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I wanted to work until I was 70, which the experts say I could get the best bang for my buck in Social Security. My wife and I figured that if we both retired at age 70 we could live on Social Security and anything else we had saved would be extra.
But the company both of us worked for laid off a good number of it's staff and we were both laid off the same day. Both of us are 61 and can't collect SS for another year.
We have $400K saved, should we just retire and move to a place with a very low cost of living?
(They say it is nearly impossible to find another full time job at our age unless you have unique skills.)
Anyone here face a layoff before you were ready to retire? What did you do?
there is to much else involved to say .way to much financial info missing like draw rate you need , investments , non discretionary bills ,lifestyle , expenses , wants , etc .
they really need to analyze their financial needs . it is a whole lot easier getting a job at 61 then 81 if they have a poor plan . it isn't about your age , it is about the total picture
Hopefully your company gave you a severance package and/or you will collect unemployement for a while. Whether or not you can find another job depends on how much college ed you have (it is actually harder with a PhD than a BS), the demand for your skills, how big a city you live in, if there are other businesses around like yours, if you know a lot of people, etc., etc. I think it is too soon for you to retire without at least trying to find another job. $400K is okay if you are already 70, but you will need 9 yrs of earnings to get up to that point. Sorry this happened to you, but you still are a valuable worker to someone.
there is to much else involved to say .way to much financial info missing like draw rate you need , investments , non discretionary bills ,lifestyle , expenses , wants , etc .
If we do a 5% withdrawal of our assets for a year we will have about $3000 a month, which will be basic survival. In 2017, we can both collect $1300 a month in Social Security when we reach 62 and then can live on $5600 a month. ($3000 + $1300 + $1300= $5600.00)
FYI: 6 months have passed since our layoffs and unemployment benefits have ended.
So for a year we will live in relative poverty.
Last edited by curious folk; 03-21-2016 at 11:23 AM..
You have 6 months of unemployment checks to see if you can land yourselves new jobs. That should be your full time job for the next 6 months. While you're doing that, you can work through a contingency plan where one or both of you starts collecting Social Security at age 62. As Mathjack says, it's way easier to find a job at age 61 than at age 81 when you're out of money.
It really stinks when near-retirement age employees get laid-off ('downsized'). Is there some reason you cannot both file for Unemployment for the next year? Can you stretch-out your severance packages? --- While finding work in this economy at 61 is difficult without special skills, it's not impossible.
I'm guessing you mean $3000 per month, which, combined with UE and perhaps COBRA Insurance via your ex-employer, should give you about $50K+ per year income, plus a $400K nut! That is much better than some folks in your situation. (Can you invest in dividend yielding stocks over the interim period).
Perhaps you can also make some arrangements to reduce debts and payment amounts for a while. Good luck. Sorry to hear about your difficulties.
If your expenses will allow $400k to last until age 70, then retiring may be a viable option. Your big unknown will be medical. What will insurance cost you? At this point, you should be able to collect unemployment. That will give you time to run your numbers while reducing the amount you need to pull from your retirement funds. You have multiple scenarios to run to see what gives you your most viable option.
I wanted to work until I was 70, which the experts say I could get the best bang for my buck in Social Security. My wife and I figured that if we both retired at age 70 we could live on Social Security and anything else we had saved would be extra.
But the company both of us worked for laid off a good number of it's staff and we were both laid off the same day. Both of us are 61 and can't collect SS for another year.
We have $400K saved, should we just retire and move to a place with a very low cost of living?
(They say it is nearly impossible to find another full time job at our age unless you have unique skills.)
Anyone here face a layoff before you were ready to retire? What did you do?
Retire.
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