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Strategies & Market Trends : Dividend investing for retirement -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: E_K_S who wrote (17666)	11/30/2013 11:35:08 AM
From: Steve Felix	Respond to of 34328

Great exercise. One of those things you shouldn't stare at or it might scare you. lol! I've seen enough of govt inflation numbers to know not to pay attention to them. Retiring in 1998, you would have needed a 10% CAGR to keep up with gas prices until 2011, and at that rate, been behind in 2008 when you would have needed a CAGR of 12%+.

To: E_K_S who wrote (17666)	11/30/2013 11:59:53 AM
From: Ditchdigger	Respond to of 34328

No question it is and will continue to be a large expense. I'm happy to at least be able to write off the premiums through self employment. Planning.....gosh, my state has passed a single payer bill, single payer by 2017. Only need to find $1.6-$2.2 billion addition revenue to fund it or a 15.5% increase in income tax. (we already rank highly in highest taxed states, top ten worst for retirees). Of course they can't do that on the backs of the total state population of 625K, so I envision property tax hikes, sales tax hikes....everything hikes to pay for it. (if I hear roth ira's mentioned I'm packing my bags)

To: E_K_S who wrote (17666)	12/1/2013 10:11:13 AM
From: bruwin	Respond to of 34328

OT. WOW !! $904/mth is a relatively large amount for Medical Aid compared to what we pay back here in S.A. That's about 3 to 4 times our average monthly premium. I assume that's a comprehensive Medical Aid where you are getting Hospital Cover PLUS a Day-to-Day benefit cover for when you visit your doctor ? The way Medical aid is set up here, if one is paying for full cover with no contribution from an Employer, then it's best to only get a Hospital Plan which fully covers your actual Hospital expenses plus what the Medical Aid pays for Surgeons, Anesthetists, etc., while you are in hospital, according to the Medical Aid's tariff. In order to get cover for that extra amount that Specialists charge, over and above the Medical Aid tariff, one should get a separate Top Up Medical Insurance Plan which will pay for that extra amount that Specialists charge for their services while one is in hospital. In that way one is fully covered for the time in Hospital, which is one's biggest Medical expense. A Top Up Medical Insurance Plan costs the equivalent of about $15/mth/person. A decent Hospital Plan costs about $180/mth for a Husband AND Wife. One can then go to a hospital of one's own choosing and be treated by whoever is one's Specialist If one takes up a comprehensive Medical Aid then the extra that you pay for your Day-to-Day benefit for visiting your GP comes out to be more than the annual benefit that you get from the Medical Aid. So it seems to make more sense to rather pay your GP if, or when, you see him, than to pay up front.