Every so often I mention my belief that successful retirement will require resourcefulness, be it multiple streams of income, a post retirement career or something else.
Here is an idea that requires only a moderate ability to think outside the lines; being a caretaker (caring for a house/property not a person) of some sort but maybe at a place smaller than The Breakers in Newport, RI (I went there on a field trip in 11th grade).
I actually know two married couples who have done this in one capacity or another and my wife just found out about an opportunity near where we live (we are not going to be the caretakers) for something similar.
The two I knew about previously had different durations but the shorter of the two was several years and the one Joellyn just heard about has visibility to last for 10-15 years for anyone so inclined.
This sort of stint can relieve a lot of pressure on your finances--not having to pay for housing, utilities and a car or insurance obviously lifts a lot of the burden off of whatever your sources of income would be. If you own a house you might be able to rent it out to cover the mortgage or if the house is paid for then renting it out would just put more in your pocket. You could also sell the house and buy something else when the caretaker gig ends but that does entail some risk.
That I know of a couple of people that have done this and am aware of another opportunity arising makes me think it may not be as uncommon as it might seem.
"Retire" at 60 and caretake until 68 might be a good way to transition and would help your portfolio.
I write about things like this (or the backhoe-ing neighbor) not because this is what you should do but hopefully it gets you to think creatively. The need to be resourceful will touch a large percentage of Americans and while no idea I have ever written about before may fit your circumstance there is probably something that does and would be a good contribution to the discussion.
11 comments:
Hey Roger this is the same life traditional Indian family subscribes to - get a good safe degree, work through your life, buy some land in outskirts of the town, build a home of your own there [with rental portions of course!], use same money to spend during retirement... :)
I really appreciate this type of post from a financial professional. Almost all the "experts" I know and read continually play a not-so-different version of the same investment song and utterly fail to inform folks depending upon ideas as well as hard recommendations to think about, as you aptly state, multiple income streams coming from uncommon areas.
This may seems hard to believe but since beginning to track personal investments beginning with my first year of employment and marriage (perhaps one and the same)in 1972, I have never had a year where I experienced a negative investment result year-to-year. I always made a good total return. And many years, much better than good. Through dumb luck initially, I invested in things other than the usual (at the time) mutual funds,some stocks and AAA bonds.
Thinking creatively about funding and creating a satisfactory lifestyle on the "back nine" is especially appropriate given the present investment climate.
T
Roger,
No matter how you dress it up a "post retirement career" is NOT retirement. It's merely work under a different label.
Hey Roger: really enjoy your blog. I like to hear about different investment ideas and approaches.
regarding the caretaker idea here is a web page for caretaker.:
www.caretaker.org
gary
rackgen, i've mentioned buying a duplex early in life as an option (not a preference) for retirement. the idea being upon retirement you live in collect rent on the other unit to live on--presumes it is paid off.
T, thank you, what you say about people in the business seems to be true unfortunately but people who do work in the business face the same issues, they will have a portfolio of X dollars that either covers them or not, social security will either be what they expect or not, they will have unexpected costs come up or not (this last one is silly in that everyone has unexpected costs come up) and may need to think out side the lines if inflation goes haywire or the market does not do what they think.
Retired in Prescott--i cannot say you are wrong but i come at this differently (my being 41 may skew me but my dad is 81 gets published regularly and runs a school that teaches golf to the blind).
The idea that i try to express is empowerment. being in front of a financial problem long before it might occur. Whatever retirement used to mean will apply to fewer people so that can be recognized ahead of time and planned for such that you end up doing what you want to do instead of getting to 65 or 70 with no plan and having circumstance dictate what you must do.
Gary, very cool site thanks.
OK I'll bite and if its in Hawaii all the better. How does one find out about these situations and where is the one your wife found?
If it has internet access so I can trade is my only requirement.
Have enjoyed your blog and its insights into investments.
Hey if its in Hawaii I will the firefighters too!
well the URL that Gary left might be a one place to look.
Joellyn found out about this through the animal rescue she volunteers with.
setting up a wireless network can be done anywhere.
The reality is that our "retirement" will not resemble the same word describing that of our grandfathers/fathers.
And that's not necessarily a bad thing. The health statistics are not good for those who buy into the idea of "now I'm retired so it's time to sit down." Not for the body, nor for the brain.
Ironically, with the boomers crushing the next generation's fiscal balance sheet, there will probably be the worst of all worlds: more catastrophic medical expenses towards the end of life, and less money to pay for it. Postponing retirement to "never" (even if not by choice) may be just what the doc ordered - and we may even look back on those who did covet "getting to sit down" as somewhat self-destructive.
I'm not advocating back-hoe work for everyone, but our entire society will benefit from increasing the interaction with elders as a part of daily life. And some of the unbearable loneliness of those "golden years" might be relieved if there is a need to do more than watch TV and wait for the next meal.
As long as we can all keep a "that might be me one day" perspective, and offer a smidgen of dignity and respect, that last third may no longer be as dreadful as is sometimes feared.
R in NY
Rick your comments are an obvious direction for this conversation to go and I believe in staying active mentally and physically with my dad and backhoe-ing neighbor as prime examples but you may have grimmed it up a little more than I might have ;-)
Personally I think the back hoeing neighbor makes more sense than the care taker idea. Personally I like neither, but the back hoeing neighbor is essentially operating a small business.
He can go away for 3 months traveling if he wants or he can increase his work load 20% in a year when is portfolio is suffering. He has lots of flexibility. The building is always there and always needs the care taker.
I think a flexible job, a seasonal job in a vacation area, or a small business are more desirable. Keeps you active but lets you play a lot as well if you so choose.
just my 2 cents
To 'pad' our retirement, I spent two years learning trading, fascinating stuff and a good hobby.
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