Off topic posts split from "How do u live on $700/month, truly?"

[bullfrog]

RoamerRV428 I was able after I became aware of what was happening to basically invest the money that would have gone to Social Security and teacher retirement into buying a house. I was able to purchase a house while teaching and by switching to being a bus garage supervisor ( no longer a teacher but a county employee which did participate in social security). That did allow me to cash in my teacher retirement and pay off the house which later I sold to buy early county retirement credits. If I had kept the teacher retirement and gotten a teacher retirement check which I could have chosen to do I would have lost a large portion of the Social Security earned even after I quit teaching! Because I worked several low paying jobs while teaching to get by that didn’t meet the minimum requirements of Social Security my benefits today are well below what I possibly could have made in a career field that participated in Social Security. The only thing that saved me was the state/county retirement program that allowed me to basically buy years of service for retirement credit and not only “retire” early but get a pension pretty much equal or a little better that what Social Security would have been. Even with both my wife and I working for school districts and second or third jobs buying a house was difficult. Having three children was impossible to pay for for us while doing so and resulted in a bankruptcy hence looking closely at our future and changing career fields. If you are independently wealthy education is a very rewarding but time demanding career, in my opinion you spend the majority of your time raising other people’s kids. Not knowing is how people end up living on less than $700 Social Security in my case I consider myself lucky I went bankrupt and found out! Who says tests aren’t a learning experience! Lol!!

 

[Catalyst1]

As a parent we want our kids to do better than we did. So we sometimes imply that if they don’t get a degree they are failures. So they get a degree thinking with their heart and not their head and are upset when they can’t get that dream job in a field that has limited turnover and possibly lower pay. For some it is better to get a trade than a degree. I believe that annual salaries for tradesmen on average will surpass that of those with bachelor degrees. That was not the case in years past. But, when u look at a 65 year old banker and then look at the 65 year old tradesman the banker usually looks younger. Just my observations and what the hell do I know? Best wishes

The guy that owns the shop where I take my car for maintenance and repairs has been trying to hire a mechanic for months. He is offering $100K annually and can't find anyone. I told him for that kind of money I might learn to be a mechanic myself. My plumber is doing way better than me. So is my electrician. If you have those kinds of skills, if it all goes to he11 in a handbasket, you can just move to another country and still make a good living. I'm not sure that is true for all those with degrees in business.

 

[RoamerRV428]

RoamerRV428 I was able after I became aware of what was happening to basically invest the money that would have gone to Social Security and teacher retirement into buying a house.

I super appreciate this post bullfrog! I actually said to my daughter since she is not contributing to her 'teacher fund' then she is to 'do an extra savings acct' for her retirement to sup that up and had the same thoughts but you showed me alot more. I told her she has to have a 'never touch savings' acct to make up for that reduction coming at her---if she gets SS even?? when a 17 yr old hits 65?? cause I can't call that one HAHA but I said then ya need another savings acct for emergency spending one can touch and then 'do that thru life' and see where ya land? UGH but you showed me more insight to it. How to 'play the darn game' kinda when this type of work issue hits as we need the bucks later in life. I will super read your post again and absorb it LOL Shows me a way forward to help her in her career choice for sure. THANKS!

 

[SLB_SA]

$950.80 is the minimum Social Security payment with 30 years of qualified

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY NOT TRUE.

I am 62 and have worked since I was 15. My monthly SS amount will be just over $780 before they take out Medicare when the time comes.

This Special Minimum Benefits table shows that a person at full retirement age (FRA) would receive at least $950.80. At age 62, this same person (born in 1960 or later Benefit Reduction for Early Retirement) would receive 0.70 x $950.80 = $665.56.
From the second link:
We sometimes call a retired worker the primary beneficiary, because it is upon his/her primary insurance amount that all dependent and survivor benefits are based. If the primary begins to receive benefits at his/her normal (or full) retirement age, the primary will receive 100 percent of the primary insurance amount. If the spouse of a primary begins to receive benefits at his/her normal retirement age, the spouse will receive 50 percent of the primary's primary insurance amount.
The table below illustrates the effect of early retirement, for both a retired worker and his/her spouse. For our illustration, we have used a $1,000 primary insurance amount. With this primary insurance amount and both primary and spouse retiring at their respective normal retirement ages, the primary would receive $1,000 per month and his/her spouse would receive $500 per month. The table shows that retirement at age 62 results in substantial reductions in monthly benefits. Please note that relatively few people can begin receiving a benefit at exact age 62 because a person must be 62 throughout the first month of retirement. Thus most early retirees begin at age 62 and 1 month.

 

[lavaroxx]

The guy that owns the shop where I take my car for maintenance and repairs has been trying to hire a mechanic for months. He is offering $100K annually and can't find anyone. I told him for that kind of money I might learn to be a mechanic myself. My plumber is doing way better than me. So is my electrician. If you have those kinds of skills, if it all goes to he11 in a handbasket, you can just move to another country and still make a good living. I'm not sure that is true for all those with degrees in business.

Tile setters are in dire need too, and that can be a very artful job. Airline pilots and metal workers, pipe fitters. Pipe fitter journeymen/women make as much as the engineers eventually and without the student loan.

 

[WanderingRose]

Yes to getting into affordable housing, and frequently these are much easier to get into in more rural areas than urban ones.

 

[Morgana]

Subsidized housing can be a life-saver for some people, but don't think of it as a cure-all, or as automatically available for everyone who needs it or even qualifies for it.

According to this New York Times article, "subsidized housing from HUD is effectively a lottery; nationally there are only 36 units available for every 100 families who qualify."

And there are a lot of hoops to jump through to get it. There's nothing simple or easy or quick about it. Like with any social service, if you think you're going to need it, apply (or at least start to inform yourself) asap, since even if you do get it, it probably won't come through quickly.

 

[RoamerRV428]

yea there is no cure all ever.
even with Bob saying you can live cheap ONCE ya pay for your LTVA permit, if ya can't then ?? and then, who are ya? is ALL this time in excessive high desert heat gonna kill ya, yea high heat kills many or no $ for propane to heat, yea we all can die from cold.

key being what Bob 'offers' is hopefully a community one who is desperate enough to find themselves HAVING to be there, and providing they can make it there, then ya got chances for survival cause like groups take care of each other but we all 'can be on that fringe' of not fitting in anywhere and time to find help is not feasible thru wait lists and more.

it is incredibly scary out there for the entire global population yet we 'chat us' and our needs. So many have it so much worse and have 0 control over what is next or what is given to them thru govt and more.

Bad times coming in a massive way for the globe all and we know it, but we can only control our simple little lives for survival and has it been that way thru the eons, yes it has but NOW we see it thru social media and global connection. We can improve alot but never to what the global population of those suffering are being helped. OK JUST A CHAT on take care of you cause in the bitter damn end, NO ONE is gonna take care of you. Find support any way one can and that is a life moving forward if one is lucky enough!

not stating any of this as a political chat or up in arms chat but we all see it and know it. Not a doubt about that for every human on the planet......hopefully the young'ers can 'fix it' and more power to them to do just that but it is what it is out there, to manuever in the future for our survival needs will get tougher and tougher as it has walked just that way so???....

 

[dreamrunnerjt]

Many, possibly most of the YouTube videos I have watched with young people doing van life they always seem to have an online job of some type. Design, programming, customer service, sales…. And especially if they are doing contract work, they would be paying FICA out of pocket. Hopefully they have started a Roth or IRA with the money they have been saving.

 

[Morgana]

First of all, self-employed people (including people with "side hustles") pay their taxes. Why would you assume they didn't? It takes more work (you don't have a payroll clerk to do it for you) and more self-discipline (you have to set the money aside) but we do it. Of course we do. All the time. To equate "self-employed person" (OR "low income earner" for that matter) with "tax cheat" is a bit offensive, frankly.

Second, based on what evidence are you assuming that if there's more staff they'll go after low income earners? Where's the evidence for that? (Note: random speculation from partisan pundits, on either side of the line, is not evidence.)

Third, rich people are getting away with not paying taxes right now. One big reason they get away with it is that the IRS does not have enough staff to chase them down. So you're OK with the rotten status quo -- which is making life harder for the little guy right now -- just not with an attempt to fix it?

Fourth, some of that money is earmarked to improve customer service. Are you happy with the current state of IRS customer service? Do you think there's a way to improve it without adding staff? Good luck with that.

Finally, nice article from Time Magazine debunking the whole "87,000 IRS agents are coming for your wallet, Little Guy" myth:
https://time.com/6204928/irs-87000-agents-factcheck-biden/

 

[RoamerRV428]

it's just another pressure on low income earners.

darn right it is and can be!

 

[Morgana]

Putting low income earners in a position where they feel that the only way they can survive is to break the law (evade taxes) is a pretty darn lot of pressure too.

 

[D'L]

Low income person here who has twice had my own business, each time for over 10 years. Yes, we pay taxes. Yes, we pay into social security. It's called a self employment tax but it is for SSI. Most of us are not criminals who cheat on taxes or anything else.

I have never cheated and always kept meticulous and fully documented and backed up records and did everything the way I was supposed to including finicky inventories of supplies , which for one business included thousands of tiny items. My spread sheets were intricate and complete, always kept up to date, all receipts in order.

Since I never cheated I never thought one way or another about getting audited. the odds are against any one individual getting audited, but since I knew I would pass an audit with flying colors I never cared if I did or not.

 

[user 22017]

... the odds are against any one individual getting audited,....

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/irs-audit-eitc-five-times-as-likely-to-get-audited/
https://www.propublica.org/article/irs-sorry-but-its-just-easier-and-cheaper-to-audit-the-poor
https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2022-03-14/who-does-the-irs-audit
And...

ProPublica has published multiple stories on the sad state of the modern IRS over the past year. They found that a person is more likely to get audited if they make $20,000 a year than if they make $400,000. That's because it takes a lot less time, money, and people to investigate someone who receives the earned income tax credit, one of the government's largest anti-poverty programs, than it does to look into the complicated holdings and filings of someone else making 20 times as much. And even further up the economic ladder, things aren't any better: Millionaires were 80 percent less likely to be audited in 2018 than they were in 2011.

From...

https://www.gq.com/story/no-irs-audits-for-the-rich

 

[CopperK]

I'm not aware of the details regarding the "87,000 new IRS agents". Seems to me that it is good news, because for years the IRS had so few employees they were auditing mostly lower income folks. They didn't have the resources to go after the wealthy.

My accountant told me to never file my taxes early - that they have a certain number of audits they can handle and they start selecting those as soon as the returns come in. He said if you have a good to delay filing, then do it because then they'll have their audits lined up before you even file. If those in charge get their way, you won't even be able to have a garage sale without paying taxes on it - I understand, but really their a point where it gets ridiculous. I'm all for people making money - a lot of money, but it's not fair if they don't pay taxes when others with fewer resources do. It's only going to get worse as the Feds spend us into oblivion.

 

[D'L]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/irs-audit-eitc-five-times-as-likely-to-get-audited/
https://www.propublica.org/article/irs-sorry-but-its-just-easier-and-cheaper-to-audit-the-poor
https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2022-03-14/who-does-the-irs-audit
And...

ProPublica has published multiple stories on the sad state of the modern IRS over the past year. They found that a person is more likely to get audited if they make $20,000 a year than if they make $400,000. That's because it takes a lot less time, money, and people to investigate someone who receives the earned income tax credit, one of the government's largest anti-poverty programs, than it does to look into the complicated holdings and filings of someone else making 20 times as much. And even further up the economic ladder, things aren't any better: Millionaires were 80 percent less likely to be audited in 2018 than they were in 2011.

From...

https://www.gq.com/story/no-irs-audits-for-the-rich

I actually said nothing about income level with regard to probability of getting getting audited, so you are responding to something I did not even say.

I only said that the odds are against any one individual getting audited, and that is true when you consider how many millions file taxes and some much smaller number or percentage of those get audited. I expressed no opinion on what income level gets audited more than another. I only said that as a low income person who was meticulous with record keeping I was never worried about it even if I did get audited.

 

[A Wing and a Prayer]

First of all, self-employed people (including people with "side hustles") pay their taxes. Why would you assume they didn't? It takes more work (you don't have a payroll clerk to do it for you) and more self-discipline (you have to set the money aside) but we do it. Of course we do. All the time. To equate "self-employed person" (OR "low income earner" for that matter) with "tax cheat" is a bit offensive, frankly.

Second, based on what evidence are you assuming that if there's more staff they'll go after low income earners? Where's the evidence for that? (Note: random speculation from partisan pundits, on either side of the line, is not evidence.)

Third, rich people are getting away with not paying taxes right now. One big reason they get away with it is that the IRS does not have enough staff to chase them down. So you're OK with the rotten status quo -- which is making life harder for the little guy right now -- just not with an attempt to fix it?

Fourth, some of that money is earmarked to improve customer service. Are you happy with the current state of IRS customer service? Do you think there's a way to improve it without adding staff? Good luck with that.

Finally, nice article from Time Magazine debunking the whole "87,000 IRS agents are coming for your wallet, Little Guy" myth:
https://time.com/6204928/irs-87000-agents-factcheck-biden/

Never said they weren't' paying their taxes. I've never been audited but I'm pretty sure it's time consuming and stressful. There is always a chance you made a mistake. This isn't partisan so please leave politics out of it. I don't want this thread to be ended. I've voted for both parties over my lifetime. If they were hiring these people to answer phones at the IRS I would be all for it. I want to believe they will mainly audit high earners so I hope you are right. Small businesses have enough to deal with. That was my only point. So let's drop this and get back to the OP's original question.

 

[user 22017]

I actually said nothing about income level with regard to probability of getting getting audited, so you are responding to something I did not even say.

I only said that the odds are against any one individual getting audited, and that is true when you consider how many millions file taxes and some much smaller number or percentage of those get audited. I expressed no opinion on what income level gets audited more than another. I only said that as a low income person who was meticulous with record keeping I was never worried about it even if I did get audited.

I understand that you did not say that about income level. I said it by posting links showing that your odds of getting audited are increased if you are poor. All the poor have equal odds... unless you file early (according to post above).

 

[oceangirl]

Yeah, we have to plan for emergencies, and consecutive ones, and to STILL be able to survive anyway ... with a little leeway to spare because once this year is over, next year's around the corner, and don't you believe next year won't have its own share of unexpected problems ... and the older your vehicle gets, the more frequent and expensive those problems may become ...

For those who can afford to think ahead, instead of just leaping from the burning building of their lives into any possible alternative whatsoever, you are blessed. If you are that lucky, plan well ahead, IMO. Because life will never stop throwing obstacles at you, a static emergency fund is just not enough.

Say you have a $3,000 emergency fund and TRUE inflation is 15%. Probably more on the stuff you really need. So that means that next year what you used to pay for with $3,000 now takes $3,450. $450 is a lot of money to most people. Most Americans cannot afford a $400 emergency. That means YOU more than probably anyone, nomads.

You keep that $3,000 emergency fund at that level at a VERY great risk. It's much more expensive to be poor now! And much more expensive year after year because the loss to inflation compounds itself. As the U.S. hollows out its middle class so the likes of Jeff Bezos can fly to space in organ-shaped rockets for no particular reason, the value of your dollar declines while what it can buy remains at the same price or flies higher.

There is ALWAYS the unanticipated problem or frustration awaiting us that can only be cured with money. And as that amount increases every year, so should we be putting aside more and more and more every year, even at the cost of great effort, to ensure we will experience and simply just FEEL some modicum of safety an relief in our lives.

If anyone can't get there now, I'm with you in more ways than you know or I might want to talk about. Let's hope we all get there eventually, and set our minds and settle our spirits firmly to the task. Even if going without and sometimes suffering is part of the program.

Well said

 

[RoamerRV428]

This says she lives on $100 a month and she doesn't, but that is what she has left over after car insurance, car payments and rental on a storage unit. The person who made the video says this woman's actual income is under $500 from SSI, and she makes a little bit more from making and selling jewelry. Just thought this might interest some folks.

something is off on this video in the financials. of course she has 'other checks' coming so we don't know her 'true financials' at all here.....plus took SS at age 62, early? so is she on 'medicaid' now because nothing is mentioned about health ins. and she is only 64.....like 2 yrs prior she had to have some medical happening? So when she hits medicare which is sooner than later her money won't even cover her medicare cost?? I don't know.....I believe when people do 'videos' on their 'existence and financials' in van life we NEVER hear ALL the financial truths at all. I know it can be tight but I always always give alot of 'hmmmm' in watching this stuff.

in full truth I swear it is more like a 'commercial for that safe parking pass lot' in a way LOL But it is cool she is doing well obviously.