As most others here, I’m doing nothing different due to the crash. We have reasonable income from a pension and social security. On the other hand, we’re in the midst of buying a house, so it’s definitely different than all of the previous market pullbacks we’ve experienced. We’ve reduced our 50/50 portfolio (50% equities and 50% cash and muni bonds) to 50/10 as we’re using a lot of cash and bonds as our down payment. We have a small townhouse that we’ll sell after we move in. It’s mortgage free so that money will replace the down payment in our portfolio.
it shouldn’t make any difference, but the market crash in the middle of this sequence is more unsettling than it would be otherwise.
I faced a very similar situation when I was in my early 60s. My institution was morphing into a totally different environment as key leadership positions were filled with a different group whose focus was also different and more importantly not the same as mine. I retired at 63. I’d had enough.
My wife has had Wellcare for two years; I have had it for one. This year the cost has been zero for both of us. We get three scrips filled monthly between the two of us. There are a few more, maybe half a dozen, over the year. Luckily nothing in higher drug tiers. They push to have you use their mail plan. It can be annoying but we continue to use our local pharmacy without any problems. Yep. Price is amazing. I should mention that they were recommended by a consultant
We live in an area that snowbirds flock to. There are still a few local realtors that manage vacation rentals. They are the best bet if you can find one in the area you’re interested in. Reservations are made as early as a year in advance as their inventory will be more limited than on-line firms. Hope this helps.
Mike. A big factor in deciding whether to pay off the house is the phase of life that you're in. As a retiree I'm happy without a mortgage regardless of the interest rate. Before I retired I had no incentive to pay my mortgage down or off.
I'm about half way through a book called "The Fourth Turning is Here" by Neil Howe. It addresses cycles that our civilization has and continues to experience. It's not written from an economics or personal finance perspective; it's a take on history and how frequently cycles repeat themselves and in what ways. There's a good deal of overlap between the book and the bullet points that Ken has listed with regard to seeing how things are and may play out.
Food and home goods in two ways. A higher cost for the same item is the first way that we all notice. Shrink-flation is the second way. For instance, my wife uses a body wash made by Dove. The container used to hold 34 ounces and cost $8.99. Now the container costs $9.99 and the is a significantly smaller 30.6 ounces.
Early in her career, my wife worked at S&P. An analyst whispered a tip to her one day about a new company called Apple. She didn’t have any money to invest and thought the company name was silly (these were the “Big Apple” days in NYC.) She Never took it seriously and we’ve laughed about lost chances over the years.
Humana. This is my first (and last) year with Humana. They have barraged me with sales pitches for their Mail-to-home drug plan. I was completely surprised that you didn’t get a pitch for their plan when you called about pricing. Or you decided not to mention it.
I have to wonder about big price jumps through a company that offers a competing service.
Comments
To me the differences between a casino, where the house has the odds, and the market where time is on your side are immense.
Post: Spreading Your Bets
Link to comment from April 12, 2025
As most others here, I’m doing nothing different due to the crash. We have reasonable income from a pension and social security. On the other hand, we’re in the midst of buying a house, so it’s definitely different than all of the previous market pullbacks we’ve experienced. We’ve reduced our 50/50 portfolio (50% equities and 50% cash and muni bonds) to 50/10 as we’re using a lot of cash and bonds as our down payment. We have a small townhouse that we’ll sell after we move in. It’s mortgage free so that money will replace the down payment in our portfolio. it shouldn’t make any difference, but the market crash in the middle of this sequence is more unsettling than it would be otherwise.
Post: Tariffs and our retirement assets
Link to comment from April 5, 2025
I faced a very similar situation when I was in my early 60s. My institution was morphing into a totally different environment as key leadership positions were filled with a different group whose focus was also different and more importantly not the same as mine. I retired at 63. I’d had enough.
Post: Before You Quit
Link to comment from October 26, 2024
My wife has had Wellcare for two years; I have had it for one. This year the cost has been zero for both of us. We get three scrips filled monthly between the two of us. There are a few more, maybe half a dozen, over the year. Luckily nothing in higher drug tiers. They push to have you use their mail plan. It can be annoying but we continue to use our local pharmacy without any problems. Yep. Price is amazing. I should mention that they were recommended by a consultant
Post: Wellcare for Part D by Andrew Forsythe
Link to comment from October 12, 2024
We live in an area that snowbirds flock to. There are still a few local realtors that manage vacation rentals. They are the best bet if you can find one in the area you’re interested in. Reservations are made as early as a year in advance as their inventory will be more limited than on-line firms. Hope this helps.
Post: Headache for Rent
Link to comment from April 17, 2024
Mike. A big factor in deciding whether to pay off the house is the phase of life that you're in. As a retiree I'm happy without a mortgage regardless of the interest rate. Before I retired I had no incentive to pay my mortgage down or off.
Post: Longtime Worry
Link to comment from December 29, 2023
I'm about half way through a book called "The Fourth Turning is Here" by Neil Howe. It addresses cycles that our civilization has and continues to experience. It's not written from an economics or personal finance perspective; it's a take on history and how frequently cycles repeat themselves and in what ways. There's a good deal of overlap between the book and the bullet points that Ken has listed with regard to seeing how things are and may play out.
Post: Longtime Worry
Link to comment from December 29, 2023
Food and home goods in two ways. A higher cost for the same item is the first way that we all notice. Shrink-flation is the second way. For instance, my wife uses a body wash made by Dove. The container used to hold 34 ounces and cost $8.99. Now the container costs $9.99 and the is a significantly smaller 30.6 ounces.
Post: Where do you see signs of inflation?
Link to comment from November 18, 2023
Early in her career, my wife worked at S&P. An analyst whispered a tip to her one day about a new company called Apple. She didn’t have any money to invest and thought the company name was silly (these were the “Big Apple” days in NYC.) She Never took it seriously and we’ve laughed about lost chances over the years.
Post: Money Shame
Link to comment from July 6, 2023
Humana. This is my first (and last) year with Humana. They have barraged me with sales pitches for their Mail-to-home drug plan. I was completely surprised that you didn’t get a pitch for their plan when you called about pricing. Or you decided not to mention it. I have to wonder about big price jumps through a company that offers a competing service.
Post: A Less Bitter Pill
Link to comment from June 10, 2023