I believe that it also true for Part D, correct?
"Love the area "
yup, we do too. wild horses could not make us move any where else.
next time you are in the area, on the way to meeting VC’s, wave as you drive by my street, which is just off Sand Hill Rd!
Yes, there is a penalty if you don’t sign up for B or D when you’re 65 or when you stop having coverage as active employee. Of course if you have coverage as good or better than D, no penalty.
I had a meeting this week at a big foundation office which I think is on Sand Hill Rd. Very fancy.
Vis-a-vis Medicare, I really need to crunch the numbers regarding parts B and D, but if I have reasonable life expectancy, it may make sense to go whole hog with Medicare now and figure out how to cover my wife. This should be a job for an FA. Will request. Is there a part C?
^ Medicare Part C is also known as Medicare Advantage. It’s an alternative way of getting your Medicare part A and part B benefits. Instead of the government paying its share of your medical and hospital bills directly, you sign up with a private insurer who covers everything in Parts A and B and sometimes offers some additional benefits, but usually in a more limited network. Services, out of pocket costs, and rules for how you get service (e.g., whether you need a referral from your primary provider to see a specialist) vary. Some are structured as HMOs, some as PPOs, and so on. Some people prefer this approach, especially if they can find a plan that offers additional services (e.g., vision, dental) and/or one that offers lower out-of-pocket costs than traditional Medicare. Other people prefer the nationwide portability of traditional Medicare and the (usually) broader choice of providers.
https://www.seattletimes.com/business/irs-increases-contribution-limits-for-retirement-accounts-2/
$19k for 401(k) and $6k IRA - new 2019 limits.
Bunsen, you killjoy. 
We are sick of saving money, it never stops.
I am guessing it’s $7,000 IRA if 50 and over?
If you expect to go there again, make sure that your vaccines are complete, since Marin County is a hotbed of anti-vaccine activism and may therefore be riskier in terms of exposure to vaccine-preventable diseases.
https://www.marincounty.org/main/county-press-releases/press-releases/2017/hhs-immunization-rates-041317 indicates that a recent state law has brought vaccination rates up, but vaccination status is only checked at kindergarten and seventh grade, so unvaccinated kids who started kindergarten before 2016 may still be unvaccinated. Also, questionable medical exemptions have increased, particularly at certain charter schools.
I think I’m ok on Vaccines but I will check, @ucbalumnus. I looked at a house in Sausalito a couple of days ago. Beautiful views. Lovely house. ShawWife is not ready yet.
Uh oh, I’m toast…
What is with that anti-vax silliness insanity?
Our friends were just informed that it will be $250,000 per year for their SRs to get the individual 24/7 care each of them need. They are a couple but each of them needs 24/7 care. That’s a BIG $$$$$ #! :-& $-)
@HImom —What is SRs?
SRs = seniors (in this case, both are 90 years old). The male has been in and out of the hospital at least 6 times this year alone. The female has had her trips to the hospital as well. Both are quite frail ang stubborn.
@shawbridge "it may make sense to go whole hog with Medicare now ". I agree.
it will save you a tremendous amount of $$. but you dont need to go to a FA to find the best plan. Just join AARP, and then sign up for their Medicare B/C plan and a RX Medicare D plan with the pharmacy of your choice. Simple. Both of our plans are through AARP Medicare UnitedHealthcare. And we chose the B plan [F] that covers all non RX costs. Our only out of pocket expenses. besides the cost of insurance, is small amounts for RX’s.
Total cost of insurance for both of us / month is under $400.
what a blessing after paying so much for so many yearsfor individual insurance that we really did not need.
Shawbridge, check to see what the various plans will cover for overseas medical services, given the amount you travel. It’s also a consideration for your DW.
See what you think…
There are many good cities in the various states mentioned…
IMHO one also has to factor in where family is and how to stay close to important family members.
Alaska has very high cost of living expenses- gas, food, power, etc.etc. DS is glad to be living in Mi now, where his income goes a lot farther .
ANY part of Hawaii has hi cost of living expenses, as Himom can attest.
too many cities on this bogus list are unaffordable at $1500/month, imho
La Grande? Who would want to deliberately move to retire there? Wenatchee, OTOH, is a pretty neat place.
Alas, I suspect that most of the places I would like to live are places that others would find desirable as well. Hence, prices will not be low. But moving to a place with a lower living costwould be plan B or C.