Living on a Fixed Income? 3 Tips for Senior Living on a Budget

Living on a fixed income doesn’t have to be difficult. There are ways to incorporate living on a budget without having to give up the things you love. By utilizing senior discounts, joining a senior living community like Bridgewater Assisted Living, and implementing budgeting strategies, you may see that it’s feasible to begin living on a fixed income.
Here are a few tips to help you get started

1. Take Advantage of Senior Discounts

There’s a reason senior discounts exist. Aside from paying respect to the people who have lived long enough to truly deserve it, it’s also to help those people who are living on a fixed income ease their financial burdens during retirement. These discounts can help seniors be better able to afford those everyday conveniences easily, and they should be taken advantage of.
When you go to a store, restaurant, or excursion, you should make sure to ask if they offer a senior discount. They are generally offered to people who are 50 years of age and older. When you take advantage of them frequently, it could save you a lot of money each month on things you’d pay for anyway. Doing this regularly can help you to save money without having to cut back on anything.

2. Implement Budgeting Strategies

Realizing you have to live on a budget can be intimidating, especially if you haven’t always been very financially savvy. For this reason, it’s important to really learn about your finances and implement specific budgeting strategies. If you’ve never kept track of your spending before, a good idea is to sit down and take a look at where all your money goes in a given month. Set up categories such as groceries, clothing, bills, housing, and so forth. Then add up each category and see where you can make cuts.
Seeing these numbers in front of you can be a good way to start to implement change. You may be spending more in one category than is necessary without knowing you’re doing so. Put a cap on non-essential categories and see if that extra money can be better allocated somewhere else.

3. Join a Senior Living Community

If you’re living on a fixed income, you might want to consider joining a senior living community. Senior living communities are a great way to control your spending while living in a place that provides you with a lot of amenities. Communities like BridgeWater Assisted Living offer residents comfortable and spacious apartments to live in, daily chef-prepared meals, as well as activities and assistance with daily conveniences.
BridgeWater Assisted Living also offers residents financial solutions to help them better afford senior living. There are multiple income-qualified opportunities for residents living on a fixed income, such as Medicaid or VA benefits. The designated community benefit advocate can assist residents and potential residents in determining what programs they qualify for. This assistance and the general affordability of places like BridgeWater can make living on a fixed income more convenient than ever. Contact us to learn more.