Recent content by vttlarry

Er'd in 2012, but in St. Cloud Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

I have a state pension with limited cola. Wife has no pension but has IRA.

Sorry, hit send by mistake. We view our ira as a self insured hedge in the absence of LTC insurance, and for any really big purchase we might want. Because of our situation, we do not anticipate withdrawals until RMD in about 12 years. If not for the pension, would probably withdraw dividends...

I have been retired for 30 months and my wife for 21 months. We are quite fortunate that my pension alone meets expenses ( thanks to no debt and family retiree health plan). SS will add cushion. I have about 18-24 months of expenses in savings.

Thanks. That is what I thought but I wanted a second opinion.

Say you have a married couple. The wife is employed, earns $44,000 and receives single insurance coverage from her employer (family coverage is too expensive). The husband is employed, earns $17,800 and has no insurance through employer. The husband will be able to obtain insurance through...

I have about a year of expenses at my ready. Pension covers bills and SS in another year allows me to be more aggressive with my investments.

You bet: yes, we both contributed to SS.

You bet: the cola limit applies to all retirees. I supported higher contributions even when I was still working. I will be the first to admit it is a very good pension for 5.5%. The average pension for the general plan is $1,104 per month. 62% of all pensioners receive less than $1,000 per...

MN made changes 3 years ago when the pension funds had losses from the 08-09 markets. Changes included higher contributions and a cap of 1% on the cola. The rule of 90 (age plus years of service) went away 15-20 years ago. The pension board did a study about going to a defined contribution...

Don't forget, when one doesn't get social security, it is because one did not contribute. That means no SS taxes were withheld either. One could have invested that amount over 25-35 years.

I can relate. I am a firm believer that while saving for the future is important, so is living in the present. No one has a gaurentee on tomorrow. Sounds to me that you are worlds above most young people, inheritance or not. Good for you. Keep saving, but never forget to have fun.

We are up about 12% since Sept. 2011, with this disclaimer: with pensions, savings, no debt (and SS a year away), we are fortunate to not need any withdrawals.

Aaron and Shorn: not everyone is super wealthy on this board. The key is do the best you can and learn to improve. I would say having your house paid off in your 40's is a great start. I retired at 58 and my wife a year later at 57. We have what would be considered a very modest portfolio by...

One of the few here (government pension) and I do feel fortunate..