#Middlebury #Seniors
You can learn all kinds of things from surveys, and not all of them are good. A recent SimplyWise bi-monthly survey showed that 35% of seniors age 60 and older are willing to risk getting COVID in order to work.
Of those who are over age 50, only 27% have put any money aside recently for retirement. Nearly half could not last one month off their savings.
The number of people who plan to keep working after starting to collect Social Security benefits just keeps rising, up to 74% at the time of the survey. Due to finances, 17% of us are considering selling our homes.
I scarcely know where to begin. Between seniors willing to risk getting COVID to keep working, seniors contemplating selling their homes and seniors not able to make it through even one month on savings – it’s a dismal picture.
My thoughts on how to cut back on expenses and save money during COVID seem inadequate, but here they are:
- Stop impulse online purchases that you make out of boredom.
- Ask your auto insurance agent about discounts, since your driving is minimal now.
- Double down on asking for senior discounts for everything.
- Don’t buy any new clothes (or even a new winter coat) if you’re home all the time anyway.
- Take your former entertainment budget (dinner and a movie out) and keep the cash.
- If you’re signed up for video streaming services you rarely use, cut all but one.
- Consider selling a second vehicle if it still has payments.
- Make a ritual of studying the weekly grocery sales.
None of these things alone will amount to much, but taken together they will keep more cash in your pocket.
© 2021 King Features Synd., Inc.
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