Did you retire at the right time?

[Music Lover]

And some of those people may run out of money later in life.

Maybe or maybe not. Some of the people that said that also said that they have more money now then when they retired.

I know some people who stayed past when they had maxed out their pension...basically working full time for a few extra hundred a month. At least one of them says that it was a waste of 2 good years of his life.

One of my friends left too early and took a big hit to his pension. Now he has to pinch pennies and regrets leaving early.

I took a year of leave and never went back, but that year got me to the magic age of 55 where I could then collect my pension without penalty. So I left at the right time.

 

[euro]

I went at 56 - probably about right, even with the benefit of hindsight now.... well, maybe I should have gone a year sooner..... wouldn't want to confess to being COMPLETELY satisfied

 

[Andre1969]

If everything goes my way, I'm going to retire in April 2021, at the age of 51. Years down the road, if I'm sitting on a lot more money than I thought I'd ever had, I might start regretting a bit, that I didn't retire earlier. But, at this point I figure I'd rather have too much, instead of not enough, and end up having to go back to w*rk or worse, having it run out when I'm too old to really be employable.

There actually is a good chance that I'll end up in the "too much money" side of things. I'm the sole beneficiary of my uncle's estate, as he has no kids of his own, and I'm also set to receive a pretty good inheritance from my Mom and stepdad. I'm an only child and he never had kids, but they set it up so that I get half of everything, his sister gets a quarter, and his brother gets a quarter. I don't use either of these inheritances in any financial planning, though. My uncle isn't all that healthy, and I could see him running up some pretty big medical bills, although he's been pretty good so far. And, anything could happen with my Mom and stepdad. She could die first and then he changes the will, or they could end up hitting some big medical bills, as well. All I know, though, is that they actually have more saved up now than they did when they retired back in 2011. They don't even spend all of their pension checks, so they're still accumulating even in retirement!

But, again, I'd rather err on the side of caution, rather than count on something that may or may not happen.

Also, if I fall victim to one more year syndrome, and go out at 52 instead of 51, but then look back and realize I didn't need to, I don't think I'd regret it too much. But, with each passing year, I think I would regret it a bit more.

 

[Midpack]

Maybe or maybe not. Some of the people that said that also said that they have more money now then when they retired.

So what. At least financially we’re only speculating until the end. Your nest egg may grow and you’re flush and very happy for 25 years. Then the market drops out like never before and you live to be 110. Financially we can only guess for now...

 

[RobbieB]

I thought that I retired a bit too late, but at the rate I'm blowing dough now I think it was the proper time.

 

[HI Bill]

...is there any value to an answer to this question here? And could anyone really provide an answer before the end of their life?

If the aim of the question relates to quality of life, remaining health, and being able to do what you want to do before your health starts to fail, I find great value in the question. Whether you run out of $ or not is a separate question, assuming you've planned for 100% success to age 100, IMHO.

My goal is to do extensive dive travel for at least a decade. If I waited to 65, I'm sure it would have been too late to fully enjoy it. My goal was 50, now 54 (next year).

 

[Offgrid Organic Farmer]

Did you retire at the right time?

At exactly the right time

I knew years in advance the month/year that they were going to kick me out onto pension, so we worked to time our investments to be ready for us when that happened.

 

[UnrealizedPotential]

Maybe a bit too early. I left at age 46 and that was 3 years ago, but so far so good. I have a pension waiting for me if my plan is in danger which I can tap soon, but I don't want to take it this early and so far it's likely I won't have to. I can tap into my t-IRA, roth IRA age 59.5, and SS after that. I think everything will be fine.

 

[joeea]

Maybe or maybe not.

Yup. That's what the word "may" means in that context.

 

[joeea]

If the aim of the question relates to quality of life, remaining health, and being able to do what you want to do before your health starts to fail, I find great value in the question. Whether you run out of $ or not is a separate question, assuming you've planned for 100% success to age 100, IMHO.

My goal is to do extensive dive travel for at least a decade. If I waited to 65, I'm sure it would have been too late to fully enjoy it. My goal was 50, now 54 (next year).

I guess I didn't see that "aim" in the question.

I agree if you dismiss the potential of running out of money later in life, and concentrate solely on quality of life, remaining health, and having fun, then of course it makes sense that most would say they either retired on time or not early enough.

 

[SecondCor521]

There probably was a poll about this but I've never seen one. Did you retire at the right time, or:

Way too early
A little too early
At the right time
A little too late
Way too late

I did a poll that was similar to your question:

http://www.early-retirement.org/for...-too-early-too-late-or-about-right-96015.html

 

[Dalmore]

When I was just turning 30, I set a goal of being FI by the time I was 55. I wanted to be in a position to tell MegaCorp to go pound sand if I didn't like what I was doing, and not be worried about finances. During the first part of this year, at several extended family gatherings, several people asked me if I was retired/when I would be retiring. It got me thinking that I needed to start going over the numbers. Turns out that we are already FI and I am only 53. DW and I just set a date that works for both of us. I think we will retire at just the right time.

 

[Navigator]

I loved my job, but in retrospect retired a few years too late. I was 61 and had health problems that were getting worse. I now wish I had a few relatively healthy retirement years and worried less about money and health insurance.

 

[NYEXPAT]

I retired at 33/34 and probably was to early compared to everyone here. 30+ years later, it seems right although I can not keep up with my Decamillionaire friends!

 

[Octogirl]

Many good comments here.
I think I am retiring too late - I loved my job until I did not. I will retire Dec 15 2019.

Three of my friends retired in May and the culture is growing more toxic.

Use to have lunch or chat with others at work but now it feels very competitive.



I have to come to accept that I like earning money (which is why I am still working) but need to adjust to this new period when I really don't need to. As my DH says "You're going to be rich in the graveyard ! " He's already FIRE.

 

[Dtail]

I retired at 33/34 and probably was to early compared to everyone here. 30+ years later, it seems right although I can not keep up with my Decamillionaire friends!

Don't know any decamillionaires or at least not that I am aware of.
No problem for me.

 

[aja8888]

Don't know any decamillionaires or at least not that I am aware of.
No problem for me.

We know one that has gone through a costly divorce and their kids are all screwed up (drugs, prison).

 

[CardsFan]

I have to come to accept that I like earning money (which is why I am still working) but need to adjust to this new period when I really don't need to. As my DH says "You're going to be rich in the graveyard ! " He's already FIRE.

The concept of giving up the paycheck (and bonuses, stock options, etc.) is hard.

I saw a former co-worker last week. We are about the same age. He was talking about his golden handcuffs (moved to a new employer, 5 years to vest in ESOP). He vests in 16 months, but his concern was that every year, the handcuffs appear in the spring (hey, 9 more months and I get $xxx).

My comment, no matter when you FIRE, you will leave something on the table. You just need to decide if you are now working for your retirement, or your kids.

 

[Koolau]

I could have retired earlier (perhaps 7 years) but chose to stay because I had achieved an assignment that I had essentially envisioned and also made happen. Virtually the day that assignment was taken away, I retired. I don't have any regrets, so I guess it was the right time, but YMMV.

 

[tb001]

Not yet RE, but I really appreciate the question. Many of the responses have made me be more thoughtful about factors other than the $.

While we may not know if a retirement decision is a financial success until the end, the emotional and social factors can certainly play a role in timing. With young children and aging parents, I vacillate between being as sure as possible financially and wanting to maximize time with loved ones while I can.

 

[lwp2017]

Retired as planned 16 months ago at 55.

I wake up every morning feeling like I won the big door prize !

Knowingly left big bonus money on the table and associated high stress.

Have not been bored once.

 

[Jeffman52]

I have not retired yet, but feel I am late....

On a serious note, DW and I just found out that her sisters husband has been diagnosed with Early Onset Dementia. Has us both re-assessing a lot of things.

And, by the way, I think this was a great question, as do apparently many others based on the number of responses!

I think I'm in the same boat. I have a plan to retire that I plan (2022) to stick with. My DW on the other hand rolls her eyes at me when I mention getting out early. Matter of fact I said something at lunch today and she said, well it depends on how the market is doing or something like that. I smiled and said "Well we can adjust the budget but we cant buy more time".

 

[HI Bill]

My DW on the other hand rolls her eyes at me when I mention getting out early. ...well it depends on how the market is doing or something like that. I smiled and said "Well we can adjust the budget but we cant buy more time".

+1. I told my wife (after 4 years of OMY), that I'm retiring in January, whether the markets tank 50% or not. We have 3 years of living expenses in cash, and will be selling the condo, which could be used for another 3 years of expenses if the market took a 6-year fall. I'm really concerned that health may start to fail by age 60, or at least my energy level will (already diminishing at 53), so I need to go diving!

 

[Ted_Shepherd]

Nearly 80 now, I retired at 53 in 1993. These years in retirement have been quite wonderful for me with the obvious drawbacks: people I loved have died off, and my health is deteriorating. I'm glad I didn't work any longer. There have been no financial problems for me, these 26 years later. I married for the first time in my life in 2017, after the Obergefell decision made same-sex marriage legal. I'm happy in my marriage with the one drawback: he is much younger than I am, and I'm likely to run out on him by dying years before he does.

 

[Teacher Terry]

Ted, same sex marriage was long overdue. Sounds like a good retirement.