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Planning to be single into old age. - 8/15/2008 9:47:43 PM
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Onecontent
Posts: 44
Joined: 4/15/2005
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Hello.
I single and am in my early 40s. I do not forsee ever being married. Can anyone suggest ways in which to prepare financially for being a single senior citizen? My grandmother is in her 90's thus I have to prepare for at least 50 more years and I will have no children to fall back on.
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/15/2008 10:32:23 PM
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LCannon
Posts: 1262
Joined: 2/22/2007
From: Lebanon, OR
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I set up a 'programmed' accumulation system(25 years ago) that automatically sets aside a determined amount from my income, monthly. I do that via my mutual funds through my Edward Jones broker and if(when)my status changes I can switch/withdraw/add shares within seven days. I'm not anticipating any 'changes' but hey, things happen.
_____________________________
"It may be that when the angels go about their task of praising God they play
only Bach. I am sure, however, that when they are together en famille they
play Mozart and then too our dear Lord listens with special pleasure."(Karl Barth)
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/16/2008 1:38:51 AM
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metoo
Posts: 37
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I am single and in my early 50's. I imagine I will also remain single (without regrets.) One grandmother lived into her late 80's and my other lived to be 98. My mom died at 69. Financially I am planning to have assets to at least age 100. If I go Home earlier, I have made preparation for my assets to further God's Kingdom.
Single people without dependents do not need life insurance but should consider disability insurance and long-term care insurance.
My work provides disability insurance that will pay 60% of my salary to age 65 if I become disabled. However, they pay the premium which means I will have to pay income tax on the proceeds should I become disabled. I have a supplemental policy that I pay for (and therefore the income is tax-free) that will provide another $10,000 per year.
I have considered long-term care insurance. Both grandmothers spent their last 1-2 years in a nursing home. However, since I own my own home (without a mortgage) I have decided that is my "long-term care policy." My home would pay for about 5-6 years of full-time care.
I currently save about 25% of my income toward retirement. When I retire, my financial plan provides for me to maintain my current lifestyle with an adequate cushion for unforeseen expenses (medical, higher taxes, etc.) and maintain my current giving percentage.
If you are not sure what you need to do I suggest you check out as many retirement planning websites as you can find and run your numbers. I have checked at least 8-10 and all say I am on track to retire in about 10 years. Another option is to find a fee-only financial planner and have them help you. This validated what I found on the various websites.
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/16/2008 7:21:04 AM
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mutinywxgirl
Posts: 12577
Joined: 4/29/2005
From: west coast of FL
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I'm looking forward to many great ideas, and thanks for those already mentioned! I'm NOT in a good situation at the moment, but it is in the process of changing. I also do not anticipate ever being married and will be 50 in only a couple of years.
_____________________________
When blood and water hit the ground.
Walls we couldn't move came crashing down.
We were free and made alive.
The day true love died. The day true love died.
Lisa is happy THE ROWDIES ARE BACK!
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/16/2008 4:24:33 PM
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usa777
Posts: 49
Joined: 8/12/2008
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Great idea, this thread! Thanks!
OK, I guess I'm an extra tough case, but anyone have ideas for someone who is limited in her ability to work (physical illness)? I don't make enough money to save from each paycheck, although I'm in a public employee retirement system which takes a percentage from my gross pay. Problem is, with being part time, I'm concerned I'm not accumulating enough (I work about 24 hrs per week). When I was much sicker and couldn't work at all, I applied for state teacher retirement disability and was denied. (It's a long story of incompetence and psychological cruelty on their part.)
Thanks to money from a home equity line of credit, I have a brokerage account and a Roth IRA. (I know, I know - don't borrow to invest! But it takes money to make money.) I love learning about stocks and have been successful in making money to pay some bills and fully fund my Roth this way so far. This is like a part time job; of course it's risky and nothing is guaranteed. Lately I've been losing and things are tight.
I've got only one brother, no other family anywhere nearby, and my brother has no desire to assist in any way.
Any ideas? Thanks.
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/22/2008 11:14:51 PM
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pbaribeault
Posts: 1055
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If you have your own home, your living expenses (other than paying for the house) are probably moderate. By retirement, will you be paid off? After that point, as long as you can eat and sleep, you shouldn't face too steep of a challenge. It sounds like you understand how to be frugal if you need to be.
Also, I hate to sound practical to the point of being unethical... but if nobody's going to inherit from you, there's no reason not to die in debt. As end-of-life approaches, you should not feel tool worried if you begin to accumulate bills.
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/25/2008 10:56:50 AM
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NoShow
Posts: 462
Joined: 5/10/2005
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To me, saving as a single person is very similar to saving as a married person (and\or someone with dependent(s)). About the only difference is the matter of life insurance. That money should be directed towards some additional "care" (and\or maybe disability) insurance. Additional in that even married people should have some care and disability insurance.
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/27/2008 8:04:28 PM
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usa777
Posts: 49
Joined: 8/12/2008
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quote:
ORIGINAL: pbaribeault
If you have your own home, your living expenses (other than paying for the house) are probably moderate. By retirement, will you be paid off? After that point, as long as you can eat and sleep, you shouldn't face too steep of a challenge. It sounds like you understand how to be frugal if you need to be.
Also, I hate to sound practical to the point of being unethical... but if nobody's going to inherit from you, there's no reason not to die in debt. As end-of-life approaches, you should not feel tool worried if you begin to accumulate bills.
Thanks for your response. No, the house will not be paid off unless I hit it pretty big in a stock or two!
I've thought about dying in debt and the ethics. I may not have a choice, but if I do I definitely will pay for what I've bought.
Here's another ethical question. What if I can try to become full time at my place of employment for at least a year? We have liberal sick leave and I know I would have to call off a lot. Like probably once every week or two. But, it would help me quite a bit financially. After a while, if I couldn't handle it I'd have to try to go back to part time. Being a person who feels guilty calling off even if she IS sick, this is a real dilemma. I don't like people who use the system. (In fairness to myself, though, I am a very hard worker and get excellent evaluations.)
Thoughts on that? Thanks.
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 8/27/2008 9:10:21 PM
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pbaribeault
Posts: 1055
Joined: 4/29/2005
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How is it that you were able to secure a mortgage for a longer time frame than your remaining working years? I thought that was a banking no-no (as in they wouldn't take you on those terms).
As for employment ethics... the company you work for has decided how much sick leave they want to allot to their employees. They can be generous if they like. It depends on their business model and their employment and retention strategies. What they decide to do is not something that has to do with ethics, because they can hire people on any terms they like.
I would say, ethically, you must disclose if you feel that there is a reasonable possibility of your needs exceeding their policy -- because otherwise that would mean that you were accepting employment under terms that you might not be able to meet. If, however, you feel that their policy would be adequate, then there is nothing wrong with working within their structures, taking up to the maximum sick leave they provide, when you are in fact sick.
That's not "using the system" -- "using the system" is lying about being sick and taking days off for your personal enjoyment, or when you might work but don't feel 100% up for it, so you claim you can't. If the company is willing to accommodate people who are sick a lot, like you, that's their call, and you don't have to second-guess their wisdom in making that policy.
Guilt is an appropriate reaction when you break a covenant. The covenant of employment in this case is that you call off only when you are genuinely ill. If you do that, don't feel guilty. You can feel kind of disappointed that you couldn't do the kind of job that you had hoped to do... but that shouldn't be guilt, just a let-down. You and your employer are treating each other fairly, and there is not wrongdoing, therefore guilt is misplaced.
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RE: Planning to be single into old age. - 9/13/2008 5:22:08 PM
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usa777
Posts: 49
Joined: 8/12/2008
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: pbaribeault
How is it that you were able to secure a mortgage for a longer time frame than your remaining working years? I thought that was a banking no-no (as in they wouldn't take you on those terms).
As for employment ethics... the company you work for has decided how much sick leave they want to allot to their employees. They can be generous if they like. It depends on their business model and their employment and retention strategies. What they decide to do is not something that has to do with ethics, because they can hire people on any terms they like.
I would say, ethically, you must disclose if you feel that there is a reasonable possibility of your needs exceeding their policy -- because otherwise that would mean that you were accepting employment under terms that you might not be able to meet. If, however, you feel that their policy would be adequate, then there is nothing wrong with working within their structures, taking up to the maximum sick leave they provide, when you are in fact sick.
That's not "using the system" -- "using the system" is lying about being sick and taking days off for your personal enjoyment, or when you might work but don't feel 100% up for it, so you claim you can't. If the company is willing to accommodate people who are sick a lot, like you, that's their call, and you don't have to second-guess their wisdom in making that policy.
Guilt is an appropriate reaction when you break a covenant. The covenant of employment in this case is that you call off only when you are genuinely ill. If you do that, don't feel guilty. You can feel kind of disappointed that you couldn't do the kind of job that you had hoped to do... but that shouldn't be guilt, just a let-down. You and your employer are treating each other fairly, and there is not wrongdoing, therefore guilt is misplaced.
Thank you for your wise reply... that really helps a lot! Sorry it took me so long to respond.
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