Five Years of 55+ Community Living: Six Barbservations

 

In 2019, my husband and I purchased a brand new home in an age 55+ community located in Ocala, Florida. With five years of experience living here, now is a good time to reflect on this experience. Below are some insights for others who might be considering a similar move:

HOA Living- Our homeowners’ association (HOA) fee includes two community clubhouses; amenities (e.g., spa, pool, bocce and pickleball courts), landscaping, and a lifestyle office that organizes dozens of monthly events for residents. Cable, internet, and lawn mowing are not included. In 2019, our HOA fee was $200. Today, it is $245, a relatively modest $45 (22.5%) five-year increase driven by inflationary trends and improvements and additions to community amenities. There are many rules (e.g. no political lawn signs and specified house paint colors) and changes to landscaping and house exteriors require HOA approval.

 

Transitory Residents- I’ve been amazed at how many residents have moved away from- or even within- the community in just five years. Common “triggers” for moving have included an unhappy spouse, desire for a larger house or more land or a smaller house, inability to afford and/or maintain a home following widowhood, desire to live closer to family (especially following widowhood or the birth of a first grandchild), illness, and just plain aging and a need for assistance with activities of daily living.

 

Plentiful Activities- There is literally a formally organized club or interest group for everyone. I joined several that reflect my interests (bocce, computer, culture vultures, and travel). In addition, there are plays put on by community residents, concerts, music bingo games, food truck nights, seminar speakers, and more. On top of that, the city of Ocala has so many events and cultural activities, all within a short drive, including those at the World Equestrian Center.

 

Conversation  Topics- People don’t spend a lot of time talking about work they used to do or, like me, are still doing….unless it is a conversation with someone who is also working. It turns out, there are a number of us. We now have a Facebook group just for residents who own small home-based businesses and I was amazed to see the variety (e.g., artists teaching painting classes, hairdressers, real estate agents, pet sitters, airport drivers, etc.). Top conversation topics among those who are not working include family members, health issues, community events, HOA rules, the price that departing neighbors’ houses are listed and selling for, and travel.

 

Peace, Quiet, Security, and Socialization- My community is located away from major roads and gated, which provides a decent level of security. Compared to our New Jersey house, it is also very quiet. There is no street noise or wild parties by neighbors with teenagers. Our houses are only 10 feet apart from each other so people know their neighbor’s names and often help each other out. We also have monthly ladies lunch groups to socialize with neighbors.

 

It May Be Temporary- Many people leave when their health deteriorates. Age 55+ communities are great when people can live independently. Not so much when they have major health issues, especially when they are solo agers (i.e., people without a spouse and children) or have family members that live far away. My husband and I have already made plans to move into our final home in a continuing care retirement (a.k.a., lifecare) community in 2033 for a seamless continuum of care in later life. 

This post provides general personal finance or consumer decision-making information and does not address all the variables that apply to an individual’s unique situation. It does not endorse specific products or services and should not be construed as legal or financial advice. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

 

Barbservations as a Sole Next-of-Kin Survivor

 

Earlier this year, I lost my only sibling to cancer/heart disease and became the sole next-of-kin survivor from my small family of origin. My brother had no spouse or children. In addition to grieving the loss of my brother, I dealt with financial matters (e.g., unexpectedly paying for a cremation and doing a forensic audit of my brother’s finances) and technological hurdles (e.g., searching for a digital assets inventory and learning how to navigate an Apple Mac computer).

With some recent perspective, I offer the following Barbservations to help other sole survivors:

 

Take Care of Yourself- Emotional and physical well-being are extremely important when someone is grieving. Eat well, engage in physical activity, and get adequate sleep. Also seek out social support. I was very lucky to have my brother’s long-term partner to share stories, memories, feelings, and a multitude of postmortem tasks. We formed a close bond as a result.

 

Organize Important Documents- I used my financial planning skills to create a postmortem net worth statement for my brother using information from bank statements, credit card bills, tax documents, and other sources. I also prepared a binder to hold documents related to my brother (death certificates, social media account closure information, cremation paperwork, information about my brother’s websites, and copies of my brother’s identification information etc.). Having everything in one place kept things organized and provided a sense of control.

 

Take Contemporaneous Notes- As this definition states, contemporaneous notes are detailed, accurate, time-stamped notes that are taken when an event occurs or immediately afterward. Think: former FBI director James Comey and his detailed memos about conversations with President Trump. Starting when my brother became ill, I took detailed notes of conversations with him, his partner, and various people who helped us out along the way. Several of my conversations with my brother were long and deep and I now have notes about them to refer to.

 

Celebrate Their Life- Find a way to honor a loved one’s memory by celebrating their memory in meaningful ways. For my brother, his partner and I spread his ashes at sites (e.g., Blue Ridge Parkway) that he wrote about in his blog. In addition, he was cremated in a favorite motorcycle jacket and his creative works will live on in a Pinterest page that I found by accident. I also paid to keep his website up another year so I could re-read and save all his blog posts.

 

Update Your Own Estate Plan- If your estate plans included your deceased relative, they will need to be reviewed and updated. For example, since my brother was a beneficiary of my will and “Plan B” health care proxy in my living will, I subsequently prepared new documents.

Planning Ahead for Widowhood: Changed Income and Expenses

 

I live in an age 55+ community in Florida and have observed conversations among residents (primarily women) who are mentally preparing for widowhood. They know the statistics about women outliving men and have done the math. This is especially true for those who are younger and have better health habits than their husbands. 

A few have plainly stated “as soon as he dies, I’m outta here,” to reduce expenses or to live closer to family or in a lifecare community or assisted living facility.

 

This post describes five changes in income and expenses that widowed persons can expect:

 

Reduced Income- I heard this example at a recent seminar. A married couple has four monthly income streams: $2,500- husband’s pension, $2,000- husband’s Social Security, $800- wife’s pension, and $1,500- wife’s Social Security for a total of $6,800 ($81,600 annually). If the husband dies first, the wife is left with $1,250 (50% of husband’s pension), $800-wife’s pension, and $2,000 (highest Social Security) for income of $4,050 ($48,600 annually). This is a 40% “haircut,” which some couples cover with spousal gifts, annuities, and/or life insurance.

 

If the wife dies first, the husband might receive a higher pension benefit because there will no longer be a reduction for spousal benefits. The wife’s pension and Social Security would go away, however, which could still result in a decrease in household income. For simplicity, this example did not include savings like IRAs, which would provide an additional income source.

 

Reduced Expenses- Monthly expenses will likely decrease when one spouse passes away. Some estimates project a 20% to 30% drop, which can help offset a drop in income. A car might be sold, thereby reducing costs for loan payments, gas, and auto insurance. In addition, less food is needed and the cost of the deceased’s health insurance ends. Entertainment and travel expenses may also decrease when a surviving spouse loses their “traveling companion.”

 

Tax Considerations- Income taxes often increase for the surviving spouse, who will be filing a tax return as an individual instead of as a married couple filing jointly. Single taxpayers have lower income ranges for each of the seven marginal tax brackets currently in effect as well as lower income “triggers” for tax on Social Security benefits, the Medicare premium surcharge called IRMAA (income-related monthly adjusted amount), and the net investment income tax.

 

Changes in Housing- Widowhood often precipitates a change in housing if the surviving spouse feels that the marital home is too large to maintain or too expensive to afford on one income. Other rationales for moving include wanting to live closer to, or with, family members and the need for care in an assisted living facility or continuing care retirement community.

 

New Household Expenses- New household expenses are common to provide services that a deceased spouse performed previously. Examples include lawn mowing, tax preparation, and driving to an airport. In addition, older widowed persons who live alone may decide to get a medical alert system or a monitoring service that checks in on their well-being daily.

This post provides general personal finance or consumer decision-making information and does not address all the variables that apply to an individual’s unique situation. It does not endorse specific products or services and should not be construed as legal or financial advice. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

 

Take-Aways From a Back-to-School Virtual Conference

Each year in August, Next Gen Personal Finance holds an all-day Back-to-School Virtual Conference for financial educators. I recently attended part of this program to learn about topics related to my work for clients. I firmly believe that, when you are well versed on current events, you enhance your credibility with clients and students. 

Below are six of my content take-aways:

Generative AI Prompts- Users need to “poke and prod” prompts for generative AI programs (e.g., ChatGPT, Bing, and Gemini) to get what they want. The more detail, the better. For example “Explain AI to a 10-year old in 60 words or less” versus “Explain AI.” Be very specific. Examples: “Write your response in narrative form instead of a bulleted list” and “The tone should be casual and exciting.” Use AI output as a tool but make the final product your own.

 

Frictionless Spending- Due to increased use of financial technology (fintech) tools, the processes of spending and borrowing money have become much more seamless and hassle-free. While this is good from a convenience standpoint (i.e., quick transactions with minimal steps and obstacles), fintech tools can also enable overspending and overborrowing.

 

Dark Patterns- These are deceptive user interfaces on websites that trick people into doing things that they didn’t plan to do such as signing up for recurring payments, buying something, or sharing personal information. Three common places where dark patterns are used are online shopping, gaming apps (e.g., paying money to get to the next level of a game), and social media. For example, ads that pop up for items that you were just searching for online.

 

Confirm Shaming- This dark pattern method words the option to decline an offer in such a way that website visitors feel ashamed to proceed. Example: “So you really don’t want to save money?” Other dark patterns include making it very difficult to cancel a service or subscription that was so easy to sign up for (e.g., requiring a phone call) and “bait and switch” dark patterns that try to get consumers to upgrade when a low cost product or service is “unavailable.”

 

Inflation Rate- Good news! The U.S. inflation rate fell below 3% for the first time since 2021. Specifically, the consumer price index rose 2.9% from July 2023 to July 2024 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. While the increase in prices for goods and services has slowed considerably from mid-2022, we are not experiencing deflation (i.e., a sustained decrease in prices). Therefore, Americans cannot expect prices to go back to where they were in 2019.

 

Vehicle Purchases- The average price of a new vehicle is slightly under $50,000 and 96-month (8-year) car loans are becoming increasingly available. A longer loan term (e.g., 7 or 8 years vs. 4 or 5 years) reduces monthly vehicle loan payments but increases the total interest paid. According to a 2024 J.D. Power study, Toyota is the most reliable mass market brand followed by Buick (ranked second) and Chevrolet and Mini (both tied for third).

 

This post provides general personal finance or consumer decision-making information and does not address all the variables that apply to an individual’s unique situation. It does not endorse specific products or services and should not be construed as legal or financial advice. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.