kyounge1956
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2008
- Messages
- 2,171
I'm picking an ER date—or at least an ER month, of May 2013. At that time I'll be eligible for a pension of about $43,975 a year, of which $28,585 is COLA'd. FIRECalc says, a cash stash of $40K should be enough (in 100% of the historical return series) to fill in the difference between my pension and estimated living expenses of $42,195 (equivalent to $36,000 in 2009 dollars) until I'm eligible for full Social Security benefits (about $1970/mo) at age 66+4 months.
After age 66+4, the COLA'd part of the pension plus half of my Social Security, is only about $2000/year short of my estimated expenses, and those two incomes combined should keep up with inflation. Even at a very conservative 2% WR, there's more than enough in my 457 account now to produce that $2K a year. The other half of Social Security, plus any pension remaining in addition to the COLA'd amount, plus any of the cash stash that's left over, plus my Roth IRA, plus whatever growth there is in my 457 between then and now are a big fat safety factor. I'm sure I must have underestimated or forgotten something in my budget, but with that much of a cushion it should all come out OK in the end.
Why May? Because my birthday is in mid-January, so retirement in mid-May puts me an even number of years out from Social Security eligibility. Besides, I'll need to sell my house, and spring is a lot better time to put it on the market than the middle of winter. If my house drops in value as much again over the next few years as it has since 2006, it would evaporate the cash stash, and possibly cause a re-think on the date—unless portfolio growth made up for it.
So...35 more months and then
bye-bye!
After age 66+4, the COLA'd part of the pension plus half of my Social Security, is only about $2000/year short of my estimated expenses, and those two incomes combined should keep up with inflation. Even at a very conservative 2% WR, there's more than enough in my 457 account now to produce that $2K a year. The other half of Social Security, plus any pension remaining in addition to the COLA'd amount, plus any of the cash stash that's left over, plus my Roth IRA, plus whatever growth there is in my 457 between then and now are a big fat safety factor. I'm sure I must have underestimated or forgotten something in my budget, but with that much of a cushion it should all come out OK in the end.
Why May? Because my birthday is in mid-January, so retirement in mid-May puts me an even number of years out from Social Security eligibility. Besides, I'll need to sell my house, and spring is a lot better time to put it on the market than the middle of winter. If my house drops in value as much again over the next few years as it has since 2006, it would evaporate the cash stash, and possibly cause a re-think on the date—unless portfolio growth made up for it.
So...35 more months and then
bye-bye!
