Retirement

[WildDove]

HEY! I have a very important question about when we sailors get older. My husband and I are in southern Florida preparing our boat for more cruising.

My question is, what do people generally do that have decided to work along the way while they cruise? What about when they are too old to cruise and have no other income coming in, because they have chose to venture off and live instead of working towards retirment.

I am more concerned about it then my husband who is a boat carpenter.
He has planned to save money, then cruise. Work again when the kitty is dry and restock, cruise and so forth.

Any advice would be helpful!

[SailorMitch]

A very good question about our sailing "golden" years! I have the same concerns about where to go, what to do should I decide to sail off into my retirement. That''s a great plan, but the body does grow feeble after a while. Even living aboard tied up in a marina might be impossible due to inabilities to climb the companionway, etc.

In my current incarnation, I work for a certain gubmint agency that collects and pays out lots of money to retirees. What lots of people fail to realize is that social security is not meant to be enough to live on. It''s only supposed to replace 30-40 percent of pre-retirement income. And what I hear you saying in all likelihood is lots of "freelance" work with pay that may be under the table <cough>, or may not even be enough to earn coverage for payment (assuming you aren''t fully covered now.)

Social security also handles the Supplemental Security Income program, which replaced the old state welfare systems back in the ''70''s. you don''t need coverage for that, but it also is a pittance compared to what most people would consider a decent income.

In short, the life you''ve outlined may be one of devout poverty and deprivation far down the road when you and your husband can no longer work. even a ship''s carpenter needs to be able to move around. Maybe I''ve been around too many 80 and 90 year olds lately, but when frailty hits, it''s not a pretty sight. You''ll likely end up in a state supported long term care facility, which is a bleak prospect.

I know I am talking an extreme here, but it''s not that far from the reality of many senior citizens. personally, I think you''re right to worry about it.

I''m also reminded of this story. A young woman is in line at the super market and notices an elderly lady behind her in line with cheap cans of tuna cat food. Knowing that such food often contains impurities some cats can''t tolerate, the younger woman says to the older one, "I know those cans of cat tuna are cheap, but they aren''t the best thing to feed your cat." The older lady responds, "It''s OK. I''m the cat."

Steve Mitchell

[JohnDrake]

The gentleman is quite right. If you do not save and invest monies of your own for retirement, you face a bleek prospect. Your situation seems like it leaves you very little free room. If you are hell bent on this, one thing you could do to give yourself SOME money in retirement would be to take a portion of your savings now and put it in some safe monetary intrument like a CD or money market etc and DON''T TOUCH IT. Let it grow while you cruise. Thus, the more you cruise, the more it grows. This plan assumes that you will fund your cruising by working along the way and you WILL NOT touch the investment.

Make a budget and do some forecasting (there are lots of programs for this). Save as much as you possibly can (at least 25% of your present income given the short term), living VERY frugally now. Invest all that money. Do that up front. Then cruise on what you can make along the way.

I am not saying this will work and I am no financial planner. But it would at least be a little better than your stated course.

[halyardz]

As a boat carpenter, some work along the line must surely come his way but it likely means staying in one place long enough to let the word of mouth get around and work to come in.

There is not enough information to provide sage counsel, nor should you bare your finances on the web, but there are some guidelines that come in handy. Let''s assume that you have some retirement but are planning just for the cruising kitty. Most financial planners will tell you that you should have 3-6 months of cash reserve in addition to the money you plan to live on in a normal non-retirement situation. This rule of thumb can also be applied to cruising.

If you have to work an extra few months to pile up the 3-6 reserve, that is after you''ve set aside the actual kitty, do so. Even the cost of shipping needed parts from the states can be an unwelcome and often unplanned for surprise. What you make while cruising can then be real quality of life money. On the other hand, if you take the notion to the extreme, you may never leave port. Working in the islands you can also face work permit issues and of course there is the normal "grease local palms" costs that crop up.

As a sailor buddy once said, "we spend two things in life, time and money...and you can always check on your bank balance."

[SailorMitch]

WildDove -- One other thing to do to gather some facts to work with is to request a Social Security Statement, which you can do online. This will give both you and your husband (assuming you both have worked in covered employment....and sorry to use such bureaucratic language) a good idea of how much you will receive in social security retirement benefits when you do retire -- assuming you aren''t retired already.

To request a statement, go to www.ssa.gov. Right now there''s a blurb on the main page about delays in requesting Social Security Statements, but click on that item and it will take you to the request from. You can request it online and it will be mailed to you.

If that blurb is no longer there when you go to the site, click on the button on the left labeled something like "How do I....." and then look on the next page for the button for the Social Security Statement. The agency is mailing these out to all working folks through time, so you may even have received one that way. But request a new one to get the latest estimate.

Mitch

[WildDove]

Thanks everyone for the advice! Sadly to say, I left my husband so I hope I didn''t take too much of your time. Living on a boat and crusing is wonderful but I need to think of my future and of my teenage daughter. Although cruising is a wonderful adventure for any teenager to experience there are certain care to responsiblites that must be fulfilled and not neglected.

Don''t want to spread dirty laundry but there is more to leaving him then finances.

Hopefully one day again, I''ll be able to sail because it is now in my blood and in my blood it shall remain.

Wilddove

[SailorMitch]

Wilddove,

Best of luck. Hope it all works out for you and yours. The cruising dream is alive and well in a bunch of us, so I know what you''re talking about. Too bad that "life" also has to raise its ugly head though. It''s no fun thinking about years down the road, but that is part of the process, too. As the saying goes, however, more money is better than less no matter how you cut it. I think that goes double when old age sets in.

[halyardz]

That was quick, about a week since your first
post. Well, good luck. I''ve been through it and its important to put the kids #1.

[WildDove]

halyardz: I may be down and out from sailing at this time, but I''m located in a popular cruising area in Southern Florida and someday I will sail again and better yet ....even have my own sailboat. Could be only for daysailing but to feel/see the wind fill the sails means more then words can describe. I''ve learned alot about sailing and have so much more to go.

Watching the dolphins swim with the boat and the many wonders that lay beneath the keel is something I will have again.
Driving a "car" to various places just don''t seem to cut it. I now want to go "out there".

Happy sailing to you.........

WildDove

[JKCC]

Hi
Charlie and Janie here...currently in Maryland...moving to Florida in October this year...looking for sailing companions...ideas and input on crusing the intracoastal...hope to hear from you
Reply to cyclemore@erols.com
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