Our TOTAL MONTHLY retirement EXPENSES for August 2024!

In this video I share our total monthly retirement expenses for the month of August, 2024.

I'm interested to find out how they compare to retirees living in other states and other countries.

Thanks for sharing yours in the comments section.

#retirement

[healthywealthywise]

Excellent! At the beginning I was thinking “Steve & Jim are out and about at night!”…then I realized it was early morning. LOL

[Linda-inns]

Hi Steve good video. You have good advice for a lot of people. Hi Jim you guys have a good shopping trip. I just came back from Walmart!!cost me $ 40.00. 😁👍

[kenmoreSF]

Very informative as always, Steve. I'm a fan of you both.

[bernaclischurchill]

For two people, that is not bad.

My expenses are what some people might consider high, I include my property taxes and homeowners ins. I also have my supplemental Medicare insurance, prescription coverage and Long Term Care insurance that I pay out, plus dental, vision as well, since regular Medicare does not cover it. My insurances are a big part of my monthly expenses, without them, I would be paying out very little. So my expenses would be much more than a $1000 per month than the YTbers in NC, Peter.

I live in an older, smaller home than most people do, which is not particularly energy efficient. I still have oil heat which is about $250 per month in the winter months, electric $105 in summer. In winter my electric bills drop down to almost nothing. Water is around $45.00 in winter, and in summer is $65..00 per month. Cell phone $15 per month, use Tracfone, barely basic service, but that is all I need, I'm not a cell phone person. Groceries $300 per month. When I first retired, it was $265 per month, which was 4yrs ago.

I know some people might ask why I have regular Medicare, its because I want to be able to receive medical care wherever I go, without the changes and restrictions associated with Medicare Advantage, I thought that would be a better option, although you pay out of pocket.

[robinvarnadoe]

I couldn't afford to live in California nowadays. Lived there in the late 60's early 70's. I pay $147 monthly for electric. About $48 for water. Mortgage $748. I'll stay on the east coast where it's cheaper. Gas is around $3.05 a gallon depending on the station you use.

[RockinStacy]

Living in PA the bills vary greatly by season. But our two biggest bills (outside of taxes) are cable @ $280 and cell service @ $170. We keep our AC at 71 and our bill is about $170. Now of course in winter our gas bill will take over the electricity bill.

And like I have said before, we have down sized as well. And now live in a little town in the country. The metropolitan area we moved from, the bills would be much higher. An example our trash bill is quarterly @ $53. That would not even cover the cost of one month before.

[joane]

It's just a good comparison in general to see if there are any discounts for seniors Steve. Some things aren't based on income and some are geared to lower incomes. It might help if viewers know of any programs that help seniors on the state and federal levels. Have a great Labor Day Weekend to you and Jim!! 🇺🇸 Joan

[billl]

California resident here. From what I hear from you and friends A/C is a huge electricity cost. We don't have A/C. Fortunately rarely necessary. We live within 5 miles of the coast and our electric bill runs $200 - 250 per month. That includes an extra refrigerator and a stand-alone freezer in the garage. We recently dumped Spectrum TV, but kept internet. We got tired of paying for DVR service and other fees. Signed up for YouTube TV. Auto insurance is a killer. About $300/mo with older cars and good driving records.

[KimmieCat]

Wow. My electric (in SC where it's pretty darn hot) is $150 (ish) and that's with the air on 72 and I have an inground pool, so the pump runs at least 12 hours per day. Water is $40, internet 59.95. Verizon cell phone $83. No cable or satellite. Share streaming with a couple of other people, so I only pay $10 for hulu. I use someone else's Disney plus, prime, and netflix. Garbage is around $65 per quarter. Home insurance and taxes are both around $1200 a piece per year and are included in my $600/month house payment (at 2.25% interest - which is why I'll never move. Too close to paying it off.)

[kevinallen]

Greetings Steve! I have been retired for nine years and live in far Southern Illinois so we have hot, humid summers with cool to cold winters, but little snow and rare cold snaps that get below 0 -- most winter days are in the 30s to near 40 with lows in the teens to 20s. My expenses are very modest in comparison to almost any retiree living in a large metropolitan area. I live in a very nice 750 square foot apartment in a security building with a rent of $560 per month that includes all utilities (heating and cooling). My monthly expense for automobile/travel trailer insurance (full coverage with $250 deductible) is under $200 per month (my newest vehicle is 32 years old and I drive less than 3, 000 miles per year). My health insurance is through my retirement system (will not be Medicare eligible for a couple more months) and my premium is $350 per month. My monthly budget is $1, 800, and as long as I do not eat out too frequently, I am able to stay below that number.

[trr]

In Illinois, I am paying
$600 rent for a 1 bedroom house.
$150 water and sewer every 3 months.
$25 prepaid phone plan through Walmart.
$29.99 wifi.
Gas and electricity depends on the weather. Gas is $30 in the summer but $100- $200 in the winter. Electricity $150 a month in the summer. $60 winter. But I live a dirt broke lifestyle. If you want to live better, you pay more.

[CD-qlhz]

Just as important is what you’re not spending money on. You rarely eat out, no expensive hobbies and just occasional travel. So I think you’re living pretty conservatively.

[debbimeyersbrant]

My phone bill is $30 a month for my cell phone my electric runs about $65 a month I have Somerset Rural Electric also known as REA I told you before how I shop at the different stores my taxes break down to approximately 50 a month and again I live in a small community in the Appalachian Mountains of Pennsylvania but I think California does run a lot more than others from what I've seen and what I've heard in our gas for the car is about 3.69 gl. My internet and TV is $59 combined I have DirecTV and it includes my internet I got that about 10 years ago at a lock in car insurance is approximately $15 because I have it in a lockdown position ever since my husband died it has not been driven I just keep a little bit of insurance on it in case someone hits it I have my own well I'm going to need to fill my propane tank for gas for the stove probably once a year yeah y'all pay more than I do

[jodywoodruff]

Paying for all the streaming services we all have is getting a bit ridiculous. Why can't everything be in one place. That would save a bunch of money for all of us. I pay for Peacock and my Twitch subscriptions. Soon I'll be paying for Hulu. My cellphone bill is $60 a month. Adulting is so much fun.🤣

[AZguy]

In my retirement research so far, cost of living for Palm Springs averages 25% more in most categories over Phoenix. On the other side of the spectrum, Tucson averages about 20% less then costs in Phoenix. It’s a choice how you spend your retirement dollars and where you want to spend your time. A lot to think about! ❤️ Paul

[Tripper]

Good topic good video. I'm a homeowner have a mortgage and live in the suburbs of Sacramento but all of my bills are a bit less than yours. I don't have an HOA, But I do use my AC all summer long and keep it about 77 or 78 average. I also bought a portable air conditioner for my bedroom so I don't have to use my Central during the night while I'm asleep which helps jobs on my bill. I also am lucky I don't have PJ for electric only gas in my gas bill averages $12 a month. I think it may be higher living in the desert especially with the heat I could never survive leaving my thermostat at 80 but I'm sure it feels cooler to you guys considering how hot it is outside. Have a great weekend U2.

[rickwalker]

Water and electric in West Virginia is one of the highest in the US. On the other hand, property taxes are low, $1, 100 a year.

[belle-rpzj]

I am interested in the tax rates. Our county sales tax is 5%, then, we have a special local option sales tax of 2% for schools. Our school taxes are high because we are a small rural county. We have 1 high school a volunteer fire dept. with a few salary employees.

[joecool]

I have 2000 sq ft in La Quinta & my electric is $400 per mos in summer set @ 80. I have IID

[nmaloney]

Here in Maryland our monthly expenses for my partner and I run about 3000.00.