Nervous - but plotting retirement

[MarieIG]

Hi All,

Like many I have been lurking here for quite a while. I feel like I know many of you. I am 56, DH is 57. We both work way too many hours at stressful jobs, and have both dealt with health issues. We've raised six kiddos and are hopefully in the home stretch. They are not all completely off the dole, but the majority of kid related expenses are behind us. We live in a high cost-of-living-taxes-are-choking-us-area, and anticipate that we will need to cut costs and eventually relocate to make things work. I started working late (due to the six aforementioned kiddos). I'm more of the saver (and worrier) and DH the spender (and everything will be fine guy). The issue for me will be (eventually) figuring out an income stream. Yes, I did do fire-calculator, and if we set a reasonable budget we should be o.k.

Our next move - should be - selling our house but (with working 6-7 days a week) that task seems overwhelming. We have two house now, one inherited from my parents. Our house is in pretty rough shape, and stuffed. We would move into my parents house for now, and put the proceeds from the sale of the marital house, into an untouchable "house account" until we are ready to move.

I am always ready to listen to advise - but please be kind.

 

[haha]

Hi All,

Like many I have been lurking here for quite a while. I feel like I know many of you. I am 56, DH is 57. We both work way too many hours at stressful jobs, and have both dealt with health issues. We've raised six kiddos and are hopefully in the home stretch. They are not all completely off the dole, but the majority of kid related expenses are behind us. We live in a high cost-of-living-taxes-are-choking-us-area, and anticipate that we will need to cut costs and eventually relocate to make things work. I started working late (due to the six aforementioned kiddos). I'm more of the saver (and worrier) and DH the spender (and everything will be fine guy). The issue for me will be (eventually) figuring out an income stream. Yes, I did do fire-calculator, and if we set a reasonable budget we should be o.k.

Our next move - should be - selling our house but (with working 6-7 days a week) that task seems overwhelming. We have two house now, one inherited from my parents. Our house is in pretty rough shape, and stuffed. We would move into my parents house for now, and put the proceeds from the sale of the marital house, into an untouchable "house account" until we are ready to move.

I am always ready to listen to advise - but please be kind.

First of all, big props to you and hubby for raising six children. If you can do that, you will be able to do most anything else with your eyes shut.

Ha

 

[MarieIG]

Ha - I remember you like to dance. Hubby owes me some dance lessons when we retire!

 

[Ready]

My only advice is to relax and don't stress out. Enjoy the process and trust that it will all work out fine. It always does.

 

[Katiek]

Welcome. There aren't many details in your post, so not much to critique, but it sounds like you're planning properly. As you know, your costs are key, and your willingness to relocate to reduce costs can have a big impact.

 

[Golden sunsets]

Perhaps some of the six kiddos could help you declutter and prepare your home(s) for sale. If you are like many(including ourselves) when the kiddos left they left much of their "stuff" behind. Many years ago, we heard of a local couple, well known and respected in the community, who when selling there house, informed their four grown children, that all of their "things" we're being moved to a storage unit, which the parents would pay for, for 1year. At the end of that year, anything not retrieved would be "donated/heaved" and the storage unit relinquished. I have always thought that a humorous but wise approach


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[imoldernu]

Perhaps some of the six kiddos could help you declutter and prepare your home(s) for sale. If you are like many(including ourselves) when the kiddos left they left much of their "stuff" behind. Many years ago, we heard of a local couple, well known and respected in the community, who when selling there house, informed their four grown children, that all of their "things" we're being moved to a storage unit, which the parents would pay for, for 1year. At the end of that year, anything not retrieved would be "donated/heaved" and the storage unit relinquished. I have always thought that a humorous but wise approach��

+1... We're at the other end of the scale... where our kids will get our three little homes... Lake Griffin Harbor Florida, and here in Illinois, our Woodhaven Lakes campground and Liberty Village villa.
Event the distant thought of having to wade through 80+ years of accumulating "stuff" boggles the mind. We "compartmentalize", and the kids know that when the time comes, they can wander through and pick out what they like. Then, for a net cost of about $15,000, the rest will go to waste management, goodwill or the salvation army.

My soul would bleed if I had to declutter this myself.

.........................................................................................

A different situation, when one is at the other end, with the full responsibility of making the changeover. Am truly sorry that I can't help with any positive advice... It will be a long haul, but keep the end goal in sight. This too shall pass, and when Retirement comes, the rewards will be great!!!.

 

[Nightcap]

Congratulations! At age 56 we bought another home. At age 58, having moved everything we needed (and some of what we wanted), we called Pete's Rubbish Removal and the realtor. We sold the house to flippers for more than we expected, and let the pros handle the renovations and updates the house needed. And then we retired. We figured we had enough for a modest retirement, but we were quickly running out of time.

Now 60, still nervously running the numbers, but in better financial shape than ever.

Of course, a meteorite might hit just off the Eastern shore, the resulting tsunami washing away both the political and financial capitals, doom, destruction, and despair... but we live on a sandbar so it's doubtful we'll still be around to care. In the meantime, life is good. I recommend it!

 

[MarieIG]

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome. Imoldernu - (tried to quote, didn't work out) I totally get this. The bleeding is for my parents home. I am the only child, and when I finally moved out lived down the block from my parents. Saw or talked to them every day. They were always there for us. After they passed I was devastated, and basically couldn't toss anything for two years. It is still full of mementos from my parents, grandparents and a little from the greats.

 

[vrijheid]

Hi All,



Like many I have been lurking here for quite a while. I feel like I know many of you. I am 56, DH is 57. We both work way too many hours at stressful jobs, and have both dealt with health issues. We've raised six kiddos and are hopefully in the home stretch. They are not all completely off the dole, but the majority of kid related expenses are behind us. We live in a high cost-of-living-taxes-are-choking-us-area, and anticipate that we will need to cut costs and eventually relocate to make things work. I started working late (due to the six aforementioned kiddos). I'm more of the saver (and worrier) and DH the spender (and everything will be fine guy). The issue for me will be (eventually) figuring out an income stream. Yes, I did do fire-calculator, and if we set a reasonable budget we should be o.k.



Our next move - should be - selling our house but (with working 6-7 days a week) that task seems overwhelming. We have two house now, one inherited from my parents. Our house is in pretty rough shape, and stuffed. We would move into my parents house for now, and put the proceeds from the sale of the marital house, into an untouchable "house account" until we are ready to move.



I am always ready to listen to advise - but please be kind.

Hi & welcome Marie IG!!
You will find many helpful people here and a lot of information to begin this process.

It feels overwhelming to consider downsizing and then selling your family home but if you take one room at a time it helps.

I stayed in our large family home for 7 years after my husband passed. My boys were grown and gone. I was too overwhelmed with the thought of getting rid of things. That is until it finally sunk in that these were just things and I was becoming the “keeper of things.” Not fun and no way to live!! Less is definitely more for me!

My son knew a nice young couple who wanted to buy my home so we settled on a price and I told them it would take me at least 6 to 8 months to clean out my house. They were in no hurry and worked out fine for them. We didn’t use a realtor so that saved us both a lot of money. Just used a real estate attorney to finalize all the papers at the end.

Begin the process...be brutal as you get rid of things and see it as
the beginning of a new adventure!

Good luck and come back and give us updates on your progress.

 

[HI Bill]

I find that many are unable to part with things. To me, it's freeing...painful, but freeing. For my Mom, during her divorce, I rented a 10 CY dumpster and filled it with the 200+ bankers boxes from her school teaching days. She could not let go of ANYTHING and was packing everything to put it into storage the day I arrived to help. I threatened to leave instead, and she reluctantly let me throw away stuff. Anyway, OCD hoarders/sentimentalists will need third-party help to declutter. I just went through my Mom's house again after she went to a care facility. 20 CY dumpster filled to the top, furniture to 2 charities, and 4 pickup loads of clothes and household and teaching supplies to the local churches. I kept two small boxes of photos to scan, and nothing else (my wife kept a few kitchen items). Get rid of the second house ASAP...carrying costs are eating up money!

 

[badatmath]

My neighbor just sold to a flipper rather than deal with the repairs needed. I don't know what he got but he was happy and it was fast. He didn't have a clutter problem though, so not a lot of stuff. (Single guy - most important things were TV, sofa, fridge)!