Posted on 06/25/2018 4:28:51 PM PDT by A Cyrenian
I retired last September and was surprised at how quickly the time goes by. There are no Mondays and everyday is the weekend. I quickly fell into a good routine of exercise, music activities, Audible and Kindle book learning, and greyhound rescue volunteer work with my wife. Never try to get useful information from the Social Security Administration over the phone. Only the people in the offices have a clue regarding the laws. Once you are debt and mortgage free and the kids are on their own its amazing how much less you really need to live well.
I have an eighty year old woman working for me. It’s phone work, so she doesn’t need to move quickly.
When I asked what she was still working for, she told me she puts it all away for her nieces and nephews wedding, graduations, and great babies.
Every couple weeks she’ll pull an afternoon-overnight double.
I just shake my head. I am 58 and I am counting the days.
I’m not one that buys into having enough saved to live the 4% rule. That seems ridiculous to me, you die with more money then you retired with. Make a budget on a spread sheet, adjust for inflation and social security income. Maybe front load it a bit, you’ll spend more in the years before 70 then you will after. Project it out as far as you can. Then stick to your budget. If you last past 80, your good. We plan to retire next year at 58. Remember that most benefits are are income based, not asset based. We have no debt and a reasonable 401k. But our key is that we saved as much cash as possible. Now we can completely control our income.
Who says you have to stop moving when you retire?
Everyday is a weekend. You will have so much to do you will wonder how you were previously able to cram it all into two days when you now have a whole week and it still cant get done.
Retire TO something.
I try to believe what im told, that my finances are nothing worthy of concern as the market dithers through what are supposed to be grest economic times.
You are free. Go where you want to go to live and dont let anyone else influence you. Do it now, while you have the energy, not later when you are stuck.
If you are just now asking for suggestions you have not done enough homework.
Why retire?
1 - Because I no longer enjoyed my work.
2 - Because I can afford to retire.
3 - I have more time to be of service to others.
4 - I can’t “do what I want” if I’m putting in 40 hrs/wk elsewhere.
5 - I have plenty to keep me busy, AND I like a flexible nap schedule.
Only if you're waiting on my table..........Which you will be once you find out you can't afford to retire.
If you enjoy working, then it’s good for you. Working forever isn’t the dream or goal for everyone (it’s not for me), but kudos to you that you know what you want. Others also know what they want. Not everyone is a slug in retirement.
Amen.
You say you have your health insurance covered, but you might look into Christian HealthCare Ministries. https://www.chministries.org/default.aspx It costs only $300 a month for my wife and I which was a huge savings for us and the coverage for catastrophic illness or injuries is much better than what we had.
There's an app for that...actually there are several.
This one has been recommended, check it out
If you have health insurance at work take full advantage of it to get wellness exams.
My last one lead to an early prostate cancer diagnosis that then lead to an easy procedure to fix it.
Can I ask if you are 65 or 66? I’d love to retire but I’m sure I can’t afford the health insurance.
It was addition by subtraction for me.
Hopefully, you own your own home. Be prepared to live frugally. Drink California jug wine (which outscores French table wines in taste tests)rather than the $20 buck bottle. You will find that you need eat only twice a day. If you’ve always left shopping to mama be prepared to be a wise (and not an impetuous) buyer. Check the local newspaper and weeklies for bargains. If your house or car needs repairs check with local non-profit organizations; they are accustomed to working frugally and usually know the good guys and gals. If you are a computer fanatic take your time to find a repair shop you can work with. Don’t be afraid to visit the second-hand shops (you can, for example, save a ton of money on mens shoes). If you have never been a joiner, be one. In my area I know there are motorcycle clubs, chess clubs, art classes, literature classes, writing classes, etc., etc., etc. Finally, if you are a gardener, stay in touch with the FR gardeners who exchange news every Saturday. Hope this helps.
Sell out everything, buy a nice sailboat and leave while you can.
I posted a similar thread here about 9 months ago. I did it, great decision ... listen to your fellow Freepers.
Move to a conservative state that has low housing costs and lots of rural space
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