I have three things going for me in this long brutal recession. I'm a recluse. I don't like my fellow man much, so going out to be with my fellow man holds no attraction. And on the rare occasion that I do venture out for a meal, my favorite dining spots are the taco stands and the cheap Mexican diners. I read restaurant reviews just to gasp at what they're charging for a pork chop or a single egg Benedict. Homemade cream corn as a side dish is outrageously expensive. I know, it's amazing that anyone is serving homemade cream corn in a restaurant as a side dish, especially in Utah. So, I save a lot of money by not wanting to eat out. And I'd rather watch a movie at home lying on my bed, smoking whatever I want and drinking good iced tea. I couldn't buy a glass of really good iced Earl Grey tea out in the world, even at a tea house, if my life depended on it. I'd rather stay home.
I'm old. But I'm still continent. This means I get Social Security and Medicare but I don't need to spend anything on adult diapers. Lucky me.
The third and most important shock absorber is the house I own. Sure it has it's problems and I could pour a fortune into it. But I haven't. I never borrowed against it. I couldn't. My credit wasn't good enough since medical bills and my mother's care bankrupted me. Chapter 7. It's been five years, so I still don't have good credit and still can't borrow against it. Hell, I can't even afford to pay all my property taxes each year. Certainly never on time. I still have fairly hefty medical bills. But that which has prevented me from borrowing against my house, has saved me from losing my house and have made me a perfect candidate for a Reverse Mortgage! Any day now, I'll find out how little money it's now worth after the housing crash.
7 comments:
I hear you. Not having expensive tastes has helped us during this recession too. We never spend real money on furniture - bought most of it at "antique" stores which was a lot cheaper than buying it new even at a discount furniture store. And our favorite eating place is Star Tavern, a pizza joint down the street. Re: the reverse mortgage, it worked out great for my parents. They really got their money's worth out of their house and a steady income stream during their retirement.
I hear you, too. Unfortunately, we have a 2nd mtg. on the house and it probably is more than what is worth. And, I have $$$$$ credit card debt after putting my two children through 5 years of college (EACH of them!)...and parent loans. And, this year, we owed $$$$$ on our taxes! Oye vei! You are one of the lucky ones. We don't eat out AT ALL! But, we do sit down for dinner together now every night and that's nice!
My one danger area is bipolar shopping sprees. I don't go to expensive stores, so blowing $50 a Big Lots on pet toys isn't as bad as $500 for shoes at Nordstrom. Glad to hear your parent's reverse mortgage is working well for them. I'm just not quite getting by month to month.
I hope you get good news about your reverse mortgage. I love the photo of your cottage! And I'm right there with you - I'm perfectly happy to stay home. I can't imagine being bored anymore.
It's like a kick in my gut every time I find out how much (more) the value of my house has slipped. I put $118,000 down on it in 2003. Biggest mistake of my mistake-laden life.
Home is the ultimate shock absorber ... that's for sure ...
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