Pinch Me - are we really ready?

[Cayman]

I think so.

Hello! Many thanks to all on this board. Your knowledge and respectful insight is much appreciated --- and your wit makes regular reading of this board ever so much fun.

DH and I are 50, and have been FI for about 5 years. Will RE this year. 'Cause we want to have more fun, less stress while we are healthy and able.

Investible assets north of $2M, plus 2 homes that are paid off. More than 7 years living expenses in cash/liquid. (I know, it may cost $. It's the mental cushion I need to sleep at night, and I'm ok with it) No debt. 2 small pensions at 65 plus we'll take SS at 70 if it's still there.

WR= no more than 2.5% planned. That reflects our current budget. Our savings are ours, we've LBYM for many years--no inheiritances, and none planned. HC costs concern us alot. Our current plan budgets $25k/year. For 2 healthy people - absurd.

Firecalc at 100%
iOrp says "go have FUN"
Flexible Retirement planner = 100%

Again - thanks to the regulars who make this such a fun, reliable resource. You all helped us get to this point and give us the confidence to jump to our next lifestyle.

You're the best.

Cayman

 

[retire2020]

Congrats! You earned it so have a blast!

 

[evilanne]

PINCH! Sounds like you are well prepared...when will you pull the plug?

 

[Christine]

Well done!

 

[bingybear]

DH and I are 50, and have been FI for about 5 years. Will RE this year.

OK, so you are tardy.

Our current plan budgets $25k/year. For 2 healthy people - absurd.
Cayman

cautious.
One day you are health, the next day you have a pre-existing condition... OK, maybe the is really 2 days later. At 51 I went from health to the borg... pacemaker installed. Only indication was a few very short light headed spells. It was 5 spells lasting a few seconds (hard to tell time ) that I noticed in 5 days before I bailed out of a business trip (stupid) and flew home then to the ER.

planning for some unexpected health care is not absurd. I either throw those unused $ back in the pot or spend them on a trip. Its always where do we go hiking next!

enjoy ER!

 

[Walt34]

cautious.
One day you are health, the next day you have a pre-existing condition... OK, maybe the is really 2 days later.

Yup, similar happened here. I was doing fine healthwise and then noticed one day that when mowing a hill on one side of the house I had to stop and catch my breath three or four times. I'd never had to do that before so, knowing that is a huge red flag for cardiac issues I called my doctor. He put me in the hospital that night "out of an abundance of caution" and the next day was a stress test, the day after that I had two stents in my heart. I'd just dodged a serious and probably fatal heart attack!

 

[ace8]

Investible assets north of $2M, ...

WR= no more than 2.5% planned...

HC costs concern us a lot. Our current plan budgets $25k/year

Hi Cayman, saw another post of yours and was cyber stalking your past posts. The quotes above caught my eye. My situation is similar. Can you help me with the math? Your budget is 50-75k a year with 25k in health insurance?

Thanks

 

[pjigar]

I was wondering the same 2.5% of 2M is 50k. Minus 25k healthcare. I must be missing the pension and SS part.

 

[flintnational]

Congratulations! Yep, you are ready. Consider yourself "pinched". You know in a non-creepy internet kind of "pinch".

FN

 

[Nightcap]

Congratulations and goodonya!

"Every man is, or hopes to be, an Idler. Even those who seem to differ most from us are hastening to increase our fraternity; as peace is the end of war, so to be idle is the ultimate purpose of the busy."
-- The Idler, April 15, 1758, Samuel Johnson

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

Hi Cayman, saw another post of yours and was cyber stalking your past posts. The quotes above caught my eye. My situation is similar. Can you help me with the math? Your budget is 50-75k a year with 25k in health insurance?

Thanks

I was wondering the same 2.5% of 2M is 50k. Minus 25k healthcare. I must be missing the pension and SS part.

These are just minor details,.

 

[Rianne]

Welcome! We have 6 years cash/bonds set aside not including separate accounts stocks, bond funds and index funds. What do you spend a year (or Month)? HI costs us $6384/year on ACA, and we still spend $60K+/year. Our NW is similar to yours. HI may double or more soon, that has me upset.

 

[DrRoy]

Sounds really good. Enjoy!

 

[Sojourner]

WR= no more than 2.5% planned.
...
Firecalc at 100%
iOrp says "go have FUN"
Flexible Retirement planner = 100%

There's a good reason all those retirement planners & tools are at 100%. Your planned WR is extremely conservative. You may already know this and be fine with it, but a WR of 2.5% will very likely result in your heirs receiving a major inheritance. For a couple in your early 50s, a SWR of something like 3 - 3.5% is still quite safe historically and will allow you to loosen the purse strings a little and enjoy the well-earned fruits of all those years of labor.

 

[street]

Job well done. I like your cash reserves and for some it is to much and I understand that also. I'm with you on the cash reserves and the years you have to live. For me it is a safety valve and it work for me also.

Good luck and have fun.

 

[albireo13]

What are investable assets ... are they invested or not??

 

[aida2003]

Investible assets north of $2M, plus 2 homes that are paid off. More than 7 years living expenses in cash/liquid. (I know, it may cost $. It's the mental cushion I need to sleep at night, and I'm ok with it) No debt. 2 small pensions at 65 plus we'll take SS at 70 if it's still there.

WR= no more than 2.5% planned. That reflects our current budget.

It's not conspicuously clear how to read/interpret the OP's post, but they do sound FI because she mentions 7 years of living expenses in cash . That's perhaps on top of the $2M plus pensions and SS. If they're frugal as they claim to be, they're more than ready to retire. Children are not mentioned either, so that's another positive factor for their finances.