Hiroshi Sato (pseudonym), a 68-year-old retired man in Japan, originally thought that he had worked for 42 years and received a pension of 16 million yen (approximately NT$3.2 million) when he retired. He also paid off his mortgage in advance. In addition, the couple received a combined monthly pension of 240,000 yen (approximately NT$48,000), which should be enough to spend his old age safely. Unexpectedly, the increase in apartment management fees, home maintenance fees and rising prices have successively increased the burden. Even without a mortgage, I still cannot make ends meet by 50,000 yen (approximately NT$10,000) every month. The 10 million yen (approximately NT$2 million) savings originally planned for retirement have also shrunk by nearly half.
Japanese media reported that Hiroshi Sato worked for a medium-sized manufacturing company in Tokyo for 42 years. When he retired at the age of 60, his annual income was as high as about 6.5 million yen (approximately NT$1.3 million) and he received a pension of about 16 million yen. At that time, he first took out about 6 million yen (approximately NT$1.2 million) to pay off the remaining mortgage loan in one lump sum, and retained another 10 million yen as retirement living expenses, and then continued to work until the age of 65 according to the re-employment contract.
Sato started receiving a public pension at the age of 65, which is about 170,000 yen (approximately NT$34,000) per month, and his 65-year-old wife receives about 70,000 yen (approximately NT$14,000) per month. The couple has a combined monthly income of 240,000 yen. After deducting related expenses, the actual available amount is about 210,000 yen (approximately NT$42,000). Since there was no mortgage, the two originally thought that this income would be enough to cope with daily life.
However, the true cost of retirement is much heavier than expected. The suburban apartment Sato bought when he was in his 30s is more than 35 years old. As the equipment ages, the management fees and maintenance savings have been rising. Recently, the monthly expenditure has increased to 38,000 yen (approximately NT$7,600). What caught him even more off guard was that in response to the replacement of water supply and drainage pipelines, the management team also decided to charge each household a one-time charge of 500,000 yen (approximately NT$100,000).
Sato originally thought that paying off the mortgage would relieve him of the housing burden, but he did not expect that even if he owned his own house, he would still have to pay high management and repair costs.
In addition, the wooden bungalow in the country that my wife inherited from her mother three years ago has become another fixed expense. Due to the remote location of the house, a buyer has never been found. In order to maintain the current condition of the house, it costs about 250,000 yen (approximately NT$50,000) every year just for pruning trees, daily maintenance and fire insurance. If not properly managed, it may also affect the eligibility for property tax deductions related to empty homes.
On the other hand, prices in Japan have continued to rise in recent years, and the prices of daily necessities such as food, water and electricity have increased, increasing the couple's monthly daily expenses by more than 30,000 yen (approximately NT$6,000). As apartment management fees, home maintenance fees and living expenses continue to increase, the two's monthly expenses are about 50,000 yen more than the actual available pension of 210,000 yen, and they can only continue to use their past savings to fill the gap.
Sato looked at his bank book and admitted that he had never thought that after working all his life and paying annuity on time, he would still be trapped in the dilemma of continued reduction of savings after retirement. The 10 million yen originally reserved for retirement savings have now shrunk by nearly half.
"I have never expected a luxurious life. I only thought that I could live well with 240,000 yen per month." Sato said helplessly that apartment maintenance fees, the burden of inheriting a house, and the rising cost of living were all expenses that were not fully considered when planning for retirement. Even if the mortgage has been paid off, with a pension in hand and a fixed monthly annuity income, it is still difficult to withstand the various fixed expenses that will follow after retirement.
