I am in a bit of a quandary, and I think that I would put more stock in the opinions of the members of this forum than just about than any other group. Sometimes younger people just can't see issues concerning seniors from a senior's perspective. I am selling a piece of property, so I can get out from under it's mortgage, and I can use a little extra in my savings account. The amount I stand to clear will be between $xx, and $xx. Several people are encouraging me to invest it, but I don't know enough about investing. Plus it occurs to me that I might not be able to enjoy the funds fully if it is tied up. i thought I could use $xx to $xx a month to augment my monthly income. I'm 63 and not worried about 10 years from now, and if need be I still have a greater valued property I can sell, and it has no mortgage. So I like to hear what all of you think.
@Ina I. Wonder I learned my lesson the hard way with speculative stocks so that is the first thing I would avoid. About the only thing I would do without being concerned is buying short term CD's. When they mature, take the interest out and reinvest the principal.
CDs currently pay almost nothing.$100,000 at current rates would pay less than $40 a month. To get $500 a month you'll have to take some of the principal, which I think is what you wanted to do. Talk to a broker and tell him what you want. There are many annuities and other investments that will send you a monthly check. Many insurance companies offer annuities too. Ask your agent and compare to get the most from your money.
An immediate income annuity maybe what you are looking for. It will give you a good return on your money, more than a CD, no health questions to concern yourself with and you can have your monthly income. Talk to your insurance agent AIG has a good product for your situation.
@Richard Paradon @Sheldon Scott @Pat Baker , Thank you for answering my query. I've never trusted investing, I've seen too many scams. My husband liked to invest in different ventures, but none that paid off, and he lost most of his venture capital. I always put my spending money into land. By my calculations even without investing, I will have enough to be comfortable, so I'm a bit leary to put my funds at risk. The immediate annuity does sound like a possibility. I'll check that out. I admit that at 63 I don't see much sense in investing. Who would it be for? I've already given each of my grandchildren their inheritance.
I am in agreement about getting an annuity. That should save you from being taxed as much on the sale , and you can specify how much each month you want from the annuity. I think that you can also borrow from the cash value, like you can with a whole life policy; but you will have to check on that part. There may be different rules for different annuities. Even if you put part of it into an annuity, and kept some for handy cash for something unexpected; it would help, I think. If you don't already have a small life insurance policy, that is also a good thing to have. A small policy ($3000-$5000) will pay out right away and whomever your executor is would have immediate cash to deal with any expenses that came up then. Even if you have a large policy; it is good to get one of the small whole life policies; just because they will pay out immediately, whereas a large policy might take a longer time, especially if there were a question about the cause of death.
Thanks Yvonne, I will look into immediate annuity next Monday. Here is another query for anyone. Do you ever find yourself not talking to anyone for days? What do you do about it? I have found myself going for several days without talking except to my dogs. Generally it doesn't bother me, but I know that as my single lifestyle goes on, It will begin to bother me eventually. For several months after Michael died I was very busy, and I was out and about quite a bit, but now things are slowing down, and I find muself basically speach less.
Ina, I think that many of us do that when we are single, or living alone, as you are. When I lived on my little place up in Bonners, I usually just talked with my dogs, and even to the llama, and the goats and rabbits. every night, the dogs and I would go for a walk, sometimes just around the property, and sometimes, I would walk for several miles down the road and back. Of course, I had a job then; but mainly, it was delivering the Ruralnorthwest bulletin, and I just drove all day long, dropping off the bulletins at the different stores around the neaby counties, so I really didn't talk to people with my job either. My friend Pat, also lived by herself out in the country, and we went to church together on Sundays, and sometimes we went to horse sales, or oother similar events together. One time, we went to an all-day demonstration on teaching a llama to pull a cart, and we both enjoyed that day a whole lot. In the summer, we went swimming and kayaking together, or sometimes, just out for coffee after church. So, my interaction with people was sporadic. If I felt like seeing someone, or calling them, I did; but otherwise, it might be several days in between times of actually visiting with people. I think that the main thing, is not how often you talk with people; but that you have people (either in your life or online friends); where you CAN communicate when you want to do so. If you find some activity that you enjoy, that also puts you in contact with other people, then that will help out , I think. I used to love going to church, and enjoyed the singing and fellowship with everyone there, even though I was not really close friends with anyone at the church. You were talking about going to a square dance group, and I think that something like that would widen your circle of people to chat with. (of course, you always know how to i-message me when you just want to visit, too.) Some people find it important to have other people around; some are content with their own company for the most part. Bobby and I are both pretty much the latter types; but it is nice that we have each other to talk to when we do want to converse.
To your earlier question, I had no idea that CD's were not a good investment. I live alone but talk to just about everybody I see. Sometimes, however, I just like to be alone for a day or two, but not very often. If it bothers you, are you close to any community activities that you could join in?
Hi Richard, I'm a person that can spend many days alone without ever speaking to anyone, but I know this can be bad for a person that lives alone. I tried to get involved with the nearest senior citizens center, but it was like they thought I was an intruder. I got lots of frowns, but no welcomes. I got the impression that youngish widows were not a welcome addition.
Good Morning Ina! I can understand that very much! The majority, in fact, all of my friends are years, some decades, younger than me. I have an advantage as in Thailand, seniors are respected for their age, but even so, my joking, laughing (especially at myself) and being "goofy" makes me accepted. Most of the old people, foreigners like me, are still living in a life of worry and don't seem to enjoy being retired, even here in "paradise!"
Hi Richard, I am trying to learn what single people do to fill their lives at this stage in life. But, I seem to be making all the wrong moves. I am learning that I am too open on the forums. I forget that others see my posts other than my online friends. Being free of most of the responsibilities that were just part of my life is liberating and confusing at the same time. I hate the idea of socializing without my husband, but it is not a choice. I wanted to ask the ladies at the center what their plans would be if they too lost their husbands, but of course I didn't.
I think that as long as we are not being specific about anything in our lives that someone could use to harm us, like too much information about where we live, or that we are going to be gone on a trip (posted on FB) there is really not too much to worry about with posting on a forum like this one. What scammer would care if we are having eggs and toast for breakfast, or that we planted a raised bed garden ? So, most of what we post is just innocent ramblings about our lives in general, and not anything that would be a problem. As far as what single seniors do for entertainment; I think that this is as varied as each person is unique. We all enjoy different things. I am a totally unbalanced klutz, and have no skills and abilities at dancing; so that would never be a choice for me (single or not !); but for you, who have been a good dancer all of your life, and enjoy it, then joining a dancing group is an excellent choice. One of the things I most enjoyed was going to a llama-training class, where we all watched llamas being trained to pull a cart. Perfect for my interests; but probably not for many other people. (I had a lot of fun practicing it with my llama afterwards, too, and all I needed was a cart, and we would have soon been out llama-carting down the driveway and back.) Just find things that you personally are interested in doing again, or learning to do, and try it. Youtube has tutorials about almost anything; so you can learn how to grow cranberries or how to paint pictures on your iPad, and everything inbetween.
@Ina I. Wonder that amount of money you can get from your property can give you happiness. Why make plans for 10 years or 20 years when you are not sure if you would live that long? Although it's not a good idea to squander money but my point is to use that money for your desires instead of investing it. And with the scammers around us, you might end up with nothing on your hands. When I retire from work, I would receive a substantial amount of pension. Our plan is to buy an apartment or a house that we can rent out and half of the money would be used for our wishes like traveling and travelling.
Don't quote me on this but I did hear recently (on some documentary about the mortgage crisis that some are still coping with) that right now CDs are not increasing in value due the the fact that mortgage lending interest rates are being held low, but as soon as those interest rates increase then CD interest rates will also go up. I was thinking that maybe this is a good time to buy CDs then….but I don't know enough about the trends etc. It would probably be risky.