Retiring in Wallingford on a budget!

How to age in place in Seattle on a small retirement income

My daughter has been after me to write how I survive living in Seattle on my retirement income. I have been here 2 years now, having moved here February 1^st 2023, from Glens Falls, NY, to live near my daughter. She came here to attend graduate school in 2001, and never came home again except for a visit—and even that stopped after a few years once we decided we would visit at our timeshare on the beach, and I would come to visit her since she had less vacation time. During Covid, we did not see each other for over 2 years. We finally met up in our favorite place, where our timeshare is located, for 2 weeks.

When my retirement approached, and I thought about the next chapter, it seemed like a good idea to live nearer to her. I had spent my life staying home during the early years of my children, working for almost nothing for social justice causes and not for profits; and having my own small real estate business, with a smattering of other interests such as women’s issues and building and aging in place. I never really made much income, but was happy being in charge of my own destiny and only realized later that my social security was really not as much as my ex’s. I always was frugal and made the best of what I had throughout the years, and made some money fixing up old homes and selling them to create a retirement cushion.

When I finally made the decision to move across country and start a new chapter, I understood the cost differences between where I was leaving and where I was going to live in Seattle. I knew I would be making some different choices. I was ready for an adventure, and I knew I could make it work if I adjusted my lifestyle and used all my skills, as I learned in my life how to live on less and still enjoy my life and create adventures and memories. The first thing I knew that would change due to housing costs in Seattle was that I would be a renter versus a homeowner—which I had been for over 40 years. I sold my 125-year-old 2,500 sq ft Victorian for $335,000 (it would sell here for at least $1,500,000). Upstate NY is much cheaper than here, for sure! Owning an older home comes with a lot of maintenance costs that crop up when you least expect it. It was better for me to know my fixed costs as a retiree, versus the homeowner surprises that crop up with owning a home that is 125 years old.

I knew I wanted to live near my daughter, who had bought her first home after renting in the U-District for over 20 years. She had found herself a cute 1-bedroom condo on the border between Fremont and Wallingford. Meanwhile, I did my Zillow searches and my Google map drives all around the North Seattle area, and knew I wanted to live in Wallingford. I knew I needed an accessible apartment, on a bus line, walkable, and most of all: a place where I could age in place. After much research (it is amazing what you can do online nowadays), I centered on my favorite place—Stonehedge Apartments—although I really never saw many openings. It was perfect and had everything I wanted and needed.

The beauty of renting at this point for me and my two kitties is that I would know what my fixed costs were going to be. I knew that renting from a family-owned apartment owner is better than an investor/corporate group with a lot of folks to please. My place does not have a lot of openings, and when one did come through my daughter jumped on it and took it, assuring me with a few pictures that it was the right one. I trusted her as she had become an expert after a few apartments in her 20 years here. I went with a studio, since the price was right and it had a large balcony, elevator and a cheerful lobby and hallways. I was ready to start the next chapter like a young gal getting her first job and apartment in a new city. I gave up my car that I had relied on my whole life, living in a place with next to nothing in public transportation. I was going to be a walker/ public transportation user, and an occasional Uber patron to get around my new city. I quickly learned that I was eligible to get a senior bus pass, so I could ride the bus for $1. I calculated that to own a car and pay for all the expenses in an urban area, I would be unable to live on my small retirement. Owning a car with expenses, insurance, parking, maintenance, gas and car tabs, and just the outlay cost of buying the car would have amounted at least $1,000 a month. I also learned how to maneuver the coupons and manager specials at my local QFC, since I am a scratch cook and prepare whatever, I see on sale. I spend around $250 a month for food.

I continued to stay on budget, shopping at the great thrift store on 45^th St (the Assistance League of Seattle store). It was very valuable to me when I moved here, since I shipped few things and basically started over in furnishing my new studio apartment. Living small has a lot of benefits, especially my electric bill (about $100 every 2 months) and my water/sewer bill (about $50 a month). My utilities in upstate NY ran around $250 a month for electric and gas, and water/sewer was $100 a month. My internet (T-Mobile) is $50, and I do not have cable, which ran me $100 a month in NY.  My homeowners/renter’s insurance costs around $200 a year, versus $200 a month in Upstate NY when I owned my house. My large expense is my Medicare, Medi-Gap and drug insurance. I spend about $350 a month on that, and I am trying to be a bit healthier person trying to get those 155 minutes of walking each week that my doctor ordered—which is free!

The point I am making is, as a single retired person living in Wallingford, I live on about $39,000 net a year. When I see folks say they cannot live on a whole lot more here, I just wanted to say it is not impossible to live on less—if you are creative and you know how to cook, not eat out, or do take away meals. I make my own iced tea daily and my own coffee and I am treated by my wonderful daughter on any meals out, as I love to cook for her whenever I can. I volunteer and still donate to my favorite causes, and I take a vacation a couple times a year with my daughter and I help with that as well with the money I have saved throughout the year. I am grateful that I saved for retirement during my life, since my frugal ways have been with me since I was young. Retiring urban makes a lot of sense for seniors aging in place since most urban areas have transportation and you can find a building with an elevator that makes all the difference in the world. I have all of my heavy and bulky purchases delivered, and that is a lot safer for seniors not to maneuvering stairs with heavy items.

I hope to do some in-depth stories around aging in place in an urban setting in the future. I was an Aging in Place Specialist (CAPS) through the National Builders Association Home Builders (NAHB) and co-owned Redesign for Seniors and owned a small real estate boutique before I retired here.