So, a few questions for those who retired early:

-Spouse working beyond your retirement date? Is that the source of health benefits?
-Pension income from yourself or spouse?
-If retired without the safety net of a working spouse or covered healthcare...

How did you know you had enough saved to live on for the rest of your life (I struggle with that one)?

At 60, I have an exec job that pays well, but the travel, time away and politics/pressure are getting old. But no pension, spouse has been a full time mom and honestly I’d rather she not work once I’ve retired. Spending more time with her is an important part of my retirement plans. Still have our youngest in college and will for at least 4 more years. Like Mark, I’m envious of those who were somehow able to retire early but without pension income, inheritance or working spouse (or sale of successful business), can’t imagine how that would be possible.

We have sizable savings and RE holdings (two homes free and clear) but expect to live into 90’s and have no idea what that will cost. Also, still have elderly parents that we may have to help at some point...another unknown.

Bottom line, lots of posts above with early retirement stories but no details to learn from. How about it?

Number One: Eliminate ALL debt.

Number Two: Do not create ANY debt.

Number Three: Simplify!

It looks to me like a good goal would be to retire when the youngest is out of college. As such, you've got 4 years to prepare. Maybe shoot for age 65. Once the end point is established everything else falls in line.

Chocaholic here is my story . My wife and I both retired from the nation's largest defense contractor she with 30 years and me with 26 . So we are both drawing and living on our pensions . In addition my wife decided to start drawing SS at 62 , we are very comfortable living on this income.

Our home/cars are paid for so minimal monthly bills . We currently are covered under a Obamacare plan that is $600.00 a month it covers both of us . We also have a good size 401K invested with Morgan Stanley .

When Sue and I were in our mid 20's we decided we wanted to retire by age 60 - 62 . We met with a Morgan Stanley rep and mapped out a plan on how to get there . We followed the plan and adjusted when it was needed . I highly recommend a financial partner to help " get there " .

I will be 62 in January and could start drawing SS if I want to but at the present time I don't need the money . We live comfortably but within our means . Because none of us know our expiration date 😁 you will never be 100 percent sure you have enough money. Hope this helps answer some questions for you .

Pension? What is that? LOL

Rfuerst...clearly having two pension incomes changes the equation. Good career choices are reaping good benefit for you and your wife...nice job! But in the commercial world, pensions are a thing of the past. So, on retirement day, income falls to absolute zero. Hence the anxiety. I’m sure I’m not alone. Am I?

Admittedly, I’ve never met a financial advisor that didnt want to sell me life insurance and move my life savings to them. Not going to happen...just not that trusting. Perhaps that’s part of the problem.

I began drawing a very modest pension when I exited @ 48, Wells Fargo owes me another that I deferred until I reach 65...SS probably ain't gonna be squat though I paid the max in for years...I don't count on it. Debt free since around 40...a couple of more rental houses now (that I don't use the income from...long story). ZERO debt, no kids, no DIVORCE$ ;)...

I am a simple, single man living within my means...and quite happy :).

Did I leave a million (or three) on the table when I folded my hand...yep!

No regrets...I would not trade 1M (in the bank) for the last 11 years...life is too short. I saw way too many folks...do all the "right things"... then a curve ball or nasty slider sends them to the dugout :(.

Life is always a calculated gamble....no regrets thus far...but who knows ;)?

Best to you all...

Sad Sad Saddest thing I ever saw in my Boeing career, long ago, I held the retirement party for a guy with 45 years in.


His Old school thought pattern, " A man is his work, a work is the man"

he retired after the 45 years, accepted his fake leather jacket parting prize.



He came back 3 months later. and he was in his late 70's


I'm bored
Nothing to do.
wife driving me crazy

retirement?



invest early and wisely. Kids are cute but I don't own any, most people dig their own $$$ hole by maxing out 3 credit cards that are charging you up to 20/25/30%, and living beyond your means.




ask any 20 year old what a 401K is...............

I was going to retire about 20 years ago. My expectations were very low. I keep adding a few years to ensure I have enough, but each time, my (mostly my wife's) expectations rise (plan for bigger house, nicer car, vacation home/s, eat out more, travel more). I am not sure if waiting was best, but I do have a heck of a lot more money (as your later years are usually the best compensated...and after kids are might do so...but now that I have waited this long, I plan to do one more year...as I think I am too old to do many of the things I wanted to do 10 years ago. One more year is not that difficult and really adds a lot more money (years are not created equally as far as compensation). Hopefully the additional money and experiences it will allow me to afford will make up for waiting.

It's interesting because it's a HUGE life change.

Think about it, most of us are working, interacting, living up to expectations our entire lives. From elementary school, showing up every day, doing homework, etc., through college, etc.

In the workforce, whether you're a mechanic, surgeon, lawyer or anything, you are dealing with people every day, answering to others, serving others, whether they are partners, clients, customers, co-workers, bosses etc. Always somewhere to be.

Add to that the parenting years, and the other things most of us deal with in our lives. It all takes a lot of time and energy.

Then, suddenly and at a relatively early age, that's ALL gone. Kids are all adults and out of the house. Where there was no time to think, now there's nothing but time.

I've had days where my goal is to not see, talk to or communicate with anyone (other than my wife, but she still works so is gone all day). Just be alone with myself, all day. After a life of extreme busyness, that is a very interesting experience. It allows for a level of introspection and personal reflection that was simply never possible before.

Some of the folks without a pension may be doing better than they think. Employers do compete for employees and those that do not offer pensions do tend to offer higher wages for the same job. If you have managed your finances well, you likely have a larger net worth than a person with a pension. Take a good hard look at what you have...or if far from retirement, just how much you can bank/save/invest. It is probably more than you think.

I'm not retired yet, but looking at the possabilities, and timelines. If I wait until 64 YO;
-Decent 30 year pension ($1300 with full survivorship)
-My SS should be $1400
-My DW SS should be $1550
-My 401K should be $500K+
-My Roth IRA should be $100K
-We Live a frugal LBYM lifestyle in a LCOL area
-Paid off mortgage
-No car payments
-No debt

I was all nervous until those questions were answered too but I did the maths and homework, especially after I found out how much a financial planner would cost. Read and study or get a good tax person.

I have three pension funds of varying sizes and I plan to move the lump sums into a roll-over IRA.
I have a deal where our health insurance will cost about $750/month (increasing annually about 7%) until I'm eligible for medicare and that's for the premium plan.
I used a software tool for financial modelling and worked it every which way to Sunday.
I figured out a realistic spending model based on our average annual spend over the past coupla years.
How much comes in, how much gets spent, how much gets saved.
I projected a realistic and conservative model that included what will change going forward.

Shoulda done that long ago, turns out we're gonna get a raise when we retire. :D

Note that it helps that I've still got the first dollar I ever made ;)

I personally want to live exactly like I do now...or better. So, I expect to need to come up with at least as much I take home now each month. Once retired, I will no probably no longer be investing into retirement savings and I will be able to stop paying SS and other work costs. Those already come out of my take home pay...so I only need to subtract post tax retirement investments that I make now to come up with how much I need.

A few observations, Tabs-like:

- Depending on SS income as part of your retirement financial planning is risky at best. There will be means testing in the future as Progressives get elected and have promises to keep. Your ROI on SS will be reduced. There will not enough folks rowing the boat to drag your old a$$e$ to the promised land.

- State, federal and private pension plans are all built on sand...especially military and Civil Servant retirements when the great unwashed figure out just how much those retirements are worth. They will be reduced or eliminated. I have not spent a dime of my O-6 retirement since I retired in 2009. If I lived in California and planned on keeping my State retirement, I'd be worried. Private pension plans are a complete house of cards. ENRON for a thousand, Alex.

- Federal, state and other health plans: They have been exempt to date (I have Tricare but use my wife's government health insurance, which is amazing) but will come under scrutiny and means testing when the real numbers are crunched by the ungrateful without your Cadillac-ack-ack-ack of insurance plans: You ought to know by now. Lose weight, get healthy and get ready to execute a no extraordinary measures health care posture.

- Federal or State bank insurance on your investments? Please.

There is a bunch of good news, but it all resides in proper prior planning and has been listed here: No debt, layered protection of assets, including real property, investment in tangible assets with proven worth in financial down-turns, etc.

I hate to be a downer, but government guarantees are worth nothing, ask the Tribes. Do not depend on a government revenue stream or protection in the long term. Save that money in layered plans.

I need a drink.

Oh sure, everything is gonna come up rainbows and pretty flowers.
How about ya tell us what you really think without all that sugar-coating? ;)

I'm 69 yrs old and still working, divorced and empty nester - my plan is to retire next year.

I have no pension - a thing of the past. I'm going to draw SS at 70. I have IRA/401K savings but it isn't anywhere near what I thought it would be. The only debt I have is a car payment - which I hope to pay off next year. I also have no housing assets. I have a planner who keeps me focused.


Life sometimes gets in the way and the best laid plans disappear. I live very lean -

I know - my bedside manner needs some saccharin.

But this from the guy with a backyard and a shovel!

Some people live lavishly, paycheck to paycheck with no retirement plants or savings.
others live a frugal life with emphasis on saving and investing.
We won't know who's right until the end of the game.

I'm not sure which type is going to come out on happiest in the end.

Should you burn through life hot and fast and go out early, or save and invest and plan for a future that may not be there?

I have been the saving and investing type. I had big plans to do fun stuff when I retired. Then reality set in - when you're 70 years old you have a 70 year old body no matter how much financial planning you've done. The money's nice, but I sometimes wish I had spent more of it doing fun stuff when I had the bones to let me do it.