Calculations

I did some number crunching over the weekend. I wanted to know what would make more sense... sell my condo or rent it to strangers?

My current situation: Keeping food benefits and health insurance, and all expenses remaining static, I am running a deficit of $712 a month.

Renting and living in my van: After taking into account any losses I would have (health insurance, cheap van storage) and new expenses (storage for my stuff) I would have no more than $295 a month to live on. As an owner, I would still have food benefits, public washrooms, a place to shower (at pool and fitness facilities), and cheap van storage, but limited access to WiFi, electricity, and water. And in the summer it will be 110 degrees inside the van.

If I rent out my condo and also rent a room for $300 a month, I would have zero money for dental, medical, clothes, taxes, etc. 

Selling and renting a room for myself: After taking into account any losses I would have (food benefits, health insurance, cheap van storage) and new expenses (storage for my stuff) I would have no more than $250 a month to live on. The cash from the condo must be invested for emergency medical expense and nursing home care.

For now I will stay in the condo, keep trying to sell everything I have, avoid new expenses, while also trying to do odd jobs for people. I will be hemming pants for a man this week ... a far cry from the $600 an hour I used to earn consulting to clients back in Canada. And returning to Canada is likely impossible after an absence of 14 years.

When my remaining savings is depleted by dental work, outstanding medical bills, and van repairs, I will apply for SSI benefits. As I'm not eligible for Social Security benefits at 73 this is my only hope of a regular income. $750 a month would allow me to break even.

My crazy goal is to EARN $4,440. to cover the expense of copyright registration, ISBN numbers, and low-cost cover designs for 40 books. If I can get all those books on Amazon and promote them I could possible have enough income to live on without having to move. And I can write more short books.

I'm grateful for the recent purchases from friends who are supportive of my efforts to bring in earned income.

If you feel so moved, I invite you to browse my website for items you may want to purchase. I'm posting photos faster than I'm posting the descriptions and prices, so be patient with me, please. www.AndreasEstate.com

Well, that failed

I never received the security deposit that was on its way to me from the couple in Canada who wanted to rent my condo for 3 months next winter.  I expected it would take 10 days due to having two holidays that would interrupt the mail: Canada Day on July 1 and July 4th.  At the same time the couple wasn't communicating with me, when I would expect to be receiving all kinds of questions... What's in the kitchen cabinets? What amenities are nearby?

Nothing. 

And yet I spent two full days crafting an 8-page lease with lists of contents and other extras. I sent it by email as a PDF. I expected questions or changes or deletions. 

Nothing. 

Then I did get an email saying they had asked Canada Post to hold the check, and that they had scheduled two surgeries that would prevent their coming to the US. 

Okay.  So my hopes for a rosy future were dashed and they have the benefit of a well-crafted lease for free. 

That seems to be the way it's been working for me. I do free work, trusting I'll be compensated, and then I'm left with nothing for my effort.

Not going to do that anymore. Money upfront, please.

I've since offered my condo to another couple, but they want a bigger, fancier, newer place than mine.

I get the message. People with money don't want my small and economical home... even though they can't find anything else to rent because inventory here in Florida is almost non-existent. 

I'll figure out another way to make ends meet.

I'm going to be a landlady!

A Canadian couple has asked to rent my condo next year (2023) for 3 winter months (February, March, and April). A security deposit is on its way this week. Yay!

What this means is:

1. I get to keep my condo, which means I will still have a mailing address and a place to store my van.

2. I will have income to cover all the expenses for the condo including the additional insurance as well as the storage fees for all my personal effects which I will need to move out before they arrive.

3. For 3 months I will not be taking money out of my dwindling savings account.

4. For 3 months I will have a few hundred dollars extra to add to my little $400 pension. What I can save will cover 3 more months of living expenses beyond the snowbirds' tenancy.

Now I need to do six things:

1. Write a short lease for us to sign.

2. Open an account to keep the security deposit separate from my savings.

3. Advertise on Zillow that my condo is available from September 2022 to end of January 2023. Renting for 4 or 5 more months will be an additional boost of income.

4. Eliminate as much as possible from my condo now so I have less stuff to move and store.

5. Make my condo as attractive, comfortable, and welcoming as possible. 

6. Make my blue van ready to live and work in.

If you're interested in renting my condo for the fall/winter, here are details and photos: http://www.AndreasEstate.com/condo.html

A gift!

Two miles away someone was offering to give away a Mid-Century Modern table and 4 chairs with yellow seats. Two other people wanted it. I made an effort to get it. So yesterday, not only did we get the table top apart from the legs to load it in a van, but I also got to take away 4 yellow placemats and a picture with a some yellow. 

Three reasons why I wanted these: 

1. I don't have a table and chairs and couldn't afford to spend $200 or more on a new set. 

2. My little condo is all grey and white and I've been needing some "sunshine" to boost my spirits. 

3. If I rent my condo the tenant will expect a table and chairs, among other furnishings. This will help.

I do need to sand, and then spray-paint the chair frames and table legs, but that will have to wait until fall. Summers here are too hot to do physical work outdoors. Still, it makes me think I could make some money spiffing up old furniture this winter. (In high school I painted and stained old furniture for my room.)

How I got into this financial mess

In a word: My own stupidity. (Ok, that's 3 words.) Multiple Stupidity. Let me list what I remember.

From 1977 to 1997 I took every legitimate deduction from my self-employment earning so my taxes were very low. I didn't know this would affect my future pension.

From 1981 to 1985 I let my then-husband declare me as a dependent thus reducing his taxes, but not realizing this, too, would reduce my future pension.

1996  I rented a semi-detached house in Toronto where I opened Authors Bed and Breakfast. It was filled to capacity - 3 bedrooms - a week before I opened and the income allowed me to break even on my expenses. Six months later I had a home invasion. I was upstairs asleep as were my guests. I ran downstairs and found a strange man halfway through the window and managed to scare him away. The landlord refused to fix the broken window or provide a security light or security system. So, feeling unsafe to host guests, I moved to another house on the street. Bad decision.

1997 That landlord started threatening me, deciding I was running a brothel, not a B & B. I learned he was calling me from jail where he was imprisoned for savagely beating two women who worked nearby. When he was about to be released because the two women were terrified to appear in court, I got a call from an officer on the sexual assault squad who made sure he could not bother me, but his girlfriend was stealing my mail. The death threats continued and one officer confided to me that he likely would try to kill me so I should disappear.

1998-2005 I did disappear, for 8 years, with no income. 

2006 I returned to Canada to start over, and was able to buy a condo where I discovered I did not belong because I was a single woman, 
with US citizenship and a degree, who owned a consulting practice. The board of directors forbid me to operate a business from my home even though I used a US address for mail and didn't see clients in my home.

2006-2008 After twice having a knife at my throat and a loaded gun pointed at me by neighbors, I stopped all work and incurred more than $25,000 worth of debt in order to continue paying my mortgage, taxes and utilities. I didn't have income to declare for 2005 to 2008.

2008-2011 I sold my condo at a loss and became homeless for the next 4 months until I got a call from my father's facility in Erie that he was falling and injuring himself. I left Canada and returned to Erie to look after him, staying in parking lots, campgrounds, and hotels. I earned no income during this time.

2011-2015 When my father died I inherited enough money to buy a house. I felt guilty having enough money so I started helping other people less fortunate than I, by buying stuff they were selling that I didn't need and hiring people who needed jobs. I honestly believed I would automatically be eligible for Social Security. Nope. I was shocked to know I needed 30 more credits of 40 to be eligible.

2017  I sold that house at a loss, and bought another for $99. I put all my savings into repairing house #2, then two months later I met my current beau, so I made plans to move to Florida. 

2019  I sold everything and sold the house at a huge loss. I had to use the money from that house to buy this sad little condo near Tampa and start over, rebuying things I had sold or given away.

Today I haven't been able to find paying work since I've been here. At age 72, I've had offers to clean people's houses but after two hours I'm worn out and in pain. I can't do work that requires standing for long because of the blood clots in my leg; and I can't hear well on the telephone so customer relations is not possible, so I'm trying to sell as much as I can from my home, for as much as I can. 

I'll claim all income on my income tax in order to get another credit toward Social Security. I've estimated by age 83, I'll be eligible for about $230 a month. 

Sources of Potential Income

I want to work to earn income; I don't want handouts. 

THINGS I’M DOING NOW

Editing my mother's unpublished novel that I inherited and eventually publish it on Amazon Kindle. For now I sell it in installments for $10:  www.AndreaReynolds.com

Posting boxes and boxes of household items for sale on Facebook, NextDoor, and my own website, www.AndreasEstate.com. 

For Sale: 2 vintage metal boxes for cash or documents.

Stop spending: no printer ink, clothes, books, courses, dining out, etc.

Cooking meals from scratch to make my money go further. No convenience foods or fast foods. 

Applying for "rewards" that reduce my health insurance premiums.

Entering sweepstakes for a free home.

Finding ways to be frugal, like changing from Verizon mobile ($65) to Spectrum ($14), saving $51 a month.

Renting books from the library; not buying them unless free.

THINGS I STILL HOPE TO DO

Sell framed baby shirt of John Quincy Adams through an auction house.

Sell copies of my ebooks posted on www.AndreaReynolds.com/bookstore.html 

Sell small antiques I inherited (some Civil War era) through an auction house.

Publish my father's World War II letters home from the Pacific on Amazon.

Receive book editing assignments. (Some promised work did not materialize.)

Try to obtain refunds on Pennsylvania property tax for 2017 and 2018. 

Contact companies for refunds that I paid who didn't finish their work. 

Contact companies for payment for work I did but was not paid.

Start a GoFundMe page.

Start a Kickstarter Campaign for my mother's novel.

Sell the screenplay of my mother's novel: potential movie.

Write and sell short how-to books on Amazon Kindle. 

 

Transcribe and edit my mother's 4 short stories in a short anthology and publish on Amazon Kindle. 

Get corporate sponsorships for books I publish.

Speak to audiences on "Turning Adversity into Adventure."

Turn my business how-to books into paid seminars.

Do voiceovers for money.

Narrate audio books.

Write, publish, and sell my memoir. 

Write, publish, and sell a booklet on winning no-fee essay contests. 

Write, publish, and sell a booklet on neighborly charity. 

Finish all courses I paid for that will give me credentials for new services. 

Offer a month-long VIP program. 

Sell my Civil War era daguerrotypes. 

Sell my revolver and ammunition.

Sell my costume and handmade jewelry on Etsy. 

Write a home study course on building an advice empire, and turn it into a membership site. 

Sell my Tiffany, sterling silver fruit dish. 

Sell family silver, small pieces.

Offer affiliate sales. 

Sell some dishes to a replacement company.

Sell books out of my own library.

Find out if I'm entitled to a $200 survivor payment from Canada.

Sell my 12 domains and/or the websites with them.

THINGS I'VE DONE

Filed my 2020 tax return to obtain my $600 stimulus payment, to acquire 4 more credits toward social security, and receive a refund of $213. Never received the  refund, nor the $600 stimulus check, nor any credits.

Filed an amended tax return for 2019. Got a refund, but no credits toward Social Security. 

 

Filed an amended tax return for 2018. No refund and no credits. 

Applied for EBT card (food stamps). I now receive monthly SNAP benefits. 

Sold my motor scooter. The sale allowed me to pay bills for 4 months. 

Closed my only savings account that was earmarked for my burial/funeral. Using that money now for bills.

Applied for Social Security. I'm not eligible: I need 20 more credits, and my income has been so low that I'm accumulating only one credit a year if any. 

Asked Social Security if will accept my Canadian earnings as work credits. No response in two years.

Applied for Supplemental Security Income. I'm not eligible because I have more than $2,000 in assets. 

Applied for Medicaid. Denied. 

Applied for low cost health insurance. Got it. 

Applied for the county senior homestead exemption. Got it. My property tax is now only 10% of what I paid I Pennsylvania.

Applied for an energy grant. Not possible. Tried for weeks to get an appointment. 

Set up a Sell-Buy-Give page on Facebook for my local community. Worked 10 hours a day for 17 months as sole admin and asked 400 members who were making money if they would subscribe for $10 a year to keep the site open. Only 4 people were willing; about 100 called me selfish, greedy, and dishonest. I shut it down.

THINGS I DON'T WANT TO DO, BUT MAY HAVE TO IF ALL ELSE FAILS

Sell my condo. (Then I'll be homeless.) 

Sell my van, not currently in my possession. (Then I'll be without a vehicle and backup home.)

Sell my golf cart, my only method of transportation currently.

Sell my bicycle, which provides some exercise for my legs by riding on the golf course paths.

Clean houses. My body hurts too much as it is.

Offer lower-priced consults; lowering my worth as a PR expert.

Work as a grocery store cashier. My doctors don't want me to do work requiring me to stand still. Not good for my legs.

Paying for renovations to my condo to reduce my assets to qualify for SSI.

Marrying someone to eventually be eligible for an amount of Social Security equal to half of theirs.

 

Feel free to offer new ideas not listed here, in the comments.

Next post: How I got myself in this money pickle

Staying Healthy

I'm catching up on my medical care after several years of neglecting my health as I dealt with house sales, moving 1200 miles back and forth.

In the last year I've had blood tests, a mammogram, a bone mineral density test; an ultrasound of my liver, gall bladder and stomach, and a varicose vein ultrasound.

I currently have 6 doctors: a family physician, a physician specializing in varicose veins, a hematologist, a dermatologist, a podiatrist, and a dentist.

 I must wear these thigh high compression 

               tights even in 95-degree heat.

Diagnoses so far:

No breast cancer,

No osteoporosis,

No gall stones,

No detectible cancer,

No skin cancer.

I do, however, have:

Varicose veins, 

Blood clots in one leg,

One DVT (deep vein thrombosis) which has resolved itself,

Two very small pulmonary emboli in one lung,

And a broken molar.

I'm taking blood thinner medication, wear thigh high compression socks, and try to walk every day to exercise my calf muscles to increase circulation in my legs. I'm told I should have my superficial leg veins closed to stop more blood clots from forming.

We're till trying to determine what is causing the blood clots. Doctors speculate it could have been from having Covid Pneumonia for six weeks in early 2020. 

My next appointment is with a podiatrist to discover the cause of my heel pain. I could walk farther if it didn't hurt so much to walk.

I've been putting off the dentist because I'm not in pain, I don't have dental insurance, and the bill will likely be about $5,000. Dentists here are expensive, just because they can be. (I need to save up that money first.)

All in all, I'm in reasonably good health for my age.