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What is the minimum net worth you feel is comfortable?
Does age play a factor?
Are expectations of help from blood relatives not excluding children a factor?
Some of us today are thinking of retiring early- but define early.
Others who thought they were ripe for retirement and retired find themselves getting out of retirement to seek jobs.
PS: Wishful thinking; could some just pay all bills so I could enjoy life till death. I want to visit the "sun", drink palm wine from Ghana, listen to folk stories from Ireland, explore the hidden treasures of Palestine, be chased by the anacondas of Argentina, last but not the least marry a lady from the Philippines who would dine with me on the shores of South Africa not worried both how successful our children may turn out to be because they would no bills to pay.
Alias what a dream, I have to worry about my savings, tax collected from me to fight battles which do not concern me, feed some of those unjustly lazy ( not all are lazy or unjust) welfare recipients, take care of myself and pay this ever growing bills. I know what you may be saying, "That's life in the present century". Oh my, I wish my dreams could reach me before I am buried with all these bills.
Would I be able to retire young? I ponder. As a matter of fact, social security is draining in Geometric progression and I'm uncertain there would anyone to take care of me when I reach two hundred. Forgive I just had to say this, I can't see myself in a coffin as of yet.I know this world is not mine but I prefer to socialized with ungrateful individuals than to socialize with the death.
The right time to retire is when based on knowledge of your financial needs, you have protected those parts of your life to the extent you want to protect them with the income from work.
Do you know what your expenses in retirement will be?
What is your retirement income?
Do they matc?
Have you considered how you will handle various scenarious like, ill health, downturn in the stock market (if you are living on investments), increase in costs such as property taxes, etc?
Based on your genes and health, consider your expected lifetime and how each decade might be spent. Have you provided sufficiently to be as comfortable as you need to be? Not want to be but need to be?
Every person will answer differently. Some will have a plan, some will just momentarily think about it, and some never plan or even consider the future but live day to day.
We have taken considerable time to lay out our plans and options in retirement. We have budgeted for over 20 years and all our decisions are made from a basis of this vast knowledge. We have plans for activities to replace work that do not revolve around TV. There is no absolute certainty but as far as we can, we are ready for it and retirement is 400 days away.
I knew too many people who worked until their health began to fail. I knew a number who died shortly after retiring. A friend had a son die at age 35 from a sudden heart attack last week. We decided to go as soon as we could so we could enjoy ourselves while we can.
But, the downside of that is with gas at three bucks a gallon and milk at four retirement on a "fixed" income is getting more difficult on a weekly basis.
We were government workers and got five weeks a year vacation and we took a lot of trips. Now we have all the time to travel but cannot afford to travel as much as we did when we were working.
You dont have to attend a class but I can recommend a book. Your Money or Your Life, is an oldy but a goody. There is even a website, www.simpleliving.net, that has a good forum and a lot of information on simple living.
First you need to get a handle on your income coming in and expenses going out. Pay yourself first and start saving. Set up an emergency fund and start planning for the future.
Then go to the library and start reading the books. I would stay away from anything that is "get rich quick". Read the Millionaire Next Door.
Write down your plans, budgets, etc. in a life book that you keep updated with new ideas and new plans and goals.
Remember that everyone is an individual and you will needs to consider your own future goals. Remember that they will change over time and that is good. You will gain more understanding of what you want and how to get it.
We are a success story. We have saved 1/3 of our income for over 35 years of marriage. Lived well and traveled. Now we are set for retirement and further enjoyment but we can look back and say if we could not travel, we will have missed nothing. Balance in everything.
What is the minimum net worth you feel is comfortable?
Does age play a factor?
Are expectations of help from blood relatives not excluding children a factor?
I worked a career with a 20-yr pension, so we set our time-table to that pension. We took course on taxesd and learned how to cut our taxes, took classes on budgeting and living frugal, and we invested heavily.
We targeted at a Net Worth of $1million, we did not achieve it however. We got within 10% of that target. During the last months before my retirement ceremony, we decided that it was close enough.
I do not see age as being a factor in your 'ability' to retire.
Rather age is a factor in determining your retirement lifestyle. Once arthritis, and slip-discs, and poor eye-sight, and loss of hearing all begin to settle in, it would restrict what types of things you could enjoy in your retirement.
We have no expectations of assistance from any of our relatives.
Quote:
... Some of us today are thinking of retiring early- but define early.
Others who thought they were ripe for retirement and retired find themselves getting out of retirement to seek jobs.
I retired at 42.
I have been on pension for six years.
I have been offered corporate jobs, though I see no need to accept any of those offers.
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Forgive I just had to say this, I can't see myself in a coffin as of yet.I know this world is not mine but I prefer to socialized with ungrateful individuals than to socialize with the death.
