Can we retire please? How much money do you really need need?

[Nasher]

What you decide is up to you obviously
Only thing I would add is something someone posted earlier in this thread
Every extra year you work is one less you get in retirement

Or to quote the late, great, Warren Miller: "better do it this year, or you'll be another year older before you do"

 

[Bluemanc100]

Up to you of course but I’d be pitching for your four day week on whatever your previous full time salary was. If you wanted to pitch for more then fair play to you but that would be my minimum opening gambit.

Ian

I’ve never worked for this company but I take your point... I’ll keep it in mind

 

[gus-lopez]

then a year or two will fly by and I'll still be just under 60...

Only if you make it?
I've lost count of friends & relatives who haven't made 60 or ever got near receiving a pension.

 

[Themselves]

Live to the amount of money you have. No point wishing you had more. All more loot does is buy a slightly better bottle of wine. As someone said years ago, nobody ever died wishing they had spent more time in the office. Also, Apparently it doesn’t matter how much you have it’s more important that the bloke next door has less. Upon reflection, I am the bloke next door with less and I couldn’t care less.

 

[Bluemanc100]

Only if you make it?
I've lost count of friends & relatives who haven't made 60 or ever got near receiving a pension.

I’ve been in receipt of my MOD pension since 2006 so I’m happy

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[Langtoftlad]

Live to the amount of money you have. No point wishing you had more. All more loot does is buy a slightly better bottle of wine. As someone said years ago, nobody ever died wishing they had spent more time in the office. Also, Apparently it doesn’t matter how much you have it’s more important that the bloke next door has less. Upon reflection, I am the bloke next door with less and I couldn’t care less.

Conversely - if you really enjoy your work... and worry about being bored in retirement.

 

[Odd-no-more]

That's the part I hate to be honest. The person who has built a plan around me joining them has really put their neck on the line. I realise that I'm expected to negotiate but I really don't want to create an issue if I am over-ambitious.. I suppose they can only say no

I am hoping they will make me an offer I can't refuse without any pushback from me

Different people have different ideas. After my retirement, my old firm asked me to come back, as an employee had let them down, I went back full time for a month and then 3 day week for another few months. I now regret doing it, I only went back to help them and in doing so I've lost some of my retirement. We only have a fixed amount of time left, do you want to spend more of it at work?

 

[Bluemanc100]

Different people have different ideas. After my retirement, my old firm asked me to come back, as an employee had let them down, I went back full time for a month and then 3 day week for another few months. I now regret doing it, I only went back to help them and in doing so I've lost some of my retirement. We only have a fixed amount of time left, do you want to spend more of it at work?

I like to be occupied but I’ve also coped with total lockdown better than I ever expected as Sue is extremely vulnerable... the offer of work really came out of the blue and it’s certainly worth exploring the opportunity.. I have no intention of doing years and years but I can do a short stint.. possibly drop to part time while Sue devotes some time to her Mum.. I think if it hadn’t been for Covid then I wouldn’t even consider another challenge but I really don’t see a return to “normality” this year , hence me seeing where this goes as I can work from home as opposed to simply being at home.

The opportunity might also prove to be lucrative so it’s potentially a win win

 

[Garry - June]

We fulltime in our van...was extremely fortunate to be offered early retirement at 53... so we originally bought a boat and sailed off to the med where we lived aboard fulltime for 5 yrs... switched to a MH two yrs ago ...for various reasons...one of which becoming Grandparents and wanting to spend more time back home in the UK... for the first 6 yrs we lived on savings and my £1k p/m pension.... we saw this same question asked so many times but it really is a "How long is a piece of String" thing.... on our travels we have met people living on a few hundred a month... and some on £2k and more a month... it all depends on so many variables.... how much travelling you plan to do....will that include hefty flights or ferry tickets..... also if planning lots of miles you have to account for fuel and wear & tear on the van.... regular maintenance costs..... then how much you like to go out...to restaurant's and entertainment... site fees..do you like expensive all mod con sites or can you manage on Aires or Camper stops which are a fraction of the cost.. you also need a nest egg for unforeseen events or emergencies... if you were away and someone needed to get home asap you need to be able to book flights in an instance.... what would you do if your gearbox went bang whilst on the Algarve etc... you need to be able to have a fund to cover these things..... we have now managed to be able to buy a property in the UK which we now rent out...this helps hugely with finances so is something i would definitely recommend people consider... there are just so many different situations/circumstances to take in to consideration but for almost everyone its very achievable.... and there are lots of people out there doing it right now... and all doing it differently.. in most cases all it takes is a little bravery.. During our travels we have like i said met loads doing the same thing....not once have i ever heard anyone say "I wish we had waited"....every single one has said they wished they had done it sooner..... Oh i should add talking of houses...that when we first set off on our travels having left work the most liberating feeling i have ever experienced in my life was when we sold our original house... i spent a day going through my online banking deleting/cancelling all our direct debits/standing orders for household bills..... Mortgage...Gone.......Council Tax...Gone..... House Insurance....gone....Gas/Electric.....gone..... Sky,Tv License.......Gone.... Our bills went from hundreds/thousands to practically zero in the blink of an eye...... it was brilliant..

 

[madroy]

We retired 3 years ago and do 10-12-12 weeks away coming home in the peak periods and took some of my pension £11800 to avoid paying tax and also £4000 per annum of my 25% tax free allowance so in total just short of 15k
we seem to manage ok we allow €50 a day inclusive of ferries, diesel, food, general spend and campsites whilst away and always come inside budget ( even in Scandinavia)

I've been rtd for 17 yrs living in France in a paid for small house, but I travel a lot in motorhome. We used to manage to live quite well on our state pensions and since my wife passed I still seem OK on my pension. Just don't drive so much due to fuel prices and a large van

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[Pappy]

I retired 5 years ago. I didn't want to, I was made redundant as the coal industry finished. It took me a while to get used to being retired. I now love it. I was worried about money, but have found we can more than manage on a lot less than I thought. Julie still works, although I am trying to convince her to at least semi retire.

I remember about 7 years ago saying to Julie that I recon I can get a couple more years work before I finish. She said "what's the point of that if you end up with a heart attack?"

Anyway, I'm off fishing now.

 

[Rosemary1]

I like to be occupied but I’ve also coped with total lockdown better than I ever expected as Sue is extremely vulnerable... the offer of work really came out of the blue and it’s certainly worth exploring the opportunity.. I have no intention of doing years and years but I can do a short stint.. possibly drop to part time while Sue devotes some time to her Mum.. I think if it hadn’t been for Covid then I wouldn’t even consider another challenge but I really don’t see a return to “normality” this year , hence me seeing where this goes as I can work from home as opposed to simply being at home.

The opportunity might also prove to be lucrative so it’s potentially a win win

I was retiring last year and moving a long distance away from work so handed in my notice. Work asked me if I could continue to carry out certain jobs online to help them out and I agree on a trial basis. I work approx 20 hours a week to suit me from home (very flexible) and they continued to pay me a good salary (got a surprise smashing Xmas bonus too)

Covid meant that all our IT system was set up from home and most of my contacts work from home too.

As we have been stuck in anyway I have had plenty of time and have enjoyed interacting with my colleague.

try it, it has worked out great for me and had meant I haven’t had to start pull down on my pension and we don’t feel guilty about spending on ”treats”. If it’s not what you want then you can always retire later.

And yes it is nice to be wanted and appreciated

 

[BernieTony]

We’re managing on £19,000 and that includes saving £300 a month for travel. We’ve done it for 2 years. I’ve got 3.5 years to go until retirement age and he has 1.5 years. That is simply living costs. Everything is paid for, house and Moho. We do have back up savings, for emergencies, but haven’t had to dip into them. We’re in Spain at the moment, on a campsite, been here since the end of September, going back the end of March.
Hope that helps.

 

[Wyvern]

I've just put your age into the O.N.S. Life Expectancy Calculator (please excuse the liberty!) and :-

Your (i.e. the average) life expectancy for a male of your age is 85 years
However there is a 1 in 4 chance you will live to 92 years.There is a 1 in 10 chance you will live to 97 years.There is a 3.3 percent chance you will live to 100.

I'm 75 soon and my life expectancy is 87 (the longer you live the better it gets - kind of). If you'd asked me at your age "Would you be happy to stop travelling at 80" I may have said "Perhaps" - but now that I've got this far I'm hoping to do it until I'm 80 - 85.

As long as my health is ok this is, in my experience, not unrealistic. I've met lots of over 80s driving around Europe over the last 10 years.

When I can no longer drive we hope to spend our winters in Europe but staying in a holiday let, You never know, by then "they" may have sorted the 90 day rule!?

ONS data is not quite that simple as whilst based on post code, it is an average. Club vita data which all the pension funds use is more accurate. Effectively wealth is a big determinant, if you have a house paid for over £350k say in the midlands and a pension fund of over £500k and a BMI below 28 (male) then on average you will live 4 years longer than ONS. This is a very rough rule of thumb but illustrates the point of using averages.

 

[stewartwebr]

My financial advisor spouts the same message at every meeting, “when it comes to retirement you have only 2 choices, more money and less time or more time and less money” the million dollar question is what is the correct balance.
We have been very lucky in life and both have good final salary pensions, however, it is still a very hard decision to call it a day with the realisation that the extravagant luxuries may come to an end, and even harder when you realise this may be the last Motorhome you can afford. It’s all a balance and brings me right back to the message my FA keeps telling us.

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[gwyntaxi]

Help. We are looking for some real world advice on if we are near or have already reached the point of retirement.
I have 8 years to pension age the better half has 2 years and both of us have had enough of being beholden to work. The better half has a few issues we feel its time to enjoy life.

Being very lucky to have paid the mortgage and the motorhome and the bills are just everyday stuff from having a property. We don't really want to full time so having done the maths I think we can do it

Ive broken everything down that we can think of insurances, services to car and motorhome, gas electric etc multiplied and divided and computer says yes it can be done. Just.
Happy days.
But the question is? Is there an amount, a real world figure people have found they require. A couple we saw a few weeks back said friends of them had set a target of £15000 per year to live off and only spent £13000. This seems to match our figures. So is this figure realistic? Do you already live on a smaller budget?
How long is a piece of string, it depends on the individuals wants, needs and lifestyle, no much point in retiring if you have to take up part time employment as you usually end up working just as hard and long as when you were full time, we will all tell ourselves that we can’t afford to retire for a couple of years yet, but I have found if it’s forced upon you e.g. thru ill health or redundancy, and your on the scrap heap as no one wants to employ someone of 60 or older, then you will cut your cloth accordingly.
New decade new life Any advice is helpful

 

[Coolcats]

An interesting thread, a question that arises is what does being retired mean for you? You can volunteer, you can ‘work’ at something and be paid for it. Or does it mean just time to do not much? Some may decide to study something they did not have time for. So how will you spend your retirement

 

[Minxy]

An interesting thread, a question that arises is what does being retired mean for you? You can volunteer, you can ‘work’ at something and be paid for it. Or does it mean just time to do not much? Some may decide to study something they did not have time for. So how will you spend your retirement

Errrrrr ... well .... now that you mention it ....

 

[Fragle]

We’re managing on £19,000 and that includes saving £300 a month for travel. We’ve done it for 2 years. I’ve got 3.5 years to go until retirement age and he has 1.5 years. That is simply living costs. Everything is paid for, house and Moho. We do have back up savings, for emergencies, but haven’t had to dip into them. We’re in Spain at the moment, on a campsite, been here since the end of September, going back the end of March.
Hope that helps.

Thanks for that. How long have you been away for?

Well I started the thread a while back in the hope we could retire early as we had seen so many people on the road enjoying the freedom of not rushing home for work.
I believe all the figures are in now and I've reviewed and reviewed again and it's a go for lift off

But. Anxiety has now kicked in.
I've worked non stop since 14 I now have to step off the roundabout.
We have a minimum we need each year and that is well covered. I've checked the last 3 years bank accounts for outgoing average and that is more than covered.
Spare money for emergency. covered.
New Motorhome paid and no mortgage

So why the anxiety.

 

[peterc10]

An interesting thread, a question that arises is what does being retired mean for you? You can volunteer, you can ‘work’ at something and be paid for it. Or does it mean just time to do not much? Some may decide to study something they did not have time for. So how will you spend your retirement

Being retired meant we could travel a lot more. Month long visits to our daughter in the USA and regular 6-8 weeks long Motorhome trips to Southern Europe in the spring and autumn to get some early and late sunshine. And shorter trips around the UK to enjoy MHF meets.

Unfortunately something has got in the way of that for the last year or so, which means we have had "time to do not much". Just hoping that changes in the near future.

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[Tiny]

I should have retired 3 years ago but have continued working until my wife could retire (66 for her) so come end of April no more 9 to 5. Timed well with coming out of lockdown, don’t you think.

 

[Stonemags76]

Thanks for that. How long have you been away for?

Well I started the thread a while back in the hope we could retire early as we had seen so many people on the road enjoying the freedom of not rushing home for work.
I believe all the figures are in now and I've reviewed and reviewed again and it's a go for lift off

But. Anxiety has now kicked in.
I've worked non stop since 14 I now have to step off the roundabout.
We have a minimum we need each year and that is well covered. I've checked the last 3 years bank accounts for outgoing average and that is more than covered.
Spare money for emergency. covered.
New Motorhome paid and no mortgage

So why the anxiety.

I had a bit of anxiety when I retired (aged 54], & put it down to the fact that I would no longer have the safety net of a good salary every month. This abated slightly as the pension kept appearing (for doing nothing!), & gradually realised that if I was that worried I could get another job, or Paul could. We have been retired for almost 10 years now, & Paul has been working this last year, but not out of necessity - just because he was a bit bored & Covid means we can’t travel. The great thing is, if he gets fed up he can stop - nothing is written in stone!

 

[68c]

Best bit about drawing your pension is you can't lose your job.

 

[Otter Spotter]

Thanks for that. How long have you been away for?

Well I started the thread a while back in the hope we could retire early as we had seen so many people on the road enjoying the freedom of not rushing home for work.
I believe all the figures are in now and I've reviewed and reviewed again and it's a go for lift off

But. Anxiety has now kicked in.
I've worked non stop since 14 I now have to step off the roundabout.
We have a minimum we need each year and that is well covered. I've checked the last 3 years bank accounts for outgoing average and that is more than covered.
Spare money for emergency. covered.
New Motorhome paid and no mortgage

So why the anxiety.

The anxiety is probably a little ‘fear of the unknown’ and to help calm this, do yourself a mind map of all the things you want to do, who you want to meet up with, where you want to travel and cost it out, if you do some planning you will see you can do it and enjoy retirement.
Covid has put a lot if people on hold, like me, but you can still plan.

 

[errpaul]

Has anyone retired early with young children?
We have a 7 and 10 year old and really want to travel more than just a few weeks at a time. We did a longer trip around France, Germany etc a couple of years ago, and it was great....did not want to come home. We mainly stayed in aires keeping costs to a minimum.
We home school and so we can do that anywhere and not tied to a school.

If all goes to plan business wise we should be in a position in the not too distant future where we can clear the mortgage and have an income of around £21k per year. I had originally planned to pack it in in 10 years when I hit 50, but feel that may be 10 years lost (especially as the kids will be grown up by then).

I have read this thread with great interest and see that there are many views on how much is actually needed, but has anyone done this with younger children?

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[Carpmart]

Has anyone retired early with young children?
We have a 7 and 10 year old and really want to travel more than just a few weeks at a time. We did a longer trip around France, Germany etc a couple of years ago, and it was great....did not want to come home. We mainly stayed in aires keeping costs to a minimum.
We home school and so we can do that anywhere and not tied to a school.

If all goes to plan business wise we should be in a position in the not too distant future where we can clear the mortgage and have an income of around £21k per year. I had originally planned to pack it in in 10 years when I hit 50, but feel that may be 10 years lost (especially as the kids will be grown up by then).

I have read this thread with great interest and see that there are many views on how much is actually needed, but has anyone done this with younger children?

Can’t help you with direct advice, but if you can make it work financially and feel the broader education you can provide to your kids with the kind of lifestyle you are suggesting is more valuable than a more traditional upbringing, then go for it!

 

[Stonemags76]

Has anyone retired early with young children?
We have a 7 and 10 year old and really want to travel more than just a few weeks at a time. We did a longer trip around France, Germany etc a couple of years ago, and it was great....did not want to come home. We mainly stayed in aires keeping costs to a minimum.
We home school and so we can do that anywhere and not tied to a school.

If all goes to plan business wise we should be in a position in the not too distant future where we can clear the mortgage and have an income of around £21k per year. I had originally planned to pack it in in 10 years when I hit 50, but feel that may be 10 years lost (especially as the kids will be grown up by then).

I have read this thread with great interest and see that there are many views on how much is actually needed, but has anyone done this with younger children?

Although this couple have no children, they have retired in their 40s, & provide a lot of information on the financial side, passive income etc. They’ve also written a book about how they afforded it.

OurTour Motorhome Blog - Home Page

Motorhome & Campervan Travel Blog - Ideas - Inspiration - Hints - Tips - Places to Go - Books - Campsites - Aires - UK - Europe - North Africa

ourtour.co.uk

 

[The Coops]

I go back to my original post take your income, divide by three and there is a third to live on a third for emergences and a third for your wish list, I retired after some sound advice at an early age and have lived by that mantra and to date have not regretted it but looking forward to the OAP as a boost for luxury goods/change van or car as its income not equated into living costs. Don't sit there waiting for the right day as it will never happen. take the chance and if if not for you at least you have given it a try. You could be in an accident the day after you retire nobody except Mr Beckham has golden/crystal balls!

 

[Adrian1]

Less than you Think I took a year to plan then sold my company and left the rat race I used a free web sit called retire easy to plan and its free gave me a good idea that my planning was correct comeing up to 5years now were did I find time to go to work.Go for it.

 

[Kelvin Barnett]

Help. We are looking for some real world advice on if we are near or have already reached the point of retirement.
I have 8 years to pension age the better half has 2 years and both of us have had enough of being beholden to work. The better half has a few issues we feel its time to enjoy life.

Being very lucky to have paid the mortgage and the motorhome and the bills are just everyday stuff from having a property. We don't really want to full time so having done the maths I think we can do it

Ive broken everything down that we can think of insurances, services to car and motorhome, gas electric etc multiplied and divided and computer says yes it can be done. Just.
Happy days.
But the question is? Is there an amount, a real world figure people have found they require. A couple we saw a few weeks back said friends of them had set a target of £15000 per year to live off and only spent £13000. This seems to match our figures. So is this figure realistic? Do you already live on a smaller budget?
New decade new life Any advice is helpful

Help. We are looking for some real world advice on if we are near or have already reached the point of retirement.
I have 8 years to pension age the better half has 2 years and both of us have had enough of being beholden to work. The better half has a few issues we feel its time to enjoy life.

Being very lucky to have paid the mortgage and the motorhome and the bills are just everyday stuff from having a property. We don't really want to full time so having done the maths I think we can do it

Ive broken everything down that we can think of insurances, services to car and motorhome, gas electric etc multiplied and divided and computer says yes it can be done. Just.
Happy days.
But the question is? Is there an amount, a real world figure people have found they require. A couple we saw a few weeks back said friends of them had set a target of £15000 per year to live off and only spent £13000. This seems to match our figures. So is this figure realistic? Do you already live on a smaller budget?
New decade new life Any advice is helpful

The answer to this question is really would you feel comfortable retiring, everyone’s situation is different, it all boils down to your outgoings. For my wife and myself it was like winning the lottery, our company had voluntary redundancy in December , my wife is 66, I’m 64, we are both on final salary pensions, I’ve been with the company for 43yrs, my wife 25, so for us it was a no brainier, with the 25% of our pension, and our redundancy package we jumped at it, but not everyone is that lucky.

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