Should I retire?
 

53.5 years old.
Married with 2 kids; 5 and 7.
I can sell off a rental house and pay off ALL my debt and still have some $s left over.
Plus I can collect a few grand a month on early retirement from my current job.
And the family keeps our healthcare from my current job.
Youngest kiddie starts school this august and Mommy will get a job.
Won't live the exact lifestyle we live now, but have a paid off lake cabin and primary residence and no other bills.
I am pretty healthy but why wait if I do not have to?

Mommy doesn't want me to because she really doesn't want to work, but I have worked long enough. Her turn!!

What do you guys think?

I say go for it..

For most:
If you have something to keep you happily occupied about 6 hours per day your soul being needs will be answered and your head will be in a good place.
Only then can you ever retire irrespective of the $$$

Rule #1
Everyday is a Saturday

I too say go for it but then the conservative, cautious part of me kicks in and wants to run through every possible scenario. Don't worry I won't :)

The first thing that came to mind though was if your wife doesn't want to work and you force the issue, she will eventually feel resentment towards you. I'm not saying it's right, not saying you don't deserve to retire early, just saying this could be an issue down the road for you.

Second and last thought I am going to address is the fact your kids are so young. Lots of future expenses coming your way...

On the flip side, it would be awesome to be able to retire so young and enjoy the things you love and not have to work until you are too old to do so!

All the best to you and your decision.

@ BK911 - Nope.

With all the boomers retiring this country needs help.
Your family will benefit from your continued income and example.
Men need to be productive.

Consider redistributing how much you work/produce, but just cutting off usefulness seems a mistake.

retiring early sounds great, but I'd want/have to be in a REALLY go position financially. IE, if I thought I needed $4million to retire at 65, then to retire at 53.5, I'd want to have a fair amount more. It would be hard not to spend more money with lots of free time. Plus, I'd be concerned about big changes that would impact the finances in a big way.

But, I guess if you're debtless and you have passive income, that may be another story.

To me, as some others have stated, it seems like it would be a better idea to change to less work (reduced hours, reduced stress, maybe something that you enjoy).

Listen to Mommy.

Do you have some good hobbies?

I know several men that retired for various reasons, and they were going nuts with boredom in short order. They had to start expensive hobbies, or a small business to have something to do, and to help pay for the new hobbies.

I say no, and this is the reason behind that advice.
We made the conscious decision that my wife would be a stay at home mom for our kids. She was very active in their school years becoming PTA prez at every school they attended up through and including high school. That participation paid big dividends when it came to our kids education.
Your kids are just starting out in school.
Are you going to be willing to get involved in their educational development?
It may be different in your neck of the woods, but the parents who are involved with their kids schooling seem to do better.
I'd suggest selling off the rental property, paying off all the debt and keep on working, allowing your wife to be a mother to the kids.
Being debt free and still working you'll be able to offer your kids opportunities that most kids don't get to enjoy.

If mama ain't happy, then....

That said, I retired from my corporate gig back in '08... at 48. No regrets and no looking back... with no wife and no kids either ;).

Only you can answer this question ... no one here can.

Best of luck to you!

Being debt free is only the start.
I come to work so I stop spending.

If you’re certain you’re set with income that will support you for the next 40 years, including inflation, sure.
Doesn’t sound like you’re anywhere near that, esp. with 2 young kids, based on the little bit of info you’ve provided, though. In fact, based on your post, it sounds like a recipe for financial, and personal, disaster.

Blunt ^

But he wasn't the only one thinking that.

Keep working you lazy bum. ;)

Perfect.

I have written here before concerning my views on retirement/retirement (thinking you are going to completely pull the plug) so I wont bore you folks again other than to say 90% of the people I know who try at a your age begin to focus on the most mundane crap imaginable (think HOA Board level gradu) and then try and share it with the rest of the world...nobody is going to care.

Certainly reorder your priorities if you feel that is important, take a sabbatical, go to night school or get trained in a field that allows more personal freedom, etc.; but retire/retire?

Nope.

Listen to Mommy.

Happy wife, happy life ;)

I agree with most above. McLovin hit the nail on the head. I am in a similar situation, but different.

My wife doesn't work. She volunteered to do so when I retire. BUT, I know my wife. She is a resenter. It could fester. The relationship could blow up. And then where would I be???

I am 56. Have funds to never need to work again. And am coasting towards the Big R.

My perspective is that you need to have 110% financial security to even contemplate this. Why? Because economies crater. Stuff happens that cost a lot - my disabled child for example. College for my other two. Weddings?

And, I like stuff. That costs as well.

Anticipate the costs, work backwards. You have a level of security now. But it doesn't sound as if you have a level of wealth.

Sorry to be blunt. Your prime earning years are now. Perhaps you and your wife can power through 5 years and build up a war chest?

Good luck!

Maybe if your wife started working you could both retire in 5 years?

This part... good luck. I'd feel the same but I'm a dude. My wife pulled similar when our kids were young. Didn't work and that was a joint decision. But had to have a nanny a few days a week so she could get a break. And on Saturdays I had to take the kid(s) so she could get a break. Not like working 50 or more hours a week was a break for me.

I just retired in April at 50. I have two kids, 14 and 15. I still have a mortgage on our house but it's relatively low and at a very low interest rate. Wife still works and brings home a little extra but my retirement covers all of our expenses and then some. She indicated she'll keep working until she's tired of her job.

I think having kids in the house makes all the difference because you'll be busy with them. During school I was picking them up from school, dropping them off at a friends house, taking them to practice etc. Now that it's summer I'm able to take them places at more convenient times when most people are still at work. We saw Jurassic World Dominion in 3D a few days ago and were the only people in the theater. I told them I bought the place out LOL. Today we're going to the aquarium.

My schedule since I retired:
6:30am - get up
7:00am - finish breakfast
8:00-10am - Home Gym

:-)

The only other advice is to make sure you have a healthy emergency fund. We've had to tap into ours already a few times for major service on two cars and we had a flood in the basement. We'll need a new roof and AC unit soon as well so I planned on all that. Better to have money in the bank so it's not a hardship when it happens.

Finally, I think it's best if your wife is on board. At the very least I would make sure you can live on just your retirement without her income. Good luck!