49, may have an option for a package. Is it Time?

[pb4uski]

+1 OP is 49 so is 10 1/2 years away from penalty free withdrawals from tax-deferred plans.

But, as previously mentioned, he could withdraw roth contributions penalty free as well as Roth conversions that are over 5 years old (really over 4 years old the way they measure years).... see post #17 and link to Kitces article.

[zekeboz]

Welcome. We have similar scenarios outside of the asset mix and DW place of work. I feel I am at 'FI' but have not done the 'RE'.

For myself when confirming our "number" I found FIRECalc useful but not necessarily reassuring given the various scenarios that I wanted to run.

I came across this program a few years ago and love it - https://www.flexibleretirementplanner.com/wp/

It provided the level of detail that I needed to have confidence in what we have saved but also the illustration for my DW that we accounted for all the knowns / costs (at least that we know about - like costs for kid's weddings. yeah I went that deep). I used the downloaded version vs. the online one.

As for your scenario the only pause that I would have is the amount of non-retirement assets that you have tied up in RE, seems heavy to me especially for the rate of return and associated risks for the asset class. Also not crazy about P2P lending either - as mentioned the $$ is tied up and can not be freed easily without cost. I am probably feeling my past pain when I owned some but if I were in your 'shoes' I would look to reduce both in general.

Good luck!

[lhamo]

One note about future college funding options -- if you can keep your MFJ income below $150k or so, the interest from I-bonds can be tax free if you use it for higher education expenses:

https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv..._education.htm

[npage]

Your numbers are similar to mine in terms of investments and expenses. I am 46 and wife is 40. I am ready to pull plug everyday and after February bonuses are paid I think I will. Due to Covid we are work from home and I may milk it as long as that lasts, but no desire to return to office.

Wife has no problem working another 5 years or more. She loves her job, we get great health insurance and can live off her take home.

Our spread is about 50/50 taxable vs 401K at this point. Plan would be to draw any money we need above her take home next five years from taxable and then 100% from taxable when she ultimately quits until I am 59.5. At which point it will be nearing zero and then we hit my IRA a portion of which would likely have already been roth converted to manage ACA income levels once she stops working.

Long story short, I think you can do it. You have some assumptions that must continue, ACA, rates of return etc. No major health calamaties but I don't think that is any different for anyone who is not in the $10MM plus category and even then.

Good luck, I am excited to be this close but also get cold sweats thinking about pulling plug so I feel for you. Of course I get cold sweats thinking about playing mega corp games one more day.

[LarryMelman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Time Not sure I understand this comment: “ Your spending level seems much too high to qualify for health insurance credits. Based on your spending, your income will probably be way over the line to qualify for credits. ”. Spending and income are two different things. I could spend money out of the savings accounts and have very little income after I stop working. My income will be limited to interest, capital gains, dividends and income from partnerships and rentals which will add up to something well below the ACA cliff. That is of course until I run out of $ in the the taxable accounts and need Roth conversions and/or 72(t). Am I missing something here?

No. As long as you manage your taxable income and know where the cliffs are.

[FargoI]

Good evening.

Some additional considerations pertaining to college expenses. From experience, anticipating a child will go to a state university is a logical thought from a parent's perspective, until your S/D applies to and is accepted into a prestigious school (not simply named sake, quality) that perhaps the parents could only have dreamed of attending. The costs of attending upper echelon has risen to 70k/yr; excluding student health fees, travel home expenses during normal times, and unexpected costs such as lost, broken, stolen electronic equipment. A week where a parent does not hear from a child who is away in these uncertain times is often justification to shell out additional money for replacement phones, bumped up mobile plans, etc.

Regarding Student health plans, it is not unusual for schools to *not* accept many parental paid plans...insisting that students enroll in the school's sponsored plans that cover services provided at the student health center (ancillary testing, clinician's fees, prescriptions, etc.). These plans can cost upwards of 2.5k year.

Local, municipal, state and Federal taxes each look to take their share of one's budget.

Unexpected repairs to automobiles, *exercise* equipment, garden tractors/snow blowers, plumbing....you get the idea.

Utilities, potable water, sewer, electric, natural gas, home phone, internet, netflix, lawn service, municipal waste services, NYT...if you didn't scrutinize your last 12 months of bills and try hard to avoid using the miscellanies category.

Dental, optical, insurance barely covers most procedures other than routine exams. Most optical plans only pay for one set of eye glasses per year...young adults may need more frequent replacements for a variety of reasons.

Food... I recollect a time when my parents would come home from the deli with a couple of loaves of Italian bread and a couple of pounds of sliced meats...it amazed my parents what the two "boys" could put down in a matter of minutes (fortunately the oldest was away at college or I might have starved).

I'm not trying to pop you balloon as I know all too well what it feels like to walk in shoes similar to your. I also understand that having *sufficient* money vs. healthy time is an equation that is impossible to solve. If you can temporarily remove your children from the equation (BTW...little children little problems...older children....bigger problems), you and your spouse need to be more than like like minded for retirement planning, you need to be well aligned.

Apologies for the long post. I hope you derive some value from this feedback from a grey haired 60+ husband and father of two very different and precious girls.

[HuskerChica]

I’m 48, took a package about a year ago, very similar numbers to you-and LIFE works out, it’s all good, and has been the best year of my life. I can not express how grateful I am to have traded time for money. So I would give you this advice-all my friends are busy working during the day, and my brain has not challenged at all. As a former Sr Exec VP, the brain challenge had to be addressed, so I did pick up a consulting gig which has been great! Best of luck to you, congrats, and just do it!

[Brat]

I will let others run the numbers here so will share my many years in HR experience.

The first round of severance offerings are usually the most generous.

You are young, as stressful as your job is you are likely to want to do something after ‘retirement’. Your former employer may ask for help in the transition. Remember that work is not just an economic activity, it is social. There will be a huge hole in your daily activities, consider how you would like to spend that time.

My DD, who is a CFO, told me that the departure of a person in that role often is a red flag unless it is a retirement associated with age or illness. The same could be said about division heads. You and members of the Board need to script communication about your departure.

Your family has been functioning based on your focus on work responsibilities. Consider the impact on previously established ‘territories’. The fact that your children are likely going to school on line and the family has been in some form of lock down because of Covid19 asking ‘how can I help’ would be a good first step.

My first retirement was at age 48 so I have been there, done that. It wasn’t long before I was consulting, then back working for a high profile corporation. It was rewarding to know that my knowledge was valuable.

Take the severance if offered.

[tb001]

I left a senior position at the start of the year. I’ve never understood the brain drain/getting bored comments, but I’ve always had a ton of outside interests and can’t fathom being bored. I have spent more on hobbies, but that was in the budget.

We were willing to pull the plug at similar success rates, but I think our budget was a lot more padded than yours. Even so, we’ve had a much bigger increase in health insurance than I expected, as well as an unexpected vehicle purchase. Thankfully we’ve been able to easily flex other spend.

FWIW, I would imagine at c level that you could find 1-2 consulting projects pretty easily that would bring in another 20+k/yr which could bridge the gap on the discretionary spending.