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| Tuesday, September 23, 2008 |
| Selling it all to enjoy a working retirement |
 The USAToday article: Couple's retirement dream leaves materialism behind profiles Vin and Bonnie Feudo, formerly of Augusta, GA and now of Antigua. Three years before retiring in 2005, the Feudos stopped their profligate spending. All they needed was motivation from an investment adviser, who encouraged their exotic retirement dream: to move to a pinprick on the globe, the Caribbean island of Antigua. But they weren't interested in settling into a leisure life of sunscreen and lounge chairs. Their goal was to teach impoverished kids.
Vin and Bonnie managed to pull it off. Today, the couple live happily in a double-wide trailer that has a flushable toilet — a luxury for most island residents — though no hot water.
To get there, the Feudos sold their house, their cars and nearly everything else they owned. On Mother's Day weekend in 2005, an auctioneer sold all the furniture that had been hauled onto the lawn, as well as nearly everything inside the house. Hardly anything was spared, except for what the couple's four grown children claimed.
The auction started at 10 a.m. By 3 p.m., they say, you wouldn't have known that hundreds of people had traipsed through the house or even that it had been recently occupied. On the following Monday, the Feudos finalized the sale of their house and sold their cars. Thanks to a pension and a $500,000 nest egg, the couple is spending $3,000 a month living in the Caribbean and teaching full time.Labels: Money Stories |
| posted by Boston Gal @ 10:37 AM *
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| 7 Comments: |
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b.g.:
they left in 2005 - perfect timing for them.
the following has got nothing to do with your post, but a yahoo article made me very angry. so am sharing it here!
while some of the [url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080923/ap_on_bi_ge/cash_strapped_homeowners]sad stories[/url] are very upsetting, it really irks me when folks such as the following complain about not being bailed out!
'And yet, the deal will not help Dolly Hanna, 51, and her husband, who bought five homes in the San Francisco area over the past 20 years, and were enjoying life during the housing boom by renting them out.
But her husband's overtime at his mechanic's job was cut, and the Hannas now find themselves overextended at a loss of $15,000 per month and trying two sell two of the homes.
With four children, Hanna had been a stay-at-home mom, but Monday she started a job in real estate. They are seeking a renter for two upstairs bedrooms in their primary residence for $1,200.
Getting a loan during the boom was easy, Hanna knows. Too easy.
"All you had to was massage the information enough to fit it into their round hole, and they gave us a mortgage," Hanna said.'
ms. hanna, you dug your own hole. no one forced you to. when you lie down on your bed at night wondering about your mortgage, spare a thought for the thousands of others who you - and folks like you - have ruined!
- s.b.
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To "Anonymous" above. Pardon me, but I reserve most of my anger for those who 1) knew better 2) encouraged the fudging and 3) are now wasting my tax dollars to get bailed out.
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Wow, what an inspiring story. (The Feudos, not the Hannas)
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I'm very curious where the $3,000 goes. Private health insurance? school supplies? Is food more expensive on an island? How much/little is rent or mortgage on the house? I did a quick search and found a furnished 1 bedroom long term rental in Antigua for $750/month. Yes, with hot water and flush toilets, plus utilities and cable included.
I have an urge to REALLY pry into their lives after a story like this :-) I do admire their drive to follow their dream, and hope it's working out even better than they hoped.
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adrienne:
don't you worry! i am irked to the point that there is enough to go around. the slimeballs you refer to are not even worthy of anger. they should be imprisoned for life.
- s.b.
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Yes, this couple was very fortunate in the timing of their home sale.
I don't think it is clear in the article if they are renting or own the home on the island.
As for what they could be spending $3,000 a month on - I would assume they might be paying for health insurance (it is not clear if the teaching they are doing pays them or if it is volunteer) and yes, costs on an island are higher. If they need a car, gas is expensive, as is food and all other sundries since everything is shipped in.
Given the schedule mentioned, I assume they are also eating out a lot since those long days would not allow for much home cooking.
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I would be very curious as to the Feudo's health insurance arrangements and access to health care.
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b.g.:
they left in 2005 - perfect timing for them.
the following has got nothing to do with your post, but a yahoo article made me very angry. so am sharing it here!
while some of the [url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080923/ap_on_bi_ge/cash_strapped_homeowners]sad stories[/url] are very upsetting, it really irks me when folks such as the following complain about not being bailed out!
'And yet, the deal will not help Dolly Hanna, 51, and her husband, who bought five homes in the San Francisco area over the past 20 years, and were enjoying life during the housing boom by renting them out.
But her husband's overtime at his mechanic's job was cut, and the Hannas now find themselves overextended at a loss of $15,000 per month and trying two sell two of the homes.
With four children, Hanna had been a stay-at-home mom, but Monday she started a job in real estate. They are seeking a renter for two upstairs bedrooms in their primary residence for $1,200.
Getting a loan during the boom was easy, Hanna knows. Too easy.
"All you had to was massage the information enough to fit it into their round hole, and they gave us a mortgage," Hanna said.'
ms. hanna, you dug your own hole. no one forced you to. when you lie down on your bed at night wondering about your mortgage, spare a thought for the thousands of others who you - and folks like you - have ruined!
- s.b.