Well I am looking forward to my 8.7% COL SS increase in January. I had decided to start my SS benefits when I retired b/c the cash flow felt psychologically comfortable since I wasn’t brining in an income anymore. I was ambivalent about it but am now thinking it was a reasonable decision.
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Because I worked the last 5 1/2 years before I retired at age 65, my SS was slightly more than 1/2 of DH’s. I took SS right at age 65 when I did retire from the job. DH had retired 11 months earlier but we put off claiming his SS until 2022. I had a 18 year work gap between age 41 and 59 due to DH’s heavy work travel in and out of the US and no family help for young children - and we could live OK on his income while the DDs were raised. I also had aggressive cancer at age 53 and fortunately was able to survive and become cancer free, although since it was in lymph system I still have annual oncology checks. However I being so far out from initial active cancer, not expecting cancer return.
Since we were both born in 1956, full SS was after age 65 – for us, it was 66 and 4 months. And those born after 1956, have own full SS age as indicated by SSA.
I ‘hate’ that penalty of the slight percentage on each month prior to full SS. However because my payments are much smaller, the financial impact is much smaller, and it was good for us to have that cash input. Looking now, my financial impact was only $82/month reduction by taking SS 16 months before full SS – however there is the time value of money and having the funds in hand. It was good for us financially for me to take my SS at that time. We also both started Medicare that month - which had more insurance expenses (prior to that we both had coverage under my employer health insurance group where we only paid 25% of cost.)
We had a healthy amount of cash on hand to finish out 2021, but once we met with our financial guy in 2022, we set up having funds from annuities as well as filed DH’s SS. So DH took SS 8 months earlier than full SS, and his payments were $143/month less. But again the time value of money. Glad we started his SS when we did. The annuity payments set up based on our monthly determination on funds needed.
I would look at the actual numbers - how much your spousal benefit reduction would actually be, and how much your benefit at age 62 is different than if you waited until full SS. You can get a simple “Social Security Statement” online - with a few scenarios of estimated benefit, for both you and DH. Can look/compare numbers - and then also check by with SSA by calling in to local office or whatever office you want to call in and wait. Sometimes local office wait times are less than 15 minutes.
Anyone have suggestions for an ETF/mutual fund that one can take advantage of rising interests rates for an IRA? I found a few, but they are closed to new investors.
They were recommending REITs on the radio the other day. No idea if that is a good rec or not.
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Rather than leave a larger estate at death, we plan to invest in kids/grandkids as is prudent and with responsible spending that our estate can handle at times when it can be well used. For example we have set up stock funds for 3 grandkids for college and we are the sole source of funds in.
Years ago, I had set up stock small funds for DDs when they received gift money (we often spent the gift money at the time as requested while I listed gift money amounts for us to put money into stock account), and they got a nice cash infusion in 2011 from when my mother had died late 2010 and her two small insurance policies had the 8 grandkids as beneficiaries. One older grandchild purchased a new car, one had it help with down payment on home, one had it help with higher ed (he obtained both PhD and later JD). Several others had it help with UG degree, or put to their student loans or general life expenses. It was nice that DDs had a few years for the stock fund to grow - and DD2 still has a decent savings sum there. Both DDs used some of the stock money towards trip to Europe (traveled at different times, with one having a study course paid by scholarship, and the other went with older cousin after college graduation).
DH and I purchased our first home in 1979 when we both were 23 - we used wedding money to purchase refrigerator and washer/dryer. We had paid off DH’s smallish school loan and shared a vehicle to get into a home sooner (I worked night shift as a BSN RN and he worked as an electrical engineer). We also paid off a 2nd home loan at prime (12%) as we purchased a home that had some equity and had an assumable 8 1/2 % interest. We had a competent and knowledgeable real estate agent that was terrific. We bid on 3 houses before the one ‘hit’.
My parents paid for nice wedding for us earlier in 1979 - not opulent but was considered ‘the wedding of the season’ by both sides of the family and friends (both areas small town WI with some relatives in Milwaukee and Madison).
Some couples now want an expensive wedding and help by putting in some
of their own money.
Trends have changed with many young people often taking a bit longer to establish themselves in career after college/higher ed. Parents’ health insurance can cover students/YAs until age 26. Inflation, higher ed costs, and honestly kids that are use to more experiences, travel and ‘things’ which drain off money. Some YAs may be moving up on career and relocate to various cities until they find the place where they will live. Some marry later.
DDs both have had very good jobs right at age 22. At that point, they were off our insurance, off our cell phone plan. DD1 married in 2017 at age 23 - her H was 27, and she had a very nice and well planned wedding. We helped with a cash amount, and when DH asked DD if they needed more DD1 said “we have it covered”. They have always planned to move for his career, and now that seems to be happening for 2023.
DD1/family of 5 (3 children) are going to be relocating quite a bit it seems, so no idea when they will be ‘ready’ for home ownership. DD2 is single but is in the city where she will be living. Her BF has at least another career year in another city - and will see if they do eventually marry. DD2 has believed for a long time that ‘he is the one’. They were in the same city for a while at the start of their relationship. He moved away and then she found her current job mid-2021 in the city they both want to be in; he had to take a job in a far away city/state to properly launch his career to eventually get that career job in her city. We are first looking at DD2 potentially purchasing a home in 2023/2024.
I know what DH and I learned along the way with our home purchases – including the second agent/second home/second city who didn’t handle our paperwork correctly and we had to pay 4 discount points when fixed interest rates on 30 year mortgage went from 12 1/2 % to 16 1/2% in mid 1980. We found out about that sitting at closing, and we had already moved into the home. With our knowledge and experience now, we would have challenged that and maybe done something different instead of being upset and still closing that day.
DD1’s very good friend and her H put in a contract on a house (in the same city DD1/family live) that was fraught with some bad decisions – but since the house didn’t pass the inspection, they were able to get out of the contract and get back their earnest money. I printed off for her ‘Your Home Loan Toolkit’ a step-by-step guide from Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that we got Jan 2022 from our credit union with our latest home refinance. It includes a lot of information, including a sample closing document/details. We never saw a closing document until our first home closing. I also wrote up a quick summary of ‘thoughts’ on home purchase. Her parents made a big mistake with building a home that had a lot of construction problems – IDK if they or the H’s parents had given them any guidance on home purchase.
We still haven’t gotten more formal documents on ‘estate planning’ other than our wills and all the beneficiaries on funds/insurance/etc. Information is still ‘evolving’.
What we do for DD1/family financially we do financially for DD2, and vice versa.
When DDs actually had some earned money, and we had cash available, we put into Roth IRA for each of them what could be put into a Roth. So that has been started. They can always have that ‘grow’ later - it is in TD Ameritrade accounts. Actually DD2 had a cash payout from a state pension and she rolled that into IRA and then into that TD Ameritrade Roth IRA (and paid the taxes from pre-tax to after tax). We also have them educated about term life insurance, and we have term insurance on each of them – we can always change the beneficiary. Also DD1 and her H purchased term insurance for him, and I pay for a term insurance additional policy on him that DD1 owns. The policy they bought is for 20 years, and the policy I paid for is for 30 years. If he dies during the term policies, DD1 will be glad to have the financial security.
I just saw this information within a broader article – some on this thread truly realize this on college costs which they paid for their kids. Currently, they say 40% of high school kids don’t go on to college. Some grandkids may be facing lots stiffer costs for higher ed as time goes on - and may want to ‘plan’ to assist – while others might think “I provided for my kids, now they can provide for their own kids”.
" A 2021 report by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce found that between 1980 and 2020, the average price of tuition, fees, and room and board for an undergraduate degree increased by 169%. What’s more, prices have soared across all types of institutions: Data from U.S News & World Report found that over the past 20 years, tuition increased by 144% at private colleges, 171% at public colleges for out-of-state students, and 211% at public colleges for in-state students."
I think you completely missed the point of my post. When I asked for advice on thoughts about asking my mom to consider helping my sister purchase a house, you said the two adults could figure it out and make the sacrifices needed, and not to get involved. Yet you are intimately involved in every financial detail of your adult children’s lives, including, apparently, giving them large sums of money.
I have no issue with parents helping children. I am merely pointing out the disconnect that you have between what you think others should do, and what you actually do yourself. It can be hard for people to see their own situation clearly, which is why this forum is quite useful, if one is truly willing to consider other people’s advice.
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I’m not sure about REITs. We already have a DST and plenty of investment in our home. But with the housing market potentially crashing, I don’t know how REITs will do. I’m just looking for something safe and high interest.
I don’t know. Maybe a REIT that specializes in biotech labs. Commercial real estate generally is problematic and residential rentals will probably do well in terms of current income but the underlying asset values ought to decline (that has never stopped them from staying high for extended periods).
I have another 15-17 years before I can retire. So, I am letting my employment related retirement fund just ride the market. I went through two crashes, lost about 20% in each, pulled the money and did not move back in time. Ride or die this time.
For my roth and other investments, I was in cash for well over a year now as the signs were ominous. I am basically investing in 6-9 mo CDs that are now yielding 4% or more. While I am not killing it, I am not losing money on those and happy to get some return on investments with a relatively short horizon of 6-9 months. Our mortgage rate is below 3%, cars are 0% and not too many fancy expenses. College funds are locked up in cash and covered for both kids at NC state schools. We do our best to live below our means. I grew up without too much and do not need much to be happy.
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8.7%? Wow, that is a huge COLA increase, I hadn’t heard about that. Very helpful for those who count on SS.
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Plus Medicare premiums will be down about $5 a month (because last year’s increase was too much, effectively).
Husband was annoyed that mySSA isn’t posting the new amount until early December. Then I pointed out we can multiply our current amount by 1.087, subtract the new Medicare, and see exactly what the new amount will be.
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Where are you finding 6 month CDs posting 4%?
I don’t see anything close to that.
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Just bought some 6 months T bills at 4.05%.
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The six month was paying 4.26% at the close today, but I cannot check the depth of book after hours to confirm purchase minimum at that yield. No state income tax either, if that matters to you.
Brokered six month CDs are available at 3.95% from Wells Fargo, call-protected, but I cannot think of a reason to buy the CD over the T bill.
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I just bought brokered JP Morgan Chase CD 6 mo at 4.1% through Vanguard. It does have a call option.
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I’m looking at getting some Treasury bills through my brokerage, but it’s a little confusing, so I’m trying to learn about it first.
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I didn’t get the jest of what exactly you were asking initially, down thread - I didn’t see (or read into) that you were asking your mom to consider helping your sister purchase a house. Now you spell it out a bit. You want to ask your mother because your sister doesn’t want to?
I also can’t read your family dynamics. No idea if there are other siblings beside your sister and you (and not doing a ‘deep dive’ into your other posts).
As I stated, this is our feeling “Rather than leave a larger estate at death, we plan to invest in kids/grandkids as is prudent and with responsible spending that our estate can handle at times when it can be well used.”
Your mom may not feel that way. Also didn’t indicate enough of what she currently wants to do, or how she has set up her estate. You may have a while ago, IDK, but again, not doing a deep dive into your posts.
I do not have a disconnect - the disconnect is directing some of our (my DH and my) own resources for a sibling (for not emergency situation) versus for my children and grandchildren (as I had stated with boundaries). I am not a hypocrite.
I hope I have clarified your earlier post (addressing some of the information and resources I have provided for DDs when it comes to RE) “Aren’t there are sacrifices the couple can make if they are truly interested in purchasing a home? Seems as if these two adults can figure out a way to make it happen without you providing the money, finding them the realtor and coordinating everything for them. I say, don’t put your oar in the water.”
If I had financially helped a sibling relocate, and they were not the driving force behind relocating, and then things went ‘bad’ for them (unhappy that they relocated - either because of their standard of living or other things) - that could also lead to a lot of family disruption.
“It can be hard for people to see their own situation clearly” - well harder to ‘see’ and ‘know’ on a forum with incomplete information too.
You also indicated your spending (and financial resources) are so much greater than sibling and her H. How would you feel if you were in her shoes?
There IS a difference between someone being in their 50s/60s and someone’s own children as YAs.
Also you can try to influence your mom as much as you like. It is ultimately up to her what she does with her estate. However, if she has indicated she wants to leave it equally to her children - well maybe then that is the point of discussion – using some funds available now to have her daughter/son-in-law living close.
In my family (and in DH’s family) – we would not intervene (or put our oar in the water) - nor would we suggest a move as you indicated. You even stated your sister would not initiate a move herself.
CC doesn’t seem to be cooperating for me right now to look back to posts beyond a few days ago.
Posts are now ‘moving on’ to financial things, which is great!
“Yet you are intimately involved in every financial detail of your adult children’s lives, including, apparently, giving them large sums of money.”
Where do you get all of that from? We do not give them large sums of money. Our wedding financial support was not lavish by any means, but it helped them have the wedding they envisioned.
DDs have very open communication with us, and DD2 sat down with me and wrote down her basic budget (from memory) - and she saw what her discretionary funds were - and she has made adjustments to be saving more for a home. Having money go directly into a savings account out of her biweekly paychecks. She also was very interested in seeing the closing document information on a home sale - and had very good questions for me.
DD1 has been fantastic with her budgeting skills. She had a spread sheet for her wedding, and wanted to show it to me after the fact.
DH and I are not ‘intimately involved’ in every financial detail of our adult children’s lives. I was shocked that son-in-law’s family (including his brother) knew what DD1’s salary was. Some families share info with various family members as they choose. That is their individual right.