Posted on 01/06/2016 5:59:18 PM PST by free_life
Some 63% of people can't deal with a $500 emergency.
Americans are starting 2016 with more job security, but most are still theoretically only one paycheck away from the street.
Approximately 63% of Americans have no emergency savings for things such as a $1,000 emergency room visit or a $500 car repair, according to a survey released Wednesday of 1,000 adults by personal finance website Bankrate.com, up slightly from 62% last year. Faced with an emergency, they say they would raise the money by reducing spending elsewhere (23%), borrowing from family and/or friends (15%) or using credit cards to bridge the gap (15%).
(Excerpt) Read more at marketwatch.com ...
And those of us who are doing decently well will be expected to fork over more money, especially if BS gets the White House.
I don't know why, but that made me laugh...as much as it has the ring of truth to it.
I think we will know we are fully in it when we go into the supermarket, and in front of the cartons of milk are little digital displays...
I agree. I have often thought I want to learn how to weld. I work in IT, and if things go poorly, I can’t see how IT is going to be any help.
But welding...that seems like a skill that could be bartered.
As for Social Security...we don’t even seriously factor it in. We are planning as if it won’t exist, because I am pretty certain they will implement means testing at some point.
When they do that, it will be clear to all what many of us have known all along, that Social Security was a Democratic Ponzi scheme meant to redistribute wealth for votes.
Wow; I haven’t seen that - even more frightening than gas, since even more people need milk!
In the Weimar Republic meals would increase in price while you ate (I guess you got the price at time of order), and people would be paid twice a day so they could spend some at lunchtime before prices changed too much. I have 100,000 Mark notes from then; I feel like a Zimbabwean millionaire. Today in India, when people are paid they go out and buy all of their necessities, and anything left over is used to buy gold (to protect them from the same problems). While our economy has stabilized a little in terms of prices (not in jobs), a couple of years ago we were looking at that reality (with gas, groceries, etc.). Just that car loans may be 7 years now is bizarre...
Too true; my retirement age was moved to 67 to minimize my return on a fund to which I’ve already contributed 30 years, and still must continue to do so for another 20+.
The intergenerational warfare is getting ugly; the ire was first directed at retired public employees (who bankrupt us current taxpayers - we get less and less for property tax dollars every year, in a state with among the highest property taxes in the country), now it is directed at any retiree costing younger workers a penny.
“Too true; my retirement age was moved to 67 to minimize my return on a fund to which I’ve already contributed 30 years, and still must continue to do so for another 20+.”
My husband is 50 and wanted to ‘max out’ his SS before retiring. I doubted that paying in more would actually be a good thing, given our increasingly fascist government. So I did the calculations for his situation. If he works until 67, he’ll pay in over $152,000. (I counted his Medicare portion too, because he will get nothing more in Medicare benefits for paying in more since it is 100% socialized.) This $152k is only my hubby’’ portion - add his employer’s and it’s over $300,000!
If he lives to the average male lifespan of 83 and starts collecting at 67, he’ll get $40,000 more than if he quits today and doesn’t pay in one more dime.
It is nothing more than a ponzi scheme depending on the hardworking dupes to keep supporting it. Those in the lower tiers get back much more than they ever paid in, while those in the top get screwed. It is highly socialized.
So, hubby quit work and we are going Galt. It is freedom!
And when socialized security is cut it will be the top tier that is reduced in the calculations. I recommend everyone quit paying into it, and quit supporting the fascist beast, as soon as they can.
It’s not that bad. Homeowners among this bunch have built in savings as in 2 years worth house payments they wouldn’t have to make it things really went pear shaped.
How do they have “2 years worth of house payments built in”? Why would they “not have to make payments if things really went pear shaped”??
“—————we have already have a partial emergency fund (not enough for 3 months yet) but we are working on it”
That’s exactly how it should be.
I’m sorry you had a tough time for a while,it happened to my daughter who is the same age as you are.
The difference between you and far too many others is that you are again working on a back-up plan. Some never do that.
I wish you well.
.
It doesn’t help most people (including myself), but the top earners don’t have to contribute past a certain income level (maybe around $110K?). A co-worker was complaining that her mother had to “come out of retirement” because her SS wasn’t very much; when I asked what she did for a job, she replied (without batting an eye) that she had watched children for cash for many years. When I asked what job she had taken after the SS was insufficient, she replied (again, without batting an eye) that she was watching children for cash again.
So she wanted the benefit with out paying in? I’m so disgusted with so many people...
Yes, there is a cap on SS income, around what you said. One can still make substantially less than that and still not get their money back.
There’s 3 tiers in the SS equation - the lowest tier gets credit for 90% of their earnings, the 2nd only 32%, and the too a measly 15%. That tier starts at only a bit over $50K/year so there’s a lot of folks getting taken.
top, not too
I understand.
What a scam...
you still around?
I’d swear I saw Janice shoot you, just this afternoon on episode 13 of season 2
There are no new jobs.
Stockman: Only 11,000 Jobs Last Month, Not 292,000
NewsMax ^ | 01/09/2016 | David Stockman
Posted on 1/11/2016, 4:06:12 PM by GilGil
So what happened to the non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) job count in December at similar points late in the course of prior cycles? Well, in December 1999 about 140,000 jobs were added and in December 2007 there was a NSA gain of 212,000. This time we got the magnificent sum of 11,000, and by the way, last year was only 6,000.
The real news flash in the December “jobs†report, therefore, is that even by the lights of the BLS’ rickety, archaic and virtually worthless establishment survey, the domestic economy is dead in the water. We are not on the verge of “escape velocity,†as our foolish monetary politburo keeps insisting; the US economy is actually knocking on the door of recession.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3382446/posts
[$4 gas]
Shoot, try 2005. I was trying to sell a house when gas shot over $4/gallon back then. It absolutely killed the traffic flow and I was looking for a new job at the same time after my previous company had been sold (and the buyers screwed up the business).
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