Are post-ER tasks basically a new job?

[Focus]

Good food for thought in this.

The Finance Buff: Early Retirement and Comparative Advantage

Quote:

It’s different when you retire early. If your retirement budget still requires a lot of your own labor in maintaining and remodeling your home, taking care of your yard, teaching your kids, fixing your car, and so on, you are basically giving up your job early in order to take up the job of a handyman/handywoman, a gardener, an after-school teacher, a car mechanic, etc. Unless you actually enjoy doing those work (teaching your kids can count as enjoyable), chances are you have an absolute disadvantage over the professionals in those jobs, and definitely a comparative disadvantage.

[ChainsBeGone]

The author of this article is, in my opinion, over-thinking the issue.

For most of us, we do all of those tasks within our own abilities while working, we just have to cram them into the weekend and those tasks compete with the weekend free time.

I still do all of those tasks now that I'm FIRE'd, I just do them when I feel like it and usually at a much leisurely pace.

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChainsBeGone The author of this article is, in my opinion, over-thinking the issue. For most of us, we do all of those tasks within our own abilities while working, we just have to cram them into the weekend and those tasks compete with the weekend free time. I still do all of those tasks now that I'm FIRE'd, I just do them when I feel like it and usually at a much leisurely pace.

^ What he said.

I don't do any more of these DIY tasks now that I'm retired, I just do them at a relaxed pace - and with a far better attitude.

[Bestwifeever]

"Teaching your kids can count as enjoyable." Take my kids. Please.

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bestwifeever "Teaching your kids can count as enjoyable." Take my kids. Please.

Henny? Is that you?

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by REWahoo ^ What he said. I don't do any more of these DIY tasks now that I'm retired, I just do them at a relaxed pace - and with a far better attitude.

+1

Life is a lot more fun these days than it was when I was working.

The author doesn't seem to realize that with sufficient funding, one can HIRE a handyman, gardener, auto mechanic, and so on. We don't have to do these things ourselves. The author isn't really talking about retired vs working; he's talking about money vs no money.

[Bestwifeever]

Mrs. Henny to you. I guess noone remembers Henny!

[Gone4Good]

The author probably just got done visiting Mr. Money Mustache's site where retiring early means trading a day job for endless hours spent squeezing nickles.

That's certainly one version of early retirement. It's not the only version. Or necessarily the best.

[Totoro]

Hrm ..

I rent, don't have a yard, no kids, have a young car I don't maintain myself and so on.

Not to mention doing stuff yourself makes oneself a broader person, and comparative advantage is mitigated by all sorts of taxes.

And, obviously, if I have a lot of time I indeed enjoy these things. No time pressure either. I put in a floor for the first time ever when I moved in my current place. Took me three days, and felt empowered by it vs. helpless.

Or, what about this view?

Quote:

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.” ― Robert A. Heinlein

[Hermit]

I am happy to admit that I traded my megacorp job for a job in construction - building my house. I'm glad I'm not doing it for a paycheck. I would probably starve to death. If I didn't like it overall, I guess I would hire someone else to do it. I would add some more comments, but my lunch break is over.

[thefinancebuff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R The author doesn't seem to realize that with sufficient funding, one can HIRE a handyman, gardener, auto mechanic, and so on. We don't have to do these things ourselves. The author isn't really talking about retired vs working; he's talking about money vs no money.

The context is laid out in the first two paragraphs. It addresses the suggestion that you achieve early retirement by squeezing down your retirement budget and not having sufficient funding to HIRE a handyman, gardener, auto mechanic, and so on, as advocated by the ERE school.

[Walt34]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChainsBeGone For most of us, we do all of those tasks within our own abilities while working, we just have to cram them into the weekend and those tasks compete with the weekend free time.

That's pretty much where I am with it although I'm finding that more and more I'm paying to have stuff done that I used to do myself, like oil changes on the car and lawn mowing. We can easily afford stuff like that now and there was a time when I couldn't so it is a bit of a luxury to have those options.

[jazz4cash]

As usual, this forum has better perspective on these matters than the media.

I must admit I didn't realize just how many chores were on my to-do list but getting things done on my own schedule makes all the difference.


Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

[daylatedollarshort]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gone4Good The author probably just got done visiting Mr. Money Mustache's site where retiring early means trading a day job for endless hours spent squeezing nickles. That's certainly one version of early retirement. It's not the only version. Or necessarily the best.

That forum has some good ideas, but many of the money saving tasks are pennywise and pound foolish. I have a book called Living Well on Practically Nothing, and even that author says something along the lines of not to do a lot of homesteading kind of tasks simply to save money (unless that is your hobby) as your per hour rate might come out to be 50 cents an hour.

I think that is The Finance Buff's points. I would rather work part-time at what I know if I need extra cash and let an expert mechanic replace my car brakes or an experienced roofer with nimble feet and worker's comp replace my roof. I do some bargain hunting and homesteading kinds of tasks because they are my hobbies. But if I wasn't FI and my main goal was ER I'd work another year doing 1099 tech work.

[RunningBum]

The author might as well suggest we grow our own food, and make our own clothes, to afford early retirement. I don't mind making my own toothpaste, but getting it inside a tube is really a time killer!

[Walt34]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RunningBum I don't mind making my own toothpaste, but getting it inside a tube is really a time killer!

Oh, you can save some time on that:

http://www.amazon.com/Toothpaste-Go-...othpaste+tubes

[rodi]

I wasn't hiring help prior to ER - why would I do so now? I'll wait till I have limitations in getting the chores done... then hire help.

Actually - I do hire my kids to do some chores like mowing the lawn and emptying the dishwasher.... No free allowance in our house.

[Sarah in SC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rodi I wasn't hiring help prior to ER - why would I do so now? I'll wait till I have limitations in getting the chores done... then hire help. .

Exactly. We do all our own work. It's just nicer for DH to be able to do it when he wants to, rather than squeezing it into nights and weekends.

[LOL!]

Since tfb responded in this thread ... he agreed with what most of you are saying. And I read the article the same way because he did lay out the context.

[Music Lover]

I've always believed that people who lack DIY skills and/or do not like doing regular home maintenance should not buy a house unless they have enough money to pay someone to do those things. An apartment or condo is a better fit for those people.

I am someone who enjoys DIY projects and home maintenance...that's why I bought a house. I take pride in building a nice deck or fixing a hole in the drywall. Retirement simply allows me to take care of these things on my schedule.