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Old 07-03-2014, 01:25 PM
 
Location: SC
8,793 posts, read 8,112,006 times
Reputation: 12991

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Quote:
Originally Posted by jrkliny View Post
I wish I had retired earlier. Not working saved me a huge amount of money not spent on incomes taxes, not spent on social security/medicare taxes, not spent on work clothing, not spent on commuting, etc. After retiring we cut back on expenses plus we saved all of the above. Financially I was better off retired than when I worked.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PawleysDude View Post
To answer your question, it will always have been nice to have had a bundle more, but I've never regretted one day of pulling the trigger when I did. Keep investing wisely, and don't get too high on the market's good days or too low on the market's bad days. Life is good.
Quote:
Originally Posted by deckdoc View Post
Considering you are that close you will make it. Just keep at it. Contrary to what some people believe the stock market is the place to keep your money as bonds that are as safe pay so little you couldn't live on it.

Just retiring with "minimum amount" leaves so little cushion you cannot relax in retirement and something usually comes up to really put the scare into it.

Actually took a few years of frugal retirement before that "comfort amount" was reached but glad it happened.
As far as the savings of less wardrobe, no commute expenses, less taxes~~ those items escaped me. My clothing costs, commute expenses and taxes have all gone up since I retired.

And yes, I did retire about 3 months earlier than I expected due to a workplace accident but it all worked out. Finish out your not quite a year~ you will probably be glad you did...the job wasn't s hard knowing the end ws in sight. PS ~ think we are in for a dip but expect a good rally before end of year.
Hey, thanks for ACTUALLY reading my post and replying to what I asked instead of the standard C-D I'll ignore what you wrote and say what is on my mind reply. That is very rare on this forum.

And FYI, that "comfort number" came and went about two months ago and I am now headed for my "Are you out of your mind - why are you still at work" number. That number should bounce me back to my comfort number if there is a bad downturn.

Thanks again.
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Old 07-03-2014, 03:20 PM
 
Location: Albuquerque NM
2,061 posts, read 2,365,586 times
Reputation: 4752
I'm using a retirement calculator as a guide but with the conservative assumption that I will live to be age 95. Not likely to happen based on my genetics. Also I do not count my home value in the calculations (and it is paid off) and am tracking current expenses to be extra sure that I can live within my planned retirement budget. Even then I will probably do one more year to get to that "extra comfort amount". I may end up regretting that I did not retire sooner but working an extra 1-2 years is not that bad. And I think I would regret it more if I retired and was then unable to do some of the things that I want due to lack of money.
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Old 07-03-2014, 04:09 PM
 
Location: Delray Beach
1,135 posts, read 1,761,323 times
Reputation: 2527
I don't wish i had saved more - I wish i had retired sooner!
My col in SoFla is so much less than in NY, even considering that my condo was paid off cause the HOA and maint fees are 1/3 what they were. And to the poster who believes that the stock market is the only place to be because bond yields are so low..
1. Must not have been awake in 2000 and 2008, and
2. Hasn't saved enough to live off 4.5% on tax-free munis.
I was and have.
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Old 07-03-2014, 07:33 PM
 
Location: SC
8,793 posts, read 8,112,006 times
Reputation: 12991
Quote:
Originally Posted by ABQ2015 View Post
I'm using a retirement calculator as a guide but with the conservative assumption that I will live to be age 95. Not likely to happen based on my genetics. Also I do not count my home value in the calculations (and it is paid off) and am tracking current expenses to be extra sure that I can live within my planned retirement budget. Even then I will probably do one more year to get to that "extra comfort amount". I may end up regretting that I did not retire sooner but working an extra 1-2 years is not that bad. And I think I would regret it more if I retired and was then unable to do some of the things that I want due to lack of money.
As I am sure you have seen, most OL retirement calculators are junk. Full of bad assumptions and even worse predictions. They are geared more toward driving you to a "retirement analyst" who will sell you even worse advice.

If you want a good retirement calculator - get out the spreadsheet and start entering everything you can about your financial life.

Personally, I have built my own and it works great. Sometime soon, I plan to release it to anyone who desires to use it.
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Old 07-04-2014, 12:40 AM
 
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,624 posts, read 57,628,813 times
Reputation: 46064
Quote:
Originally Posted by jrkliny View Post
Let's hope you do not drop dead in the near future. You will have missed a year and a half of retirement.

I wish I had retired earlier. ... Financially I was better off retired than when I worked.
We all have our hopes, dreams, PLANS. Life has detours.

So many things apply to "How Close...but missed... Horseshoes, darts, and archery reward for CLOSE, but not hitting the target. LIFE is not so friendly, until you look BACK.

One must jump at the opportunities... and Journey through valleys... and climb the steep barriers. one step / day / dollar at a time.

I was CLOSE to getting to go to college (1 month away) and then became a caregiver for the next 32 yrs
I was CLOSE to early retirement 32 yrs service and age 49, (less than 90 days away) but... destiny pulled the trap door. No retirement, no pension, no healthcare, no job.

My disabled parent died and I was CLOSE to enjoying freedom / and venture / and my faithful / enduring spouse. -- then they got a terminal illness.

I'm in the game till the end, but not looking to come out a winner, just an enduring and endearing player in this game of life. MONEY is pretty small potatoes in the BIG picture. I no longer 'rest' on my formula. I don't seem to be the author of my life.

Retire early, retire often.

BTW, I currently have 11 Spreadsheets running on my screen. I use them A LOT! and I learn from them as well as life... Neither is 100% correct cradle to grave, tho life can be certain about the grave portion. (So can a Spreadsheet if you are using a well known national brand of Spreadsheet... causes about 90 % of my DEATHs (Blue Screens) (I was SO close to going to Linux...)

Last edited by StealthRabbit; 07-04-2014 at 12:48 AM..
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Old 07-04-2014, 10:52 PM
 
Location: SW MO
23,593 posts, read 37,349,391 times
Reputation: 29336
To answer your original question (I must have been on hiatus):
Quote:
Originally Posted by blktoptrvl View Post
My question to everyone here is this. How much more (percentage) do you wish you had saved before you actually pulled the trigger and retired?
Not a jot or a tittle. I retired when the time was right and that had little to do with numbers and percentages and almost everything to do with the fact that I'd had enough. No complaints!
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Old 07-05-2014, 08:31 AM
Status: "Octopi tastes like snake" (set 26 days ago)
 
Location: in the miseries
3,573 posts, read 4,490,757 times
Reputation: 4406
Quote:
Originally Posted by blktoptrvl View Post
Hello All,

I hit my "minimum amount" savings number about a year and a half ago.

The second week of this year, I as 15 grand from my "comfort amount" total and then we had the bad week in the market last week .

I was so psyched about hitting that number. Of course that would just have been the "first time" my balance touched that number and I expect to cross over and below that number several times on my way to my "retiring well amount" that I hope to hit by the end of 2014.

My question to everyone here is this. How much more (percentage) do you wish you had saved before you actually pulled the trigger and retired?
I'm pretty sure we'll be fine.
So no more. Can't believe I said that!
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Old 07-05-2014, 12:12 PM
 
Location: Finally escaped The People's Republic of California
11,258 posts, read 8,626,691 times
Reputation: 6390
Hit my Minimum number a year and a half ago, just waiting on minimum age now.....58 Mondays to go
Lots of things I would have done differently with hindsight, percentage wise it would have been to max out 401k from the day I started working...
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Old 07-05-2014, 02:03 PM
 
Location: SoCal desert
8,091 posts, read 15,378,557 times
Reputation: 15036
Quote:
Originally Posted by luvmyhoss View Post
I'm pretty sure we'll be fine.
So no more. Can't believe I said that!
I saw it on the internet.
I have to believe it
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Old 07-05-2014, 02:05 PM
Status: "Octopi tastes like snake" (set 26 days ago)
 
Location: in the miseries
3,573 posts, read 4,490,757 times
Reputation: 4406
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gandalara View Post
I saw it on the internet.
I have to believe it
The internet never lies
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