ssi application / excess resources

[scottzagoria]

What is the name of your state? CA

hello. i'm 67-years-old and have very little income. i don't own anything of value, but i do have $33k in my bank account. i don't spend much and am usually homeless [sleep in car, etc.]. can anyone please recommend options to satisfy ssi eligibility? should i/can i spend $31k on a property or a vehicle? i cannot even consider renting or buying anything here in calif. w/ $33k -- so i am in a bit of a quandary, so to speak. thanks for any help and happy holidays.

 

[adjusterjack]

Let's get this out of the way first.

At 67 you should be collecting Social Security Retirement and you would not be eligible for SSI.

Are you not collecting Social Security Retirement?

If not, why not?

If you are, how much a month do you get?

 

[scottzagoria]

thank you for the reply. i receive about $550/mo for ssi retirement. that is my only official income. my brother has been sending me about $600/mo. additionally. perhaps it is not 'a good idea' to proceed with ssi application under these circumstances? the main reason i am considering it is to reach the minimum income requirement for a colombian retirement visa [around $900/mo.], which my ssi retirement does not satisfy. i would appreciate any cogent recommendations. and thanks again.

 

[adjusterjack]

I'm looking at the SSA webpages for SSI.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) | SSA

There are two criteria for SSI. Income and resources.

Income - you qualify if your income is no more than $1913.

Resources - You don't qualify with $33,000 in the bank. The limit is $2000. You would have to spend down your money until you reached $2000 and then you would qualify.

However, one car (regardless of value) is not included as a resource so, theoretically (and I don't guarantee it) you can trade your car up so that you spend the $31,000 plus your car for a new one. Then apply for SSI with only $2000 left in the bank.

If you are going to do that and continue to live in your vehicle you might consider a small motor home that would be more comfortable to live in.

Property is also excluded from resources if it's a home that you live in. That could be a small manufactured home in a park if you can afford the rent space.

Personal opinion - I would prefer to keep the $33,000 in the bank. You never know when you might need a chunk of it for an emergency. Like if your car gets wrecked by one of CA's many uninsured drivers and you have no collision coverage. Or a big hospital bill. I think I'd want to preserve that money as long as I could.

Have you thought about applying for food stamps? Your income level would qualify and your bank account is not counted. That could get you a few hundred a month.

CalFresh Eligibility Guide (2023) - California Food Stamps Help (icaliforniafoodstamps.com)

Personal question - you don't have to answer - is there some reason you can't get a job of some sort, even part time?

 

[scottzagoria]

thank you once again, adjusted senior member! your answers are really quite useful and i do appreciate it. i'm trying to target retiring outside of the us rather than submitting to existence in a mobile park. not being condescending...it's just not for me. the idea of buying a camper to live in is attractive but it doesn't work well in modern america unless you're boondocking in the forest someplace. i am not sure if you are aware of the fact that if you're 65, nobody will hire you. yes, it's for real. i have 2 master's degrees and am working on setting up an online business, but as far as applying for positions i used to be 'qualified for', it is apparently no longer the case. gray hair and senior citizens don't make the grade for the hr folks. very much obliged for your thoughts and opinions to be sure. happy holidays.

 

[adjusterjack]

Mobile park is not for me either. While boondocking in an RV is tempting, I find I don't like long distance driving anymore.

As for jobs, there are companies that hire old farts like us (I'm 77) to be greeters, like at Walmart. Granted, I would not likely to be hired at an insurance company anymore. Not that I would want to. Cheerfully gave that up when I retired.

An online business might be just right. I wish you good fortune.

I am emphatic about one thing. Hang on to that $33,000. At our age, A cash buffer is important.

 

[commentator]

Sorry to mess on your plans there, but as a great many people have found out, no, there are not many companies that hire old er...citizens. Wal-mart did away with the greeter positions a long time ago. Someone with degrees, and with some age on them will find that even if the place has a sign up begging for help, are stating they have to close due to "lack of staff" they do not have this person in mind. They know two or three things. First of all, that person is not likely to stay there long enough to make training them worthwhile. Two, they are going to be supervised by a twenty something person who doesn't want to mess with someone older than their parents that they have to give directions to. Three, the work itself may be okay for someone in their 30's or 40's but when you get up close to where I am it gets very hard on the legs and back to even stand in one place for any length of time. So "if you get in a tight spot, go out and get a job, any job" is sometimes much easier said than done.

In my years of helping people who were becoming unemployed I saw so many people who had never visualized themselves in a situation where they were not able to go out and work, go out and get hired, go out and get a another job, just any job.....until it actually happened to them. And that so called "emergency fund" that all the financial gurus tell you that you must have on hand, well, that idea dies real quick when the emergency is that you can't buy food or gas. A car problem would be a sincere need, but as for hospital bills, when you're judgment proof, they aren't going to be able to get that big hospital bill paid, and you don't need to hang onto just enough cash to keep from qualifying for anything, though not enough to meet your needs.

I also question whether or not a person can get SNAP food assistance without consideration of their total assets, such as bank accounts, not just their cash in hand. Wow, things are so different in some other states than in mine! In my hazy memory, a person could not qulify for Social Security retirement and Supplemental Security Income at the same time, that being a federal thing. But in all the programs, I believe that a nest egg of $30K is something they're going to tell you to spend down before you come asking for government assistance based on your income.

 

[doucar]

a person could not qulify for Social Security retirement and Supplemental Security Income at the same time, that being a federal thing.

Not necessarily true. If the person's SSA income is below 739 a month ( old number I think) you would qualify for SSI to bring it up to the SSI thresthhold.

 

[scottzagoria]

thanks for all the comments. i wonder why everything turns into an attack on immigrants these days? in the days of john adams, an english immigrant was no worries, but there were laws to protect against the 'indigent' and politically incorrect irish. much obliged to all for your comments. rich or poor we will all go the same way and i think it's even true of undocumented moms with their kids. they are in danger of rifling through your garbage. bob dylan had that problem, too.

 

[Zigner]

What is the name of your state? CA

hello. i'm 67-years-old and have very little income. i don't own anything of value, but i do have $33k in my bank account. i don't spend much and am usually homeless [sleep in car, etc.]. can anyone please recommend options to satisfy ssi eligibility? should i/can i spend $31k on a property or a vehicle? i cannot even consider renting or buying anything here in calif. w/ $33k -- so i am in a bit of a quandary, so to speak. thanks for any help and happy holidays.

California is a very expensive state to live in. Perhaps you could relocate to a less expensive state...

 

[scottzagoria]

thanks. i'm not too fond of tornadoes. i will work it out and thank you all once again for your replies.