Retirement Secrets

[VincentVega]

I save every cent I can. That's it. No real plan just save save save. No "new" cars or stupid expenditure.

Good luck, but I hate to hear stories like that. A good friend lost his dad way too young, just as he was retiring. Opened my eyes to make the most out of life and not wait for something that might not come.

^ those folks don't retire comfortably. Those folks scrape by as best as they can and are probably pretty miserable.

Other folks learn to tighten up and get by on SS.

x2

Retirement, when you really do what you want and dont need to scramble, is rare. Sure, many of us will be fine but the same folks that are in debt, can only shop at walmart, dont have a reliable income... will be doing the same until they die.

[fintstone]

Finances and increased retirement funds seemed to get a lot better after the kids moved out and we were in our peak earning years. Unfortunately you lose some ability for long term compounding. What has helped us is that we were putting so much of our income into investment, that we were already living on half our salary. Our after retirement net income will be more than we net/spend now...as we are far to busy to spend much and lots cones out for investment. Ss, etc.

[mreid]

Three simple rules:

1. Plan - you need to plan your retirement before you are thirty. Financial readiness is the number one priority and using your money to make more as early as possible is critical. Pick your investment strategy and stick to it. It's very simple: spend less than you make.

2. Consumption - What do you need vs. what do you want? A great home is far more important than a great car, boat, etc. If in doubt, see rule #1 above.

3. Location - Plan to live in an area that supports your consumption choices. For example, Texas has a tax base more driven by consumption. Taxes are levied on the value of your home and how much you spend on products and services. While New York and California also tax all of your income in a variety of ways. However, the politics are at opposite ends and you may have a personal "need" to live in a particular political climate. If in doubt, see rule #1.

I guess there is really only one rule: start as early as possible to spend less than you make and invest the difference for the long term with an eye on what you need in retirement.

[Nickshu]

Originally Posted by mreid

Three simple rules:

1. Plan - you need to plan your retirement before you are thirty. Financial readiness is the number one priority and using your money to make more as early as possible is critical. Pick your investment strategy and stick to it. It's very simple: spend less than you make.

2. Consumption - What do you need vs. what do you want? A great home is far more important than a great car, boat, etc. If in doubt, see rule #1 above.

3. Location - Plan to live in an area that supports your consumption choices. For example, Texas has a tax base more driven by consumption. Taxes are levied on the value of your home and how much you spend on products and services. While New York and California also tax all of your income in a variety of ways. However, the politics are at opposite ends and you may have a personal "need" to live in a particular political climate. If in doubt, see rule #1.

I guess there is really only one rule: start as early as possible to spend less than you make and invest the difference for the long term with an eye on what you need in retirement.

Motion, I don't think there are any real "secrets". The important points are pretty much summed up by MReid above. I would only add that the market must return what you anticipate. My retirement plan is based on a 6% return, which is conservative and more realistic than 8-10% which some people use to plan.

[dmcummins]

As another poster said, you have to plan. I kept track of my expenses and net worth for several years before retirement. And I retired at 50 with no pension, in 2007, I was a little concerned in 2008.

One of my biggest expenses is health insurance. I pay $1400 a month for the wife and I. And that's after tax money.

[McLovin]

IMO there are basically 2 ways:

Have a very high income and save a huge amount of money with no debt by the age of 60. In most areas this means $300K+ yearly income, consistently.

Or accumulate REAL income producing assets, with as little debt on them as possible by retirement.

I'm doing the second.

[Christien]

Originally Posted by dmcummins

I pay $1400 a month for the wife and I.

Are you serious? $1400 a MONTH? How are most people supposed to afford that? Wouldn't it be better to just put that in a shoebox to pay for any potential health care items? At least that way if you don't end up needing it the money can be passed down as an inheritance.

That just seems an insane amount of money for health insurance.

[Nickshu]

Originally Posted by Christien

Are you serious? $1400 a MONTH? How are most people supposed to afford that? Wouldn't it be better to just put that in a shoebox to pay for any potential health care items? At least that way if you don't end up needing it the money can be passed down as an inheritance.

That just seems an insane amount of money for health insurance.

My premiums are about $1250/month. Not worth it but for some reason I keep doing it. I was kicking around the idea of going the concierge medicine route which would cut my costs substantially.

Here's the thread: http://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/868507-health-insurance-advice.html

[sc_rufctr]

Originally Posted by VincentVega

Good luck, but I hate to hear stories like that. A good friend lost his dad way too young, just as he was retiring. Opened my eyes to make the most out of life and not wait for something that might not come.

:::

I hear you but the honest truth is I really don't know what to do. So I'm going on faith that my future will be bright if I can save some money and put things in order.

I'm looking to invest in Real Estate but I feel like I'm on a time crunch. 15 years doesn't seem long enough. 25 would be better.

[aigel]

I have about 10 years left where I need to hit it hard, putting money in the bank. After that my plan is to slow it down with temporary assignments only while my wife works enough to get health benefits. Maybe there will also be some "in between jobs" times, I am almost hoping for it ...

I won't have millions to retire on. We had this discussion before where I mentioned that I believe my expenses can be relatively low with hobbies like hunting, fishing, mountain biking, hiking. With more time, I can drive an older car and fix it myself, maintain my own home and garden, cook for myself all the time etc.

If it gets tight, I can always rent out my Bay Area home and move operations to a low cost state or a mobile dwelling. One thing I would love to do is be a camp host at a state park. You camp for free, meet people that are on vacation every day and have to do some light duty work. Every camp host I ever meet is loving it.

Back to work tomorrow ....

G

[Hugh R]

From motion's link to the Motley Fool.

Wow, that is scary.

[sc_rufctr]

Originally Posted by Hugh R

From motion's link to the Motley Fool.

Wow, that is scary.

::: [/img]

Surely that can't be accurate.

[930addict]

I'm 43. As it stands now I will retire(pre-retire actually)at 50. What that means is I will not have to work but because I enjoy what I do I plan on keeping at it until I tire of it. So my big plan is to do some consulting to supplament my retirement income. My kids will just be heading to college when I retire so the extra money will go toward helping them with college expenses. I easily see myself bringing in nearly $200k a year at age 50. A little less than half from my retirement and the rest from consulting. I'm not counting on SS so that would just be a bonus. Again...if all goes as planned.

I know people that didn't plan and they're miserable.

[KNS]

^^ I was thinking the same thing. If true a lot of people are going to be screwed.

[Don Ro]

I've been retired since '08.
A couple of years ago I dumped $500,000 into Keith DeGreen's Capital Management scam.
A Phoenix area "financial advisor" - Sat. mornings on 550 AM, in case you'd like to avoid him.
After 12 months of his taking 1.25% commission on that chunk of cash and his idea of investments, I closed him out.
Got my half mill. minus $1,800.
I make my own investment mistakes now.
.
When I bought here in '11, I wrote a check for my 2,600 sq. ft. house on an acre.
Now I only have basic living expenses...including dental floss and dog food (my little private joke).
Oh, and a new Nitecore TM26 flashlight coming from Amazon - I blame our Pelican brother, look 171, for that silly purchase.
.
I live fairly meagerly on SS and one small annuity and if I want something that I think I can't live w/o...I take the $$$ out of my slush fund or my Schwab portfolio.
I'd say the biggest threat to an affable galoot such as myself is the whore politicians who tend to phuq up everything for the rest of us.

[Brian 162]

I retired six months ago at 55. I get a company pension every month which includes benefits.
I'm not married and I never had children. My g/f retires in 8 years. She still has 1 son at home.
Right now my pension covers everything.
My only expense is my mortgage, but it's cheaper than renting.
While working I also put money away with an investment adviser. I have a good chunk of savings with that account. That't my travel, car needs new tires account for now.
I was in NYC 2 weeks ago, and I'm heading to Las Vegas for the Barrett Jackson auction.
I'm not bored yet. I'm always finding something to. I don't have to work but down the road I may volunteer.

[carreradpt]

Plan to be debt free when the retirement date arrives. Save and start saving early and keep at it. And retirement is way underrated if you are prepared. Being mortgage free is a huge weight off the retirement scenario. Our house is paid for, the cars are paid for, no credit card debt, nothing but paying the bills as we go along. And now we can just spend our money and not worry about stashing it away. Oh, and we have no kids. I love retirement!!

[dmcummins]

Originally Posted by Christien

Are you serious? $1400 a MONTH? How are most people supposed to afford that? Wouldn't it be better to just put that in a shoebox to pay for any potential health care items? At least that way if you don't end up needing it the money can be passed down as an inheritance.

That just seems an insane amount of money for health insurance.

I'm 58 now and the wife is 54. The problem is that we have always saved and invested so we still have to protect what we have. The ones that don't have to worry is the ones who don't have anything to take.

Of coarse they can get their health insurance subsidized.

If I would have known about obamacare I might have set some of my investments and income streams up differently. But I knew what the cost were before I quit working and budgeted for them.

I didn't budget for the plane though, but there is always something.

[jcommin]

I struggle with this. I am one month short of 65. What I thought my retirement would look like at 50 is totally different today. At 50. I thought I would still be married, saving, investing in my IRA looking to retire early. What happened: My company eliminated retire medical benefits. Pension is all but gone. The dot com crashed destroyed my savings. I got divorced in 2006 and wasn't pretty), the recession came and my house lost 30% of its value, my son had a drug problem
I have lost so much money from 2000 - 2010 - I can honestly say my 50 to 60 yrs on this earth was the darkest days of my life. did I plan this?, no did I see this coming ? no. I adjusted. Lucky for me, I had money to sustain every ugly event during this decade. The problem: I have no time to recover. I have no savings or home. My retirement Savings is a fraction of what I want. I will work longer than t want to. I can't afford to live in Chicago in retirement years.

I can dwell on the past but that doesn't help me going forward. I will adjust - there is no choice. In spite of what I don'rt have, I'm probably better than 95% of the population. I don't count money or wealth any more. In a wink of an eye, we are one catastrophic event away that can change your life.

Don't brag to me of how much you have or it will never happen to you - cuz in a moment, it can change. The question is: can you adapt?

My biggest fear: health care costs. I can budget everything but that. Healthcare in this country just sucks and that is before Obamacare.

[Don Ro]

You think Obummercare sucks now?...just wait.