Minimalism is a trend sweeping the nation. The best-selling book “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” has convinced countless people to discard everything that doesn’t “spark joy,” while television shows are devoted to helping people find houses so tiny they can be towed behind a truck.
Not everyone takes their minimalism to such extremes, but many people find this way of life appealing in moderation. The following three seniors say a pared down lifestyle helps them live comfortably on a fixed income, while freeing up time and energy to focus on what’s truly important.
[See: 10 Costs You Can Eliminate in Retirement.]
Zoe Taylor: Living in Community
Zoe Taylor, 73, would rather not be called a minimalist. “Even to me, minimalism has a stigma of self-righteousness,” she says. Instead, she prefers to say she lives a simple life.
It’s a life she’s been cultivating for 46 years, ever since she found herself as a single mom raising her son in New York. At that time, frugal living was a necessity, but it gradually turned into a choice. “Increasingly, I saw the other benefits,” she explains.
Those benefits included financial security even after she was unexpectedly sidelined from her job at age 59. Taylor had been working as a jobs counselor for the New York State Department of Labor when a health problem forced her into early retirement. She packed her bags and moved to Portland, Oregon.
“One of the reasons I picked Portland was so I wouldn’t need a car,” Taylor says. “Not having a car saves a tremendous amount of money.” She also appreciates the city’s library, symphony and political atmosphere.
Today, Taylor lives at Rose Villa, a life plan community in Portland. She has her own cottage and access to an on-campus gym, library, restaurants and resale shop. Outside, she tends perennials and her personal zen garden. Still without a car, Taylor relies on community transportation to go to the grocery store or makes the 1-mile walk to the Portland Streetcar that runs into the city.
By having few possessions and relying on her community for recreation and activities, Taylor says she is able to comfortably live on her pension and Social Security. However, finances aren’t what motivate her to live minimally. “Less clutter in my life means less clutter in my mind,” she says. “Less clutter in your head [means] you’re more likely to see opportunities coming down the pike.” Those opportunities are what allowed this senior to go from single motherhood to an unexpected retirement to the contented life she leads today.
[See: 25 Ways to Enjoy Retirement on a Reduced Income.]
Kathleen Lord: Renting Not Buying
At age 68, Kathleen Lord is getting ready for retirement. The licensed counselor from Holland, Michigan, will be leaving her job in July. As she prepares for this transition, she has been taking a closer look at her priorities and purging the excess from her life.
“I can’t get down to a couple hundred items,” Lord says. “I’m not ready to do that.” But she has been downsizing and minimizing her possessions for the last 10 years. Like many people, she was struck by seeing how much her relatives left behind when they passed away. “You have to get rid of stuff at some time in your life,” she says.
Lord is doing more than ensuring her children won’t have to clean out a house full of stuff after she’s gone. She’s also making sure her children won’t be saddled with a house to unload as well. “I rent, and I’m OK with that,” Lord says.
It’s also a financially smart decision for the soon-to-be retiree. Lord spent 19 years as a stay-at-home mom before becoming a single mom and going back to school. She earned a bachelor’s degree and then finished up her master’s degree at age 56. That gave her little time in the workforce to build up a nest egg before retirement. Fortunately, her minimalist approach to living keeps her expenses low. “I won’t have much [in retirement income], but I’ll be OK with my lifestyle.”
Like other minimalist seniors, Lord has found the benefits of downsizing go far beyond finances. “I think you need to let go of your attachment to the outer [world] and know who you are on the inside,” she says. By letting go of many possessions, Lord found she was able to redirect her time and money to more fruitful activities such as traveling, spending time with her grandchildren and taking up new hobbies.
[See: 10 Ways to Repair Your Retirement Finances.]
Judy Dine: Letting Go and Living Free
At one point in their lives, Judy Dine and her husband owned 40 acres of land, two houses, a workshop and “all kinds of stuff.” Then, her husband became sick, and Dine spent the next 12 years caring for him. The experience wiped out the couple financially, and the now 74-year-old resident of Lowell, Michigan, found she was unable to physically maintain all they had accumulated.
Dine had a radical solution for dealing with all their possessions after her husband died. She sold it all. She sold all the antiques, the 500 canning jars and everything in between. “I felt like a brick had been taken off my shoulders,” she says. “I feel free.”
After selling off most of her stuff, Dine moved into her daughter and son-in-law’s furnished cottage to wait for an opening in the nearby senior living community. All she took with her from her former life was a twin-size bed, a bookcase, a toothbrush, half her clothes and a few mementos. Without a house full of stuff weighing her down, Dine now volunteers at an area arts agency, plays Scrabble at the library and enjoys time with her grandchildren.
It has also been a financially freeing situation. “It’s the first time in years I’ve had money in the bank,” she says. Dine’s friends have noticed the difference, too. Several have asked for information about who ran her estate sale and seem ready to take the plunge themselves.
While it isn’t for everyone, Dine says minimalist living suits her perfectly. “I was chained to that house,” she says of her previous lifestyle. Now, the chains have been broken, and she is free.
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How 3 Minimalists Slashed Expenses for Retirement originally appeared on usnews.com
