Retired at 46

[cyber888]

That's a good deal pal. $8000 a month + free medical - wow! Congrats. You made it!

 

[Blacksambellamy]

Thanks..... I couldn't stay at home. I took a security job at the local school. It doesn't pay much but it's only 4 hours a day 730am-1130am.

Best part for me is weekends, holidays and Summer's off.

I haven't been home for a holiday in 25 years. I'm looking forward to having my first Christmas with my kids


Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

 

[38Chevy454]

No jealousy from me, I am happy for you and hope you can enjoy the time with your family and kids. Then move out of NJ, a good place to be from.

Yes your pension deal is a nice package, but it is also what you were given as part of your total compensation. No apologies needed and for those neighbors and friends (?) that say you should not retire, just tell them you are on sabbatical and working on future plans. Future plans to stay retired that is, hahaha.

 

[DSC800]

I appreciate your service BUT your story highlites a HUGE problem looming over every American city and most states. There is NO WAY that a city can finance this pension and benefit you have earned for the 30 or 40 years of life you probably have left. You were made a promise and it needs to be kept BUT these insane municipal promises made under pie-in-the-sky scenarios and absolutely un-sustainable and will eventually bankrupt hundreds of cites all over the nation. In the next decade we will face a crisis that will dwarf the " too big to fail" insanity of a few years ago. We will be looking at muni bailouts that will make TARP and the GM garbage look tame.
An 8k/month and benefits for a 46 year old package is NOT usutainable for ANY city on the planet.
You EARNEd this and you were made a promise and performed a service that few of us could handle. I don't have an answer BUT as a warning..be prepared for this promise to collapse in a few years...your town will face exactly what Detroit and other are facing. There just aren't enough taxpayers and enough tax money to pay for your package for the next 40 years. Look out for the haircut a coming...

Agree 100%. Well funded or not, what a huge burden on the taxpayer to essentially pay double, once for the service of the public employee, then again along with ever increasing medical costs. Here in CA it's particularly egregious. A neighbor firefighter captain just retired with +90% of his six-figure pay, full medical, six figure payout for "unused" vaca and sick pay. Get this, he ran his business while on duty getting OT and when he retired he said no way would he stay in CA as the taxes on his pension were too high - moved to Texas.

I believe COPs have chosen a tougher career, more danger, more training, more dealing with the public. Firefighers, not even in the top ten for dangerous professions.

 

[Elbata]

I appreciate your service BUT your story highlites a HUGE problem looming over every American city and most states. There is NO WAY that a city can finance this pension and benefit you have earned for the 30 or 40 years of life you probably have left. You were made a promise and it needs to be kept BUT these insane municipal promises made under pie-in-the-sky scenarios and absolutely un-sustainable and will eventually bankrupt hundreds of cites all over the nation. In the next decade we will face a crisis that will dwarf the " too big to fail" insanity of a few years ago. We will be looking at muni bailouts that will make TARP and the GM garbage look tame.
An 8k/month and benefits for a 46 year old package is NOT usutainable for ANY city on the planet.
You EARNEd this and you were made a promise and performed a service that few of us could handle. I don't have an answer BUT as a warning..be prepared for this promise to collapse in a few years...your town will face exactly what Detroit and other are facing. There just aren't enough taxpayers and enough tax money to pay for your package for the next 40 years. Look out for the haircut a coming...

Know a retired law enforcement couple who tegether bring home $270K/year. At least that's the last I heard. With COLA, it's probably higher now.

The Union is so powerful, I'm surprised they don't request their retirement be tax free.

 

[harley]

Agree 100%. Well funded or not, what a huge burden on the taxpayer to essentially pay double, once for the service of the public employee, then again along with ever increasing medical costs. Here in CA it's particularly egregious. A neighbor firefighter captain just retired with +90% of his six-figure pay, full medical, six figure payout for "unused" vaca and sick pay. Get this, he ran his business while on duty getting OT and when he retired he said no way would he stay in CA as the taxes on his pension were too high - moved to Texas.

I believe COPs have chosen a tougher career, more danger, more training, more dealing with the public. Firefighers, not even in the top ten for dangerous professions.

Neither are LEOs. They're 15th on the list, and there's very little difference between their stats and that of firefighters (18th). For some reason (cough *public sector unions* cough) loggers (1st), roofers (5th), and truck drivers (8th) don't have those great pensions. Then there are the politicians. Talk about a dangerous job. No wonder they have the best pensions.


Now if you are talking exclusively about being murdered on the job, that's where it gets dangerous for the police (and taxi drivers and food service managers). But just based on on-the-job deaths, they aren't that dangerous a profession.

 

[AlbaCrush]

I envy you for having such a generous police retirement. This sounds like a similar plan to someone I know who retired from the NY Port Authority PD years ago.

In 4 months I'll be retiring at age 50. After my 26 years in law enforcement, I get a whopping 51% and I continue to pay my portion of the health/dental insurance which is $3,000 a year for my wife and I. We get many laterals at our department because several departments in the area pay 60% but have no health insurance option and the out of pocket costs are through the roof.

I'm new here and just wanted to say congrats and hi. I like reading posts from others in police and fire and their retirements.

 

[petershk]

Don't tell anyone you are retired, tell them you're changing careers to become an investment manager for a private client - who insists on remaining anonymous...and you get to work from home!

This is genius and I'm stealing it...

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[FreeBear]

Don't tell anyone you are retired, tell them you're changing careers to become an investment manager for a private client - who insists on remaining anonymous...and you get to work from home!

Nor do you have to tell them that your "private client" insists on a passive, index strategy that requires almost no w*rk most days…

When I FIRE'd, I told most folks at w*rk that I was starting my own business outside of the industry. Most seemed to take the bait, but there were rumors...