Retirement

[Lord Nigle]

Speaking as someone who is now coming into my mid 60s and retired just before I was 60 my advice would be to do it (retire) if you can. I had a good career and enjoyed most of my working life but gave never looked back since I finished work
Your 60s may be your last good decade, if your lucky you will also be healthy into your 70s.
Some of us live too long, others not long enough.
We downsized, paid off the mortgage, sorted the kids out with deposits, bought a little place in Spain and I started to play golf.
TBH if I only got another five years before I croak I wouldn't feel cheated.

I was fortunate after a very good career to retire at 58. I have been offered consultancy work ,but I love my freedom which retirement brings. What is priceless is that you have time to enjoy living without the shadow of having to go to work again. Mid week games are great knowing you can chill the next day. Being retired can mean a drop in income ,but being a time millionaire makes up for it.

 

[ChrisK]

I was fortunate after a very good career to retire at 58. I have been offered consultancy work ,but I love my freedom which retirement brings. What is priceless is that you have time to enjoy living without the shadow of having to go to work again. Mid week games are great knowing you can chill the next day. Being retired can mean a drop in income ,but being a time millionaire makes up for it.

120 really?
When you see your FA ask him, well he should probably tell you, about your drawdown and sequence of returns risks. You are right markets do, eventually, recover but it looks a lot different when you are taking money out of your pot.

Certainly a nice problem to have and whatever way i go been able to finish graft at 55 is a nice feeling.
Got to give credit to the Army training as a junior soldier at 16 year old we were advised about savings and pensions we were more or less told by the paymaster to put 20% of our monthly wages into a savings account.
Didn’t argue back then, but set me on a decent path to always live within ur means.

 

[Metalmicky]

Certainly a nice problem to have and whatever way i go been able to finish graft at 55 is a nice feeling.
Got to give credit to the Army training as a junior soldier at 16 year old we were advised about savings and pensions we were more or less told by the paymaster to put 20% of our monthly wages into a savings account.
Didn’t argue back then, but set me on a decent path to always live within ur means.

Couldn't agree more with this - was in the RAF myself and was told to do an FMD (Fixed Monthly Deduction) in my early days - basically an amount that went straight into a savings account before your wages hit your bank and you pissed them against the porcelain....
I was lucky to leave the RAF on redundancy and took a nice lump sum out of that - I was also on an immediate pension at 40 of about £7k a year - not a lot but it supplemented my reduced pay-packet at my new work place. My saving habit never left me and I now have a tidy sum in ISA's, savings accounts and some other bits of shares etc. These probably earn me in excess of £8k a year in interest and my forces pension has recently gone up to £12.5k pa. I still don't spunk money away and still happily shop for yellow labels, but I can afford good holidays and still work in a pressure free environment where I can flick through footy sites during the day and watch the Ashes on my phone......... like I am doing now.

 

[SpiritofBurnden]

These probably earn me in excess of £8k a year in interest

Really?

For the last decade most ISA's were paying next to nothing in interest, savings accounts even less.

 

[42]

Really?

For the last decade most ISA's were paying next to nothing in interest, savings accounts even less.

Cash aye, but S&S have done really well

 

[McMackem]

Retired at 58 in last few months, but still have rental income coming in before 50% of a very good pension kicks in (from a job stopped 20 years ago), so comfortable and the key is expenditure will drop away with each decade for virtually everyone so intend to live it up while we can and see the world. TBH, it's an impossible question to state a general answer anymore than 'what is a comfortable income' for anyone younger, maybe a percentage of your final wage is an easier way to look at it, with mortgage s gone and kids grown up - I'd think anything above 35% of your pre-retirement earnings should suffice most people, unless you were low income to start with of course.

ps here's a bonus - I could have sworn I'm 58, I'm 57! Or is that early onset??

 

[Metalmicky]

Really?

For the last decade most ISA's were paying next to nothing in interest, savings accounts even less.

Yes - I have had ISA's from when they started back in 1999 when you could put £3k - I have always tried to take out a new ISA most years since.... although the allowance has changed over the years and I have re-invested any ISA's that expired into new ISA's. I also have a smaller figure in regular savings. ISA savings are tax free, so this helps me reduce my tax burden... although the taxman still has a chunk. I have over £200k in 9 different ISA's (of varying amounts) and the lowest rate I currently have is 2.25% in a Shawbrook Bank ISA, although this matures in December and I will re-invest. It probably amounts to more than £8k per year tbh.

 

[ChrisK]

Retired at 58 in last few months, but still have rental income coming in before 50% of a very good pension kicks in (from a job stopped 20 years ago), so comfortable and the key is expenditure will drop away with each decade for virtually everyone so intend to live it up while we can and see the world. TBH, it's an impossible question to state a general answer anymore than 'what is a comfortable income' for anyone younger, maybe a percentage of your final wage is an easier way to look at it, with mortgage s gone and kids grown up - I'd think anything above 35% of your pre-retirement earnings should suffice most people, unless you were low income to start with of course.

ps here's a bonus - I could have sworn I'm 58, I'm 57! Or is that early onset??

Started forgetting my age in my mid 40’s its only a number anyway

 

[SpiritofBurnden]

Yes - I have had ISA's from when they started back in 1999 when you could put £3k - I have always tried to take out a new ISA most years since.... although the allowance has changed over the years and I have re-invested any ISA's that expired into new ISA's. I also have a smaller figure in regular savings. ISA savings are tax free, so this helps me reduce my tax burden... although the taxman still has a chunk. I have over £200k in 9 different ISA's (of varying amounts) and the lowest rate I currently have is 2.25% in a Shawbrook Bank ISA, although this matures in December and I will re-invest. It probably amounts to more than £8k per year tbh.

I've had ISA's since back before they were called ISA's (Tessas and Peps) and invested the maximum amount each year when i was able to.

It would have been virtually impossible over the last decade to make anywhere near £8K annual returns even with £200K invested.

Cash aye, but S&S have done really well

I'm assuming he's referring to cash ISA's since he made the distinction between ISA's and 'other bits of shares'.

 

[Metalmicky]

I've had ISA's since back before they were called ISA's (Tessas and Peps) and invested the maximum amount each year when i was able to.

It would have been virtually impossible over the last decade to make anywhere near £8K annual returns even with £200K invested.

You obviously didn't read what I said. I didn't say I had earned £8k every year over the last decade. I said that I currently earn in excess of £8k in interest. However, even with a careful bit of fag-packet calculation you should be able to work out that £200k multiplied by my current lowest rate (2.25%) I would earn £4.5k pa.... so it shouldn't therefore be too difficult to work out that with the large majority of these ISA's in accounts on a higher rate than that, I could (and do) accrue £8k. For example I have £36k sat in one ISA account (with Paragon) earning 4.25% - which makes me £1.5k a year.... so you can see it is probably over £8k a year.
Quite honestly not bothered if you can't work it out fella....

 

[ChrisK]

Retired at 58 in last few months, but still have rental income coming in before 50% of a very good pension kicks in (from a job stopped 20 years ago), so comfortable and the key is expenditure will drop away with each decade for virtually everyone so intend to live it up while we can and see the world. TBH, it's an impossible question to state a general answer anymore than 'what is a comfortable income' for anyone younger, maybe a percentage of your final wage is an easier way to look at it, with mortgage s gone and kids grown up - I'd think anything above 35% of your pre-retirement earnings should suffice most people, unless you were low income to start with of course.

ps here's a bonus - I could have sworn I'm 58, I'm 57! Or is that early onset??

Definitely a good age to start and enjoy it
Be great to forget all about saving and just start spending.
Its like a bank holiday every weekend

 

[Fletch]

Yes - I have had ISA's from when they started back in 1999 when you could put £3k - I have always tried to take out a new ISA most years since.... although the allowance has changed over the years and I have re-invested any ISA's that expired into new ISA's. I also have a smaller figure in regular savings. ISA savings are tax free, so this helps me reduce my tax burden... although the taxman still has a chunk. I have over £200k in 9 different ISA's (of varying amounts) and the lowest rate I currently have is 2.25% in a Shawbrook Bank ISA, although this matures in December and I will re-invest. It probably amounts to more than £8k per year tbh.

Why not combine them
Into the one

 

[SpiritofBurnden]

I said that I currently earn in excess of £8k in interest.

You actually said, 'It probably amounts to more than £8k per year tbh'.

The only year that it would have amounted to more than that amount in the last decade would have been this year.

Perhaps you should try reading what you actually wrote.

 

[houghton cut head]

So basically at 55 is a £500k pot enough to call time with?

Easily

 

[Tuono]

I'll probably still be working part time after I reach retirement age, can I still hoy money into my pension pot, how long for and do the Government still top up my contribution after I reach 66? (too lazy to google).

 

[Fletch]

Easily

Is it enough though? 500k and retire on that at 55.
Depends if single or a couple and if a couple if his partner has any pension .
Using that 4% rule it would only be 20k pa which while still active at only 55 may not be enough , it depends how much salary he is use to having and what he still owes out (mortgage free? ).
Plus many think it should be 3% not 4%. My idea was to use 4% then reduce it accordingly when get state pension . Would rather have more when earlier years of retirement but I’m not fully clued up on all this . Disclaimer

 

[houghton cut head]

Is it enough though? 500k and retire on that at 55.
Depends if single or a couple and if a couple if his partner has any pension .
Using that 4% rule it would only be 20k pa which while still active at only 55 may not be enough , it depends how much salary he is use to having and what he still owes out (mortgage free? ).
Plus many think it should be 3% not 4%. My idea was to use 4% then reduce it accordingly when get state pension . Would rather have more when earlier years of retirement but I’m not fully clued up on all this . Disclaimer

Fuck the 4% rule Marra, for me. the pot is there to spend not to leave to someone else when I die, if I don’t see my fund value going down every year then I will have failed miserably and have become a tight old fucker.

Luckily we will have about £20k a year in pensions, as well as a pot to draw down on before state pension

 

[safccfas]

Fuck the 4% rule Marra, for me. the pot is there to spend not to leave to someone else when I die, if I don’t see my fund value going down every year then I will have failed miserably and have become a tight old fucker.

Luckily we will have about £20k a year in pensions, as well as a pot to draw down on before state pension

This indeed !!
I’m on track to have a £500k pot at 55/56 and I’m planning on having virtually nowt left after 20 years. My hope is that whilst I’m ‘young’ in retirement ie the first 15 years or so I’m going to work my way through the majority of it. I’ll then let the state pension top me up when I’m too old to wipe my own arse…

 

[Matt Hopkins]

Fuck the 4% rule Marra, for me. the pot is there to spend not to leave to someone else when I die, if I don’t see my fund value going down every year then I will have failed miserably and have become a tight old fucker.

Luckily we will have about £20k a year in pensions, as well as a pot to draw down on before state pension

So are you saying you have £20k in DB pension then a DC pot as well?

I'll probably still be working part time after I reach retirement age, can I still hoy money into my pension pot, how long for and do the Government still top up my contribution after I reach 66? (too lazy to google).

Yes, 75 I think,yes Surprised you work at all if you're that lazy

 

[42]

Is it enough though? 500k and retire on that at 55.
Depends if single or a couple and if a couple if his partner has any pension .
Using that 4% rule it would only be 20k pa which while still active at only 55 may not be enough , it depends how much salary he is use to having and what he still owes out (mortgage free? ).
Plus many think it should be 3% not 4%. My idea was to use 4% then reduce it accordingly when get state pension . Would rather have more when earlier years of retirement but I’m not fully clued up on all this . Disclaimer

What you have to remember is that when you reach your 80's & health starts to go, you won't spend anywhere near as much. In fact you'd probably get by with not much more than state pension. When you drawdown, front load it to your earlier years.