Health & Finances
When we first started our full time adventure, we were not even 62 so there was no social security or medicare to fall back on. We workcamped for the first few years so we would have money to spend and since we could not take money out of our IRA, I opened up accounts with TD Ameritrade and put our money into them, and handled the investments myself. I did this for quite a few years, and it got to be a chore because there is so much research that goes into handling your own investments. In addition, TD Ameritrade started offering less and less funds and ETFs with no fees.
A couple of years ago we decided to move our money out of TD Ameritrade and let a qualified financial planner handle our funds. While at one of the RV parks that we frequent, I met a couple whose son is a fiduciary financial planner. It's difficult to decide on who to put your money with as there are so many financial planners out there, but since I knew these people and they had their money with their son, we decided it was in our best interest to let him handle our finances.
That has been the best move we could have made with our money, and if you are in need of a qualified fiduciary financial planner, I highly recommend him and his firm. His name is Dr. Nicholas E. Michels and his firm is Michels Family Financial. They offer comprehensive financial planning for retirees, business owners, women in transition, and growing families. Please consider giving them a call to see if they can help you with your finances and grow your wealth.
As I stated, we were three years too early for medicare when we first retired, so we actually went without health insurance for a few years until we were forced to apply for Obamacare. Luckily, the government paid the $800 per month fee for the useless insurance. We signed up for medicare just before we hit 65 and could not decide on which one to get. I knew we had to get Part B, which is the drug section.
I would not recommend calling any of those companies that advertise on TV that say they will help you find the best health insurance. I did that and instead of setting us up with one that would be to our benefit, I think they suggested one where they get more money. We were stuck with that one for the year, but then after talking to one of our RV friends, decided to go direct to Humana and set up your insurance with them personally.
That is what I would suggest anyone who is eligible for Medicare do. Sure, there are insurance agents who recommend going with one of the A-F parts of Medicare, but being with Humana for the last six years, I would recommend them over any of the others. Plus, you need to get a PPO with the drug option (not an HMO). The PPO plan follows you as you travel around the country, unlike an HMO which limits you to the doctors in the area of your zip code.
We paid $20 per month per person for a couple of years, then it went to $10 per month per person, but now (2025) we have not paid anything per month for the last few years. I don't have any experience with Aetna or United Healthcare; I only can recommend Humana because they have been an excellent company to deal with and pays for practically everything that we encounter.
When we first started our full time adventure, we were not even 62 so there was no social security or medicare to fall back on. We workcamped for the first few years so we would have money to spend and since we could not take money out of our IRA, I opened up accounts with TD Ameritrade and put our money into them, and handled the investments myself. I did this for quite a few years, and it got to be a chore because there is so much research that goes into handling your own investments. In addition, TD Ameritrade started offering less and less funds and ETFs with no fees.
A couple of years ago we decided to move our money out of TD Ameritrade and let a qualified financial planner handle our funds. While at one of the RV parks that we frequent, I met a couple whose son is a fiduciary financial planner. It's difficult to decide on who to put your money with as there are so many financial planners out there, but since I knew these people and they had their money with their son, we decided it was in our best interest to let him handle our finances.
That has been the best move we could have made with our money, and if you are in need of a qualified fiduciary financial planner, I highly recommend him and his firm. His name is Dr. Nicholas E. Michels and his firm is Michels Family Financial. They offer comprehensive financial planning for retirees, business owners, women in transition, and growing families. Please consider giving them a call to see if they can help you with your finances and grow your wealth.
As I stated, we were three years too early for medicare when we first retired, so we actually went without health insurance for a few years until we were forced to apply for Obamacare. Luckily, the government paid the $800 per month fee for the useless insurance. We signed up for medicare just before we hit 65 and could not decide on which one to get. I knew we had to get Part B, which is the drug section.
I would not recommend calling any of those companies that advertise on TV that say they will help you find the best health insurance. I did that and instead of setting us up with one that would be to our benefit, I think they suggested one where they get more money. We were stuck with that one for the year, but then after talking to one of our RV friends, decided to go direct to Humana and set up your insurance with them personally.
That is what I would suggest anyone who is eligible for Medicare do. Sure, there are insurance agents who recommend going with one of the A-F parts of Medicare, but being with Humana for the last six years, I would recommend them over any of the others. Plus, you need to get a PPO with the drug option (not an HMO). The PPO plan follows you as you travel around the country, unlike an HMO which limits you to the doctors in the area of your zip code.
We paid $20 per month per person for a couple of years, then it went to $10 per month per person, but now (2025) we have not paid anything per month for the last few years. I don't have any experience with Aetna or United Healthcare; I only can recommend Humana because they have been an excellent company to deal with and pays for practically everything that we encounter.