This guest post is from Mrs. PoP, who writes at plantingourpennies.com.This is a fitting post near Thanksgiving, as Mrs. PoP has a lot to be thankful for. This story is part of our Reader Stories series. Some stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success or failure. These stories feature folks with all levels of financial maturity and income. Want submit your own reader story? Here's how.
Mr. PoP and I are about 30 years old and live in South Florida, aka “God's Waiting Room.” Go ahead and laugh. There are a surprising number of stereotypes about living in South Florida, but the one about the large number of wealthy retirees is mostly true. Our next-door neighbor is more than three times as old as we are, and although our neighborhood isn't ostentatious, most of its members are wealthy enough to have a home in Fla., and somewhere up north…usually both paid off.
Partially as a result of this, the average age of our close friends in Florida is probably about 60. Sure there are a few couples that we hang out with who are our age and have toddlers now, but more often than not, those who we invite over for dinner parties to while away the evening are our friends who are “retired” but who still work part-time on multiple streams of income.
Choosing our friends to learn from them
This is great for Mr. PoP and me because we're both addicted to learning about personal finance and personal happiness. And the friends whom we love spending the most time with teach us loads about both.
Take our friends K & D. Now nearing their mid-60s, K & D have managed to cram several lifetimes' worth of knowledge into their brains, and Mr. PoP and I are benefiting greatly from it. They both had successful careers with a big company before retiring in their early 50s. Over those years, they invested slowly in real estate, finding homes and parcels of land in areas that they knew they enjoyed, and thought others would too! Not content to rest on their laurels, they stayed incredibly busy since moving to Florida for their “retirement.” Down here they run several successful small local businesses between them, are very active in charity work, and when K talks about “finally retiring” in January, what she's really talking about is quitting the part-time job, where she helps tourists, to focus more on grant writing for her charity work. For K, she is at a point in her life where making extra money doesn't mean much, but helping others through her charity makes her very happy.
Another friend of ours is U. U is in his late 80s and has lived in the area for about 60 years. He's one of the best resources for local history because he was there to live it. In his lifetime, U has speculated in oil drilling, as well as built and run restaurants, hotels, and condo developments. When we were searching around to buy a home, U knew the area so well that whenever we mentioned a specific street we were looking at a home on, he inevitably knew if the lots on that street were a quarter acre or an eighth of an acre. He just began a new storage rental business, but for all of his wealth, he gets most of his joy from spending time with his family, and riding up and down the coast in his old car, “keeping an eye on things.”
What have we learned from our older friends about happiness?
- Their social networks of friends and family bring them more joy than making money does
- Our health is one of our most precious assets, regardless of our age
- Let the little stuff go; it's better to be happy all the time than be “right” all of the time
What have we learned from our older friends about money?
- Multiple small streams of income can add up. They also provide security because if one or two income streams drop off, there are many more to pick up the slack
- Retiring doesn't have to mean watching TV and playing golf or tennis. Though our friends have been retired for many years, they all still have their hands in a few different businesses, keeping their minds fresh and active
- When you are young, time is on your side for wealth generation. If you plan ahead in your youth, you can take fewer risks in your old age and still retire with more than enough money
Even if it's a bit unconventional, Mr. PoP and I really treasure the friendships that we have built with retirees in our area and hope to continue learning from them for many years to come.
*Persistence and consistency can get you more than you thought.
*Your savings increases exponentially when your kids leave the house.
*Living in a paid for house is both financially and mentally liberating.
*Living with the “You only live once” mentallity can mean that you will have to work much longer than you thought you would have to.
“Your savings increase exponentially when your kids leave the house.”
This is so true it should be the eleventh commandment.
I’d also agree this this one is not noted nearly enough…
“Persistence and consistency can get you more than you thought”
I have a few older friends and enjoy their company very much. They are a shortcut to learning things about life, and usually are of very good advice. Being away from family, it is like having uncles and aunts around, and something to be thankful for.
I completely agree. Aunts and Uncles are a great comparison to some of these friendships. In fact, we celebrate Thanksgiving with some of them every year like family!
There is a ton of wisdom that we can glean from folks that are older than most, and that have more life experience to draw upon. A common theme is that it really is about the people and our health in the end. I do agree with this. Of course, being financial solvent and prosperous to some degree can really help us enjoy people and keep our health to some degree.
Good post! Older people have so much experience in all aspects of life. Each person has been through 60+ years of life education and you can’t put a price on that. We can learn a lot from the twists and turns their lives have taken and how well they had reacted to those events. There are lots of “what to do” and also “what not to do”.
I also think it’s absolutely important for retired people to stay involved in some activity, be it professional part-time work or community work even after they retire. Too much idleness can bring on a lot of issues. That’s why I constantly remind my parents to keep themselves occupied.
60+ years of life will give lessons that truly are priceless. Learning from our friends is something that we really can’t put a value on. Do I sense a mastercard advertisement here? jk.
Best post on the site in a while! Nice job!
Anne, your words are too kind. Thanks so much for making our day with your compliment!
What an interesting article. I will show it to one of my older employees who is going to retire before christmas…
I liked this…especially the focus on staying active and having multiple streams of income. I’ve always known people who worked regular jobs and had a side business, like fixing cars or selling Mary Kay and Avon. But having multiple streams is so much more rewarding because of the consistency of income from at least one or more of the streams. Would like to hear more about older people having success with that. Great post!
Awww, thanks Peach! Mrs.PoP is putting all the nice comments on our fridge =). We’re thinking of doing a series of interviews with our older friends who have some wisdom to pass on.
The statement “living in a paid off house is liberating both financially and mentally” is so true. Several years ago I met an 80-year old woman who had moved to a new home and had a mortgage where she couldn’t afford her medicine. I wondered why a financial institution would give an 80-year old that size mortgage. I was almost ready to retire with a paid-off mortgage. If hard times come, I don’t want to have to worry about a mortgage payment vs being able to buy medicine. Live within your means and save as much as you can while you are able to work. That philosophy worked out well for us.
Financial institutions grant mortgages to seniors because it’s illegal in the U.S. to deny a 30-year mortgage due to age. I remember as a kid that you could not get a mortgage if you were over 70 years old, and I think it was that you could not get a 30-year mortgage if you were over 55 years old (only a 15-year mortgage). That was struck down as age discrimination.
Also, if a senior citizen dies holding a mortgage, I believe the bank expects the mortgage either to be paid off by the estate or it goes on the market to be sold to pay the remainder. The bank will certainly get their money one way or the other; they couldn’t care less whether house buyers can afford medicine or food as long as they can (at least on paper) afford a mortgage.
Why shouldn’t banks lend to an 80 year old? Because the 80 year old might not be around to finish paying it off? Perhaps banks should only loan to people who never move in 30 years, then.
Yes, I can’t help but notice that banks always seem to get their money somehow. Perhaps its because of the golden rule? “He who has the gold makes the rule!”
In our area of Florida, the older set didn’t seem to be hit as hard in the financiapocalypse as the younger generations; perhaps because of their already generally high net worth. It sounds strange to give a senior a 30 year mortgage, but most people don’t pay their mortgages off regardless of their age.
The ability to get a mortgage is supposed to be based on your ability to pay it, not your age. So I would guess that the 80 year old had enough assets that the bank believed were “liquid” that they believed she could make the payments. Without knowing someone’s complete situation, we need to be careful about generalizations. That 80 year old might have a ton of money in investments, but not be willing to sell any. Not logical, but then we all make illogical decisions sometimes.
My grandfather gave me my first personal finance book when I was finishing up my MA before getting my first job after graduation – The Millionaire Next Door. The book was an eye opener for me, and I credit my grandfather with setting a foundation for me and my learning about paying myself first, buying a used but quality car (with cash if possible), setting up savings goals, focusing on family, and so many other things interconnected to personal finance. He also had some fun and loved to purchase the occasional lottery ticket and won a minor payout from time to time. I think we miss out when we discount the experiences of our elders. He passed away long before I was able to share with him how much he influenced my life.
Yes, I love MND! I think it was the first personal finance book I read and it heavily influenced our thinking over the past decade or so. My mother gave it to me after she found out that my grandfather had more than a million dollars when he passed away…we never knew. You’re lucky to have such a good G’pa!
Your friends K&D seem to have lived the path that my wife and I are trying to find.
It’s great that you have so many friends whom you can learn from in many ways, including financially. I wish you the best of luck on achieving your goals for financial independence in your 30’s.
Thanks Justin! When I think of K&D I’m always astounded at how many different projects they had that turned into small businesses. When they learned a new skill, they would try to monetize it; some worked out, others didn’t. Social bonds take work to keep them strong, and we strengthen our bonds with the people we find fascinating…I’ve heard that you are the average of your 5 closest friends.
This came right on time I have interpreted this in another manner. I am single and do alot of this retirees and it is beyond daughting these people have so much money I doubt I will ever reach their tax bracket. I was considering not participating in anymore just because I am out of my league but my outlook has changed.
Never give up Fantasma =) Keep reading GetRichSlowly.com and you’ll get there!
Sorry everyone just realized all the typos*
I am single and do alot of things retirees do and it is beyond daunting these people have so much money I doubt I will ever reach their tax bracket. I was considering not participating anymore just because I am out of my league but my outlook has changed.
I’m 33. My husband and I live in the Sarasota area and also have the same “problem” of most of our friends being older. I’ve learned so much more talking to them than to people my own age because of the collective years of experience and the wisdom of perspective. But the best part about being friends with older people is being gifted a sourdough starter that they’ve nurtured for almost 20 years!
Love it. My grandmother was so inspirational in the same way your friend K is. She wanted to stay busy during retirement by helping people because she had enough money to not work to make an income. I want to be comfortable enough to not HAVE to work, but want to find things to do that can benefit others when I’m that age.
To be blunt, I love old people. haha. Their stories and outlook on life puts everything into perspective. While I don’t have a lot of ‘older friends’ we tend to spend most of our time with older family members and I always book more time for a few of my older patients b/c I love chatting with them so much :) Great post!
This has so much good stuff in it. Older folk are an amazing resource to learn from. Thanks!