|
Post by zuke on Apr 10, 2023 10:30:17 GMT
but the thought of not having an income is causing me heart palpitations. How do you know when you have enough saved? My husband was so afraid to retire. His pension was froze because the company was filing for bankruptcy. That was in the early 90's. Fast forward to 2017, he finally retired after 40 years. The stress from his job was showing with health concerns. I worked for an additional year after he did. We couldn't afford to stay in NY so we moved to FL. Sunshine, no state income tax and we'd be close to our daughter. Now he says that he wishes he couldn't stop worrying about retiring. You do what you need to do to make it work. For us, moving made life so much easier.
|
|
|
Post by lesserknownpea on Apr 10, 2023 11:17:01 GMT
I had great hopes once the SS kicked in, but chronic vestibular migraine is severely limiting my life currently.
I am grateful that I’m not having to worry about a job and bills, or running after kids while dealing with this. Also that I have health insurance, and a loving family.
but I really want to be traveling, hiking, and just generally exploring my activity options.
|
|
|
Post by karenlou on Apr 10, 2023 11:26:22 GMT
I retired in October of 2020....Yes, in the midst of the pandemic, so no fanfare after over 30 years. I still do work per diem, as I do mission trips so I want to keep my skills up..I do 8-16 hours a week...rarely 24 hours...Nurses have left in droves, so I could work full time if I chose to.
I planned well for retirement.....We still do have a mortgage...and with a minimal payment and 3% interest rate I have no plans at present to pay it off.
I volunteer once a month for a Church lunch program....preparing and serving a hot meal for those with food insecurity. I am part of a team that does lunch every saturday in the area.....There are multiple teams that prepare dinners in the same area of need.
I most miss seeing my work peeps and catching up with those people, per diem helps with that.
|
|
|
Post by Restless Spirit on Apr 10, 2023 13:32:18 GMT
There is the dream of retirement and then there is the reality of retirement. I’m living the reality. Life often ends up putting great restraints on dreams. You just have to make the most of what is, forget the if-only and be thankful for what you have however long it may last.
|
|
|
Post by myboysnme on Apr 10, 2023 14:04:13 GMT
I retired at age 62. I love every minute. I have not missed working even one second, and I had a good job, pay and friends.
Fortunately my finances are better than when I was working for various reasons, but I did save quite a bit in my 401k.
|
|
|
Post by lily on Apr 10, 2023 17:59:55 GMT
A lot of you have mentioned that your cars are paid off. Which is great! But a car does not last forever, so what is your plan when the paid off car needs to be replaced? Are you putting aside some money each month to save towards a new one; or are you just going to wing it LOL?
|
|
|
Post by rymeswithpurple on Apr 10, 2023 20:14:07 GMT
A lot of you have mentioned that your cars are paid off. Which is great! But a car does not last forever, so what is your plan when the paid off car needs to be replaced? Are you putting aside some money each month to save towards a new one; or are you just going to wing it LOL? Not retired/retirement age as mentioned previously, but my husband and I have different buckets set up in our savings account. We have one dedicated to the car, whether it's a repair or buying a new one one day. Then there are people like my father (who is 71 and should be retired because he's 71 for goodness' sake!) who bought a new toy (fancy car) that is half my rent each month. To each their own.
|
|
|
Post by Zee on Apr 10, 2023 20:36:03 GMT
I was the grasshopper to all these ants. I've only gotten serious in the last 5 years.
I make more money now than I ever thought I could as a nurse in my area and that's been very fulfilling.
I want for about 2 years not working when we moved to PA and it was nice but also after a while I missed the social interaction of nursing and using my brain.
I would prefer to go part time again but that will be a huge pay cut so for now I'm just working myself into an early grave. But it's a very big part of my life and identity and hard to give up totally.
DH loves working and probably won't ever retire willingly.
I most definitely do NOT have my house paid off, fat ducks in a row, robust portfolio, and plans of seeing the world five times next year! And when we do eventually quit working we'll be selling this house and the condo we own and living in Mexico, I hope.
|
|
|
Post by mommaho on Apr 10, 2023 22:28:48 GMT
I am retiring (I think) in 1 year, 8 months, 22 days, 18 hours, 4 minutes and 26 seconds, but who is counting! LOL I have an app on my phone counting down until January 2, 2025, I'll turn 67 in February 2025. DH retired last July at 67. We both have saved well and our mortgage is paid off but of course now is when we have to do some major updates to the house.
|
|
janeinbama
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,201
Location: Alabama
Jan 29, 2015 16:24:49 GMT
|
Post by janeinbama on Apr 10, 2023 23:05:51 GMT
Just passed my one year retirement anniversary. It has been great. I retired after 33 years with a municipality with a defined pension. DH retired 5 years earlier with a defined pension. It has been an adjustment for me being home as he had enjoyed his own routine. I have done some crafting, we have a workout group on our street that has been fun. We meet with our Financial Planner annually and confirms we are in good shape. We moved to nearby lake and love lake life. We will die with a mortgage. It is soo worth it though. DH is not much of a traveller, especially now. I will travel with my sister and girl friends and DH some.
My father died at 52, my brother at 28 and paternal grandmother at 62. That truly confirmed my decision.
|
|
|
Post by sunnyd on Apr 11, 2023 6:54:32 GMT
I love that so many of you are thriving in retirement! WAY TO GO!!
What amount of invested savings do you feel is necessary to retire? $500k, $1M? $2M? More? I know it's all subjective. We don't spend money besides day to day living, property taxes, etc. Can you just toss out a number that you feel like would be the right amount of savings for you to retire on?
We have house paid off, rental house paid off, no debt and we have maxed out retirement accounts for years so have a lot saved. But how much savings do we really need? We have no pensions and won't receive social security for several years either, although I have never counted on SS. Even with a large nest egg, the lack of earned income is a scary thought.
|
|
|
Post by katlady on Apr 11, 2023 7:23:02 GMT
I love that so many of you are thriving in retirement! WAY TO GO!! What amount of invested savings do you feel is necessary to retire? $500k, $1M? $2M? More? I know it's all subjective. We don't spend money besides day to day living, property taxes, etc. Can you just toss out a number that you feel like would be the right amount of savings for you to retire on? We have house paid off, rental house paid off, no debt and we have maxed out retirement accounts for years so have a lot saved. But how much savings do we really need? We have no pensions and won't receive social security for several years either, although I have never counted on SS. Even with a large nest egg, the lack of earned income is a scary thought. According to this site, if you have $1 million at age 65, you can pull out 40K a year until you reach 91 years old. www.merrilledge.com/article/how-much-do-you-really-need-to-save-for-retirementThere are so many variables - health, cost of living, spending habits, etc. $40K a year in my area would be no-frills. Even with the house paid off, we would still have to pay about $10-$15K a year for taxes, utilities, and insurance. It sounds like you have been good about debt and savings. Have you talked to a financial advisor?
|
|
|
Post by **GypsyGirl** on Apr 11, 2023 14:19:32 GMT
What amount of invested savings do you feel is necessary to retire? $500k, $1M? $2M? More? I know it's all subjective. We don't spend money besides day to day living, property taxes, etc. Can you just toss out a number that you feel like would be the right amount of savings for you to retire on? We have house paid off, rental house paid off, no debt and we have maxed out retirement accounts for years so have a lot saved. But how much savings do we really need? We have no pensions and won't receive social security for several years either, although I have never counted on SS. Even with a large nest egg, the lack of earned income is a scary thought. If you don't have a financial advisor already, I'd find one as soon as possible. They are going to be able to help you come up with a plan that is best for your lifestyle and retirement goals. One thing some people don't think of is that when you start pulling money from the 401K there are going to be taxes due. This is where you really need a good advisor to make sure you don't make costly mistakes.
|
|
lizacreates
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,856
Aug 29, 2015 2:39:19 GMT
|
Post by lizacreates on Apr 11, 2023 17:04:11 GMT
If you can, try living off an amount equal to what you think you'll need for retirement and put the rest in savings. That may show you that you are actually ok - or not! That's what I'm trying to do now, but the unknown cost of Medicare insurance and dental/vision - I'm not sure what those will be. It's a legitimate and common concern. I don’t know if this will help you, but I can give you some idea. Costs vary widely so these are just averages. --Medicare Part A (inpatient services) is zero premium because we already paid for that during our working years --Medicare Part B (outpatient services) mandatory premium is $164.90/month in 2023 (higher for those with modified adjusted gross income above $97,000) --Part B annual deductible is $226 for 2023 --Medicare supplement aka Medigap premium will depend greatly on your state, your zip code, and your plan, but national average is $150/month --Part D drugs premium is average $30/month plus copays (and deductible, if any) --Vision is average $17/month plus copays (and deductible, if any) --Dental is average $40/month plus copays (and deductible, if any) So, annually: Part B mandatory $1,979 + Medigap $1,800 + Part D $360 + Vision $204 + Dental $480 + Annual Part B deductible $226 = $5,049/year or $421/month. I did not include copays and deductibles in vision and dental because there are way too many plans and too many variances. There are also premium increases every year for most Medigap plans. If you think this is something that would not be manageable, there are Advantage plans (Part C) that bundle all of these for zero premium (if HMO) or very low premium (if PPO). However, there are copays for just about every single inpatient and outpatient service in Advantage and you’re tied to a network if HMO (if PPO, you can go out of network but it’ll cost you more out-of-pocket). In a good years, you come out ahead because you’re not paying premiums; in bad years when serious or chronic illness occurs that requires hospitalization and/or expensive treatments, out-of-pocket can easily run in the thousands. So, pros and cons in everything and it depends on your risk tolerance. There is no one-size-fits-all. Hope this helps and best of luck to you.
|
|
MDscrapaholic
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,589
Location: Down by the bay....
Jun 25, 2014 20:49:07 GMT
|
Post by MDscrapaholic on Apr 11, 2023 17:09:22 GMT
|
|
lizacreates
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,856
Aug 29, 2015 2:39:19 GMT
|
Post by lizacreates on Apr 11, 2023 17:38:23 GMT
My pleasure. If there’s anything re Medicare plans for which you need explanation or clarification, please feel free to PM me. I am always eager to help when I can.
|
|
|
Post by floridagirl on Apr 11, 2023 18:32:26 GMT
I retired after my employer offered a "buy out" and lifetime medical. I was old enough for SS and got a pension, so I took retirement. However I had the opportunity to do my job part time (Tuesdays and Thursdays). it works perfectly for me. 4 day weekends and wednesday off. Enough time to spend with hubby and do things I would like to do. I also can do the job remote if I choose to, so I can still travel
|
|
|
Post by mikklynn on Apr 11, 2023 18:46:48 GMT
A lot of you have mentioned that your cars are paid off. Which is great! But a car does not last forever, so what is your plan when the paid off car needs to be replaced? Are you putting aside some money each month to save towardsW a new one; or are you just going to wing it LOL? When my Tahoe is paid off, I'll continue to put the same $ in a separate account for replacing a car in the future. We paid cash for half of it by putting money away ahead of time. On another note, DH was really afraid for me to retire. He had retired 6 years prior due to his health. I calculated how much cash we took in each month between his SS and my income. I did a spreadsheet of all spending for the previous year, so I could show him we were spending less than we earned. Finally, I had our financial advisor show him how we could receive the same income through our IRA/401k accounts. That convinced him we'd be ok.
|
|
|
Post by lisacharlotte on Apr 11, 2023 20:43:35 GMT
We are lucky DH is retired from the military so the biggest expense for most people (health coverage/Rx) is covered.
We paid off our house when COVID shut everything down. It ended up being a good move. Our property taxes are horrible and we pay state tax as well and now our old mortgage payment goes to taxes.
As far as vehicles, we actually just bought a splurge car. We used a trade in & cash to pay for half and financed the other half. We’ll have it paid off in less than three years. It was a want not a need, but we have no other debt. Until we bought this new car, both our cars were paid for.
We have a good financial advisor, so we feel comfortable with our decisions. But there are no guarantees. We have some protection because a chunk of money we get is not dependent on the stock market (military retirement, work pension, SS, VA disability).
One thing we did is DH started taking SS at 62. We debated if he should wait, but calculated taking now at a lower rate or taking at 70 at a higher amount. We use death at 90 for all our calculations and decided the difference wasn’t enough to chance losing all that money if he end up dying earlier than expected. My biggest fear with SS is waiting to take it and then dying soon after, then it’s gone. This way he takes SS and we don’t touch the 401k money.
|
|
|
Post by **GypsyGirl** on Apr 11, 2023 20:56:17 GMT
One thing we did is DH started taking SS at 62. We debated if he should wait, but calculated taking now at a lower rate or taking at 70 at a higher amount. We use death at 90 for all our calculations and decided the difference wasn’t enough to chance losing all that money if he end up dying earlier than expected. My biggest fear with SS is waiting to take it and then dying soon after, then it’s gone. This way he takes SS and we don’t touch the 401k money. This is important to consider as well. On the advice of our financial advisor, DH decided to go ahead and take SS when he hit the full age (66 yrs). I will start mine this summer. We've seen too many people we know not live until 70 and all that money they could have drawn is just gone.
|
|
Ryann
Pearl Clutcher
Love is Inclusive
Posts: 2,588
Location: PNW
May 31, 2021 3:14:17 GMT
|
Post by Ryann on Apr 11, 2023 21:09:31 GMT
One thing we did is DH started taking SS at 62. We debated if he should wait, but calculated taking now at a lower rate or taking at 70 at a higher amount. We use death at 90 for all our calculations and decided the difference wasn’t enough to chance losing all that money if he end up dying earlier than expected. My biggest fear with SS is waiting to take it and then dying soon after, then it’s gone. This way he takes SS and we don’t touch the 401k money. I think we are going to do the same - DW is 52 and I'm 44, so still quite a few years from being able to take SS. Between wondering if it will still exist (I think it will, but it may be a smaller benefit) and then not living long enough we are leaning towards DW taking SS at 62 also.
|
|