Survey: 1 in 10 boomers borrowing for everyday expenses

The economic downturn is hitting roughly one in 10 middle-aged and older Americans especially hard, compelling them to borrow money for everyday living expenses and to seek help from family, friends or ...

[FrugalPete]

Thankfully, the time has finally arrived where we as a society may finally be waking up to the fact that we are DUMB. Do we really need 3000+ SF houses, especially as our kids grow up and leave us. Do we really need gas guzzling SUVs when smaller cars will get us to the same place? Do we really need to always keep up with the latest expensive trends in homes, fashion, dining, Ipods, HDTV's, cell phones, laptops, etc, etc. Wake up people and start living a simpler life. You will be less stressed, happier and healthier too.

[Ronald]

People should not feel too sorry for the fact that the non smokers are cutting back on their dining out. Restaurant associations in many states go along with the radical extremist anti smoker crowd successfully pressuring State legislators into passing laws prohibiting their serving the many millions of decent women and men who smoke tobacco.

In the past, this has worked well for those restaurants that survived because it was a simple matter to cut portion size, serve soup "or" salad instead of soup "and" salad and raise prices charged the non smokers.

If the restaurant business is now suffering lack of patronage because of current economic conditions, it should be a simple matter to conduct business in opposition to the laws of supply and demand economic principles and implement more of the same. After all, isn't smoke-free dining for non smokers and the little children worth the additional cost and diminished volume?

Ronald

[Frank]

I'm being frugal too. Also, I'm supporting small local businesses that I want to see around in 10 years or so. One way to do that is to not only buy from them exclusively but to pay them in CASH or, barring that, by check. This way they get $1.00 on the dollar that you spend there. Use a credit card and they get .94 to .96 on the dollar from the credit card companies. Also, I'm using what's called an "IOU in kind" to obtain things.Finally, I'm witholding all my discretionary spending until after President Obama is sworn in January.

[Tony]

If Obama wins, you won't have any discretionary spending. He'll be taxing everything.Tax and spend; that's all he knows. Take a look at Mass. with his friend Deval Patrick. You'll be seeing more of the same w/Obama; another empty suit. We're still waiting for our property tax relief and I'm not holding my breath.
Be careful what you wish for, you might get it.

[Alexandra]

Cadillac Deville sure has done a great job so far.

[publius]

Babyboomers borrowing money? Wow thats shocking!

That's all the me-first generation knows. Borrow money and when things get tight borrow more money.

Well, they are going to bankrupt the US.

[Pete]

Boomers have had more money making opportunities than ANY generation before or after them. If they didn't somehow figure out how to make enough money to live on during the most prosperous period of American history ever, I don't want to hear their whining. The problem is not that they don't make enough; its that they spend too damn much.

[Community Member]

Pete wrote:

Boomers have had more money making opportunities than ANY generation before or after them. If they didn't somehow figure out how to make enough money to live on during the most prosperous period of American history ever, I don't want to hear their whining. The problem is not that they don't make enough; its that they spend too damn much.

Spending too damn much money on what? Paying taxes, putting food on the table, paying tuition to put their children through college, taking care of their aging parents...Just in case you haven’t noticed the cost of living is sky high…many baby boomers are working very hard…

[Lowering the Bar]

I think the first poster summed it up - oversized houses, oversized cars. What is the point of all that over consumption?

[Wondering]

Frank wrote:

I'm being frugal too. Also, I'm supporting small local businesses that I want to see around in 10 years or so. One way to do that is to not only buy from them exclusively but to pay them in CASH or, barring that, by check.

I used to buy a lot of things from Pelham Hardware on Rt 38. Then the put in a big home center across the street and it closed them. Then Home Depot came along and it closed them. I'm trying to recall the name of the store, was it Somerville Lumber?

[Wondering]

publius wrote:

Babyboomers borrowing money? Wow thats shocking!
That's all the me-first generation knows. Borrow money and when things get tight borrow more money.
Well, they are going to bankrupt the US.

Hey, that's the government's job and they're darn good at it.$600 billion in farm subsidies?

[her]

Anyone got a few bucks? I need a loan!

;o)

[Mich]

Community Member wrote:

<quoted text>
Spending too damn much money on what? Paying taxes, putting food on the table, paying tuition to put their children through college, taking care of their aging parents...Just in case you haven’t noticed the cost of living is sky high…many baby boomers are working very hard…

See the first post- supersized everything is why they are broke. Conspicuous consumption at it's finest.

[Community Member]

Mich wrote:

<quoted text>
See the first post- supersized everything is why they are broke. Conspicuous consumption at it's finest.

No, that is not the main reason why many baby boomers are having financial difficulties. There are plenty of hard working baby boomers that don't have super size homes and/or cars....

[Taxpayer]

Community Member wrote:

<quoted text>
No, that is not the main reason why many baby boomers are having financial difficulties. There are plenty of hard working baby boomers that don't have super size homes and/or cars....

I totally agree. Look at what's been going on.
Food prices soaring.
Gasoline prices soaring.
Home heating costs soaring.
College tuition and fees soaring.
Local taxes rising.
New or higher fees for school sports, busing, trash.
Real disposable income, flat to lower.

There's no way to plan for this type of inflation.