Can you do this on $1,000/mo.?

[SolarPwrd]

I just looked at my future SS payout and it's telling me as of today, at age 67 (less than a decade away) they'll be sending me about $1,000/mo. That sounds doable. Do you all think it's realistic to vanlife on $1,000 a month?

 

[geogentry]

A lot will depend on how much debt you have at that point.

I'm 69 this year. I am full time for roughly 1 1/2 years. I don't have a van, but I do have a car and a tent. I'm doing it. Having the time of my life. No regrets. And would have to be hog tied and dragged to get me to go back to living in a stick and brick.

The short answer is - yes. Many are doing it on less.

Sent from my SM-J727V using Tapatalk

 

[MrNoodly]

There are many nomads living on less than that.

 

[maki2]

that 1,000 a month does not reflect the deductions for medicare and medicare prescription coverage. That plus a supplemental insurance plan will whack off another $300 or so.  That rapidly begins to make it a lot less money available for communication devices, pets, food, clothing, gas, laundry, emergency savings, a little entertainment now and again, etc.

If you can think of a way to create a part time job for a way to supplement your retirement while living a nomadic lifestyle absolutely get started developing that immediately. It should be your number one priority for making such a thing possible. SS does not keep up with inflation because the offset increases come no where near to covering the yearly increases in the medical cost that they keep tagging on to the automatic deductions that come out before the remainder is deposited into your account.  It is not a drag to need to generate some extra income, doing so can be rewarding, entertaining, fun, etc. Find something you think is a blast to do.

 

[SolarPwrd]

Thanks all, really appreciate it. Health insurance will take $300/month? Wow. I thought Medicare was supposed to be basically free. That's an issue. 

I don't plan on having any debt. Right now I sell on ebay/Amazon but don't know how portable that would be, depends on access to retail and post offices. One option is to up my working income right now to get a bigger SS payout, not sure how that works either but it might.

Thinking ahead because property taxes alone (here, anyway) are going to be too much to handle in "retirement." Vandwelling seems like a great alternative, especially if I can follow the good weather and be in the company of like minded people. So just have to figure out the details.

 

[Gr8ful]

You'll need an emergency fund to make it work. Good luck!

 

[mpruet]

Thanks all, really appreciate it. Health insurance will take $300/month? Wow. I thought Medicare was supposed to be basically free. That's an issue.

Medicare can have a premium which is based on your recent income according to the IRS.  When I first started medicare my premiums were very high because I had some windfall income the previous two years.  The first two years of retirement I lived totally from savings - nothing from the IRA so my AGI was near zero.  That reduced my medicare premium drastically.

 

[geogentry]

Thanks all, really appreciate it. Health insurance will take $300/month? Wow. I thought Medicare was supposed to be basically free. That's an issue. 

Check the SS website and see what parts of Medicare you need and what they cost. Are you a veteran? VA will take care of most of your medical, if not all.

I don't plan on having any debt. Right now I sell on ebay/Amazon but don't know how portable that would be, depends on access to retail and post offices. One option is to up my working income right now to get a bigger SS payout, not sure how that works either but it might.

Your going to have to go to towns to get supplies so you will have access to those places. I don't think your going to bump up your SS a huge amount. But you would be able to save that extra income to pad your SS checks. Your lifestyle will dictate how much you need monthly to live.

Vandwelling seems like a great alternative, especially if I can follow the good weather and be in the company of like minded people. So just have to figure out the details.

Research as much as you can. Learn as much as you can. Thousands are doing the nomad lifestyle. So it is a good alternative.



Sent from my SM-J727V using Tapatalk

 

[ckelly78z]

If you afford to sock away $20-$50 a week for the next 10 years into an account that you don't touch (call it a retirement account). This will yield you $10,000-$26,000 in savings alone, but even more if you can earn interest on it through savings bonds, or low risk stocks.

Most folks don't understand the value of compounding interest on the money that they invest, it can be staggering.

Will you have any assets to sell when the time comes to go on the road for additional funds ? You will also need an emergency fund to help with unforeseen repairs to your rig, or (God Forbid) to yourself. Many nomads get into a pinch not planning for the unexpected.

 

[MrNoodly]

Plus B covers doctor's visits, and misc lab tests...

Medicare Part B also covers outpatient treatments, such as chemotherapy, physical therapy or anything that doesn't require being admitted to a hospital.

However, if your income is low enough, Medicaid in the state where you claim residency can cover the cost of Medicare Part B.

 

[Day Dreamer]

$300 per month for proper coverage sounds pretty good to me. I'm paying over $600 for private insurance and the coverage is crap.

 

[lenny flank]

I spend about a thousand a month to travel fulltime around the country. BUT that includes a lot of luxuries, such as eating out at least once every day and a lot of museum, zoo and park visits.

If I had to, I could get by on half that.

 

[RoamerRV428]

remember also that 10 yrs down the road will not be today's prices

10 yrs and a lot of things are going to rise in cost.

so.....be prepared to need a bit more of that IF YOUR lifestyle requires it. We all have our way we want to retire and live and do XYZ in our lives, thing is can one afford it as they picture it. If you need more to live as you want keep working and banking as much as possible. If you are one who CAN lead a very simple lifestyle on the road and do not require much you can do it on 1K. Emergency fund to fix vehicle etc. is very important.

a lot can change in 10. best of luck to you!

 

[SolarPwrd]

Thanks again, guys. I would also like to tell everyone that flipping a few things on ebay is pretty easy and can be a not-so-hard couple hundred a month income from just a few things if anyone needs an idea.

 

[CityWoman]

. . . flipping a few things on ebay is pretty easy and can be a not-so-hard couple hundred a month income from just a few things . . .

I flip on eBay and don't make anywhere near "a couple hundred" per month. It depends on what kind of stuff you're selling and how many listings you have up (the more you list, the more chances to sell). Unfortunately, most of my listings are long-tail items that take time to sell. When leading a nomad life, you either need to sell only small lightweight items that won't require much space or postage, or have your inventory in storage, another expense. Making money by flipping on eBay (or Amazon) isn't actually that easy. It's definitely not passive income - one needs to put quite a bit of effort into it.

 

[jeanmarie]

$1000 a month? No. I could not make it in any way that was not squalor, boredom, and continuous financial insecurity. I like going places and doing things. I like knowing that I have plenty of $ for emergencies and that I can afford to go back to S&B any time, that l live in a metal box with minimal material goods because I choose to do so, not because I am forced to do so. That makes a difference in how I react to the inevitable annoyances.

You already got some good info on Medicare. In our case, they take about $150 each out of our monthly checks. Medicare premiums will have to rise in the future to keep the program solvent. You will also need some sort of supplemental insurance to cover what Medicare does not. Ours is currently free as a result of a union contract. But yours will probably not be free. I don't know what others are paying. As you age, you will use it. Don't forget dental care, which Medicare will not cover.

We are steadily losing free parking, especially in urban areas. That means you have to figure some sort of rent and/or fees into your plans. The further out you have to go, the more fuel will cost you. Also, you can't always choose where you want to be. There are a number of YouTube nomads who have found themselves forced into extended stays in places they don't want to be in order to get themselves or loved ones thru serious medical issues.

Re a job. It Sounds like you as not working, now, and are living of you EBay trading. So, get a job. Definitely. Get two! Work until you are 70 if you can. It absolutely will have a serious effect on your SS. SS is calculated on a formula that weights your last year's of work.

Get everything possible done under your employers health and dental plan. Put the maximum into your employer's 401k plan and save the rest. Keep your lifestyle the same as it is, now. Just because you are making money does not mean you have to "reward" yourself by buying a bunch of junk you will have to leave behind, anyway.

Remember your goal. Get out of debt. Save, save, save. Even at minimum wage, you can have at least $100,000 at the end of 10 years if you save your wages and keep your lifestyle at the level it is, now.

Just an aside, don't get your vehicle until close to when you go nomad. Drive a beater or take the bus or whatever you are doing, now. The best way to start out is with a good, reliable vehicle and an extended warranty, about a year before you go fulltime. Even if you can do a lot of your own work, now, you may not be able to do so in your 70's or older. Take trial runs. Lots of extended trial runs. Find out what annoys you and fix it.

 

[Kaylee]

One option is to up my working income right now to get a bigger SS payout, not sure how that works either but it might.

You can do what-if experiments here:
https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/anypia/index.html

 

[IGBT]

Re a job. It Sounds like you as not working, now, and are living of you EBay trading. So, get a job. Definitely. Get two! Work until you are 70 if you can. It absolutely will have a serious effect on your SS. SS is calculated on a formula that weights your last year's of work.

I am not sure this is true.   I ran our numbers and we get a pretty good estimate for age 62, 67 and 70 even though we stopped working at age ~46 and will have zeros until we hit the retirement age numbers.

I think if we kept working for another 15 years the number would go up by about $100 a month total!

 

[Kaylee]

IGBT: Correct!

Run the numbers, do not guess, and do not believe claims of how the system works.
For years I'd heard the claim that the last two years had a higher weight, and that's provably false.

SSA provides multiple calculators (see the link I posted above).

 

[RoamerRV428]

If you worked less than 35 years of your life, your retirement benefits will suffer.
Your Social Security benefits are based on an average of your total salaries over a 35 year span. This means, if you worked less than 35 years of your life, the years you didn’t work will be represented as zeros in your 35 year average. Needless to say, zeros mixed in with your average will definitely hurt your benefits package. Thus, if you have say 33 years of work credits, then it makes sense to pursue 2 more years in order to ensure you get the most money from your Social Security benefits.