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June 7, 2012 at 4:07 PM in reply to: Question for those of you opposed to government pensions. #745266
bearishgurl
Participant[quote=briansd1]…You forgot about survivor benefits. The wife will likely live to 80… [/quote]
Uh….”survivor benefits,” known as SBP are cheap for minor children (abt 2% of the monthly pension for one or more children). Of course, they will eventually turn 18, at which time their SBP will terminate (unsure if a FT college student under age 23 can collect it). For a spouse they are VERY expensive and thus are not taken out by all married soon-to-be military retirees. SBP must be elected PRIOR to retirement. IIRC, the spouse SBP deduction is roughly about 18% of the monthly pension amount. Thus, the sponsor is actually paying in these high monthly “premiums” to ensure their spouse receives 50% for life of their monthly retirement at the time of their deaths. If the spouse predeceases the sponsor, these premiums are forfeited.
Correct me if I have any of this wrong, Always studying or Allan from Fallbrook.
June 7, 2012 at 3:49 PM in reply to: Question for those of you opposed to government pensions. #745264Participant[quote=briansd1]…He’s paying $548 per year for family coverage. That’s a smoking deal…[/quote]
Uh, folks … this is “Tricare Prime.” It’s not exactly the same as what you may be “accustomed to.” It’s more like an HMO where you don’t get a huge choice of providers. In addition, if you live in an area where military facilities abound, the only way to get “free” care is to use military hospitals and clinics. In any case, there is an office visit co-pay and a hospital co-pay with TP if using civilian facilities (ex: Sharp Rees Stealy Urgent Care). If, as a TP “beneficiary,” you seeking authorization for elective surgery, for example, Tricare Prime may approve it done ONLY at a military facility. If you were thinking TP “beneficiaries” are enjoying “free brand-name” prescriptions and having their cancer treated at the Mayo Clinic, think again. They have to wait in line at a military facility and pull a number to turn in a paper prescription if they want it for “free.” And it better be written properly as a “generic.” To get refills, you call a NAVHOSP number and they are mailed to your home in 5-10 days. Refills are NOT instant, you can’t get them in person and you can’t just have your doctor call them into Rite Aid, lol. If you need a refill and don’t have any left on your prescription, you have to go back to the dr, get another paper prescription and go back to the military pharmacy pull a number, rinse and repeat.
No, it’s not the same as Aetna or Anthem Blue Cross, etc PPO’s. Not by a long shot.
June 7, 2012 at 3:35 PM in reply to: Question for those of you opposed to government pensions. #745263Participant[quote=Always studying]This is one topic that I can actually add value to. I’ve been lurking on here for years. I retired from the Marine Corps last year, as an E-8 with 22 years and 1 week. My retirement pension is worth just under 30K a year, it will never decrease and will only increase with whatever COLA raises we get. It is not enough to live on but it helps.
We do have medical insurance that covers our family, this year it only costs $548; which is great, however, in the next few years it will increase upwards to $1500 a year.
I was 40 when I retired, during my service I used tuition assistance to earn a bachelors degree and the post 9/11 GI Bill to earn an MBA, so I was able to find a second career after I retired.
The pension helps in the wage gap in the civilian world. I had to start over at a software company, I am not complaining I really enjoy my job and my coworkers, but the average 40 year old at my company is making much more money than I am, because they have much more time in the civilian workforce. My pension helps close that gap.
The military is looking at switching to 401K systems; the problem is that whoever joins now is signing up for the pension system, so whatever changes are made will not take effect for at least 20 years. The pension and other benefits are a great retention tool, although most service members get out after their initial contract, but those of us who stick it out and take advantage of the benefits are pretty lucky and happy.[/quote]
Thank you for your contribution, Always studying. You are fortunate enough that you made it as far as E-8 from your humble beginnings as a post-HS graduate enlistee. I have no doubt your savvy decisions to continue your education both on and off base and on shipboard and actually obtaining a bachelor degree and post-grad degree while STILL in helped you rise through the ranks. The vast majority of enlistees only obtain a few undergraduate credits while in and finish their bachelor degree work after they get discharged or retire. You obviously must have had a very supportive spouse/family who didn’t mind you constantly studying in your scant precious time at home and likely during standdowns and leave.
You didn’t mention (perhaps you haven’t been “retired” long enough to know) that for several recent years, military retirees (along with OASDI-SS, SSI, SSD and VA disability recipients) received zero COLA, due to the Federal Gov’t determining their had been no inflation the previous year.
You also didn’t elaborate on your personal working and living conditions during all the years while still earning this pension. I seriously doubt too many young Piggs here have lived aboard ship in a 27″ bunk with another bunk both above and below and have only a 1-2 sf by 6 ft high locker to store all their “worldly possessions.” Nor do they sleep on concrete floors in a line with their heads on a seabag and eat out of vending machines in military airports while waiting 4-30 hours on the “manifest” taking turns boarding planes as they trickle in one by one to pick them up. And these are the “good” working conditions which would not be considered to be forward deployed or stationed in the thick of a “war zone” :=0
IMO, you have “earned” every penny of your “pension.” Congrats on your ability to obtain civilian employment right after retirement!
ParticipantThe “greater Tijuana (BC) area” has a population in excess of 3M.
Participant[quote=lifeisgood]I disagree. This is exactly what I’m talking about. These poorer people are the people buying fancy clothes and diaper bags for their babies. Again, most people on this forum do not fall into this category. You have to admit that this city and many other have a keeping up with the Jones’ mentality. We CAN raise our children cheaper, without keeping them from growing mentally and physically, if we really wanted to.[/quote]
lifeisgood, I’m not sure where you go to the beach but visiting Mexicans use nearly all the beaches in SD County for their family parties …. notably Coronado and major San Diego and South County parks.
If you have ever visited a mall in South County during a 4-8 hr Macy’s sale (we have two Macy’s), you will see hundreds of Mexican license plates and hundreds of customers from across the border snapping up designer goods of all types by the dozens. A typical shoe order in these sales is 8-12 prs at one time. The fine jewelry and fine handbag counters are flooded three deep. The children’s departments have long lines. It’s like a fire-sale or garage sale in there with everything on the floor by 2:00 pm. I’ve also seen hundreds of them in Fashion Valley on a weekend (which has many stores selling designer goods).
These customers are paying in cash. The vast majority do not have US-based addresses to get American credit cards. How can they do this, you ask?? They have the best of both worlds. One or more adults from their household are working in SD County and they live in Mexico, crossing the border daily with Sentry passes for work and leisure.
You have to understand that a typical SFR rent or mortgage in MX is $275 – $675 month. And that is only for the 50% or so portion that DON’T own their houses outright. Depending on where they live, they often don’t have homeowners insurance or property taxes. They pay for medical care at a much lower cash price or forego it altogether (no insurance premiums). They don’t have fibre optic in the streets and access to 500 channels to pay for like we do. The law in MX only requires them to carry $3000 in liability insurance on their vehicles (total of property damage and medical pymts). They bring these limits of liability with them into the US nearly every day.
Do these millions of shoppers have discretionary income and are they influenced by American trends and fashion shown on television and in magazines? Yes and yes.
Remember that Mexicans come in all shades of caucasian! It’s impossible to tell visiting Mexicans from Americans. You might just be seeing a cultural phenomenon that is easily explained by where SD lies on the map!
I believe that in many ways they have it better than us.
June 6, 2012 at 1:20 PM in reply to: My next door neighbor was a cop, still under 60, been retired for more than 5 yrs #745165Participant[quote=harvey]Seriously?
That’s your argument?
Since you are so wise, please explain to us what deferred compensation is.
Explain to me how money sitting in my 401K is “deferred”.
And before you nit-pick semantics, the issue is not the deferred compensation of the employee , it’s the deferred obligation of the employer/taxpayer.
You haven’t added a single fact or insight to this discussion, just an anecdote about a family member and a bunch of passive-aggressive questions.
Lame.[/quote]
WOW, that was fast … what happened to the “kinder and gentler `harvey’?”
You may as well go back to being “pri_dk.”
If the shoe fits . . .
ParticipantI also know someone who borrowed $65K (unsecured) in early 2010 and used it to purchase a boat and never made one single payment on the loan. He still has the boat. The lender, one of the Big Banks, sued and won a default judgment against him and then filed an abstract of judgment on him. Since he repeatedly cash-out refied his residence to more than it is worth today (hence, took out the “unsecured loan”), the judgment creditor never tried to foreclose and likely won’t in the near future and the judgment debtor will likely never sell his residence. What I don’t understand is why they JC won’t bring him in for a debtor’s examination and why they haven’t sent an investigator out to see what assets are parked on his property. It’s as plain as day, in excellent condition and very much “seizable” with a proper writ of execution.
These Big Banks were stupid and incompetent … yes, even as late as 2010.
Besides incompetent lenders and CC companies, deadbeats like him are more than 50% responsible for the reason the cost of consumer debt is so high. It’s nothing but premeditated theft in my mind.
Participant[quote=AN]I was assuming BG was clumping Bay Park/Bay Ho in with Clairemont. She said 92111 specifically, but when I look at 92111, SDLookup say 92111 is Linda Vista and the price for houses in 92111 are generally cheaper than MM. When you’re talking about the best part of CM vs best part of MM.
Yes, there are amazing canyon view lots in MM, and as you and I both saw, there are a few with over .4 acre flat usable lots too. But those still can’t be compare to Bay view lots in Bay Park/Bay Ho.[/quote]
No, never “clumped.” Got two good friends in Bay Ho (92117) and KNOW the difference. One of their BY’s looks out over Sea World Tower. I am a person who shopped at Costco at the end of Rose Cyn when it was the Price Club, lol :=0 I KNOW the difference and KNOW the hoods up there. HOWEVER, the quality of construction varies wildly in 92117. Near sdr’s “fav corner” (lol) of Clairemont Drive and Clairemont Mesa Blvd, the residential construction is bad, just ba-a-a-ad, IMO. Another “bad construction” area is just west of I-805 and north of Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
Quality of construction IS worth something. Especially if one intends to buy an older home or occupy a newer home more than ten years. You can’t imagine how much shoddy grading, construction or plumbing can cost a homeowner over the long haul. Not to mention the cost and inconvenience of thin walls, zero or inadequate insulation, substandard electrical service, leaky windows and on and on.
I think buyers (esp FT buyers) get wrapped up in stucco boxes with “archways,” tile roofs, or a certain neighborhood “look” without realizing that what’s actually under the hood is horribly inferior to the ’50’s ranch. They’re hung up on the wrapping paper (which likely has been patched and painted over as well).
And don’t laugh at those small mid-century houses in Linda Vista. Most are built very, very well built :=]
Participantbtw, Rhett, did you and Scarlett ever buy a home? I remember you were considering both Clairemont and UC at one time.
Participant[quote=Rhett]Save for one grade school, the public schools in Clairemont range from average to awful. Save for one person, everybody I’ve met that owns in Clairemont either sends their kids to private school or ends up choicing their kids into a UC school (since the aging demographics there have twice as much capacity in south UC than students that live there).
This is why Mira Mesa might be a lot more attractive to some people.[/quote]
This is good to know, Rhett. I long suspected the population of the UC SFR’s (south UC) didn’t have enough students to fill the schools there and even posted this a few weeks ago on another thread. It’s good to know that CHOICE is more easily available to attend UC schools from Clairemont and other nearby communities.
I would suspect that young families in residence are in the minority in South Clairemont (92111) but not 92117 (which is less expensive overall and has more multifamily units).
I also suspect that Clairemont buyers of today likely don’t have school age children or went to the local schools themselves and thus aren’t biased against them.
API scores mean next-to-nothing to young-parent locals who want to raise their kids near other relatives.
Participant[quote=lifeisgood]You said that if you don’t have money, you don’t have to do these luxury things. Is it not OK to have money and still not do those luxury things? I think that you can still raise your kids cheaply even if you have the funds to buy all of the things that you have pointed out. Most of the time parents put their kids in swimming lessons, piano lesson, and other various sports whether the kid wants to or not. You always see the kids playing soccer that actually want to be there and the ones that don’t. I think that society has driven parents to do certain things because they are socially accepted. Almost like they want to one up other parents. Shouldn’t we let kids decide what they are interested in? As far as private schools, I would like like to see the data that shows that a child going to a private school is worth the cost. Why not save that cost for tuition to a college? Isn’t that the diploma that counts anyways?[/quote]
Yes, to all, except the part about parents being driven to put their kids in sports because its “socially accepted.”
I think these parents do it because THEY either used to participate in these sports/activities or always wanted to and never got to. They are attempting to live vicariously through their kids because they have nothing of interest going on in their own current lives.
Participant[quote=Rhett]…On the other hand, if Tulsa is ahead of us on that list, it is a head scratcher.[/quote]
Rhett, you would have to visit yourself to believe it. Tanning salons in practically every strip mall. That is … to cater to the “portion of Tulsanians” that actually need a tan, lol!
Very much a “keeping up with the Joneses” environment going on there :=0
Participant[quote=lifeisgood]What I was speaking to was that I couldn’t justify spending a ton of money on a private school. I just haven’t seen any data that proves that it is worth it. I’d rather save the money for the piece of paper that means something to the future employer of my child. I do not expect to be able to save the entire cost of college tuition for my children, but at least help a bit.[/quote]
I agree with this. The public HS’s today are doing a bang-up job of satisfying the A – G requirements of preparing student for public university admission. If you’re already paying property taxes, why pay more??
ParticipantI’m with AN. The “baby/toddler industry” is a racket. You don’t use that stuff very long. I had the $19 umbrella strollers to fit in the back of my Toy Tercel. I got ALL KINDS of used stuff from coworkers, some VERY high-quality, for super-cheap prices. Then I resold it and gave it away when I didn’t need it anymore.
Of course, many improvements in everything from stollers to diapers to carseats, etc have been made since I was in the “raising baby” mode ;=D
I STILL think its all a big waste of money. Kids are MUCH more expensive in HS when they wouldn’t be caught dead wearing hand-me-downs (in a school that doesn’t require uniforms) and need more toiletries, have greater school expenses, braces, lessons, trips and so on. This is even if they don’t drive!
College (except for CC) is off the charts! The ink dries the same on a university diploma no matter WHERE the student’s first two years of college are spent. So why pay more??
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