make up for potential shortfalls.

http://www3.troweprice.com/ric/ric/public/ric.do

I'm no financial genius, but I'm a detail person, and I have developed my own Excel budget spreadsheets for different retirement scenarios. This Monte Carlo tool helped me understand my savings needs and the probability of running out of money. And it's easy to use - the software is very user-friendly. And it's free. My only caution is that you read and fully understand the notes on the first page. Software can't do everything, and T. Rowe Price explains the limitations of the software.

[memason]

Monte Carlo is a good analysis, but the critical piece of information you need is not available. If it were available, the answer would be much simpler.

The one piece of critical information we are lacking is: How long we will live

[collie1228]

memason is entirely correct about life expectancy - but the software does allow you to use different ages to calculate the probabilities. I think it defaults to age 90, which is way out of whack from my thinking. Personally, my spending pattern at 90 would be nowhere near what it would be at 65. So I tend to use age 80 or 85 as my life expectancy.

[rjm1cc]

Originally Posted by brostholder

What a great thread for some of us "worriers". It certainly has helped put my mind at ease a little bit. In a few months I will be eligible (at age 62) to collect social security of $1800/month. The year after that my wife will collect $900/month for a total of $2700/month or $32400/year. We have group of investments that pay dividends that cover our CYV mortgage, amenity fee and bond. From what everyone is writing it appears that if we lived without eating out a lot, we could do it without ever touching our savings and other investments. Here is a typical day I spent in the villages when I was there last month. 6am-2mile walk (free). 7am-swim laps at seabrook (free); 930am-civil discussion group (free); 11am-line dance lessons for 2 hours (free); 2pm-two happy hour beers and free peanuts on the porch at Cody's watching the world go by ($6); 4pm-pennecamp pool talking with great neighbors (free); 530pm-happy hour double and dancing at LSL ($5); 8pm-a delicious linghuini and white clam sauce at pizza bravo in LSL ($14). There is no where else in the world that I could have that great of a day for $25!!!! Living in the villages...priceless!

You can increase your social security payments by delaying when they start. You might want to think about using some of your investments for living expenses for a year or two and then start SS.

[brostholder]

Originally Posted by rjm1cc

You can increase your social security payments by delaying when they start. You might want to think about using some of your investments for living expenses for a year or two and then start SS.

Thanks for the info. What I intend to do is take my social security when I am 62, then pay it back in full at 66. This (I think) will allow my investments to keep growing and then I will be able to get my full ss benefits.

[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by brostholder

Thanks for the info. What I intend to do is take my social security when I am 62, then pay it back in full at 66. This (I think) will allow my investments to keep growing and then I will be able to get my full ss benefits.

Could you explain this better? I've never heard about that. Could you provide some math as an example?

Thanks,

[Ohiogirl]

I have seen stuff somewhere that indicates the gov is aware of this and may take steps to not allow this glitch "payback" anymore." I'm really glad I'm retiring at basically 60 yrs of age and can decide, after 2 years or retirement, when I want to start taking my SS.

[Boomer]

Here is a link to an article from Kiplinger about the Social Security payback and the possible change that could happen. Within this article is a link to an earlier article on maximizing SS.

http://www.kiplinger.com/features/ar...disappear.html

Boomer

[railroadman]

Russ:

You can take your SS at 62 and pay back the amount you have received at 66 and then get your SS, with no reduction in benefits.

For myself, working for the railroad for my entire life, I have never paid SS. Railroad workers have their own retirement system and can retire with full retirement at the age of 60.

[zcaveman]

Originally Posted by railroadman

Russ:

You can take your SS at 62 and pay back the amount you have received at 66 and then get your SS, with no reduction in benefits.

For myself, working for the railroad for my entire life, I have never paid SS. Railroad workers have their own retirement system and can retire with full retirement at the age of 60.

You can take SS at 62 and then pay back all of the money that you received from SS and then get the full amount of your retirement at 66. I have no idea what you saved (unless you count the interest you made from the money you got) and I think that this program has been rescinded.

[getdul981]

I am already on RR Ret and the only time I paid in SS was for a few months before working for the RR and the time in military. I don't see the benefit of taking the 4 years of SS if you're just going to pay it right back when you get to be 66. If you can survive without SS for the 4 years, why not just quit work at 62 and not apply until you are 66?

[rjm1cc]

Originally Posted by brostholder

Thanks for the info. What I intend to do is take my social security when I am 62, then pay it back in full at 66. This (I think) will allow my investments to keep growing and then I will be able to get my full ss benefits.

You might also look at file and suspend. You half to be at full retirement age and one of you would have to have had minimal earnings to make it worth while. The one with the higher earnings files at normal retirement age and then suspends before collecting. The spouce can then claim on the suspended spouses benefits with no loss in benefits to that spouse. Other spouses benefits increase about 8% a year until 72.

[rjm1cc]

Originally Posted by brostholder

Thanks for the info. What I intend to do is take my social security when I am 62, then pay it back in full at 66. This (I think) will allow my investments to keep growing and then I will be able to get my full ss benefits.

You might also look at file and suspend. You half to be at full retirement age and one of you would have to have had minimal earnings to make it worth while. The one with the higher earnings files at normal retirement age and then suspends before collecting. The spouse can then claim on the suspended spouses benefits with no loss in benefits to that spouse. Other spouses benefits increase about 8% a year until 72.