HuskerDo

On 4/8/2021 at 8:51 AM, sirineou said:

The cost of living (COLA) for 2020    1.3 and it is projected to be the same for 2021 but who knows , Mine went up $20.60  LOL,   big woopty do!!

The projections for 2021 you refer to are months old and prices have indeed gone up faster than the "experts' predicted in the US. 

Jan Producer Prices up 1.3%

Feb Producer Prices up 0.5%

March Producer Prices up 1.0% (which is up 4.2% year over year)

On 4/7/2021 at 9:18 AM, BTempleman said:

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. 

If by "bird" you mean your "one-eye" and by "bush" you mean a beautiful woman's sweet spot I would question the value of your equation.

15 minutes ago, meechai said:

For myself I started at 62 & have no regrets

 

my thinking roughly was  a projection I imagined (not my real number but for ease)

 

1- Avg age of death I'm guesstimating 83 if things go well

Start at 62 @ $1000. per month = 252k

Start at 66 @ $1300. per month = 265k ( not much difference)

Start at 70 @ $1600 per month = 249k is this a joke? No 13 years @ 1600 per = $249,600

 

These are not actually my numbers but the $300 more per age section is what SS was showing me at the time

I decided to take SS when I was 62 ( I stopped working at 56 & had no plans to return so amounts were static already)

 

2- One last small thing that may matter for some is if you make under 25k a year no income tax on SS

If over then Income tax will kick in some info below

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/social-security/questions-answers/how-is-ss-taxed.html

 

More info.....

No one pays federal income tax on more than 85 percent of his or her Social Security benefits based on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rules. If you:

• file a federal tax return as an "individual" and your combined income* is
  • between $25,000 and $34,000, you may have to pay income tax on up to 50 percent of your benefits.

o    more than $34,000, up to 85 percent of your benefits may be taxable.

• file a joint return, and you and your spouse have a combined income* that is
  • between $32,000 and $44,000, you may have to pay income tax on up to 50 percent of your benefits

o    more than $44,000, up to 85 percent of your benefits may be taxable.

• are married and file a separate tax return, you probably will pay taxes on your benefits.

*Note:

Your adjusted gross income
+ Nontaxable interest
+ ½ of your Social Security benefits
= Your "combined income"

4 hours ago, Alk said:

The question is...how happy are you with your life now?   I was unemployed and the job market was still fairly bad for older guys in the USA in 2013/2014.  I was divorced, and living in a small apartment in Southern California.  I could barely afford rent in the part of town i lived in.  I was living a lonely life of quiet desperation. I had a modest amount of 401K money to supplement my Social Security.  I decided to give my possessions away, pack up a couple of suitcases, and move to SE Asia when I turned 62. After traveling back and forth between Thailand and the Philippines, I ended up in the Philippines.   From living a life in California where I could barely afford to go out and have a fast food lunch (my rent alone was almost $1500/mo and $600 for very basic insurance), I ended up living in a 4-star hotel (got a great monthly rate), going on vacations around the country on almost a monthly basis, and having multiple attractive young women to date. I was living a dream life...all for under $3000 a month...at least I was until one girl snagged me..lol.   

 

The bottom line is that none of us know how long we are going to be alive.  For me, I decided the future had to be now, and never regretted for a day my decision to collect SS at 62.  Best decision of my life by far.  If you are in a similar situation...I'd by all means recommend relocating to SE Asia as well...ASAP.

 

Well said Alk but $3000 seems like an awful lot to be spending over there. With a wife, maybe, but single? You must have REALLY been enjoying life. Good for you!!

5 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Yeah, it really is!

There's another factor expats might consider.

We look at U.S. life expectancy tables.

But if you've been living abroad a long time are you really a U.S. person any more? Legally yes. But biologically?

I initially read this too quickly and read it as "But if you've been living as a broad a long time are you really a U.S. person any more? Legally yes. But biologically?

9 hours ago, sirineou said:

The cost of living (COLA) for 2020    1.3 and it is projected to be the same for 2021 but who knows , Mine went up $20.60  LOL,   big woopty do!!

I think it'll be a bit higher than 1.3% this year with inflation creeping in. I'm guessing 2.1%. Just a guess. Maybe a tad higher.

7 hours ago, kynikoi said:

I don't buy this at all.

 

There are many items and services that you may not actually purchase yet have a heavy indirect impact of what you state.

 

Further, in US homes and the stock market are priced at absolutely absurd levels.

 

One major concern is stated in my OP was the debasement of the currency. This has been going on since 2009 but not felt because the (money) economy has no velocity.

 

65 will be the latest I'll draw.

"I don't buy this at all.".... that's fine. I wasn't selling anything.

"There are many items and services that you may not actually purchase yet have a heavy indirect impact of what you state.".... true. I was just making a general statement that not all inflation affects everyone the same way.

"One major concern is stated in my OP was the debasement of the currency"..... it can go the other way just as easily and there would be no debasement(no, that's not where I live) to worry about. 

"Further, in US homes and the stock market are priced at absolutely absurd levels".... yes, housing is out of control but there are some real gems in the stock market that people seem to be ignoring. Most are overprices I agree.

On 4/6/2021 at 8:35 PM, kynikoi said:

Thanks. That would be five years for me. I'm really expecting inflation to kick in perhaps in two years. I believe it's already running above 4% in usd.

Just remember that Social Security is inflation adjusted so if inflation runs at 4% you get a bump in your payment (or projected payment if you aren't fully retired) of 4% that year.  Personally I'd love to see inflation go up 3%+ a year as I consume little so inflation doesn't really affect me but I can get the additional 3% boost to my SS and pension payments.

On 4/6/2021 at 8:35 PM, kynikoi said:

Thanks. That would be five years for me. I'm really expecting inflation to kick in perhaps in two years. I believe it's already running above 4% in usd.

Inflation only applies to a person as it relates to the things they use/buy. The inflation index is made up from a basket of goods. New additions this year are baby wipes, hiking boots, pineapple, bundled communication services and stout beer amongst other things. Several things dropped from the index as well. Other things include..... rental prices, car prices, gas prices, clothing, airline prices, etc. If this "basket" of goods goes up at a 5% rate but you don't buy/use any of them then the 5% is meaningless to you and the inflation rate on what you do use/buy might be less than 1%

If all of those things I just listed are things you don't buy/use go up in prices it means nothing to the inflation in "your" life. Officially inflation is expected to come in at 2.2% in the US but I don't doubt your 4% belief is more accurate.  The best way to avoid worry about inflation is to live a frugal life well below your means. Make sure you have plenty in savings and/or investments and not rely solely on Social Security. That's the best way to live a stress free life (as far as finances goes). 

15 hours ago, joecoolfrog said:

China probably should face consequencies but in practice they wont. What do you suggest an ' easy to win ' trade war ?

No, just have the entire world move all operations out of China and stop doing business with them. All they have to offer the world is cheap labor and we all can get by without that.

On 12/13/2020 at 10:39 AM, Meat Pie 47 said:

Well Australia tried that and look whats happening

BTW Meat Pie,  your first name doesn't happen to be MINCED does it? ????

On 12/13/2020 at 10:39 AM, Meat Pie 47 said:

Well Australia tried that and look whats happening

Australia is playing it all wrong. They have the iron ore that China so badly needs. Tell them no more shipments and see what the result is. They'll come around. Not too many places for them to get that stuff. My point was larger. Australia is just one country. If the entire world stood up and said "no more" then what will the Chinese do? Implode probably which they deserve.

I just wonder how long it'll be before there are lawsuits (mostly class action) filed against China for all the deaths, sickness, job losses and business closures not to mention all the lives being turned upside down all due to Chinese officials allowing the virus to leave its borders and suppressing the doctors there who wanted to speak out on the subject. The world should deal with the Chinese regime harshly for turning the world upside down.

On 12/9/2020 at 3:21 AM, from the home of CC said:

I was expecting shots of ladies with 60 yr old foreigners..

At least the grossly fat ones with torn shirts and smelling badly.

12 hours ago, hlj said:

I did not even see masks on any of these girls something is wrong with these pictures.

Masks? The pageant is trying to promote their beauty, not hide it. With masks on were left to wonder just how beautiful they are. 

I think tho that you can find more beautiful women at the mall which is usually the case in most countries.

15 hours ago, Tug said:

Yes indeed it’s like a dark miasma has been blown away a new clean healing breeze wafting across the country and the world for that matter we are back World it’s been a long dark four years we are back!!!

It's nice to see there is no rioting and looting as would have been the case had Trump won. Trump did some good things but it's time for a new leader. Joe will be there for 4 years but then what? Can the US keep relying on people in their 70's to run the country?   

17 hours ago, Mama Noodle said:

Shes Indian and Asian but whatever. 
 

Anywho, real fantastic pick right there. Arguably one of the most unlikeable and unprincipled of them all, but it was the obvious choice considering the state of lawlessness going on in the states.  

When does a Jamaican qualify as an Asian? She's Jamaican and Indian. The Jamaican's have an Olympic Bobsled team. That's a good way to differentiate. 

Russia becomes first country to approve a COVID-19 vaccine......  that is unproven to work and only "tested" on a few dozen folks. The Guinee pigs have been members of the military. If it's so good why hasn't Putin taken it? 

18 minutes ago, Emmess said:

Gratitude - I have a roof over my head. I have enough money to not bother about my next meal. I am in excellent health. 

Also "over thinking is the biggest cause of unhappiness" is my motto.

"over thinking".... also known as worrying. I read an article a while back where they were interviewing older folks and asked them "what is the one thing you wish you would have done less of in life". The predominant answer.... worrying. Worrying won't change a single thing other than give you more stress and a shorter lifespan. 

8 hours ago, gimo said:

  Does it include Parents of Thai children ? Not married . My son and I are waiting to be able get back into Thailand . He is my son by birth and is a Thai citizen with two passports . He came here to Oz

for a holiday and can't get back . I want to return with him to stay permanently .

So with the virus spreading around the world you/he chose to leave Thailand and are now complaining that you aren't currently allowed to return? You needed to make plans about 6 months ago if you really wanted to return to Thailand. This situation is no one's fault but your own. Plan better next time (if there is one).

"I want to return with him to stay permanently".... again, this sounds like a thought you should have acted on 6 months ago instead of waiting and complaining now that the world has changed.

3 hours ago, Guderian said:

Why doesn't he just come straight out with it and say that farangs aren't going to be welcome any longer?

Why all the complaining? It isn't like Thailand is the only place to live in SEA. Instead of complaining spend some time investigating welcoming countries. Trump blocked people from China, Brazil and a few other countries from entering the US. Makes sense. If you have a herd of cattle you don't want to import a bull from another country that might have a disease that could affect/infect the entire herd. 

Instead of spending so much negative time complaining about Thailand and their rules rather spend positive time looking for an alternative to what you don't like.

2 minutes ago, sirineou said:

The unlawful part is not the firing, the unlawful  part might be the reason for the firing.. 

I could write a book on the number of times a sitting Prez did things that were unlawful. I don't remember much prior to Kennedy but since that time there is not a single Prez that hasn't taken privilege of his office to do what he wanted to at times. 

It's not unlawful for him to do such a thing. Don't you have better things to do Nancy like "try" to repair the broken Dem party.