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03-01-2009, 11:42 AM
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#1 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 631
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How're you doin'?
Wondering how the recession is affecting others. Do you feel it up close and personal or more indirectly?
Two things I've noticed for us: 1st, we've put our projected June '09 retirement on hold for another year. The district we work for has been hammered financially and our projected pension benefits haven't panned out due to pay freezes 2 out of the last 3 years that we were hoping to avoid. 2ndly, our investments, like most others I suspect, have been beaten down by about 40%, so while we could probably still swing it this year, we'd need a higher withdrawal to supplement and the principal is way down at this point. By delaying another year, we won't need much WD at all to meet basic needs. Even though we are secure and not hurting financially, the psychological effects of all the gloom and doom has insidiously affected our spending behavior. We are pretty frugal to begin with, but we have gone really defensive, which is just what the economy at large probably doesn't need at this point. Maybe if we heard a little optimism from the powers that be, we'd (the collective "we") be influenced a bit. I know intellectually we can do whatever we want, but it is quite subtly pernicious, all this negativity.
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Don't sweat petty things and don't pet sweaty things. |
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03-01-2009, 04:50 PM
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#2 |
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No Disclaimer Necessary
Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 1,772
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Me and Mrs. D still have our jobs, which is good. (knock on wood)
Other than that, waiting for something good to happen and wondering where to put my Roth contributions.
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"A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore." - Yogi Berra |
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03-01-2009, 06:31 PM
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#3 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 147
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We have changed nothing, we still have time on our side so we keep cost avg. down by adding to the market every month. My job is secure and I see no reason why I'll need to make any withdraws within the next 8 to 12 years. at this point we are down about 18% from our high in 07, but as I've already stated we have time.
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03-02-2009, 07:33 AM
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#4 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Germany
Posts: 10
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Not affected
Hi,
I live in Germany and I'm not affected yet. I'm lucky that I'm selfemployed so I can rely on many different clients. Concerning the industry it is worse: Many people are getting unemployed now. |
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03-25-2009, 01:34 PM
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#5 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 43
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I'm in Agriculture biotech, and we're booming fortunately. So not much for me has changed except my expenses are a bit lower thanks to a bit of deflation (on gas especially!). With all the emphasis on alternative energy sources (e.g., ethanol) and a booming global population that must be fed (e.g., higher yield from farmland needed), our industry is in the spotlight bigtime. We've seen a slowdown this year for sure as crop prices are generally lower. Oil prices at $50/barrel vs $150 tend to also lessen the urgency for alternative fuels, so some slowdown there on R&D efforts. But overall, I don't think I could be in a better industry right now. So I'm very thankful to the Big Guy for that.
But our overall habits haven't changed too much. We've probably cut back some family vacations more because of my overall cautious nature rather than anything related to expenses. I just 'feel' as though we should be cutting back! Of course, if you read some of these stories (like one I read on the WSJ lately), many are urging folks to spend like things are normal to help the economy (to fuel our 70% consumer driven economic machine). That would be a nice theory if 10% of folks weren't out of work!! The biggest effect? Loss of wealth on paper. I've got about 10 years to recover so am hopefull that I'll make that up and much more. Depends on whether the bull comes raging out of the gate, or if we're stuck in a Japan-like stagflationary funk for those 10 years. Keep yer fingers and toes crossed for the former...... |
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03-25-2009, 06:44 PM
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#6 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,084
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Well, you know the old saw -- "If you have a job it's a recession, but if you don't have a job it's a depression." DH lost his job (he was a whistleblower, and yeah, we're suing), so it was a full-fledged depression, with coupon clipping, wrapping up in blankets in the freezing house, no more restaurant meals, putting off expenses, etc.
Now that he has a job, things look better. I also decided to open my very first stock trading account back in October or thereabouts, so I could take advantage of the ride. I got hammered on Rubbermaid, but my other stocks (including my surprising star, Build-A Bear Workshop!) are making me feel the love of buying cheap stocks. So, I have high hopes. We are not near retirement, so although we have wept and fasted, wept and prayed over our IRA statements, we have plenty of time to make a comeback. And since DH's new job entailed a move, we are selling our house. We got a full price offer in the first week, and are just working out the due diligence period and heading for closing. And if that one falls through, we have a backup full-price offer. I'm thinking this is our reward for having to suffer through a depression through no fault of our own. Unless trying to expose government corruption is a fault...
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"Wealth is the slave of a wise man. The master of a fool." -- Seneca |
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03-25-2009, 08:15 PM
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#7 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 23
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Actually the economy has not affected us very much at all, in fact its been good for me as far as income goes (I am a financial Planner by profession). I have adopted different ideas into my financial plan that do not involve 401ks, IRAs or other "Government created" retirement accounts and have always stayed out of the market. What the government creates it controls, and that's what scares me about those plans. I'm also not a fan of volatility in the markets because you always lose.
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Jake The Truth About Wealth Blog Financial Strategies and Wealth Creation Becoming Your Own Banker |
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