Retiring very early (40ish)
Discussion
Welshbeef said:
U.K. average used to be 2.4 kids it’s higher now.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunit...
Not including those families with no children at all.https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunit...
Doofus said:
Welshbeef said:
U.K. average used to be 2.4 kids it’s higher now.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunit...
Not including those families with no children at all.https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunit...
cavey76 said:
Doofus said:
Welshbeef said:
U.K. average used to be 2.4 kids it’s higher now.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunit...
Not including those families with no children at all.https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunit...
I’ve stopped twice I think - once at 42, then again at 49. Am now 53 and have gone back to 3 days pw running something I co-own and the other days playing / managing investments
All up to the individual - lockdown taught me that I was too young to be sitting at home doing nothing (or rather not enough)
I think it relates a lot to kids. My youngest is 12 so I be given myself a six year plan before we empty nest. Will reconsider after that but expect I’ll have my hand on something forever
All up to the individual - lockdown taught me that I was too young to be sitting at home doing nothing (or rather not enough)
I think it relates a lot to kids. My youngest is 12 so I be given myself a six year plan before we empty nest. Will reconsider after that but expect I’ll have my hand on something forever
Welshbeef said:
Could anyone see that idleness can easily slip into a way of life when you’ve not got to do anything - or more likely as your always off you become the go to for grandchildren childcare for those 13 weeks of school holidays…
Idleness was a way of life when I was in gainful employment. In retirement, I am even better at it. No plans to change that.Kids' perception of idleness (even if not reflective of reality), and the impact that has on them, is something that I've spent a lot of time pondering and probably the best argument for carrying on. But of course it's a trade-off of unknown future states anyway (who knows how long you'll be here?), and ultimately I think managing that perception in the absence of going out to work is just another facet of good child raising that has to be worked at every day.
Bit too much over thinking here I think with regards to idleness reflecting on kids. I had to get two buses to school because my parents were at work whilst a large majority of my school peers were driven to school by their early retired fathers. I wish my father had been so ‘idle’ as them and then I wouldn’t have had to drag a p.e. kit and bag full of text books all that way! 
I think part of the secrets to a happy life is to have low expectations. Before we know it we are slaves to a job, all the trappings of middle class life (mortgage, bills, debt). If we set our sights lower we could give it all up and live a much frugal lifestyle. Low expectation is the secret to retiring early!
Hang On said:
Idleness was a way of life when I was in gainful employment. In retirement, I am even better at it. No plans to change that.
Yup, that's the point! I've had a good career which I worked hard at. College, university, gainful employment, lots of good work to get me promoted a few times but in all honesty, I've always been lazy and done what I needed to do rather than went above and beyond. I can easily spend my free time having a lie in, sitting on my backside listening to music and not really achieving anything. I'm great at it.
I know plenty of people who work a lot harder than me, do more hours but still come home and find time to do DIY projects, etc. (I would just pay someone else as I can't be bothered.) The same people are up at first light and pottering in the garden or cleaning their cars. They just can't sit still or not be doing anything.
It's very interesting to hear of so many people that are able to retire at a young age (30s/40s).
I'm early thirties and retirement seems like a long time away. I'm in a high paying job and a comfortable position, but I don't think I could retire comfortably for a long time. Maybe I spent too much time/money enjoying my 20s, maybe I have a vision of early retirement including too many luxuries, or maybe (and most likely) you're all just far more successful than me
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I'm early thirties and retirement seems like a long time away. I'm in a high paying job and a comfortable position, but I don't think I could retire comfortably for a long time. Maybe I spent too much time/money enjoying my 20s, maybe I have a vision of early retirement including too many luxuries, or maybe (and most likely) you're all just far more successful than me
. SpunkyGlory said:
I'm early thirties and retirement seems like a long time away. I'm in a high paying job and a comfortable position, but I don't think I could retire comfortably for a long time. Maybe I spent too much time/money enjoying my 20s, maybe I have a vision of early retirement including too many luxuries, or maybe (and most likely) you're all just far more successful than me .
All about the ratio of spending to consumption. If you can live on 50% of your income and save the rest, you can accumulate enough savings in 20-25 years to sustain that consumption level indefinitely. If you can increase that savings rate to 75%, you reach the same point in 10 years.. The trick is to figure out your happy £ level of consumption and avoid lifestyle creep beyond that.
SpunkyGlory said:
I'm early thirties and retirement seems like a long time away. I'm in a high paying job and a comfortable position, but I don't think I could retire comfortably for a long time. Maybe I spent too much time/money enjoying my 20s, maybe I have a vision of early retirement including too many luxuries, or maybe (and most likely) you're all just far more successful than me .
I'm the sole bread winner, married with 4 kids. HMRC consider me a high earner, so ask me to pay back the £3,300 child benefit that my wife received. This means that between £50,000 and £60,000 I would take home just £2,500. Since that fact sunk in 3 years ago I have been on a mission to make sure that doesn't happen. The cost of this is that I have had to make serious changes to my lifestyle - driving an 18 year old BMW is one of them. The benefit of this is that I can now see retiring early as a valid option. The HIBC policy has forced me to save for a pension, which I would have otherwise not done. I would recommend anyone who is paying too much to the tax man follow suit, and before long they will be thinking about retirement.
Edited by WhiskyDisco on Tuesday 2nd November 14:48
Interesting thread to read through.
The trick is to figure out your happy £ level of consumption and avoid lifestyle creep beyond that.I don’t really understand this sort of response (even though it’s one I’ve seen people buy into on numerous occasions on PH). On a purely academic level there is logic to the argument to trim outgoings and save save save, but to me this always seems to be addressing the wrong side of the equation.
The answers rarely focus on earning more rather than spending less, instead most (if not all) of the posts about retiring early seem to laud frugality. Maybe it’s a case that people focus more on what they perceive to be within their immediate control (spending/saving) rather than figuring out how to change the income side (where the impact could be much larger)?
If you’ve been relatively successful and reach a place where the pay cheque doesn’t matter any more there’s a pretty good chance that 1) you’re not a regular PAYE employee; 2) you have more freedom to work with/on/in ways that work for and interest you; 3) you have many more options available, so if you ceased to enjoy what you did you’d change it… I can understand why people would change their approach to work, but can’t get my head around the notion that the goal for so many seems to be to stop working completely (I certainly couldn’t do it). Maybe I’ve been fortunate that I’ve always got a lot out of work and would perhaps feel differently if I couldn’t see a way out of a job I hated.
(Btw, Nick only quoted you twice because you summarised these things nicely!)
NickCQ said:
SpunkyGlory said:
I'm early thirties and retirement seems like a long time away. I'm in a high paying job and a comfortable position, but I don't think I could retire comfortably for a long time. Maybe I spent too much time/money enjoying my 20s, maybe I have a vision of early retirement including too many luxuries, or maybe (and most likely) you're all just far more successful than me .
All about the ratio of spending to consumption. If you can live on 50% of your income and save the rest, you can accumulate enough savings in 20-25 years to sustain that consumption level indefinitely. If you can increase that savings rate to 75%, you reach the same point in 10 years.. The trick is to figure out your happy £ level of consumption and avoid lifestyle creep beyond that.
The answers rarely focus on earning more rather than spending less, instead most (if not all) of the posts about retiring early seem to laud frugality. Maybe it’s a case that people focus more on what they perceive to be within their immediate control (spending/saving) rather than figuring out how to change the income side (where the impact could be much larger)?
NickCQ said:
they don't need to work, but they can't quit. Quite sad really.
People see “work” but don’t always consider the fact the the rules change considerably when you no longer need to work.If you’ve been relatively successful and reach a place where the pay cheque doesn’t matter any more there’s a pretty good chance that 1) you’re not a regular PAYE employee; 2) you have more freedom to work with/on/in ways that work for and interest you; 3) you have many more options available, so if you ceased to enjoy what you did you’d change it… I can understand why people would change their approach to work, but can’t get my head around the notion that the goal for so many seems to be to stop working completely (I certainly couldn’t do it). Maybe I’ve been fortunate that I’ve always got a lot out of work and would perhaps feel differently if I couldn’t see a way out of a job I hated.
(Btw, Nick only quoted you twice because you summarised these things nicely!)
LooneyTunes said:
On a purely academic level there is logic to the argument to trim outgoings and save save save, but to me this always seems to be addressing the wrong side of the equation. The answers rarely focus on earning more rather than spending less, instead most (if not all) of the posts about retiring early seem to laud frugality.
You are right, I take it for granted that people are maximising their earnings potential. When I throw out these very high savings rates these are only realistically feasible for high earners anyway.That said, it's important to realise that there's almost no level of income high enough that it can't be frittered away. If you want to build wealth from regular earned income (rather than a windfall / sale of business), you have to develop savings discipline and apply it year-in year-out.
I think I'm aiming for a retirement at 60 (assuming I stay married). However, I would like to reduce working down to 3 or 4 days a week when I'm 50...or interim roles with some gaps...which is three years time.
I want my pot to be about 600k at age 60 so assuming it doubles every ten years I need 300k at 50...perfectly doable.
I want my pot to be about 600k at age 60 so assuming it doubles every ten years I need 300k at 50...perfectly doable.
Welshbeef said:
Can I ask for those who have or are intending to retire so early have you or do you expect to receive an inheritance? If so by you not working for 30 years clearly that will errors any inheritance for your kids - as such how does that sit with you that you have taken inheritance and that clearly plays a part of stoping work extremely early yet they will receive no such equivalent?
I haven't factored in any inheritance into my planning; I expect I will get something depending on whether they need to pay for care and if so, for how long, but I'd rather my parents used it to enjoy themselves!We don't have children, so there's no one to worry about leaving money to you.
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