Retirement

[Tuono]

Sounds like a life well lived mate. I retire in less than three years having always lived and worked locally and sometimes question if I’ve actually achieved anything cos I never bothered climbing the ladder. But I’ll have a decent pension, sons doing amazing at sixth form pending uni so I know he’ll be well looked after and that’s when I know I’ve done ok.

I have a small private pension and a couple of ISA's to fall back on, my state pension is only £7,000 because I spent too much time out of the country.Swings and roundabouts. When money gets tight I'll have to downsize to release some cash. My only regret, not putting more into my pension.

 

[JAZZMANB]

I paid just over 2k 7 month ago, the IFA advised on a few strategies, they combined several pensions into a single pension, they were very old so needed a bit of work, that seems to be doing very well, I’ll not be taking anything for 2 year so time to make up my mind, but from a personal point of view it was money well spent. Just checked and pot has increased significantly,I know it could also go down so looks like I’ve had good advice.

Would those pots not have increased where they were ?

 

[Swindon On Tour]

I paid just over 2k 7 month ago, the IFA advised on a few strategies, they combined several pensions into a single pension, they were very old so needed a bit of work, that seems to be doing very well, I’ll not be taking anything for 2 year so time to make up my mind, but from a personal point of view it was money well spent. Just checked and pot has increased significantly,I know it could also go down so looks like I’ve had good advice.

It’s as simple as you spent £2k and your return is Y£.
Don’t beat yourself up thinking, what, if, but etc. if the return exceeds your expectations and has given you a decent % return then that is great news.

I paid £3k over 18 months ago and don’t need to touch it until the end of next year.
Combined 3 pension pots and it’s doing superb. Sure it could drop and it did upon the US election results but it’s never stopped growing since. If it drops again no worries as long as it doesn’t completely implode.

Best advice is always budget conservatively and thus anything above the line is a bonus. I set my performance targets at 3% pa and currently it’s way surpassing that

 

[Petesafc]

Would those pots not have increased where they were ?

Yes, however my main issue was the policies were very old and did not allow drawdown, which is key to my plan,apparently common with older pensions, they were also a lot more difficult to access any funds at shorter notice. I could have done a lot of this myself but an example was I spent 4 hours on the phone to one company whe sent me a load of forms to complete. I had 4 of these pensions to sort . From a personal point of view I reckon I have lost 4 months growth for some really good advice and help.

 

[JAZZMANB]

Yes, however my main issue was the policies were very old and did not allow drawdown, which is key to my plan,apparently common with older pensions, they were also a lot more difficult to access any funds at shorter notice. I could have done a lot of this myself but an example was I spent 4 hours on the phone to one company whe sent me a load of forms to complete. I had 4 of these pensions to sort . From a personal point of view I reckon I have lost 4 months growth for some really good advice and help.

Get you , I don't understand the 4 months bit but we all do what suits us . The time spent sorting myself wouldn't have bothered me .Its similar to what I did at work in a different field

 

[Ned Land]

I paid just over 2k 7 month ago, the IFA advised on a few strategies, they combined several pensions into a single pension, they were very old so needed a bit of work, that seems to be doing very well, I’ll not be taking anything for 2 year so time to make up my mind, but from a personal point of view it was money well spent. Just checked and pot has increased significantly,I know it could also go down so looks like I’ve had good advice.

Thanks Pete

 

[Petesafc]

Get you , I don't understand the 4 months bit but we all do what suits us . The time spent sorting myself wouldn't have bothered me .Its similar to what I did at work in a different field

Just meant that in the first 4 month or possibly less pot had grown by more than the initial fee

 

[TAD]

Paranoid about losing my money.
Can I just check this is the vanguard website address
vanguardinvestor.co.uk

 

[Matt Hopkins]

Paranoid about losing my money.
Can I just check this is the vanguard website address
vanguardinvestor.co.uk

You must be logged on to see external links

 

[DaveH]

Paranoid about losing my money.
Can I just check this is the vanguard website address
vanguardinvestor.co.uk

Every domain has to be registered and all that information is in a database, known as the whois database.

If you are ever unsure, it is worth looking up here:

You must be logged on to see external links

Unfortunately now a lot of companies are not providing their company info to this database (or hiding it) so it is becoming less useful. Usually if the address matches that is a positive sign. For this one it is missing and all you really have is the details of the provider who registered the domain for them.

But the other thing to look for is the domain creation date. This domain has been around since 2004. If this was a few weeks ago, I would be suspicious. A common scam tactic is to find a list of customers (data leak, compromise, etc), set up a domain that looks very similar and then mail the customers inviting them to login to the look-a-like site.

There are also domain reputation sites you can look at:

You must be logged on to see external links

You must be logged on to see external links

There is very little reported in the second one, ones known for abuse have a lot, so empty report is good.

All clear here too:

Here is an example of a bad one:

Having a quick look around, most domains have redacted contact information, but Sunderland Uni is pretty open:

 

[TAD]

Every domain has to be registered and all that information is in a database, known as the whois database.

If you are ever unsure, it is worth looking up here:

You must be logged on to see external links

Unfortunately now a lot of companies are not providing their company info to this database (or hiding it) so it is becoming less useful. Usually if the address matches that is a positive sign. For this one it is missing and all you really have is the details of the provider who registered the domain for them.

But the other thing to look for is the domain creation date. This domain has been around since 2004. If this was a few weeks ago, I would be suspicious. A common scam tactic is to find a list of customers (data leak, compromise, etc), set up a domain that looks very similar and then mail the customers inviting them to login to the look-a-like site.

There are also domain reputation sites you can look at:

You must be logged on to see external links

You must be logged on to see external links

There is very little reported in the second one, ones known for abuse have a lot, so empty report is good.

All clear here too:

Here is an example of a bad one:

Having a quick look around, most domains have redacted contact information, but Sunderland Uni is pretty open:

Wow, thank for taking the time to give all this info.

 

[DaveH]

Wow, thank for taking the time to give all this info.

No problem. I do this sort of thing all day and these days I get more and more pissed off about the million ways people can be scammed. I'm on a bit of a private campaign to share knowledge when I can to help prevent it, even if a lot of people might be looking at my posts thinking "ffs DaveH is off on a nerdy rant again"! It is the one person it help that counts.

 

[Darlo1973]

After seeing my dad have a stroke shortly after he retired, i feel almost desperate to try and retire at 57. Not sure its realistic but I am giving it a go. Gradually doubled my pension contributions over the last year in the work pension scheme.

57 is my target too. Maybe not for total retirement but to get our of the corporate world then maybe a year out (I see it's called a "grey gap year") before doing something part-time to keep me occupied.

I'm at the stage now where I've given up on career advancement and happy to go through the motions for another 3-4 year. My investments now grow more most months (unless Trump has another brain fart) than I make from working after expenses. Work is now more for something to do than a necessity for living.

 

[SurreyMackem]

Sounds like a life well lived mate. I retire in less than three years having always lived and worked locally and sometimes question if I’ve actually achieved anything cos I never bothered climbing the ladder. But I’ll have a decent pension, sons doing amazing at sixth form pending uni so I know he’ll be well looked after and that’s when I know I’ve done ok.

I envy my mates who still live in the Sunderland area as it's an ideal retirement location for a Lads fan but it's a pity none of them go to games now.

 

[Darlo1973]

I envy my mates who still live in the Sunderland area as it's an ideal retirement location for a Lads fan but it's a pity none of them go to games now.

Well, ideal apart from the weather but I suppose it's easy to escape for a few months during the winter.

I haven't lived in the NE since the 90s but one option is to sell up here to liberate a lot of equity, move back north (not sure where exactly certainly not Bishop), buy somewhere cheaper and have some fun with the spare cash.

 

[DaveH]

same here. I had a disagreement with one my brothers when both our kids were young. He has always been something of a high flyer, done very well in business and has a big house, fancy car etc, and he really went for it when his kids were young as his role was to provide. he told me he never saw his kids Mon-Fri as he was working so hard for them. he said it with pride as he felt good giving his kids a good life etc. he was, and is still is, so stressed with work all the time.

Different priorities for different people, but I can't understand this mentality.

Back when mine were young, I worked local and love cycling to and from work. I'd aim for an 8am start (I often had to do before hours upgrades anyway), and to finish at 4pm. I'd be home by 4:30, 5 at the latest. Then I would do stuff with them. Sometimes it might be cuddle and watch something, other times it was a game or something else. They have grown up knowing a dad who was always around. I could have earned more money commuting into London, but I can say I was part of the upbringing of my kids, did the baths and stories every other night and all the other stuff parents do.

My eldest has a big interest in animals and the outdoors, while my other one is into tech and guitars. These are all areas of interest of mine so I'm proud in seeing I had a big influence on them. If my daughter goes into environment and conservation, she will probably be looking back pointing to walks with her dad either before or after work, where I would be pointing out interesting plants and animals.

Now I work in London one day a week. I earn a lot more, but I'm not home until 7:30 on a good day, 8pm onwards other day. WFH has enabled that, but I can't imagine people doing that every day. By the time you have some tea and stuff it is after 9pm. That is 1 hour for any jobs that need doing and any personal interests before bed and back on the 7am train the next day. No wonder many people suffered from stress and related illnesses. I could not hack a life like that.

 

[BiG]

Different priorities for different people, but I can't understand this mentality.

Back when mine were young, I worked local and love cycling to and from work. I'd aim for an 8am start (I often had to do before hours upgrades anyway), and to finish at 4pm. I'd be home by 4:30, 5 at the latest. Then I would do stuff with them. Sometimes it might be cuddle and watch something, other times it was a game or something else. They have grown up knowing a dad who was always around. I could have earned more money commuting into London, but I can say I was part of the upbringing of my kids, did the baths and stories every other night and all the other stuff parents do.

My eldest has a big interest in animals and the outdoors, while my other one is into tech and guitars. These are all areas of interest of mine so I'm proud in seeing I had a big influence on them. If my daughter goes into environment and conservation, she will probably be looking back pointing to walks with her dad either before or after work, where I would be pointing out interesting plants and animals.

Now I work in London one day a week. I earn a lot more, but I'm not home until 7:30 on a good day, 8pm onwards other day. WFH has enabled that, but I can't imagine people doing that every day. By the time you have some tea and stuff it is after 9pm. That is 1 hour for any jobs that need doing and any personal interests before bed and back on the 7am train the next day. No wonder many people suffered from stress and related illnesses. I could not hack a life like that.

Regarding your last paragraph: I did this for 2 years.

I was living in the NW at the time and my team were relocated to London. Everybody was made redundant but they needed me to set up a new department/team so arrangements were made. I drove half an hour to the nearest rail station, travelled (I’ll say 2 to 3 hours on average) by train, walked to the office, did a days work… then back. Most days it was ‘tea, then bed’. Some days I ate on the train and went straight to bed. Very occasionally I had to stay overnight. I did it for 2 years. It nearly killed me.

Then the bastards relocated the department again. I declined the offer and was declared redundant but redeployed into a succession of specialist roles and secondments until I was in a position to say ‘look, I can do this job/ perform this role from anywhere. I want to relocate to be closer to my wife’s family’ and they allowed me to relocate to York.

I still had to travel all over place, cos it was a national role, stay in hotels, start early, get home late… but there were periods where I could work from home or the offices in York too. I was ‘working from home’ during Covid when I retired. And healthier than I’d been for years. Travel, hotels, trains, exhaustion and stress don’t half fuck up the physical and mental wellbeing equation.

 

[DaveH]

Travel, hotels, trains, exhaustion and stress don’t half fuck up the physical and mental wellbeing equation.

Agreed. If you are travelling all the time you don't have time for any exercise. But also if you can not do anything but work and sleep all week, then you have no time for enjoyment, to develop those interests or friendship groups. I think people who live like that are hit the hardest in retirement. For me, work is something that gets in the way of all other stuff. If I reduce work I can increase the others. But if your life is work, then it has to hit hard when you just stop.

 

[Ned Land]

I think that I’m going to work abroad until I’m 67! If I’m not working then other people in the house are going to pile household chores onto me!

Seriously though I’ve only considered the financial aspects of early retirement. A drawback of having a younger partner is that they’ll still be working and will have some quite valid expectations of the retiree’s role in daily life.

I might actually be better to continue with my current arrangement (4 day working week) and to spend money on holidays whilst working. Or at a certain point I could find a lower paid job that I enjoy.

I think that I’ll return to this thread in a couple of years so that I don’t wish my life away

 

[BiG]

Agreed. If you are travelling all the time you don't have time for any exercise. But also if you can not do anything but work and sleep all week, then you have no time for enjoyment, to develop those interests or friendship groups. I think people who live like that are hit the hardest in retirement. For me, work is something that gets in the way of all other stuff. If I reduce work I can increase the others. But if your life is work, then it has to hit hard when you just stop.

Well, it might seem strange to say this, but Covid, in many ways provided me with a bit of a cushion between the amount of travel and hotel staying I was doing (which was admittedly less than previously but still onerous) because I slept in my own bed, ate breakfast, took breaks for coffee, lunch etc., exercised (exercise bike in the garage etc plus walks) and it allowed a routine to develop that enabled me to gradually prepare. The only down bit was trying to deliver the stuff that had only been possible at conferences, workshops, events and face to face coaching etc., that had to be done via technology. I f***ing HATED it. But that was also a blessing in disguise because I was relieved when I could stop.