Poll:How old are you?

[martyb]

55 now, and plan to be retired prior to 56 (birthday is in January).

 

[jkern]

55 (retired at 51 and have no regrets)

 

[OAG]

72.

 

[novaman]

49. Had enough to stop 2 years ago but I love what I do, plus I still have two kids in high school so I might as well keep working.

 

[RobLJ]

54. Retiring in the 50s or at any point before the Social Security age is "early retirement" in my book. But all are free to define early differently.
While the emphasis here is early, I think the principles of retirement discussed here are generalizable to late or on-time retirement. Early is ideological or aspirational or reality for some/most, but to me the value is how to prepare for retirement, whether early or late.

 

[scrinch]

Shoot. I had intended to celebrate my 20,000 days alive back in June, but I forgot all about it. Now I'm going to have to wait another 14 years to celebrate 25,000!

 

[traineeinvestor]

Another forum where everyone claims to be over 18?

Including me .... 47 and retiring next month.

 

[NW-Bound]

I missed this poll when it was first posted. Just voted. Right at the mode of the distribution.

So, 70% of forum users are over 50. I had suspected that, as this community seems not to skew toward EARLY retirement. (I don't know if retirement in one's 50's and 60's can be considered particularly "early".) Seems like the forum has become more of a general retirement forum, which I suppose is fine.

Bite your tongue! My wife retired in her early 50s. I myself worked part-time the last 10 years, but only quit for real last year. It took us this long to make sure our children finished college, got good jobs, and launched without being boomerangs.

In the economy ahead, if a person can retire for any amount of time before he/she drops, that's early. I recently ran across two articles that I would like to share. We are all fortunate here!

Excerpt 1 (Japan hits record high numbers of workers above age 60 - The Japan Daily Press):

Japan’s number of workers aged 60 years and above reached record highs in 2012. Japan’s elderly workers – numbering at 11.92 million in 2012 – make up almost 20 percent of the country’s workforce.​

Excerpt 2 (More elderly workers in U.S. labor force | Morning Show - Home):

Nearly one in five Americans ages 65 and older are working or looking for jobs. That's the highest in almost half a century.
​

 

[friar1610]

I'm old (68). But I wasn't old when I retired 10 years ago at 58. I still feel pretty much the same now as Idid then.

 

[martyb]

Turned 55 in January of this year (2013). I WILL be retired BEFORE my 56th birthday...!

 

[retire2020]

48 now and will be 49 in Oct. Planning to retire when I'm 55.

 

[haha]

Purron, that is one of my favorite songs from the Byrds.

Me too. I also first saw them sing it in spring 1967 at Santa Monica Civic. It was the first rock concert I went to, and I was amazed at the volume. My jeans were buzzing. After that I always took ear plugs. I thought if this can set up waves in my pants, I'm scared what it might do in my ears.

Never been another songwriter like Bob Dylan.

Ha

 

[HFWR]

Me too. I also first saw them sing it in spring 1967 at Santa Monica Civic. It was the first rock concert I went to, and I was amazed at the volume. My jeans were buzzing. After that I always took ear plugs. I thought if this can set up waves in my pants, I'm scared what it might do in my ears.

Never been another songwriter like Bob Dylan.

Ha

Never saw the Byrds, but have seen Roger McGuinn twice in the years since. Dylan twice as well...

 

[heirloom]

63

 

[pb4uski]

So, 70% of forum users are over 50. I had suspected that, as this community seems not to skew toward EARLY retirement. (I don't know if retirement in one's 50's and 60's can be considered particularly "early".) Seems like the forum has become more of a general retirement forum, which I suppose is fine.

Interesting, I retired at age 56 about 18 months ago and almost everyone I see who learns that I am retired is amazed that I would be retired at such a young age and I am by far the youngest of the retired guys that I golf with. When she first heard my SIL exclaimed "You're too young to retire".

 

[scrabbler1]

So, 70% of forum users are over 50. I had suspected that, as this community seems not to skew toward EARLY retirement. (I don't know if retirement in one's 50's and 60's can be considered particularly "early".) Seems like the forum has become more of a general retirement forum, which I suppose is fine.

If this poll were to be done again, I would suggest using 5-year age ranges instead of 10-year ranges. This would split the large 50(51?)-60 interval into two parts, 51-55 and 56-60. I have seen benefit package descriptions which include age 55 as a key plateau for becoming eligible for pension benefits, taking 401k distributions, and becoming elgible for retiree medical benefits, so potential early retirees have an incentive to stick around until they reach 55.

 

[Mike Piper]

29. I just like talking about Social Security.

 

[Bestwifeever]

63

Or as I call it for myself, 21 for the third time.

 

[Koogie]

14,684 days old. That may change around midnight.

 

[Larro Darro]

I'm 52 & 206/365ths. For people my age, 67 is the full retirement age for SS. I feel that if I was to retire at 58 or 60, that would be early. With folks living longer, that would still be 25 years of retirement.

 

[iam21177]

37