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DH retired from NPS LEO at 53 - he is now 62 soon to be 63. He got his real estate license in AZ and did very well in it in the early years of retirement - Was there to help his elderly mom with Dr appointments - helping at a Church camp. I got a promotion in 2018 and moved back to TX. He joined me in 2019. Over the past 4 years, he traveled back to AZ a lot with Mom's issues as she aged, and we have rentals in AZ too. His Mom moved in with us in August, as she needed cardiac rehab and since he was retired, he could take her back and forth for that. She went downhill once here - fell, went to ER - no brain bleed, but seemed to just exist. Fought her meds, didn't read, didn't crochet, didn't knit - just sat there. She got so bad we called Blue Cross call a nurse, she said to call 911 ambulance came and took her to hospital. She had an infection that they were looking for as no antibiotics worked, many tests - found pancreatitis cancer all over. She wasn't well enough for biopsy, so she was discharged to Hospice at our house. She passed a week later. Thank God he is retired so he can help clean out her house.
I retired at 51, 13 years ago. DH was 56. We haven't had time to get bored. First, we worked on our house for a year getting it ready to sell and clearing out "stuff". We moved cross country. Had to get new stuff, fix up new house, meet new people, join new hobbies and clubs, find new doctors, etc. So, all that kept us busy for a few years. Then we bought an investment property, fixed it up, maintain it regularly, etc. Now we're settled and have been having fun and traveling. There are always things to do, so no reason to get bored. Financially we're better off than before retirement, so no complaints. No regrets at all.
Too many think they will do the same things for their entire retirement. Hobbies change. Desires change. What you do at 50 most likely won't be what you do at 65. What you do at 65 will probably change at 80.
The age doesn't matter as much as being open to trying new things.
Great point. I am so tired of reading: "Retirement is doing the same things you did before, except work". Maybe if you're lucky. I can't do any of my former hobbies due to bad joints. Never anticipated this---had retirement hobbies all planned out. Not a one panned out.
So, baking bread and reading and being bored.
You are much better off if you retire at 50-ish. We were in perfect physical shape then. 60s was downhill.
I was kayaking white-water, hiking cliff edges, snorkeling, riding my horse, gardening.....all that was great in my 50s.
Now at 68, just "staring out to sea", lol. Which is wonderful, but.....
50-55 is becoming a canonical range for early retirement... the upper bound of the much-vaunted FIRE movement, and the lower bound of conventional retirement, in an age where healthcare considerations give much consternation to those without a W2, who are younger than 65.
In that age range, one finds oneself in the workplace, older than the parents of new-hires freshly out of college, and yet, sometimes a full generation younger than the most stalwart hangers-on. The kids make one feel spent, wizened and ready for the scrap-heap. The elders give one pause, embarrassing one into staying another year, and another.
Most galling is sense of opportunity cost: if one retires now, one foregoes years of additional earnings. Can that be justified? It's not a question of portfolio-size, or safe withdrawal rate, or frugality vs. self-indulgence in retirement. Rather, it's a question of, whether one feels that one is leaving too much on the proverbial table. How to answer that?
I retired at 50 which was almost 33 years ago. No worries our income has grown substantially during retirement much more than I expected. Life is good.
Anyone retire early 50s and regret it because you had way too much free time on your hands? Or did you have plans to keep you busy and how has that worked out?
I retired just shy of 50, plans are to travel full time but part of me hopes I don't get too bored... We will see how it goes.
I didn't retire early 50s I was 58.5. I was planning on another year and a half but the army had other plans. Do I regret it. No. Do I miss it? Yes. I actually enjoyed the job and I miss the people I worked with.
I started golfing then we did some travel and now I do both but having an elderly MIL in the house limits our travel for the moment.
I did - mid 40s. For the first four or so years I did what I had always wanted to do - be a professional student.
I used the military benefits to attend uni and enjoyed that. The best part is that I did not have to worry about my grades cuz I was just doing it for fun!
I retired at 58 and we bought a foreclosure house that took 4 months of full time work to remodel. Then we downsized and sold the other house. About 7 months later I was asked to teach a college course hence my username and that was a new career. I did that for 8 years along with consulting in my previous career.
I was fully retired for 3 years and then a year ago asked to consult again. I book my own clients and work part time when I want to and love it. I travel, have hobbies and do things with my friends too.
I retired at 56 from the forestry profession. Spent a lot of time outdoors before and after retirement.
No regrets.
BUT I learned that the aging process definitely starts to limit your options.
56 to 62 was fine. Never felt like I could NOT do things in the back-country.
62 to 70 was another bump down. Started to realize there were places that I could no longer walk to easily. Parts of the western US that I wanted to see, will never happen.
70 to 73 was another bump down. Now I am starting to miss the 50's!!!. Forget missing the 20's.
I have a friend at 79 and hunted with him this fall. It was pretty bad. Probably his last year bird hunting. He was a forester and in great health. Never did recover from his knee replacement.
My father changed dramatically at 80 and then again at 85. Not looking forward to that.
If you have the flexibility chose your retirement date carefully. Make sure that your able to do the things you want to do in retirement. There is no reason to retire other than that.
Every person I knew that was into the outdoors always that they retired TOO LATE. Some because they had jobs in the outdoors, with little adult supervision, wanted to keep working for the extra funds.
After retirement, they decided they would rather have the time instead of the money.
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