We got a Trader Joe’s this winter and every week I put aside $20 and go there for a few splurges. My son likes the mini ice cream cones, D likes mac and cheese balls and I ■■■■■ the frozen veggies for combinations I can’t get elsewhere. It feels special every week.</p>
<p>We have no Wal Mart in NYC, so that’s not an option unless we spend $13 off the top to cross the bridge to New Jersey. We do go to Wegmans and find the prices very, very good if we shop wisely. NYC is a very expensive place to shop the same item on one side of the bridge is often 30-40% more than on the Jersey side.</p>
<p>Hubby is hoping to get a place in a cheaper area when he retires.</p>
Ha ha! No. He works for the City and will retire at 54. I’ll only be 53 and not nearly ready to retire. Much as I enjoy complaining, I like my job. Also, I think some/all of my kids will be here for a while.</p>
<p>Trader joes charged by the banana, last I looked at them (something like 19cents each). Turned out to be much more expensive than the big ol’ bunch at costco for like a dollar and change, but then again we didnt need all those bananas and some go bad before we can eat them.</p>
<p>I am still not sure I am plugging in the right numbers in that calculator, dstark, as its saying we need a whole lot more to retire than my Dh says we need. :(</p>
<p>I find it cheaper NOT to even enter a Walmart or Target. I cannot get out the store without spending $100. So if I need deodorant or toothpaste, I am better off just paying the extra 50 cents from the grocery store.</p>
<p>Wegman’s just came to my area and I was surprised at the variety and the quality of everything that’s offered. Prices are also quite good. As far as distance, Walmart is about as far as Wegman’s for me–I’d much rather go to Wegman’s. I usually shop the discount stores for staples like toilet paper, detergent, etc.</p>
<p>However, in the US, your kids will be using all of their money supporting everyone else’s parents on Medicare and Social Security, so they won’t have any left to support you.</p>
<p>It is true that there are many, many folks living on 30K or less. In HI, that’s pretty challenging, as RENTING a house with 3 bedrooms in a decent neighborhood is often over 2K/month. Moving to a cheaper area may greatly reduce medical options (very few docs available in more rural & neighboring island locations). Many who find it too expensive end up moving to Oregon, Arizona, Nevada, Florida, another state or another country, like the Phillipines or elsewhere.</p>
<p>[Cost</a> Of Living in Hawaii | CostPriceOf.Com - Price and Cost Database](<a href=“http://www.costpriceof.com/info/cost-of-living-in-hawaii/]Cost”>http://www.costpriceof.com/info/cost-of-living-in-hawaii/) is an article about our living costs. I do know folks who live on less, but it is a challenge. Some folks grow their own fruit and/or vegetables. Many retired government employees have medical insurance paid or subsidized by pension or former employer. Many start new careers in retirement–selling crafts or working part-time.</p>
<p>Thanks, dstark. As of now, unles SS looks like its going to run dry, we hope to defer accessing Soc Sec benefits until the latest possible time, which I believe is 70. We are looking at retirement way before that He’ll have a small pension, but will also opt for the version that lasts the longest and will continue should he pass away before me (he’d better not!), so it will not be much. Sigh, so we continue to work to build that retirement nestegg…</p>
<p>H contributed very little to SS & therefore isn’t entitled to any–I plan to defer as long as possible, like dstark, unless bad things happen or SS changes. We should be OK with H’s pension (lifetime), which includes a reduced amount for me to live on if he predeceases me.</p>
<p>Funny i have relatives who are financially astute, who are taking SS asap…they have more money then they can spend,lol, but feel SS is going to get a haircut, if it is even solvent ,years from now</p>
<p>Can one of us start to collect SS earlier and one delay? I qualify sooner, as the old geezer in our marriage. Maybe I could start to collect at 62 and he could wait… Thoughts?</p>
<p>I just read something that said for every year you wait you get 8% more in your ss, up to your max. I forget what the breakeven # of years is. Its like 18, IIRC.</p>
<p>The thread reminds me of when I was in college/law school and very skinny. Sometimes I would ask a restaurant to substitute salad for fries or whatever, and a bigger person would say, “Why are YOU eating salad? You’re so skinny, you can eat whatever you want!” Nope, if I ate whatever I wanted, I wouldn’t be this skinny. I’m eating salad because I want to stay this way!</p>
<p>Rich people who throw money away are a lot less likely to stay rich. That doesn’t mean they have to shop at Wal-Mart, but the rich folks I know do care about whether they’re getting good value or a rip-off.</p>
<p>I try to factor in the cost to tax-payers for food stamps and other forms of public assistance that maybe be needed by Wal-Mart employees because they are underpaid so the Walton family can get ever richer.</p>
He’ll have a small pension, but will also opt for the version that lasts the longest and will continue should he pass away before me (he’d better not!), so it will not be much. Sigh, so we continue to work to build that retirement nestegg…</p>