Early Retirement
Discussion
Am starting this as I posted in the enjoying retirement thread and it s best to separate them as it s different circumstances.
This is what I posted and the first questions asked. Maybe we can take it from here.
interstellar said:
So is it an easy decision to stop as I am reading all these posts and wondering whether I should do it now?
Am 52, no debts, no mortgage. Can downsize down the line if we needed to as house much bigger than we need and worth 750k
Could stop now as have no mortgage and 150k cash and 600k pot which I can t access to 57 so can get through first 5 years with savings then pension and sp later to get through or wait 4.5 years and have 200k cash and 1m pot as current salary sacrificing 8.5k a month so pot is growing quickly although will slow down next near as carry forward will be full so will have to take more home in my wages or maybe go in between and do two more years?
What would you lot do in hindsight as you have already stopped?
If it needs another thread just shout please as don t want to hijack.
Is your wife /partner working and would she also retire if that were the case ?
Do you want to stop work -forget the money for a moment ?
Do you know what your outgo is if you stop work and can your current savings and plan accommodate that ?
Do you have any form of plan for you both if you suddenly weren't employed ?
This is what I posted and the first questions asked. Maybe we can take it from here.
interstellar said:
So is it an easy decision to stop as I am reading all these posts and wondering whether I should do it now?
Am 52, no debts, no mortgage. Can downsize down the line if we needed to as house much bigger than we need and worth 750k
Could stop now as have no mortgage and 150k cash and 600k pot which I can t access to 57 so can get through first 5 years with savings then pension and sp later to get through or wait 4.5 years and have 200k cash and 1m pot as current salary sacrificing 8.5k a month so pot is growing quickly although will slow down next near as carry forward will be full so will have to take more home in my wages or maybe go in between and do two more years?
What would you lot do in hindsight as you have already stopped?
If it needs another thread just shout please as don t want to hijack.
- ***********************
Is your wife /partner working and would she also retire if that were the case ?
Do you want to stop work -forget the money for a moment ?
Do you know what your outgo is if you stop work and can your current savings and plan accommodate that ?
Do you have any form of plan for you both if you suddenly weren't employed ?
interstellar said:
Am starting this as I posted in the enjoying retirement thread and it s best to separate them as it s different circumstances.
This is what I posted and the first questions asked. Maybe we can take it from here.
interstellar said:
So is it an easy decision to stop as I am reading all these posts and wondering whether I should do it now?
Am 52, no debts, no mortgage. Can downsize down the line if we needed to as house much bigger than we need and worth 750k
Could stop now as have no mortgage and 150k cash and 600k pot which I can t access to 57 so can get through first 5 years with savings then pension and sp later to get through or wait 4.5 years and have 200k cash and 1m pot as current salary sacrificing 8.5k a month so pot is growing quickly although will slow down next near as carry forward will be full so will have to take more home in my wages or maybe go in between and do two more years?
What would you lot do in hindsight as you have already stopped?
If it needs another thread just shout please as don t want to hijack.
Is your wife /partner working and would she also retire if that were the case ?
Do you want to stop work -forget the money for a moment ?
Do you know what your outgo is if you stop work and can your current savings and plan accommodate that ?
Do you have any form of plan for you both if you suddenly weren't employed ?
We are both divorced and now together but not getting married. Our finances are separate and she is still working and will continue, she stopped her corporate job years ago and now works retail as she enjoys it. She has a decent pension, a buy to let and savings so is fine. We have our wills set so my kid gets my estate and hers get hers so it works for us.This is what I posted and the first questions asked. Maybe we can take it from here.
interstellar said:
So is it an easy decision to stop as I am reading all these posts and wondering whether I should do it now?
Am 52, no debts, no mortgage. Can downsize down the line if we needed to as house much bigger than we need and worth 750k
Could stop now as have no mortgage and 150k cash and 600k pot which I can t access to 57 so can get through first 5 years with savings then pension and sp later to get through or wait 4.5 years and have 200k cash and 1m pot as current salary sacrificing 8.5k a month so pot is growing quickly although will slow down next near as carry forward will be full so will have to take more home in my wages or maybe go in between and do two more years?
What would you lot do in hindsight as you have already stopped?
If it needs another thread just shout please as don t want to hijack.
- ***********************
Is your wife /partner working and would she also retire if that were the case ?
Do you want to stop work -forget the money for a moment ?
Do you know what your outgo is if you stop work and can your current savings and plan accommodate that ?
Do you have any form of plan for you both if you suddenly weren't employed ?
She wouldn’t stop yet and is younger to answer your questions.
I loved my job but when I found out at Xmas I could retire in 4 years it changed in my head, now I don’t enjoy it as much.
My outgoings are low and I only spend £1500 a month, that won’t change once I stop apart from holidays which we like doing but we aren’t planning any grand round the world trips when we stop. We have both travelled extensively.
I know if I stopped tomorrow I can keep busy. Love my fitness and mountain biking. A friend retired 10 years ago and has mountain biked 5 days a week for 10 years and loves it. I wouldn’t do that much but prob 2 or 3 plus gym and some voluntary stuff I would also likely do.
interstellar said:
We are both divorced and now together but not getting married. Our finances are separate and she is still working and will continue, she stopped her corporate job years ago and now works retail as she enjoys it. She has a decent pension, a buy to let and savings so is fine. We have our wills set so my kid gets my estate and hers get hers so it works for us.
She wouldn t stop yet and is younger to answer your questions.
I loved my job but when I found out at Xmas I could retire in 4 years it changed in my head, now I don t enjoy it as much.
My outgoings are low and I only spend £1500 a month, that won t change once I stop apart from holidays which we like doing but we aren t planning any grand round the world trips when we stop. We have both travelled extensively.
I know if I stopped tomorrow I can keep busy. Love my fitness and mountain biking. A friend retired 10 years ago and has mountain biked 5 days a week for 10 years and loves it. I wouldn t do that much but prob 2 or 3 plus gym and some voluntary stuff I would also likely do.
All your answers are couched in the " pro " subtext as opposed to negatively.She wouldn t stop yet and is younger to answer your questions.
I loved my job but when I found out at Xmas I could retire in 4 years it changed in my head, now I don t enjoy it as much.
My outgoings are low and I only spend £1500 a month, that won t change once I stop apart from holidays which we like doing but we aren t planning any grand round the world trips when we stop. We have both travelled extensively.
I know if I stopped tomorrow I can keep busy. Love my fitness and mountain biking. A friend retired 10 years ago and has mountain biked 5 days a week for 10 years and loves it. I wouldn t do that much but prob 2 or 3 plus gym and some voluntary stuff I would also likely do.
To answer your question then , sounds like a easy decision to say yes !
interstellar said:
We are both divorced and now together but not getting married. Our finances are separate and she is still working and will continue, she stopped her corporate job years ago and now works retail as she enjoys it. She has a decent pension, a buy to let and savings so is fine. We have our wills set so my kid gets my estate and hers get hers so it works for us.
She wouldn t stop yet and is younger to answer your questions.
I loved my job but when I found out at Xmas I could retire in 4 years it changed in my head, now I don t enjoy it as much.
My outgoings are low and I only spend £1500 a month, that won t change once I stop apart from holidays which we like doing but we aren t planning any grand round the world trips when we stop. We have both travelled extensively.
I know if I stopped tomorrow I can keep busy. Love my fitness and mountain biking. A friend retired 10 years ago and has mountain biked 5 days a week for 10 years and loves it. I wouldn t do that much but prob 2 or 3 plus gym and some voluntary stuff I would also likely do.
Saw your post on the Enjoying Retirement thread - it's not exclusively for retirees, but how to best enjoy it when you retire. It's been a massive help for me over the past few years - lots of good advice and views on the very friendly thread.She wouldn t stop yet and is younger to answer your questions.
I loved my job but when I found out at Xmas I could retire in 4 years it changed in my head, now I don t enjoy it as much.
My outgoings are low and I only spend £1500 a month, that won t change once I stop apart from holidays which we like doing but we aren t planning any grand round the world trips when we stop. We have both travelled extensively.
I know if I stopped tomorrow I can keep busy. Love my fitness and mountain biking. A friend retired 10 years ago and has mountain biked 5 days a week for 10 years and loves it. I wouldn t do that much but prob 2 or 3 plus gym and some voluntary stuff I would also likely do.
I retired 4 years ago, when I was 49.9 - part of the decision was the opportunity to do it just before I turned 50
I think once you start to think about it, it comes down to a few questions like alscar said:Do you enjoy your job / colleagues enough to really miss it when you stop? You might still keep in touch, but they will drift away as you're not working and they are, so you lose the common bond.
Have you got something to retire to? I think your biking, fitness and voluntary works says yes. For me, this was the most important.
Finally, and I mean after you've satisfactorily answered the other questions, do the finances work for you to retire? Will there be enough for say 40 years, including some stress testing? My modelling showed that it worked for 80% of scenarios and that was plenty for me. If I happen to get the 20%, I'm comfortable that I can cut my cloth accordingly. Others might not have the same risk appetite.
Depending on what you do for a living, there can also be the part time / consultancy option for a few years after full-time work whilst your skills are still relevant.
Very few (no-one) on the Enjoying Retirement thread regret taking the plunge, but it won't be for everyone. I also don't think you'll be posting on an Enjoying Retirement thread if you aren't!
I don't miss work at all and am very happy after retirement, but appreciate that this isn't the case for many (nearly all) of my non-work friends who are of a similar age. Some are about to retire in their mid-late 50s, so we're planning to meet up a bit more often, particularly mid-week.
only the OP can answer 1-2 basic Q;s....and those relate to how much money is burnt through now with only having a few days 'downtime' (weekend/vacation) and what expectations there are for outgoings in retirement.
Perhaps there's a halfway house between stopping in 4.5years and having a bigger 'pot' and now....
downsizing = sounds great and am sure many accomplish without issue. for us it meant upping sticks to a totally new country, as in reality we wanted to capitalize not downsize as needed a certain amount of space; a pal is caught in that trap - wants to release monies, but his mrs is wedded to the area they live, which will severely hamper £'s in the bank after costs/new gear etc.
another pal jumped off at 60 and is forever saying ' i'd like to but i can't afford' - leading back to, figuring out what lifestyle costs now, whether that could change up/down with any scenario and the obvious trade off of not having to work....
Perhaps there's a halfway house between stopping in 4.5years and having a bigger 'pot' and now....
downsizing = sounds great and am sure many accomplish without issue. for us it meant upping sticks to a totally new country, as in reality we wanted to capitalize not downsize as needed a certain amount of space; a pal is caught in that trap - wants to release monies, but his mrs is wedded to the area they live, which will severely hamper £'s in the bank after costs/new gear etc.
another pal jumped off at 60 and is forever saying ' i'd like to but i can't afford' - leading back to, figuring out what lifestyle costs now, whether that could change up/down with any scenario and the obvious trade off of not having to work....
interstellar said:
current salary sacrificing 8.5k a month
x12 = over £100,000 a year sacrificed, so we must assume total income of substantially more than that. Say £150,000 p.a. if you're sacrificing down to the 20% tax rate. Savings pots of £750k and a 4% burn rate imply retirement income of £30,000 p.a.
Can you seriously live on that little compared with where you are now?
Panamax said:
interstellar said:
current salary sacrificing 8.5k a month
x12 = over £100,000 a year sacrificed, so we must assume total income of substantially more than that. Say £150,000 p.a. if you're sacrificing down to the 20% tax rate. Savings pots of £750k and a 4% burn rate imply retirement income of £30,000 p.a.
Can you seriously live on that little compared with where you are now?
For a contrarian view...
I tried retiring early at ~45. Bottom line, as far as I am concerned, is that it doesn't matter how financially stable you are, retirement is really boring if you don't have sufficient going on to provide the level and variety of stimulation you need. I found the largest barriers being if 1) you haven't fully got rid of the kids yet; and 2) friends still working.
A few years later I'm back to being fully occupied, mainly with commercial ventures, just with a bit more time allocated to family and travel.
I tried retiring early at ~45. Bottom line, as far as I am concerned, is that it doesn't matter how financially stable you are, retirement is really boring if you don't have sufficient going on to provide the level and variety of stimulation you need. I found the largest barriers being if 1) you haven't fully got rid of the kids yet; and 2) friends still working.
A few years later I'm back to being fully occupied, mainly with commercial ventures, just with a bit more time allocated to family and travel.
mikeiow said something that I can relate to on the other thread:
"I was 57….would have gone at 56 but COVID struck & it seemed pointless when I had a zoom desk-monkey role for the year…."
I guess the key thing for me is whether the investments stacked in pension & ISAs provide an adequate income for your desired standard of living, and when that is close enough do you do "one more year", or stop and fully retire, or shift into something in between and call it semi-retirement.
Do you hate your job with a passion and is it really stressful, or is it relatively easy money and tolerable? Working further may be of detriment to your physical and mental health and not worth the extra £s stacked. It all depends.
I've decided that I will stop as soon as I have to look for another job or contract given the process is so horrendous now. While I'm working 100% remotely doing something I don't mind I will continue for as long as that contract is extended, or until 57. Whichever comes sooner.
"I was 57….would have gone at 56 but COVID struck & it seemed pointless when I had a zoom desk-monkey role for the year…."
I guess the key thing for me is whether the investments stacked in pension & ISAs provide an adequate income for your desired standard of living, and when that is close enough do you do "one more year", or stop and fully retire, or shift into something in between and call it semi-retirement.
Do you hate your job with a passion and is it really stressful, or is it relatively easy money and tolerable? Working further may be of detriment to your physical and mental health and not worth the extra £s stacked. It all depends.
I've decided that I will stop as soon as I have to look for another job or contract given the process is so horrendous now. While I'm working 100% remotely doing something I don't mind I will continue for as long as that contract is extended, or until 57. Whichever comes sooner.
If you don't really enjoy your job and can live on 1500 a month why work?
Doesn't make sense
Get cracking with doing proper f
k all and if you find you don't like it try something else.
You might find you enjoy doing something different.
A further edit to add - you will have to change your taste in cars if you are going to live on 1500 a month
Doesn't make sense
Get cracking with doing proper f
k all and if you find you don't like it try something else.You might find you enjoy doing something different.
A further edit to add - you will have to change your taste in cars if you are going to live on 1500 a month
Edited by Nicetobenice on Monday 6th July 18:32
_Rodders_ said:
I doubt when you're on your death bed that you'll have wished you had worked longer, whether you enjoy it or not.
Sounds like you could easily retire today and it wouldn't change your situation significantly.
This is what I'd do, if it doesn't work for you go back to work. Contracting or career change.Sounds like you could easily retire today and it wouldn't change your situation significantly.
Edited by _Rodders_ on Monday 6th July 14:15
interstellar said:
I live on minimum wage fine as the rest goes in my pension so yes it s doable. My outgoings are low.
Sounds an alien existence to me but each to their own. Yes, it looks like now is the time for you to retire.What are you actually planning to do in retirement? That's often the biggest question. Fairly obviously, it's not going to involve much spending.
LooneyTunes said:
I tried retiring early at ~45. Bottom line, as far as I am concerned, is that it doesn't matter how financially stable you are, retirement is really boring if you don't have sufficient going on to provide the level and variety of stimulation you need.
Very true. I got off the roundabout at age 48 and happily haven't got bored yet.Mar5hall said:
Safer to build a bit more, you re close but the market is very high.
1.2m seems to be a bare tax efficient minimum generating 50k so sub higher rate. That said 2m seems v healthy and you d not need to worry then. Am excluding house since you live in it.
Excuse me do you need the nurse?1.2m seems to be a bare tax efficient minimum generating 50k so sub higher rate. That said 2m seems v healthy and you d not need to worry then. Am excluding house since you live in it.
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