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It’s not a political question, but a practical one, especially for us retirees. Let’s see.
We survived a pandemic.
My wife and I have both had expensive health issues in the last four years for which we received excellent care and that were paid in full by Medicare and our Medigap insurance.
Inflation has been up and now going down – but at its highest a lot less troubling than in the 70s and 80s. Social Security was adjusted upward accordingly. Consider that the 1980 COLA was 14.3%. The 2022 COLA was 8.7%, 2025 is projected at 2.5% My main income, my pension is sans a COLA. I’ve lost over 40% in buying power since I retired, but I had a strategy to cope and still do – a cushion and other income sources as needed.
Gasoline prices were high, but have come down, and we had access to all the gas we wanted unlike in the 1970s when we waiting in lines.
Our investments have done very well. Our net worth is higher than four years ago.
We certainly aren’t worse off, and in many ways we are better off beyond any financial issues. We just saw our oldest grandchild off to the college of his choice knowing we are able to help in a small way – 10 more to go.
We spent most of the summer on Cape Code and recently entertained a friend from Paris whom we met as a tour guide many years ago. She brought us wine and cassoulet and we introduced her to lobster rolls.
We are not average though. We also have a longer perspective than many others. Hey, we bought three houses during our marriage and never paid an interest rate lower than 9-1/2%.
Our good fortune is appreciated, but our financial prudence, and planning – sometimes unconventional, sometimes criticized – helps smooth the way. I guess we are better off.
I am better off today compared to 2020 not because of public policy or party politics. I am better off today because I have worked hard my whole life and have been a steady saver and investor. I’ve had faith in American capitalism throughout my life, not just through the pandemic. I’ve built a portfolio of stocks (mainly index funds for mid-size and large companies) that reflect that faith.
That portfolio is now much more robust than it was in 2020. But it is more robust because it relies on the efforts of millions of people who work in the private sector and who want their businesses to succeed. I’ve shared in their success. And I wish them even better luck in the future. And I want everyone in this country to be able to share in that, too.
I like the fact that there are some regulatory guardrails that experience has shown to be necessary, and that tend not to interfere with the free market. Trust in the fundamental integrity of the stock market is essential. One can argue ad infinitum about what we should do with the taxing power, and the printing of new money that expands the deficit. But I would put a pox on anyone who thinks we need people to come in and comprehensively restructure and run our economy, many of whom have never spent real time struggling for success inside a competitive business.
A very good question with a wide range of answers.
Four years ago, I announced I would retire the following year. My wife & I purchased an RV to travel the world, (or the US anyway.) Our financial situation was good, but we still had a little debt to manage. Change was a constant as we prepared for the future, and everything was good.
During the four years, I retired, we sold the house and traveled in the RV full time for 2 years. The debts were all repaid, our investments grew, and we lived off investment income and Social Security. Our first grandson was born in 2021, and in 2023 we purchased a house just five blocks away. The changes continued, and we were feeling joy of the good life.
Three months after moving into the house, my wife passed. This was the testing change. Soon after, my second grandson was born. After meeting some people in my new community, I have started volunteering, the investments continue to grow, and I live off just Social Security. I have adjusted my will so that my grandsons will see just how well Grandpa did as an investor.
Life is still very good. I am debt free, and I own a home in a peaceful small town near my daughter and her family. In those regards I am much better off, but there is a hole in my heart that I cannot share the joy i have in my life with my wife. And change will continue.
Thanks for the question, Richard.
Today, I’m in the thick of some struggles with doctors office billing people and correcting state tax screw-ups, so pulling up and looking at some positive, long-term outcomes was helpful for me.
To directly answer your question strictly in financial terms: over the last 4 years my net worth has gone up %70, and going back 6 years since my father died, and left some money, it’s 175%.
To flesh out a few of the non-monetary contours, here are the one- or two-word comments I put on each year: Dad Died, Started [new company], RSUs Begin, Market Down, Retired, [wife] Cancer.
There were kids graduating college (one doctorate, one education degree, now teaching). There was a wedding. There were lots of trips and family events.
So, yeah, I guess I’m better off. But I’d rather have Dad than his money. I was much “richer” for the 5 years he spent living near us.
Life’s a mixed bag. Sometimes it’s good to look up from the current struggles to look at the big picture. Now, on to today’s struggles…
I’m better off financially today than I was four years ago, a blessing for sure. Those who have accumulated financial security and have invested well and eliminated debt are probably living in a similar bubble.
The majority of the population is struggling with debt and inflation.