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"One day it's fine and next it's black."

There is a discussion over on Bogleheads that concludes that this loss of Cola may not be true. I'm no expert, so here is the thread: https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=388003&start=100

I am 60 years old, and I am planning my retirement. Using the SS website calculator, my benefit at age 62 will be $24k. Can I assume that this estimated benefit will also increase using the same COLA?

I'm down 7.8% ytd with 33/67. I'm a federal employee, and I have quite a bit in the G-fund. That seems to have helped.

Yes, the country does have people who can write code better, but for the most part, they are not going into government service. The federal government gets the "C" students these days.

My brother retired from the MD State Police, and he gets a 70k pension and an additional 20k "annuity" as he calls it. He is not eligible for SS. He now works for the Capitol Police, and he will be eligible for a federal pension in a couple of years.

I am fortunate to have both pensions and Social Security, and they will cover all of my retirement expenses except for travel, snowbirding, gifts, and charity. I plan to withdraw 4% to cover those in the very near future.

I'm doing my part by only drinking beer that is brewed East of the continental divide.

Rather than using a spreadsheet, you could model your TSP using Firecalc. That would show you the possible range of ending balances in 2044.

I visited California for the first time in my life several years ago, and I was also impressed with how Californians made room for you when changing lanes on the highway. It's very different from the drivers on the DC beltway.

My wife and I will have federal pensions when we retire sometime in the next year. They will total about 24% of our current salary.

I will be retiring some time in the next year or so, when pensions and social security at 62 will cover my expected base expenses in retirement (everything except travel and snowbirding). I estimate that will be about 44% of my high-3 salary. My TSP will cover the travel and snowbirding costs.

I bought one of the first battery powered mowers back in the mid 90's. It was a Black & Decker, and it lasted about 20 years. I replaced the battery once. A few years ago I bought a Sun Joe. I'm amazed at how much lighter it is, and how much smaller the battery is. I'm a big fan of batter...

I was going to say you should retire now because your portfolio alone has enough money to support your retirement. But then I realized that one of you has to get to retirement age to lock in the health insurance, so I get it. Instead of cashing out your leave, consider using all of it to make...

You live in the SF Bay area, so your perspective is skewed. The median household income in Missisppi is $48k.

I also didn't spend 1% every year, but now that the house is 27 years old, I'm glad that I saved what I didn't spend of that 1% for those 27 years. Because during the last few years, I've had to replace the shingles, remodel the kitchen, replace the HVAC units, replace the carpets, etc.

As a guesstimate, it's ok. I actually did the math for my house where I assigned costs and lifespans to everything from flooring to siding, and I calculated about 1.5%.

So your pension is really about 3k per month. But your pension does not get a cola for 5 years until you turn 62. So at age 62, if inflation averages 2%, it may only be worth 2.7k in today's dollars. Your SS estimate of 2.4k may be a bit high, especially if you haven't worked 35 years. So...

Based on your TSP, I'm assuming you are in the FERS system. If you have 30 years, then you will also get a supplement from retirement age to age 62. It is commonly known as the social security supplement. To estimate that, take your years of service and divide by 40. Multiply that by what...

That's delusional alright. And now on the other side of crazy town, here's a guy with $5 million asking if he can retire. https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=283714

The pension delay will probably get even worse. I imagine that many soon-to-be-retired workers have postponed their retirement until they are ordered back to the office. Once they remember how bad the commutes were, they will retire pronto. Now that will cause a backlog in retirement...

Your pension and social security will just about cover your expenses from age 62 onward, provided that the pension has a cola. You will spend around $200k from your portfolio from age 58 to 62. That will leave about $730k. At a 3.5% withdrawal rate, you could spend an additional $25k per...

As I get closer to my retirement date, I have been transitioning to autopay and e-bills because I plan to do some travel in the early years. I don't want to worry about missing a payment or missing a bill while away. I have liked the transition. I have even embraced using Zelle as a way to...

I plan to retire sometime in the next couple of years, so I can't answer your question. I sure hope that retirement lessens anxiety. For me, work is one of the biggest sources of anxiety for me ever since I started 35 years ago. I tried benzos in the early 90's, and they were just too...

I'm getting close, so it's nice to read this. Thanks for posting!