Into the Breach

[Foghorn Leghorn]

A little about myself. I am 52 years old , never been married and have no kids . I am eligible for early retirement at my current gig . I have amassed a total of right at 750k ( lump sum basis) for retirement at this point. My home mortgage is paid off and I have a car note. No other real debt on the ledger. I will have health insurance as a "retiree" if I leave now

Ok, so now I'm going to "retire" from my current job and take an overseas job for a few years ( minimum) Its a 28/28 rotation job so I'll keep my house in the states as I'll be here half the time.

What should I do with my 750k from the old job ? I basically suck at managing my own money . I just seemingly refuse to be able to get into the market and investments and such. I know its really important but my mind rejects the concept of stock following etc...

What says the wise folks of this forum ?

 

[obgyn65]

Have you entered your numbers in FIREcalc? Have you thought about SPIAs? Welcome to the board.

 

[pb4uski]

Forget SPIAs, interest rates are too low.

From what you wrote, I take it the lump sum is from your employer pension plan. Is that correct?

If so, can you keep it in the employer plan or must you take it as a lump sum? If the employer and plan are financially strong and you can keep it there then that may be an easy alternative.

What I would do is roll the lump sum into an IRA with Vanguard and then invest the IRA in Vanguard's Wellesley and/or Wellington funds. While either fund is a fine choice, Wellesley is a bit more conservative.

Two things you do NOT want to do. First, is take your lump sum other than rolling it over into an IRA because the lump sum would then be taxable income and you would get a huge tax bill, so be careful there. Second, have a financial adviser manage you money for you. Given that amount, you are better off doing it yourself.