Free Money Finance

Five Countries Where You Can Retire for $1,000 a Month

Kiplinger lists five countries where you can retire for $1,000 a month as follows:

1. Thailand
2. Bolivia
3. Nicaragua
4. Malaysia
5. Georgia

Here's my take on this:

• Personally, I wouldn't want to live in any of these. None of them appeal to me in any way.
• That said, if you haven't saved much for retirement and don't want to stop working when you're 90, these offer a great option.
• I'm not sure I'd ever leave the US -- I like living here.
• If we ever did move to a foreign country we'd likely go somewhere more expensive -- like St. Martin.
• For now, I think our near-term plan is to live in Colorado most of the year, then spend anywhere from a couple weeks to a couple months in the Caribbean when it's cold here.

Those are my thoughts. What would you like to add?

Where You Can Live on $50k Per Year

Business Insider lists 19 cities where you can live on $50k per year.

Here are my comments related to this:

• Where you live has a HUGE impact on your net worth. It's a fact of financial life that some places are simply more expensive than others -- some MUCH more expensive. It's hard to get ahead when you live in a place that's 50% more costly than a comparable city.
• I prefer the option of going low in cost and high in income by making a lot of money while living in a low-cost city. And don't say it can't be done -- I've done it for almost 30 years now.
• Of their cities listed, I've lived in or near four of them. And I happen to live in one now -- and the most beautiful place we've ever lived in.
• This is just their list of the top 50 markets that are best to live in for low costs. There are tons of much smaller markets that are inexpensive and still great.

I know there are other reasons to live in a spot than money (like family). But if you have the choice and are mobile, moving to a low cost-of living city will help you grow your net worth and ultimately retire much faster than a high-cost city.

Five Signs You Retired Too Early

CNN Money lists five signs you retired too early as follows:

1. You're bored
2. Your expenses are unpredictable
3. You don't qualify for Medicare
4. You're withdrawing early Social Security benefits
5. Your financial planner isn't happy

Here's my take on these:

• Yes, it's true that you need something to retire TO, not just retire FROM something. If you have no life outside of work, you either need to find some things to do or keep working. As for me, I have so many fun things I like to do that I'm busier than ever (in a good way) and get up at 5:30 am each day because I want to do them!
• Here's where a budget comes in handy. Not only does it help get you to retirement (by being a tool you can use to control your spending), but helps you predict what your retirement budget (both income and expenses) could be. You do NOT want to retire without completing a solid budget beforehand and one that includes margins of safety in case income is lower or costs are higher than expected. We had 20+ years of data in Quicken, so estimating our retirement budget was a breeze. You don't have to have that much info, but I'd suggest at least five years to have a good guess at what your costs will be.
• Healthcare in retirement is a HUGE issue because it's so expensive. Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of great alternatives, but some gaining popularity are health sharing ministries like Samaritan Ministries and Medi-Share. You may want to check them out.
• There's a whole debate on when to take Social Security. No one knows the best time for any one individual since we don't know when a specific person will die. That said, generally taking it later is better and if you have to have it to make your retirement work, it's probably best to delay a bit and build up some more savings.
• LOL! First of all, I'm pretty skeptical on the wisdom of many "planners" (who are really just glorified sales people). Second, he may not be happy simply because you're moving from accumulating assets which he gets paid to manage to drawing down those assets. I wouldn't put much weight on what my planner thought as long as I was confident in my own ability to manage my finances. If you know nothing about money, you're kind of stuck and will need to listen to someone more knowledgeable.

Anyway, that's my take on these five. What do you think of them?

Suze Orman Says 70 is the Correct Retirement Age

This piece by financial "expert" Suze Orman came out a bit ago.

Here's the headline statement:

If I resurrected "How Am I Doing?" today, I'd be handing out plenty of failing grades to anyone who thinks they will be able to retire before they turn 70. Yes, you heard me right: 70 is the new retirement age—not a month or year before.

She goes on to elaborate:

Look, I totally get that if you are reading MONEY you're probably a diligent saver. But it's always dangerous to assume you're better off than you really are. You likely have plenty saved up to breeze through 15 years or so of retirement. But, people, if you stop working in your 60s, your retirement stash might need to support you for 30 years, not 15.

Then she details her three steps to retirement:

Step 1: Delay Tapping Social Security Until 70
Step 2: Lay the Foundation Now to Work Longer Later
Step 3: Truly Enjoy a Secure Retirement

Several thoughts on this one:

• For most Americans, she's probably right. Why? Because they don't save like they should while working. They spend too much and save too little, which ends up meaning you need to work longer.
• That said, if you manage your money correctly, you can retire -- and retire quite well -- waaaaaay before 70. I did it at 52 and could have retired almost a decade earlier quite comfortably.
• If I was stuck at retiring at 70, I'd be very, very depressed.
• Even if you're "older" (like in your 40s or 50s) and haven't saved much, there's still a way you can retire before 70. For details check out this post on how to retire in ten years.

Anyway, that's my take on her thoughts. What's yours?

Happy New Year

Just want to wish you all a very happy New Year!

May 2018 be your best year yet!

I'll be back next week. As of now I'm in college football heaven. ;)