Retire at 55?

[shermoid]

hi rockethead,

welcome! YES, you can retire at 55 - i did it at 50, with far fewer means than you've stated in your posts. it just depends what you want to do in retirement, and how much that will cost you.

like you, i was bored with my job, and disliked it too. i couldn't wait to get out of there. i have not been bored one single second since leaving work, and should have done it years before i did. i stayed working until literally i had saved what i needed to last me the rest of my life. i gave notice the very day i had sufficient savings accrued.

i've never been happier, and hope that holds up for you too! but, i'd encourage you to get out from under a crummy job, and begin living your life more like you dreamed about ...

-sherm

[johnvreaves]

Sherm, thanks for writing back, how long did it take you to decompress? I've had a stressfull job as a NSM, moving 19 times in 27 years. I have lived coast to coast and want to settle in South Carolina which is where my family is from. I do have to sell my homes but they are in desireable locations and we have enough cash to last a couple of years before any sale occurs. The reason this site interests me is to hear some sound advice on early retirees on how they felt, if they had no insurance what site did they go after, how did they fill their time etc. Thanks again for posting and hope to hear more from you and others. JRFRIPPIN

[Livefree]

I work for a large outsourcing Technology firm, and found out last week that we're all getting large salary cuts starting next month on top of freezing the 401k since April. This may be the last straw for me..I only wish I had affordable heath care lined up. I'm 54 now, and would really like to work 3 days a week for a few years before hanging it up..unfortunately that's not going to happen with these companies..has anyone out there convinced their employer to let them work part time?

[shermoid]

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnvreaves Sherm, thanks for writing back, how long did it take you to decompress? I've had a stressfull job as a NSM, moving 19 times in 27 years. I have lived coast to coast and want to settle in South Carolina which is where my family is from. I do have to sell my homes but they are in desireable locations and we have enough cash to last a couple of years before any sale occurs. The reason this site interests me is to hear some sound advice on early retirees on how they felt, if they had no insurance what site did they go after, how did they fill their time etc. Thanks again for posting and hope to hear more from you and others. JRFRIPPIN

hi john,

oh, i got used to being retired (decompressed) in about 3 seconds. no, wait - 1 second. i think i was just born to lounge.

19 moves in 27 years!?!? that sounds like me as a student. i ended up moving every 6 months on average, and what a pain in the butt. it'll be good when you can settle down. i have friends in north carolina, and they love it there. i imagine south carolina is just as beautiful.

you've hit on the big one - insurance for the individual person, not a corporate employee. i am currently using kaiser permanente under COBRA, and have about 16 months more. after that, i'll be able to buy an individual policy like the one i have, but it's going to cost me about $600, $650 a month. that'll jump to close to $1,000 a month once i turn 60, and i'll only get relief when i hit 65, and go on medicare (assuming it's still there).

if you don't have a policy currently, you may be stuck with something like blue cross/blue shield. they're crummy policies, with high deductibles. but, they're available and way better than nothing. if you can join any trade group or association in your profession, they may have insurance available as part of the deal.

diane just suggested AARP, or AAA. both of these groups can recommend insurance for age 50 and over, so maybe you can find a company and get a quote.

i hope this helps! get out of the workforce as fast as you can!

-sherm

[Sarah in SC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnvreaves Sherm, thanks for writing back, how long did it take you to decompress? I've had a stressfull job as a NSM, moving 19 times in 27 years. I have lived coast to coast and want to settle in South Carolina which is where my family is from. I do have to sell my homes but they are in desireable locations and we have enough cash to last a couple of years before any sale occurs. The reason this site interests me is to hear some sound advice on early retirees on how they felt, if they had no insurance what site did they go after, how did they fill their time etc. Thanks again for posting and hope to hear more from you and others. JRFRIPPIN

Hello John--glad to hear you want to move back to our wonderful state! Feel free to post your own "Hi I am" so we can grill you some more and offer some (un)solicited advice!

[rescueme]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Livefree ..has anyone out there convinced their employer to let them work part time?

Tried several times, but they would not go for it. Since I could not work under their rules, I decided to retire on mine

"Working" on my 3rd year of retirement - life has never been better.

[oldtrig]

I turn 62 on the 22nd of this month. I have researched this and from where I am it cannot happen at 62. Health insurance is something I never dreamed would make me keep on working. For those who have affordable insurance you are lucky. I enjoy working some days and some I hate it. I do have the option next month though to say the heck with it if the higher ups tick me off. I have a small pension, SS and Cd's to make me through it that day comes. My home is paid for and all my old vehicles are also. I just hate to be in a rut thinking I have to work until I die. I may quit tomorrow. I have only had two jobs in my life other than 4 years in the Air Force. I do not think anyone could ever 100 % prepare for retirement. oldtrig

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldtrig I turn 62 on the 22nd of this month. I have researched this and from where I am it cannot happen at 62. Health insurance is something I never dreamed would make me keep on working. For those who have affordable insurance you are lucky. I enjoy working some days and some I hate it. I do have the option next month though to say the heck with it if the higher ups tick me off. I have a small pension, SS and Cd's to make me through it that day comes. My home is paid for and all my old vehicles are also. I just hate to be in a rut thinking I have to work until I die. I may quit tomorrow. I have only had two jobs in my life other than 4 years in the Air Force. I do not think anyone could ever 100 % prepare for retirement. oldtrig

Well, you've got a point. For some reason I could foresee the health insurance problems, so I got a job offering lifetime medical coverage to retirees, but it never occurred to me that the real estate market would crash like it did. How could it? Or so I thought. Everybody has to live somewhere, so there will always be demand. I sure didn't see that one coming and I am so glad that I didn't get caught with a million dollar home in an area where prices went over a cliff. That was pure luck, and I feel so sorry for those who are stuck working to pay the mortgage on a big house that they can't sell.

[haha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldtrig I turn 62 on the 22nd of this month. I have researched this and from where I am it cannot happen at 62. Health insurance is something I never dreamed would make me keep on working. For those who have affordable insurance you are lucky. I enjoy working some days and some I hate it. I do have the option next month though to say the heck with it if the higher ups tick me off. I have a small pension, SS and Cd's to make me through it that day comes. My home is paid for and all my old vehicles are also. I just hate to be in a rut thinking I have to work until I die. I may quit tomorrow. I have only had two jobs in my life other than 4 years in the Air Force. I do not think anyone could ever 100 % prepare for retirement. oldtrig

Old Trig, 3 more years is not the rest of your life. Your Medicare will start Aug 1, 2012. Although Medicare is not nearly as cheap as some here are expecting, it's not bad at all. And it is way better and cheaper than whatever you may be able to buy in the the individual market. That will also enable you to delay your SS until full retirement age, which for you should be 8/22/2013.

Ha

[oldtrig]

ha ha, when I first read what you posted I said what the ? 2012 seemed light years away. I then found out this was 2009. What happened to all those years ? 2012 did not sound right. I hope I can hang in the job for thee more years. Like I said, some days are great but it will probably be that way when I retire. I get to thinking about what I will do when that day comes. I play golf but 7 days a week ? I think not. I have thought about going back to my shop and working on small stuff maybe a half a day ? I am also a self taught computer tech. I have been doing this on the side for 12 years. The one problem with this is dealing with some people not all but a few make my blood pressure soar. Thanks for the encouragement. oldtrig