10 Ways to Ruin Your Retirement

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Youve never said that you are happy do you have children or what. When youre gone what will happen to the money you have saved? Will the girlfriend get it or Uncle Sam, Live life and enjoy it while you can.

me of ME 2:45AM August 14, 2010

Dear Sir,
The best saying I have ever heard came from a movie called, "Mame." She said, "Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!" Please take this to heart. By saving your money you are missing out on life. You are not helping the economy and you will probably die at a younger age due to NOT having fun or releasing stress. Do yourself a huge favor and live. Start doing things that you have always wanted to do but thought you shouldn't because it cost too much. My father never got to enjoy his retirement as he died at 63 and I wont be able to enjoy much either as I am disabled with little income but you have the chance to enjoy life and you can't take all that money with you. I understand keeping expenses to a limit so you will have enough to live on if you happen to live to see 100 but trying to keep your savings and not spend it at all is just ludicres. I wish you all the best and I truly hope you can find it in your own mind to enjoy life and stay young by doing so. Even 100 years is short and life is too short to waste.
Good Luck,

April Hoover of KS 12:19AM August 14, 2010

This comment is for the 63 year old man originally from Chicago. You have 800,000 in the bank with no debt, but still remain in an 1800 square foot hous while driving a 10 year old truck with 100,000 miles on it. So what are you investing in next, an afterlife hedge fund that focuses on interdimensional travel, angel's wings and companies that tour "the bright light". Do something with your money that makes a bold statement about who you are. Buy yourself a gas guzzling hummer and then drive around on a rainy day and purposely drive through puddles next to public transportation bus stops so that you can soak the poor elderly people. Or, you can dedicate your life to creating more affordable living for the poor in large coastal cities that have limited land. If we would just start paving over the oceans we could build low income housing for hundreds of families. You can turn your 800,000 into even more money if you send your money to a guy in nicaragua that is always locating long lost rich relatives for a modest fee. Plenty of ways to make your money work for you besides leaving it to some self entitiled little brat kids that will just buy a nice house in the suburb , an SUV and some treasury bonds. What kind of legacy is that for your cash?

Bert of LA 9:44PM August 13, 2010

I'm a 63 year old widower living in an age restricted community in southern Arizona. I grew up in a south suburb of Chicago. Flunked out of collge in my freshman year. Went to work for the phone company, got drafted, went to Viet Nam came home, got married, got divorced. Returned to Ma Bell, got married, got divorced. I ALWAYS lived within my means. I never identified my wants as my needs. Went hungry alot but never used credit. Always had a savings account since my first paper route. The moment an employee saving plan was offered I contributed to the maximum. When IRAs were introduced I saved the maximum BEFORE I spent anything on myself. When money was left after savings were funded and bills were paid I put that into no load mutual funds. Got married again and it stuck wonderfully. Took a small buyout from AT&T prior to the split up and moved to Arizona. Went to work for a financial company and saved more. 401Ks were maxed out. IRAs were maxed out. Bought a first house. Still saved. At 54 my wife/lover/best friend died after a five year battle with cancer. Six months later my company was due to be sold and since I was 55 I took an early retirement but only after spending 3 months recording EVER single penny I spent; every bill, every planned for expenditure and extrapolated that to an annual amount necessary to continue my life style. No huge life insurance payouts, never made more than $50K a year. Today everything I have is paid for, house, truck, motorcycle. I've never paid one penny of on a credit card. Paid off all loans early but paying extra against the principle when the interest rate was more than I was getting on my investments. Today, 8 years later I'm still in my simple 1800 square foot house, driving a 2003 truck with 100K miles on it and my first new motorcycle in seven years. I have more than $800,000 in savings which I've never touched because I live on $2600 a month from social security and pensions. No flat screen TVs, basic cable only, cook and clean for myself, no maid or yard services, a 6 year old computer, no gadgets, I shop at discount stores and I date.
Plan, dollar average, save, pay yourself first, don't make your wants into needs.

Mike of AZ 9:03PM August 13, 2010

My sympathy's to your situation, but it's the man who most often gets screwed over in this country? Did he take what was yours, or just what he rightfully earned during his working years? My advice to all men living in these United States: Never get married, for the divorce laws are against you.

David Fahey of CA 2:39PM August 13, 2010

To all of my dear friends living comfortably in Republic Party Land. Every other sentence seems to end in either socialist government, self entitlements,illegal aliens or the reason not to belong to organized labor. Answer me,truthfully, if you can? Have you ever had to return to an Employment Agency for another JOB, after only two weeks ? This after shelling out BIG BUCKS!!! Have you ever had the Big Boss' son become your immediate supervisor after having shown him the ropes!!! On the other hand,have you ever been laid off after you gave PINK SLIPS to your subordinates???? Finally, have you ever experienced the sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach???? This after receiving a partial paycheck and told that your department no longer exists??? Had I became a UNION MEMBER earlier,my life would have been much easier!!! Don't worry about bringing jobs back!!! LET's PROTECT & GROW THE JOBS WE HAVE!!!!! 70+years young

Frederick Harris of NJ 1:49PM August 13, 2010

My neighbor just had a similar scenario occur to her. The only income she had when the dirtbag walked away was her Social Security and a small Workmen's Comp check. She was on the verge of having to declare bankruptcy. She saw a couple of attorneys and they told her if the only income you have is Social Security and/or Workmen's Comp, then even if the creditors drag you off to court, the court does not force you to pay if you just walk away from your credit cards and you are are willing to put up with harassing phone calls for a year or so. Check with an attorney in your own state. I still can't believe it.

Bebe of FL 1:33PM August 13, 2010

To all the married women who were for any reason forced to retire from working outside your home with your own income and insurance as well as a 401 plan.
Heads up. Keep everything seperate. I woke up one morning after years and years of a blended family with its ups and downs to a husband who hit 62. He had 3 siblings pass on, with 1 being diagnosed with cancer and going through those issues. On day he went from Honey if you only are breathing I will be happy to a depressed person who made seriously bad decisions and I got swallowed up in his vortex of emotions which spiraled out of control before I found out.
He stopped making house payments, was late on all utilities even though I surrenderd to him most of my disablity pension. One day in May of 2009 he announced he wanted to go bankrupt. I had no choice but to go along due to no ability to work and legally I would be liable for all debt once he went bankrupt. Our debt was our home, three credit cards he had gotten without my knowledge and ran up and walked away from a few medical bills but in reality without our home doable. He was strained from then on. His work was healthy and made good money. He had his commissions withheld without my knowledge and drained my savings and pension. One day in Feb 2010 he walked out. House in foreclosure, bankruptcy dismissed. His commissions returned to his checks, he has medical and dental insurance, he has a 401 and stocks and in control of all funds as he cleared out all our bank accounts and savings prior to his leaving all while I am destitute and living between my kids.
After 20 years together and 11 legal years of marriage. He walks with everything. I got one car. Still pending courts decisions, next date May 2011

PLSM of WA 1:13PM August 13, 2010

COBRA is voluntary and it is applied for and kept on a month to month basis. The feds were paying 65% of the premium if you lost your job through no fault of your own. That has been a real good thing for people who otherwise could not have afforded to pay those huge COBRA premiums. Also if you call your local insurance agent and ask them to quote you an "individual" plan, in about 20+ states, they have guarantee issue as a matter of course. States that are in the Northern or Northeastern part of the country seem to have more. By the way, for those of you who have no experience in the REAL world of health insurance agents, (yes, I am an agent & proud of 10 ETHICAL years of service)...anyway, for those who do not really understand the details of health insurance, here is a big detail for you. PRIOR to March 23, 2010, I could insure a child under the age of 18 for about $70 - $129, depending on their age and county of residence. Ninety percent of my applications went through with no problem. NOW, after ObamaCare has "saved" us all, we no longer write child only applications and now to get someone insured under ObamaCare, the rate in our area for someone age 0-34 is a whopping $343 MONTHLY. Go ahead...tell me how wonderful it's going to be. These stupid politicians don't do ANYTHING for us, they do EVERYTHING for themselves and the only way to fix anything is to nail every single one of them in November 2010 and introduce them to unemployment. After all, that's all they have done in our area. More taxes, more regulations, more federal government up your A__ __, more and higher license fees, higher water bills, less freedom, etc. By the way, for those of you who think electronic medical records will also be wonderful, when I had a doctor's visit myself the other day, they were converting their records and the medical assistant came in to "update" my info so it could be transferred to the electronic format. After the normal name, date of birth and everything else confirmed and entered, guess what the next question was??????? "Do you own a firearm?" I was told if I did not answer, the doctor could not see me. I told them to kiss my A __ __. They ran and got the doctor as if they were being threatened with a fate worse than death because I didn't answer. The doctor came in and said it was just part of the program and I had to answer. My answer was "I don't know". They entered it and moved on. What do you suppose the government will do with all that information for those people who give up their freedom and answer that question? Think aboout it. When will you be marched off to the firing squad for not answering their "medical questions"? Learn the US Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill or Rights and keep your powder dry.

Bebe of FL 1:07PM August 13, 2010

I am 58. I lost my job almost 2 years ago due to a state cut in funding mental health care services. This has been a challenge for me because I am so close to retirement age. I have not been sucessful in my attempts to find another job, and most companies won't even answer my application--causing me to feel a bit invisable. Challenging it has been, however, this situation has also forced me to look at myself and my life more consciously and reach out to others who are struggling in this area. I've cut the fat in my budget and have learned what is really important in life....and it's not the almighty dollar that professes "In God we trust." I've also learned I can stand up to this challenge through becoming more creative, and opening my imagination. The situation for us older folk who are not yet ready for retirement is serious, but doesn't have to be intimidating. Elenore Rosevelt once said, "No one can intimidate you without your permission." It amazes me how many people I am coming across who are so willing to give this permission. Allowing your inner wisdom to lead to you, not your fears, and trust in God (or whatever higher spiritual power you can find within you) can prevent you from ruining your retirement.

L.A. of CA 12:51PM August 13, 2010