I told my parents that their generation was a fluke of demographics and that they are going to be the last ones as a generation to have a retirement. My generation is going to have to keep working to keep the lights on, and the idea of idle time at the end of one's life will be a dimming memory. Kids in their 20's are screwed over. Housing, health care, education all exploded in costs while incomes mostly flat-lined. When the realization hits for enough people to become a political issue, it is not going to be pretty. My parent's reply? I'm a member of a spoiled generation who does not know how good I have it, that I spend too much on lifestyle choices and I need to save more. They then asked me if I was ever going to move back to California where housing is 4x as expensive as it is out here. I love them to death but they don't get it.
Both are in their 70's, so yeapers. Sitting on SSI payouts and a pension and a 401(k). And a house fully paid off. (!!!!) They are both set up as long as they don't live too much longer than 100 so I don't have to worry about them living on the streets, or worse in my house.
That may have something to do with the time in which they lived... But clearly they have made some sound life decisions. I know a dozen people their age who are barely eeking it out week by week. Those SSI payments? If they're lucky that's like $1500 per month. That Medicare? It doesn't cover everything. Be glad they made the choices they did at the times they could. On the other hand... As a dude trying to scrape by today... Feeling like the world is stacked against me... I hear ya. The chances of me retiring like my parents have (at 71) seems like a distant pipe dream.Sitting on SSI payouts and a pension and a 401(k). And a house fully paid off. (!!!!) They are both set up as long as they don't live too much longer than 100
Had lunch with a buddy yesterday. He was ranting that his mom was guilting him about them ending up homeless and alone because their kids weren't taking care of them. He said "They're collecting $4200 a month in pension. They've got $2200 a month from social security. They live in a fully-paid-for house worth $650,000 and they have a hundred grand in laddered CDs. They can tap a hundred grand in liquidity and their worst-case-scenario is sixty four hundred a month. And they're giving ME shit for eating out too much." I should bitch. According to this article I have more retirement savings than a disturbing multiple of my peers.
And they have medicare. And if they go to talk to a city official odds are they get a chat because old people vote and young people don't. Which is another post and angry screed all in itself. If you have more than $10,000 in an IRA/401(k) or retirement account you have more money than 2/3 of adults in their 30's. That scares me. I paid just south of $14K in total taxes last year; unlike many people out here I see the benefits that money gives me as someone who lives in a (relatively) clean environment, low crime, schools, working courts and at least the bones of a social safety net. I'm doing some of the taxes for a few buddies and I have to take deep breaths and calm myself to keep from bitch-slapping some sense into these guys. 20 years from now, we are going to see a serious contraction in the economy, IMO as the people in my age group go to retire and have fuck all of nothing to fall back on. They are either going to have to drop all spending and do nothing but save or say screw it and either keep working or accept the income cut and go on SSI because there are no pensions any more. People in their 40's right now if they don't wake up are going to end up working till they die which will prevent the next generation from advancing in the corporate ladders as well. I already work with people in their 60's and 70's whining about Social Security and wondering why we spend so much on schools... people making more in SSI than most 20 year olds make working. Bitching into the void of the internet does not do anything but make me pissed off that I was not paying more attention when i was younger. But a few of my friends are going to have a serious talking to about emergency funds, tax withholding and not buying stupid shit they don't need. Maybe I can get through to some of them. If not, I anticipate the smack down from you when I come back here and go off on a rant about my dumb-ass friends.I should bitch. According to this article I have more retirement savings than a disturbing multiple of my peers.