Charlie Delta
Confused about dryer sheets
Thanks for reading this, my first post here. I am in a very unusual situation, I know many people would be pretty happy to be in my shoes but I am really worried and stressed about it...mainly worried if I will have enough $$ to actually retire now at age 51.
Long story short without any of the politics, I have decided to sell my share of a company that I am a stockholder in and will walk away with $2 million, lump sum, tax free. My wife and I own our home free and clear, worth about 500k. We have no debt or loans, we have 400k in a 401(k) and about 60k in Vanguard funds (mainly earmarked to be used for the 2 kids college), our oldest starts this fall. Our living expenses are going to go up soon because we will have to buy health insurance, the kids are starting to drive and go to college soon, etc but with those things considered, we think about 80 to 90 grand a year, at least for the first few years, will allow us to cover all living expenses and improve our lifestyle just a bit, like finally taking a real and well deserved vacation, once or twice a year. We have worked our butts off our whole adult life, tried to save and have lived fairly modestly. Sure, I can go get another job and I just might but I think I would like to try to retire early, especially since 3 coworkers about my age died in the past year, one of cancer, 2 of heart attacks...I always say "It's later than you think!" and tragedies like that really make me think about the time I have left...We have a proven and very trusted financial planner that other family members have used for years and he says I will be fine, he has met with my wife and I, tried to put us at ease, sent us all kinds of charts and projections, did a risk assessment, etc. I also have a family member who has worked at Vanguard for over 25 years and he laughs that I am worried and says I will be fine and I can do whatever the heck I want to do now...but I have a hard time believing it... and I have one wealthy friend that says "Don't even think about retiring, you won't have nearly enough $$!" I have used many different online retirement calculators with varying results, some won't allow entry of my unusual specifics. I know all about the 4% rule, the 25 x rule, subtract your age from 100 rule, allowing for inflation and cost of living adjustments etc but the big question in my head remains, do I really have enough to retire now? I know there are so many variables like rate of return on investments, how long I will live, etc and that I could ask 100 people and get 100 different answers but would like to hear your opinion. Thanks for reading my long post!
Long story short without any of the politics, I have decided to sell my share of a company that I am a stockholder in and will walk away with $2 million, lump sum, tax free. My wife and I own our home free and clear, worth about 500k. We have no debt or loans, we have 400k in a 401(k) and about 60k in Vanguard funds (mainly earmarked to be used for the 2 kids college), our oldest starts this fall. Our living expenses are going to go up soon because we will have to buy health insurance, the kids are starting to drive and go to college soon, etc but with those things considered, we think about 80 to 90 grand a year, at least for the first few years, will allow us to cover all living expenses and improve our lifestyle just a bit, like finally taking a real and well deserved vacation, once or twice a year. We have worked our butts off our whole adult life, tried to save and have lived fairly modestly. Sure, I can go get another job and I just might but I think I would like to try to retire early, especially since 3 coworkers about my age died in the past year, one of cancer, 2 of heart attacks...I always say "It's later than you think!" and tragedies like that really make me think about the time I have left...We have a proven and very trusted financial planner that other family members have used for years and he says I will be fine, he has met with my wife and I, tried to put us at ease, sent us all kinds of charts and projections, did a risk assessment, etc. I also have a family member who has worked at Vanguard for over 25 years and he laughs that I am worried and says I will be fine and I can do whatever the heck I want to do now...but I have a hard time believing it... and I have one wealthy friend that says "Don't even think about retiring, you won't have nearly enough $$!" I have used many different online retirement calculators with varying results, some won't allow entry of my unusual specifics. I know all about the 4% rule, the 25 x rule, subtract your age from 100 rule, allowing for inflation and cost of living adjustments etc but the big question in my head remains, do I really have enough to retire now? I know there are so many variables like rate of return on investments, how long I will live, etc and that I could ask 100 people and get 100 different answers but would like to hear your opinion. Thanks for reading my long post!