'I am a retired senior citizen living check-to-check'

"When I get paid once a month, I pay my rent for the month and stock up on food." (Photo subject is a model.)

Dear Quentin,

I am 77 years old. I am a retired senior citizen living check-to-check. I live off Social Security. When I get paid once a month, I pay my rent for the month and stock up on food, so I have a place to sleep and enough to eat. But I always help homeless people I see on the streets with whatever money I have left over, because nobody should have to go without food in this country.

Doesn't California alone have enough food to feed all of America?

Living Off Social Security

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You can email The Moneyist with any financial and ethical questions at qfottrell@marketwatch.com. The Moneyist regrets he cannot reply to questions individually.

Food is probably more valuable than time, but both count.

Dear Living,

You give back, even when you have a modest amount to give.

That's quite something, and I appreciate you taking the time to share your story. You are one of millions of retirees (roughly a third) who rely on Social Security, and it's not easy, especially after you pay your rent and buy groceries. Medicaid, for those who qualify, and Medicare help, of course, but living paycheck-to-paycheck requires no small amount of discipline and thrift.

Here's the headline: It's OK for life not to go as planned. It's OK for you not to give away your last dollar. It's OK to be less than perfect. It's OK. Your generosity is admirable, but you also have a right to protect your own financial security. You don't have to give until there's nothing left for yourself, especially if you need that $5 for an unexpected prescription or even food.

For what it's worth, California does not produce enough food to feed the U.S. It produces about a quarter of all the food consumed in the U.S., including more than one third of the country's vegetables and three-quarters of its fruits and nuts, and the Golden State is the country's biggest milk producer, producing nearly 20% of the nation's milk. (Read more here.

It's OK for you not to give away your last dollar.

Having enough food produced nationally isn't the same thing as every individual having enough money or access to food, as you point out. Food needs to be harvested, transported, stored, sold and - last but not least - purchased. Someone can live in a country with an enormous agricultural surplus and still have an empty refrigerator or live in a food desert.

In fact, one in five Black households in America is located in one of these "food deserts," where people don't have access to fresh ingredients, according to the consulting firm McKinsey & Co. Some critics dislike the term, arguing that grocery chains, municipal decisions and lack of government funding contribute to what they call "food apartheid."

Whether it's contributing to charity, stopping to talk to an elderly neighbor or, as you say, giving something - however modest - to a homeless person, every little bit helps. It could be half a sandwich from a cafe, a coffee or simply a kind word. Food is probably more valuable than time, but both count. You are aware of other people's place in the world and their right to dignity.

The high cost of living is a major contributor to homelessness, alongside a myriad of other factors, including job losses, family breakdowns, mental-health and substance-misuse issues, and a lack of community/social support. Many people, when they experience a particularly challenging chapter in their lives, have people they can call. But not everyone does.

Related: 'My total balance should be $20 million': I invested $1.1 million in a crypto platform. Have I lost it all?

Living on $2,000 a month

Nearly 22 out of every 10,000 Americans - 745,652 people - experienced homelessness in January 2025, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which measures homelessness across the U.S. on a single night each winter. HUD's definition includes sheltered persons living in some kind of temporary housing.

"Unsheltered" people live outdoors, in cars, in abandoned buildings, or in other places deemed unfit for human habitation, HUD says. People staying with friends are considered homeless if they can't stay longer than 14 days, but they are not included in HUD's data. Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders had the highest rate of homelessness: 99.9 people per 10,000.

Living on, say, $2,000 a month is technically possible - if you live in a rent-subsidized accommodation or have other resources to pay for that roof over your head. Monthly essentials like utilities, food and transportation can easily eat up $500-$1,000, leaving little cushion for emergencies or home repairs.

A quarter of American retirees still work part-time.

You're not the only senior American living month-to-month. The real median annual income for households headed by someone 65 or older is close to $60,000, and the average older household spends roughly that amount annually. That doesn't leave much wiggle room. Surviving retirement takes both a realistic mindset and the financial means to back it up.

That financial reality may help explain why nearly a quarter of retirees work part-time, supplementing Social Security, 401(k)s, IRAs and any personal investments. Millions of Americans retire with far less than a six-figure savings account, and being single in retirement removes a second income stream that couples can rely on.

The best defense is saving early, diversifying, living below your means, avoiding credit-card debt and building in room for emergencies and mistakes - because most retirement plans don't account for the financial missteps nearly everyone makes at some point, whether it's buy-now-pay-later purchases or risky stock picks. That's easier to see in retrospect.

And perhaps all of this is why your small acts of generosity mean so much to you. We can all be net contributors, but you can't solve homelessness by yourself. You can, however, buy someone half of your sandwich or offer them a cup of coffee. You can stop to talk to someone who may have gone days, even weeks, without being treated like a human being.

Be kind to others, by all means, but don't forget to be kind to yourself.

Don't miss: 'She lives alone': My mother-in-law, 86, gets $1,300 in Social Security. Is that enough to live on?

By emailing your questions to The Moneyist or posting your dilemmas on The Moneyist Facebook group, you agree to have them published anonymously on MarketWatch.

More columns from Quentin Fottrell:

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'I want to live in a place that I can enjoy': I'm 69, single and get $3,000 in Social Security. Can I afford $2,000 rent?

'It's the ultimate regifting': My mom gave me a house. Should I transfer it back to her to reduce capital gains?

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-Quentin Fottrell