Dear Quentin, I am 61 years old, I didn’t save enough for retirement, and now the s— is starting to hit the fan. I quit my job in 2014 in order to take care of my elderly parents so they could live out their lives in their own home, and not have to go to a nursing home. I moved in with them and slept on their couch from 2014 until 2020. My father passed away in early 2015, and my mother died in December 2019.
I am currently unemployed and have approximately $50,000 to my name; $30,000 of that $50,000 is invested in the stock market, with the rest in my checking account. I have spent the last few years studying and investing in the stock market, and it was paying the bills. I did the work and treated it like a business, but the recent bear market has limited my stock-market returns. I have no debt, no car payment, and a 750 credit score. I turn 62 in July, so I can start collecting Social Security payments early, at approximately $1,000 a month. I am planning on looking for a job to supplement my Social Security, but at 61 years old and having been out of the …