It's a Trap! The Keep W*rking Plan

[Tekward]

Interesting data from Kiplinger:

Consider this: 53% of workers expect to work beyond age 65 to make ends meet, according to the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. Yet, you can't count on being able to bring in a paycheck if you need it. While more than half of today's workers plan to continue working in retirement, just 1 in 5 Americans age 65 and over are actually employed, according to U.S. Department of Labor statistics.

Talk about being set up for failure.

Only 28% of baby boomers surveyed by Transamerica have a backup plan to replace retirement income if unable to continue working.

 

[Lakewood90712]

Interesting data from Kiplinger:

Consider this: 53% of workers expect to work beyond age 65 to make ends meet, ........................................ Only 28% of baby boomers surveyed by Transamerica have a backup plan to replace retirement income if unable to continue working.

Ha, I got 4. Amway , Avon , Marry Kay ( going to get that Pink Cadillac ), and Herbalife. One more, Publishers Clearinghouse.

 

[GravitySucks]

I opened up a position. They can take mine.

 

[Red Badger]

We've got three BU plans.

1. Domestic relo from mod COL area to LCOL area
2. Lake Chapalla
3. Chaing Mai

In that order.

 

[RunningBum]

65 today isn't the 65 of 30 years ago. There's no reason some people couldn't work past 65, if they want or need to.

Not everyone has a goal to retire early.

Some were sloppy with their money, but others had life situations that kept them from saving enough money for retirement.

 

[Walt34]

Some were sloppy with their money, but others had life situations that kept them from saving enough money for retirement.

Indeed. Yesterday at the gym I noticed that a lady on the cleaning staff appeared to be well over 65. It's probably a safe bet that she's not there for the social interaction.

 

[ransil]

Been to walmart lately?
Hope that is not me after retirement

 

[Red Badger]

Indeed. Yesterday at the gym I noticed that a lady on the cleaning staff appeared to be well over 65. It's probably a safe bet that she's not there for the social interaction.

Ditto.

There is a Chik Filet near out hood. It's always slammed. Anyway, really, really, senior guy doing the custodial stuff. I tried to BS myself and think he was there from choice. I really doubt that thought.

 

[RobbieB]

He's adding meaning to his life.

 

[dtbach]

A real problem is that employers love to lay off older well paid employees and replace them with lower cost younger ones. Insurance costs for them are lower as well. They are one recession away from being laid off.

 

[aja8888]

He's adding meaning to his life.

Maybe he is trying to hook up with a younger chic!

 

[Dtail]

Maybe he is trying to hook up with a younger chic!

You mean younger Chik.

 

[Dtail]

We've got three BU plans.

1. Domestic relo from mod COL area to LCOL area
2. Lake Chapalla
3. Chaing Mai

In that order.

First 2 choices are also our choices.

 

[athena53]

And sometimes your body just quits. A dear friend of mine who loved his work (contract IT gigs) and planned to continue indefinitely had a serious stroke at age 64. Fortunately they'd saved money all along and will be OK but his career is over. Two weeks ago I met a lady whose husband was 70 and working two PT jobs. He wanted a FT job but it had to be inside sales because he's got Parkinson's.

In some ways it was good for me to see my Dad get "demoted" from a very good job after a merger at age 58. (He and Mom had also saved and landed on their feet.) It made me realize that you don't always get to choose when your career ends.

 

[TwoByFour]

We've got three BU plans.

1. Domestic relo from mod COL area to LCOL area
2. Lake Chapalla
3. Chaing Mai

In that order.

I vote for Chaing Mai! Wonderful place, I can see why it is on your short list!

 

[TwoByFour]

Some were sloppy with their money, but others had life situations that kept them from saving enough money for retirement.

That would be my SIL. Age 72, still working. Has very little savings, no back up plan, no kids. DW and I are her closest relatives so I can see the writing on the wall; we aren't gonna let her end up on the street. Not sure what exactly will happen, we get along OK but not well enough that she could live in a spare bedroom or anything. She used to work for a famous musician, household name, very wealthy, and they are still friends. I am hoping she comes to the rescue.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

That would be my SIL. Age 72, still working. Has very little savings, no back up plan, no kids. DW and I are her closest relatives so I can see the writing on the wall; we aren't gonna let her end up on the street. Not sure what exactly will happen, we get along OK but not well enough that she could live in a spare bedroom or anything. She used to work for a famous musician, household name, very wealthy, and they are still friends. I am hoping she comes to the rescue.

A relative like that was one of my initial reasons to start researching low cost living. I got kind of intrigued and we have used some of the ideas for ourselves just to lower our withdrawal rate.

There are people we know and care about with no retirement savings. I don't want to see them homeless but also don't want to move them into one of our spare bedrooms so that is something I think about as well. I watch videos on tiny houses and solar cabins partly for that reason.

 

[corn18]

My backup plan and maybe even something I would do even if I didn't need the money: pet sitter / walker. Our guy is fantastic and makes enough to be meaningful. Write your own schedule and have fun playing with everyone's pets. Win Win to me.

 

[TwoByFour]

There are people we know and care about with no retirement savings. I don't want to see them homeless but also don't want to move them into one of our spare bedrooms so that is something I think about as well. I watch videos on tiny houses and solar cabins partly for that reason.

I am thinking a yurt will work. Weather here is mild (Hawaii). We have the space.

 

[marko]

There's always Uber!

Seriously, most of us here were able to stop working with some level of certainty.

The harsh reality, as I found out personally, is that once you're over 55-60, your chances of getting a 'real' job are pretty slim; that's how you end up at Chick Fila.

If for some reason you lose that $100K management job at 58 and you have nothing financially to back you up, you're in deep doo doo friend.

Another thread talks about a percentage of folk who are bankrupted by health issues. I suspect there's a larger group out there who got blindsided by having to suddenly find a new job at 55.

In reality people shouldn't be saving for retirement at 65, they should be saving in case they can't find work again at 50.

I had a stellar resume, a huge name in the industry and thousands of contacts. At 53, I never even got a chance for an interview outside of two courtesy meets. When the recruiter you hire tells you to leave the year you graduated college off your resume, you know it's real.

Not every ER is voluntary. Mine wasn't, not by any stretch but I was [-]lucky[/-] smart enough to have planned ahead.

 

[foxfirev5]

Yeah, I was lucky enough to realize age is an issue early in my career. At age 24 I was on the corporate chopping block but was saved when my boss told me they "cutting the old dead wood" first. I never forgot that experience and made sure I was ready to move on by the time I was 53.

 

[mystang52]

There's always Uber!

Seriously, most of us here were able to stop working with some level of certainty.

The harsh reality, as I found out personally, is that once you're over 55-60, your chances of getting a 'real' job are pretty slim; that's how you end up at Chick Fila.

If for some reason you lose that $100K management job at 58 and you have nothing financially to back you up, you're in deep doo doo friend.

Another thread talks about a percentage of folk who are bankrupted by health issues. I suspect there's a larger group out there who got blindsided by having to suddenly find a new job at 55.

In reality people shouldn't be saving for retirement at 65, they should be saving in case they can't find work again at 50.

I had a stellar resume, a huge name in the industry and thousands of contacts. At 53, I never even got a chance for an interview outside of two courtesy meets. When the recruiter you hire tells you to leave the year you graduated college off your resume, you know it's real.

Not every ER is voluntary. Mine wasn't, not by any stretch but I was [-]lucky[/-] smart enough to have planned ahead.

Couldn't agree more. I lost a high-paying j*b at age 52. I ultimately landed on my feet, albeit with a pay cut, but that was the first time I realized that 52 is old. I also had been unable to even get interviews for positions I was clearly qualified for. Scary time, and ironically it was the first time I realized that ER was feasible even at that point.

 

[Dtail]

There's always Uber!

Seriously, most of us here were able to stop working with some level of certainty.

The harsh reality, as I found out personally, is that once you're over 55-60, your chances of getting a 'real' job are pretty slim; that's how you end up at Chick Fila.

If for some reason you lose that $100K management job at 58 and you have nothing financially to back you up, you're in deep doo doo friend.

Another thread talks about a percentage of folk who are bankrupted by health issues. I suspect there's a larger group out there who got blindsided by having to suddenly find a new job at 55.

In reality people shouldn't be saving for retirement at 65, they should be saving in case they can't find work again at 50.

I had a stellar resume, a huge name in the industry and thousands of contacts. At 53, I never even got a chance for an interview outside of two courtesy meets. When the recruiter you hire tells you to leave the year you graduated college off your resume, you know it's real.

Not every ER is voluntary. Mine wasn't, not by any stretch but I was [-]lucky[/-] smart enough to have planned ahead.

+1
Same setup for me at age 56 yo, except took a package as the first package is usually the best one, plus at that time I figured I could definitely get another job even if at a deep pay cut.
Didn't happen and I stumbled on this site and many retirement calculators and realized I could FIRE.
Some luck and some savings.....

 

[HadEnuff]

As a self employed dentist, I don't think I truly appreciated the luxury of never having to fire myself, or lay myself off. Where I worked, the economy was not always great, in fact it fluctuated from "OK" to "pretty darn bad". Many of my patients ,friends and neighbors lost their jobs over the years, and had to pack up and move away in hopes of finding work elsewhere.

I would grouse about all of the headaches that I wouldn't have if I were in the middle of a large company, but of course, a lot of that was just "the grass is always greener" thinking.

As I got later in my career, I realized that one wonderful aspect of my position was that I could keep going, quit, or gradually wind down (as long as I stayed healthy). I truly feel for the folks who become victims of age discrimination.

 

[Surewhitey]

They are one recession away from being laid off.

Take me, take me!!