on Nov 6th, 2007Plan On Retiring In New York? Can You Sleep In A Cardboard Box?
Fixed income retirement is about as pleasurable as having your wisdom teeth pulled by a student at a university teaching clinic. The cost of everything keeps rising but the cash flow off Social Security remains pretty much the same. Without any saved income, the thought of living in a city like New York seems absurd. Back in the days when compassionate people ran for office and passed legislation that actually benefited the citizens of the country instead of corporations pleasing wealthy shareholders, there was some common sense at work that anticipated the fact that growing older means living in more than a cardboard box.
In exchange for tax-exempt financing, many developers received financing that provided residents with rent-controlled apartments. The real estate prices in New York today, however, have turned the notion of rent control into a parody that just as well might belong in a production of Sweeney Todd. He was a barber not a dentist, but trust me, the painful ending of being forced out of your apartment at 75 or 80 makes for a sordid tale no matter whose issuing the eviction notice.
Growing Old in New York, and Struggling to Keep Up With Ever-Increasing Rents