At 87, he can't afford his rent without a roommate. He's far from alone.

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www.cbsnews.com/news/older-americans-roommates-


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Comments in A Boring Dystopia@lemmy.world

They missed an opportunity to turn that into a uplifting story about how elderly fight the loneliness epidemic
 /s

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seniorcrushingmachine

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This doesn’t upset me because there’s no way I live that long

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see. everyone does that. no problemo I will just die. but you don’t die. you just live more and more horribly.

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Yeah but men in my family don’t get too old.

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my guess to is we are coming past a hump on longevity. At least for the masses in the us.

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What are the cultural imperatives and protocols when your roommate dies? Do you host a wake for him, in the apartment you’re about to be evicted from, since his name was on the lease?

Imagine suddenly being forced to move, at the tender age of 69, when you’re poor enough to require a roommate.

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Comments in News@lemmy.world

Must have been all that avocado toast

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I have one house mate in his 70s and one in her 80s, and she has lung cancer. Luckily our social systems are taking care of them, barely; but that’s going away and the cost of living is rising way faster than projected.

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Well yeah, because he has a roommate

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Probably healthier for both of them, really

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If we have to have 1 roommate now it’s gaurenteed we will need at least 2 in a few more decades.

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yeah heck is even a boomer at 87 or is that silent

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He’d have been born around 1939, pre-war from an American perspective, so “Silent Generation,” to the extent that means anything. My late “Silent Generation” father-in-law was the biggest Boomer stereotype I’d ever met.

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Frankly, at 87, it’s probably best not to live alone anyway.

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I know of at least 3 GenX guys with roommates. I think they’re all divorced.

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ah yes, headlines that outright contradict the article contents. love it.

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Interesting story, but headline not accurate:

When asked if he could cover all of his expenses using Social Security without a roommate, Ferber said, “Barely. What really helps naturally is working at Costco three days a week.”

So, yes, he could afford rent without a roommate, but its understandable why he has a roommate anyway.

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Because he is working 3 days a week at 87 years old!

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I think you may want to read the quote again. He can afford it “barely” without working. The working 3 days a week at Costco is what makes it not barely.

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Barely without working, can easily mean that he doesn’t have enough for other cost after rent. Rent is generally the most important bill to pay unless you want to become homeless.
He also says this:

When asked if he could retire, Yafet said, “I wouldn’t be in New York if I retired.”

Meaning that the expenses are too high even for a tiny tiny apartment of only 46 mÂČ !
To be able to “afford” rent but not to be able to live, actually means you can’t afford the rent.

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I would love to have an 87 year old roomie. I get along with the elderly. They are chill and usually not fucking full of hot air.

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Sure just “roommates”. That’s always my I was told my great aunt and her friend were. Suspiciously there was only one bedroom.

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