Retirement Income?

[LWJ]

A question that I ask myself is what will I do for income / occupation after I hang up my full time gig? I share the same age as McLovin, who recently did just this. McLovin mentioned that he will continue to work in some capacity and I too share that interest. It solves a bunch of issues from boredom and finding challenge in life to covering some odd expenses.

Background. I am pretty hands on and DIY. I enjoy remodeling homes and have a modest income property portfolio. I have always assumed that I will buy, renovate, and invest as I retire. There are other options to consider however.

I mentioned to Mrs. LWJ that if we both took jobs at a school district, we could travel all summer and a nice part of winter.

I could buy a business.

I could hire on an assistant (I do commercial insurance as my career) and take a long, slow glide down. This may be the most lucrative but also may be the least refreshing.

Time-line. I told my wife that we could retire a few years ago but she nixed living in Thailand! Highest probability is after my youngest is out of High School, which is 5 years from now. I would absolutely want to have some concrete options in 8 years, when I am 60.

What are your income thoughts?

TIA,
LWJ

[sammyg2]

My plan is to do part-time consulting doing basically the same job i have now.
I've spent most of my adult life honing those skills, only makes sense to continue with what i know.

Anything less would be too boring and too much of a let-down IMO.

[id10t]

So in 10 years I'll be able to do the state retirement thing. Our deferred retirement deal lets me work my existing job AND collect retirement $ for up to 5 years... or once I have a bad day.

After not being paid by anything in the state system for 12 months, I can come back to work as a regular employee, not on a retirement track.

So... I'm thinking of either double dipping for all 5 years - or until I have one bad day - or get out immediately, and come back a year later either to the classroom or part time real work.

[911 Rod]

Wouldn't it be nice just to retire?

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

My plan is to do part-time consulting doing basically the same job i have now.
I've spent most of my adult life honing those skills, only makes sense to continue with what i know.

Anything less would be too boring and too much of a let-down IMO.

Exactly this for me too!

[Jim Richards]

Originally Posted by 911 Rod

Wouldn't it be nice just to retire?

^^^this

I don't recommend buying a business at age 52. I am 62 and recently sold a business I had owned for 7 years (purchased at age 55). Although it did fine, I came to realize that starting as late as I did put too much at risk with too short a runway to permit recovery had it not gone well. And if you buy a going concern with lots of customers, your time will cease to be your own, and you may lose control of how long you will own it. As our bookkeeper said, it's easy to get into business, but hard to get out.

You might consider starting a business, but again, at your age, I'd make sure the capital requirements and overhead are low and that you can control the work load. That is why consulting is so popular--I've also done a lot of that. The downside with consulting is having to hustle for clients, plus the limitations of having to bill generally by the hour. For my consulting gigs, I like to get a fixed fee rather than an hourly one, but most larger corporations and governmental entities I've done work for like hourly rates.

Teaching is also good, as you note, because you get the summers off if you want them. Plus, you may get benefits, depending on the institution. But expect to work really hard at it--I put in many any hours on my classes, and I hate grading, even with teaching assistants.

Hope this helps.

[fast_e_man]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

My plan is to do part-time consulting doing basically the same job i have now.
I've spent most of my adult life honing those skills, only makes sense to continue with what i know.

Anything less would be too boring and too much of a let-down IMO.

I used to think this was as well. I've slowly morphed away from the idea of part time consulting. Looking forward now, I see some air-cooled restoration, remodeling of our ski haus, mountain biking, skiing (want to ski 100 days/year at least once), hunting, tons of international traveling/adventure (e.g. Antarctic ski expedition), backpacking, etc. So, too much deferred gratification to be bored.

[Baz]

A few factors come to my mind - maybe worth considering:

1. Medical/health care - if you are close to 65, you qualify for Medicare - otherwise - a plan is needed.
2. Doing absolutely nothing is not an option for most people - something is needed - a hobby (or three) - or part time work - doing something that interests you.
3. Time flies - so cherish it - whatever decision(s) you make - remember sand is running through the hour glass
4. Adjustment - it's a wonderful time of your life - but will take some time to figure it all out - perfectly normal - so go with it.

[dmcummins]

When I retired at 50 it meant I was not working for anyone else. I have been living off my investments since then.

I wouldn’t consider myself retired if I still had a job.

Next year I may start drawing SS though. We will see when the time comes.

[dmcummins]

My current schedule consist of golfing 3 days a week, shooting sporting clays 2 days a week and the other two days I generally go flying or work around the house.

We do take quite a few trips, we go when we want, and stay as long as we like. Retirement is good.

[ckelly78z]

I will be tinkering in my shop. I may be restoring old garden tractors, or possibly mini bikes/motorcycles. I have always had a knack for small engines, and find it rewarding to buy/refurbish/resale old things.

Going to work for an entrepreneur friend of mine is also an option, he has may irons in the fire, and is always looking for driving help. My wife will most likely to do all the engineering CAD work for where she works now, just not everything else she currently does. We plan on treating it like an actual retirement, and get home projects done, do more traveling, and help with grandchildren.

I will also be doing much bicycling, swimming, and hiking to stay in shape, along with planting a big garden/greenhouse. I can also see a small fishing boat in my future for inland reservoirs. Small lakes.

[Seahawk]

Since the company I am part owner in is located in the foothills of NC, a retirement hotbed, I have learned a lot about who does well in "retirement".

Some, like Jim, thrive on being retired. A lot of engineers do.

Management types need outlets and feedback and often do poorly ("I am so bored" is a common refrain) unless they are attached to a project, something tangible they are "in charge" of. These are the folks that become HOA Nazi's.

The middle group finds satisfaction in volunteering, part-time work, sports, etc.

We use the management types a lot, for proposal work, legwork on specific regulations concerning our business, UAS laws, preparing for audits and inspections, etc. We 1099 and pay $25 an hour or so depending. They love it.

The proposal guys will often work for a percentage of the deal only...if not we pay them well - proposal writing is a skill.

We also bring on 1099 folks to manage small efforts for us: We are making composite shrouds for Army IR Countermeasures equipment on Blackhawks as a sub to a large company. We needed someone to manage the effort and attend to the demands of the Prime...20 hours a week or so on call.

So, to your question:

I agree with Terry. Owning a business in an sector you are not currently familiar with is a hard go. The reason I own a company at my age (61) is that I was an expert in the field prior to ownership and my partner and I are very comfortable with each other. It was a great fit.

I personally like the assistant approach and that would free time for more research in what you want to do.

My experience in the "handyman", home repair and remodeling area is that there are never enough good ones and they are very busy.

We are in the process of selling my MIL house and the guy doing the repairs and touch ups does very well...a "Ron John" sticker on his truck and more business than he can handle.

So, congratulations (you as well McL): Keep an open mind on the possibilities.

Edit:

Quick Sea Story.

My XO when I was doing flight test at Patuxent River flew Navy Huey's in Vietnam in support of the Riverine forces and UDT/emerging SEAL Teams...great guy with a massive sense of humor and great skill as a wood worker.

He bought a farm in Arkansas near Mena and started in the wood working business. He did very well but grew to hate it. It a hobby he got a lot of pleasure from until it became a job.

He ended up being very successful starting a company for at risk mothers and children in Arkansas...he wrote the grant applications, did all the leg work and got the business up and running. He was/is a management type.

[VINMAN]

I retired from my 31yr gig in Big Telecom at age 50. Took a big buy out incentive., but still need to work at my age (53 now...). I have my home improvement business, I teach firefighting and rescue, plus have my part time /per-diem thing with the medical examiners office. I'm doing work that I actually enjoy.

The one good thing now is, I work when I want to work. I make my hours. I do miss the big steady paycheck at times, and sometimes regret retiring, but I'm making do and not struggling. Hopefully I can keep up with it 10 years from now!


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[LakeCleElum]

Originally Posted by LWJ

I could hire on an assistant (I do commercial insurance as my career) and take a long, slow glide down. This may be the most lucrative but also may be the least refreshing.

What are your income thoughts?
LWJ

Do this. I know a few finance advisors and insurance people my age that do just this. They bring a young person into their office to mentor and just ease out the door; with income still rolling in.

"Refreshing" doesn't pay the bills; get your happiness in your free time.....

[Reiver]

I did not enjoy being retired....I guess it depends upon loving what you do for a living or simply doing what you need to do to live.....retiring young (I did...52) just made me seek work in the same field for some years as I missed it greatly.

At 67 I still miss it.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

I retired 3 years ago at 47 thinking I could make a passion into a nice little stream of cash flow and keep me busy. I can't even imagine being retired in the wake up and do nothing sort of way. Any, it sort of took off and I'm working harder than I ever have but in the 3 years of doing this, I think I've "worked" 1 day the entire time and that was a week or so ago. I got over it fast. Only way I could be happier is to have more money for travel. And more time to market my salsa to Whole Foods. And start a food truck based on international sandwiches.

My recommendation is to do something you love that keeps you busy and brings in a little money. What better way to spend the last 30-50 years of your life?

[dan88911]

"Money is not everything but there are few substitutes"
"Health is your number one wealth"
And ''Time is your biggest asset"

[LWJ]

The wealth of your answers is fantastic! Thanks for the input.

[McLovin]

Being 5-8 years out, expanding on your real estate is a possibility, but that highly depends on your individual situation. For example, how much you have to put down, and what the cap rates are in your area. (Another is the realistic possibility of significant market rent increases and/or property appreciation, but if you are in Oregon, that's probably not likely, so you need to look at present cap rates).

I would strongly advise against buying a business. Why? Because most businesses for sale are dogs and don't make any money. I'm talking about the businesses that are for sale at business brokers, franchise service type businesses that advertise in magazines, etc. I've seen a lot of businesses bought and sold over the last 30 years and the vast majority have not worked out anywhere what was expected. It ends up being twice the work for half the money (if you're lucky), and then you're stuck with it. Not what you want if you have retirement expectations any time soon (I've seen many successful sales too, but they tend to involve "real" businesses, and thus millions of dollars to buy, and/or insider deals).

There's lots of ways to get where you want to go, but how to best get there for you is very personal. However, in my experience and what I've seen from others over the decades is that building equity in income generating real estate works very very well, over time. There are just a lot of advantages that other methods don't have (tax benefits, stability, tenants pay down your mortgage, rents tend to rise with inflation, over time (like a 10 year period) real estate value does intend to rise, etc). The downside is it isn't nearly as easy as it looks, or as many think. Done wrong, one can very easily end up in bankruptcy.

Sounds like you have a lot of great options! It isn't very helpful and sounds cliche, but the real answer is you have to figure out and do what works best for you, personally.