Bill M
Self Funded Retiree
- Joined
- 4 January 2008
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I was browsing a website called "Super Guide" and an article with the headline "How much super is enough" came up. I asked a few of my friends how much they thought they would need to live per week without working and got varying opinions. Some said they could live on $500 a week, others said they need $1200.
So my question is a very simple one. How much money do you or you and your partner need per week to live on? The situation I would like you to imagine is that you own your home outright and you have no debts at all. You have no kids or they have moved out. Just you or you and your partner/spouse.
I'll start the ball rolling, my wife and I live comfortably on $800 a week net after tax. That's about $41,600 P/A. With that we can even do a cheap overseas holiday each year and a trip somewhere in OZ. So how much do you think you would need?
As a guide line of what the "Super Guide" site says I post the following info, I guess for my wife and I we are between the modest and comfortable lifestyle:
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Basic lifestyle (Age Pension only — $18,619 a year, or $28,070 for a couple, including pension supplement, as at 20 September 2010). The single Age Pension now represents 27.7 per cent of Male Total Average Weekly Earnings. Are you willing to live on 27.7 per cent of an average Australian’s income? Living solely on the Age Pension gives you a basic income and access to discounts on health services and energy costs. While this figure is an amount you can survive on, many Australians don’t expect to live within this level of income by choice. (The Age Pension is adjusted every six months, with next adjustment on 20 March 2011, and then 20 September 2011).
Modest lifestyle ($21,132 a year, or $30,557 for a couple). Receiving an after-tax income that is slightly higher than the Age Pension obviously gives you a better lifestyle than living solely on social security, but you can only afford low-cost activities.
Comfortable lifestyle ($39,302 a year, or $53,729 for a couple). Living on this level of after-tax income means you can enjoy more recreational activities. Also, you can afford to purchase private health insurance, higher quality household goods and travel regularly. Even so, a ‘comfortable’ lifestyle isn’t outlandish
Link to article here: http://www.superguide.com.au/superannuation-basics/a-comfortable-retirement-how-much-super-is-enough
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So my question is a very simple one. How much money do you or you and your partner need per week to live on? The situation I would like you to imagine is that you own your home outright and you have no debts at all. You have no kids or they have moved out. Just you or you and your partner/spouse.
I'll start the ball rolling, my wife and I live comfortably on $800 a week net after tax. That's about $41,600 P/A. With that we can even do a cheap overseas holiday each year and a trip somewhere in OZ. So how much do you think you would need?
As a guide line of what the "Super Guide" site says I post the following info, I guess for my wife and I we are between the modest and comfortable lifestyle:
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Basic lifestyle (Age Pension only — $18,619 a year, or $28,070 for a couple, including pension supplement, as at 20 September 2010). The single Age Pension now represents 27.7 per cent of Male Total Average Weekly Earnings. Are you willing to live on 27.7 per cent of an average Australian’s income? Living solely on the Age Pension gives you a basic income and access to discounts on health services and energy costs. While this figure is an amount you can survive on, many Australians don’t expect to live within this level of income by choice. (The Age Pension is adjusted every six months, with next adjustment on 20 March 2011, and then 20 September 2011).
Modest lifestyle ($21,132 a year, or $30,557 for a couple). Receiving an after-tax income that is slightly higher than the Age Pension obviously gives you a better lifestyle than living solely on social security, but you can only afford low-cost activities.
Comfortable lifestyle ($39,302 a year, or $53,729 for a couple). Living on this level of after-tax income means you can enjoy more recreational activities. Also, you can afford to purchase private health insurance, higher quality household goods and travel regularly. Even so, a ‘comfortable’ lifestyle isn’t outlandish
Link to article here: http://www.superguide.com.au/superannuation-basics/a-comfortable-retirement-how-much-super-is-enough
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