The recent negative reaction to high ATM fees is understandable.
One of the principles of achieving early retirement is that you must be prepared to do things differently. It is also helpful to keep in mind that if you don't like the results you are getting...do something different. I achieved early retirement in large part by finding less expensive ways to live.
With respect to ATM fees the answer is simple...whenever possible avoid using an ATM machine.
We have always made it a habit to go to our credit union or bank and withdrawn a couple of hundred bucks every two weeks. To minimize our need to carry a lot of cash around, we also put a lot of things on our Mastercard. Costs such as gas for the car and restaurants end up on MC. We also pay off our Mastercard bill each month so we never pay interest charges. The credit card receipts also help us keep track of our cash-flow.
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2 comments:
Good blog - u retired at the age I'm thinking about. Maybe u can put up some of your stats? Portfolio, annual costs etc?
Glad you like the blog Mike.
In the first two years, my pension was sufficient to pay for all the normal costs of living such as groceries and car operating expenses. Boating, a large new expense, is covered by savings. Our normal every year costs that most people have (no boating) have run about $37,000 per year in each of the first two years of retirement. We have no mortage on our home and make due with only one car.
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