Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Ralphie]

keep the replies coming as i appreciate the information

common theme....most would have retired earlier

+1. I really like reading these. Any advice for a 40ish year old guy with two young kids?  Anything you would have done differently or something you believe in regarding retirement and planning?

[Ssteppe]

How did you know you were ready to retire?
I taught school for 36 years, and the "rules" were changing. Took away seniority (I could be let go for any reason), more paperwork and hoops to jump through, no more salary increment (although I was at the top of the scale by then), moving students and grades around (I would have had to switch buildings).
Plus they were getting ready to change interest rates which would affect my pension. So it was the best time to get out. I have a good pension.

How did you replace the time you had filled with working hours with something else?
My favorite response when people ask what I do now is, "Whatever I *darn* well please." 
My wife retired at the same time, and we travel quite a bit, have a new grandson to visit, work around the house and yard. I'm into shooting sports, play in 4 different music groups, play pickleball, run the local chess club, and have more time to make bacon, smoke cheese, make jerky, etc.

What were your biggest surprises to date in retirement?
Cost of insurance. Money I had for insurance would have covered me until Medicare, but it wasn't enough to cover both my wife and me. It ran out in January, and I'm still 2 years away from Medicare, so I had to go on SS early to pay the roughly $20,000/year insurance for the next 2 years.

Would you retire at the same age if you could do it over again?
In a heartbeat. After I retired, I lost 100 lb through diet and exercise and took up pickleball. I think my health problems would have gotten worse instead of better if I hadn't retired when I did. Plus you want to be able to travel before you get too old.

[Chashub]

To Ralphie,
Although I’m a couple of years away from retirement, my advice is to save, save and save. And start 529’s for the kids!
Charlie

[Kristin Meredith]

Ralphie, my Dad was an investment adviser and stock broker, so I know what I am going to say goes against a lot of what financial planners (including my Dad) will advise someone your age, but I am going to say it anyway.

I was and am a very conservative financial person.  I read all the stuff on the 4% rule, but since there were years the market did badly, I had problems completely embracing that philosophy.  Finally, at the age of 58 and after talking with my financial adviser, I put a chunk of money in an annuity with a guaranteed yearly return after a minimum of 5 years.  If I leave it longer, the guarantee on the return goes up each year.  This has allowed me to project out that, at X age, I will have a guaranteed income of Y dollars a year.  I could have started putting money into this type of vehicle in my 40s and now wish I had.  Having a security net of a guaranteed income every month -- separate from anything I may receive from Soc Sec -- has given me a nice peace of mind.  May have given me the confidence to retire a little earlier.

I know all the arguments against it and it is not the path for everyone, but may be worth you at least investigating. And I agree with the save, save, save -- it will involve sacrifice, so you just need to decide whether current consumption is more important than early retirement.  And that is a personal decision for each of us.

[Brushpopper]

I have been and am a financial advisor for the past 22 years. Lots of good info in the thread about expectations, thought processes, etc. For details on investment strategies, retirement planning strategies, MC simulation, risk tolerance, etc., best to sit down with a professional and determine a plan of action for YOUR specific situation and goals. Everyone’s situation is different and as such, what works for one may be completely wrong for another.

I had many a talk with my financial advisor prior to pulling the trigger.  Talk to one you trust first and foremost.  The younger you are when you start planning, the better.  You don't drive your vehicle by looking right in front of it.  You look waaayyyy down the road.  I was able to retire younger than planned thanks to some good advice and lots of luck.

[dk117]

I have been and am a financial advisor for the past 22 years. Lots of good info in the thread about expectations, thought processes, etc. For details on investment strategies, retirement planning strategies, MC simulation, risk tolerance, etc., best to sit down with a professional and determine a plan of action for YOUR specific situation and goals. Everyone’s situation is different and as such, what works for one may be completely wrong for another.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

this is good advice.  Check in with a seasoned pro.  But if you know what a Monte Carlo simulation is you're probably more sophisticated than most.   I'm here for the personal anecdotes.  It's been rather refreshing the little emphasis on fiances in this thread.    I agree it's clearly the biggest factor, but the individual stories are what is holding my attention. 
DK

[Craig in Indy]

I doubt I'll get to retire. My wife tells me my retirement was the 18 months I couldn't find work during the recession. Funny - she gets to retire at the end of this year.

[MN-Smoker]

keep the replies coming as i appreciate the information

common theme....most would have retired earlier

+1. I really like reading these. Any advice for a 40ish year old guy with two young kids?  Anything you would have done differently or something you believe in regarding retirement and planning?

I'm mid-40's.
My kids are between 8 and 14.
I don't have the vision of the retired people yet, but it's important to make sure you take advantage of the years you spend with your kids while they are with you.  A pile of money with no memories isn't as good as memories with a modest amount of money.

Life is more about experiences than goods.

What I'm hoping to do is have the kids in a spot where we can pay their college and retire, but you're not doing them any favors if you pay their college, and you can't retire.
Seems like a common mistake is that the parents don't ensure their own well being first.

No offense to the financial advisor, but I'm skeptical of most.  Most are more interested in selling you a financial product rather than help you retire.
When I was in my early 20's I met with a financial advisor and they deposited my couple thousand bucks into a high fee mutual fund which ended up doing worse than market rates (way worse due to the high fees).  It was easily the worst financial advice I ever got.

I'd say invest in index funds and real estate with any extra money you have.

The other big thing to do is to track your net worth each month.
That's how you keep score.
I have a spreadsheet I update each month that tracks all assets and liabilities.  It's the biggest aid in tracking whether I'm getting closer or not and see how decisions made affect your goals.

[Bentley]

I only say this because it is personal experience.  This is so true and just a waste of Your Money...if you do this and they are not ready or willing for college when you think they should be...

...but you're not doing them any favors if you pay their college...

[Kristin Meredith]

Not to get too far a field, but where Bent wasn't ready for college, I was ready for college and law school and am eternally grateful that my parents funded 100% of college and about 75% and two law schools (J.D. and Ll.M.).  It gave me a tremendous start in life and definitely contributed to my current financial security.  So probably a better philosophy is to know each child!!

[pz]

I'm mid-40's.
My kids are between 8 and 14.
I don't have the vision of the retired people yet, but it's important to make sure you take advantage of the years you spend with your kids while they are with you.  A pile of money with no memories isn't as good as memories with a modest amount of money.

This is probably the most important factor you can consider regarding memories, and one you certainly can regret if you do not spend enough time with your kids when they are young. Remember the old song "Cat's in the Cradle" by Harry Chapin? If not, listen to it again - it will haunt you when your kids are grown and gone from home.

What I'm hoping to do is have the kids in a spot where we can pay their college and retire, but you're not doing them any favors if you pay their college, and you can't retire.

Quite true - I would never jeopardize my retirement because of the kids (they need to have some responsibility to further their lives), but sometimes the bit of help that a parent can offer makes a huge difference - I have a son who I somewhat helped through college - I paid his tuition but he was responsible for his living expenses. He told me recently that he would go the back door of grocery stores waiting for them to throw out the over-time vegetables - he said that it helped build his character. Today he in the Navy, in his early 30s and makes more money that I made at retirement, so his life is set, and I feel good about it.

The bottom line is that every person has an entirely different set of circumstances that will drive the focus on retirement - every person needs to thoroughly examine all the factors in their lives and adjust accordingly.

[Ralphie]

I recently had a conversation with an 80ish year old family friend. We discussed saving for retirement and kids college. His message was to invest in both. But be careful with college savings because it does your kids no good if it results in them having to take care of you in retirement, health circumstances notwithstanding.
Similar philosophies are posted above. Take care of yourself first financially so you will be able to help your loved ones more effectively.

[MSOLSON]

So my thoughts - Some people really dislike their jobs but that was not my case at all. I loved my job at NWA and luckily rode out the bankruptcy and merger with Delta. Then Delta moved up the timetable for re-locating all pilot training to ATL. I could have moved or commuted to work but not something that I wanted to do. So could I afford to retire? Here's what I did.

I kept it simple by doing a spreadsheet to exactly track income and every penny you spend! I did this for both pre-retirement and post retirement projected income. It quickly shows the financial reality of your financial position. Realize it's all about cash flow. Yup - I sold the boat!! Final action (if you are unsure whether you can afford to retire) is to live on your expected post retirement income for a year before you retire.

Do I regret retiring, no.
Do I get bored - no. 
Advice for younger folks, save via IRA or some kind of retirement investment vehicle.

Good luck!

[Ssteppe]

Forgot to mention some important factors:
House was paid off
Kids were out of college and on their own
No credit card debt (or any major debt, besides car payment)

Retirement for us was contingent on those.

[hughver]

Ditto, except no car payment. Retirement is a whole lot more enjoyable when your major financial decision is how to spend your discretionary resources.