howdidigetthisold
Dryer sheet wannabe
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2012
- Messages
- 16
My j*b s*cks and I want out (like everyone else on this forum). But, the longer I stay, the higher the pension gets. My COLA pension offers three payout date options: 1) 55 years - eligible to take the pension but at a reduced rate; 2) 57 yr and 8 months - 30-years of service increases pension by $6000/year; 3) 58 y and 10 mo - "Rule of 90" pays full retirement benefits, which is another $6000/year more than what I would get at the 30-year mark.
When I hit 55, there was no way I could survive my j*b for another 4 years to get that full benefit. So, I decided to wait until I hit my 30-year mark where the pension increases by $6000/year. But, now that I'm a few months from that goal, I've realized that I'm alot closer to the full pension "rule of 90" than I realized (13 more months for another $6000/year, COLA for life). It's hard to leave that much money on the table when it's just OMY of my life in exchange for the cash.
Right now, we're FI and we can easily meet our expenses after RE (including health insurance) with less than a 2% WR. But, our future plans are uncertain and could involve a major move, which could cost alot of money.
I know this forum has a boatload of "one more year" threads. But, Jacob at ERE identified "comfort" as the cause of the OMY syndrome in a recent article (» One more year before comfort Early Retirement Extreme: — a combination of simple living, anticonsumerism, DIY ethics, self-reliance, and applied capitalism). Comfort was defined as "being free from physiological (mental and physical) pressures or stresses," or the more subjective "contentment and general life satisfaction."
For those of you who were trapped in the OMY cycle before you RE, did the extra money you earned make that much of a difference? Especially when compared to the year of your life lost to your j*b? If you already had enough but worked OMY, did the extra cash make you feel better about spending more or did it give you a better sense of security? Or did you regret losing that year of your life in exchange for $?
When I hit 55, there was no way I could survive my j*b for another 4 years to get that full benefit. So, I decided to wait until I hit my 30-year mark where the pension increases by $6000/year. But, now that I'm a few months from that goal, I've realized that I'm alot closer to the full pension "rule of 90" than I realized (13 more months for another $6000/year, COLA for life). It's hard to leave that much money on the table when it's just OMY of my life in exchange for the cash.
Right now, we're FI and we can easily meet our expenses after RE (including health insurance) with less than a 2% WR. But, our future plans are uncertain and could involve a major move, which could cost alot of money.
I know this forum has a boatload of "one more year" threads. But, Jacob at ERE identified "comfort" as the cause of the OMY syndrome in a recent article (» One more year before comfort Early Retirement Extreme: — a combination of simple living, anticonsumerism, DIY ethics, self-reliance, and applied capitalism). Comfort was defined as "being free from physiological (mental and physical) pressures or stresses," or the more subjective "contentment and general life satisfaction."
For those of you who were trapped in the OMY cycle before you RE, did the extra money you earned make that much of a difference? Especially when compared to the year of your life lost to your j*b? If you already had enough but worked OMY, did the extra cash make you feel better about spending more or did it give you a better sense of security? Or did you regret losing that year of your life in exchange for $?
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