Financial regrets 10+ years into early retirement?

[RunningBum]

I worked a few extra years, part-time, and telecommuting. It was too easy to not take advantage of. No regrets. Had it not been so easy, I probably would've retired earlier.

Keep in mind you'd likely be retiring at the top of a long bull market. Firecalc will probably tell you it'll still work, but I'd make sure my nest egg could take a 10% hit and the numbers would still be good, and a 20% hit could be weathered with some cutbacks. Note that a 20% hit on a 50/50 portfolio means a ~40% stock market drop, which is pretty extreme. At 100% for 40 years, you may have enough buffer already, so I'm not saying you have to keep working; those are just the numbers I'd be looking at to decide.

 

[Cobra9777]

I retired 5 years ago at 52. Definitely in the peak earning years. Left a lot of money on the table... mostly unvested options/RSUs and a pension bump at 55. But we had already exceeded "the number" I had been targeting for decades to support our lifestyle. We still spend 35% less than FIRECalc says we can at 95%. And we still plan to downsize the house. Working more would have served only to enrich the kids after we're gone.

Then there's the fact that my job sucked. In reality, the job was tolerable; the politics were toxic. But the stress was definitely taking a toll on my physical and mental health. So it was time. Money didn't really even matter that much in the decision. It was time for woodworking, writing music, and riding my bike in the woods. Life now is quite literally a dream come true.

So yeah... no regrets. Except that I probably worked 2-3 years longer than needed.

 

[Dawg52]

I'm 11 years in and retired at 52. When the stock market crashed soon after I retired I was certainly uneasy about my situation even tho Firecalc showed I was still ok. But hung tight and those times passed. No regrets.

 

[scrabbler1]

I should also add that the financial crisis which was upon us when I ERed 10 years ago was actually a big boost to my ER. It lowered the price of the big bond fund I bought into with the proceeds of the company stock I cashed out before it took a big hit. I was able to buy at bargain basement prices about 20% more shares than I had originally planned. These extra shares have been generating extra income each and every month for the last 10 years and will continue doing so in perpetuity.

 

[street]

I'm only in to retirement 2.5 years so not sure I qualify to respond but I will.

I left a lot of money on the table when I left and a great benefit package. I always thought I would work till I dropped, never thought I would retire early. I did, once my wife said to me one day, you need to retire. LOL

I did every calculator on this planet run numbers this way and that way and then found this site. Here (ER) is where I got what I needed to throw in the towel. I had way more then we could ever spend. We spend 80% less then FIRECalc says we can. We also spend 60% less then what I expected our expenses would be in retirement per year. We buy what we want and do not hold back on anything and live well.

So, for me I wish I would have retired sooner, we have spent way less then I budgeted for a year of living. No regrets leaving when I left even at the highest wage of my career.

 

[24601NoMore]

I'm just now entering ER in my mid 50s, so also don't entirely fit the criteria you mentioned - but FWIW, I had the exact same dilemma. If I kept working, ER would probably be more comfortable. We could travel more. Eat out more often. Do more things.

But when it really came down to deciding whether to sacrifice another year or two (I had serious OMY syndrome!), I thought long and hard about what I was giving up in ability to actually live my life. I also had more than a few friends, family members and acquaintances in their 40s, 50s and 60s that did not make it to their next birthday for a variety of different health reasons. My own health was (and still is) deteriorating because I was running completely ragged at work (regular 60-90 hour weeks, EVERY week without breaks and no ability to take vacation due to workload, responsibilities and expectations) plus totally unrealistic goals and politics so toxic and thick you could cut them with a knife. So, even though I could have "run up the number" to give an even better buffer and likely better quality of life in ER, I decided enough was enough and submitted my notice late Summer. I'm still working to transition out and will be done in early January, but if it helps thinking long and hard about the trade-offs of more time to live your life, maintain your health and enjoy things vs. just running up the number further to give you a larger buffer and potentially better quality of life is really what it will all ultimately come down to - and each of us has to ultimately make that decision..

Another interesting twist is that I "hit the number" earlier this year that made me comfortable in my decision to ER. I was feeling just great about things in late August, early Sept. Then, the market "corrected" starting early Oct and my once comfy number got hit by a huge cannonball to the broadside - and essentially all of the additional W-2 and RSU income I've earned since officially resigning end of Summer has been totally offset by the on-paper drop in portfolio value (yay - that's just great). I of course haven't sold anything in the downdraft, but if you are tracking to a number or range of numbers that you think will make you comfortable, just remember that the number can and will fluctuate all over the place during ER and your one, two or more OMYs may be totally offset by Mr. Market ANYWAY (just like it has for me)..

Best of luck..

 

[joeea]

At my age I don’t feel that it’s too late for an encore career, but the truth is I feel a bit like lazing around for awhile and just seeing where my interests take me. With some luck I may find something that brings in money and is fulfilling besides.

Then that's what you should do. Call it a "sabbatical" if that would be more comfortable.

Plan on a full year of "lazing around" before you make your decisions.

It would be hard to get better than 100% on Firecalc. So if you were accurate with your inputs, then you should be fine financially. But the year should give you a fresh perspective on your next stage and help you decide if you really want do be done with the working life completely or if you are willing to work more (either full or part time) to upscale your lifestyle some.

I retired a few years ago at 60. Six months later my former company asked if I would help them out. I agreed to consult 2 days per week (16 hours). We didn't need the money, but I did that for a year and really enjoyed it. I think the fact that I was completely able to avoid all the politics and administrivia that used to take up all my time made things far less stressful and far more pleasant. It allowed me to help them out yet didn't hinder my other activities at all. I'd do it again if the right opportunity came along, although I'm not actively pursuing it.

 

[Austin704]

I'm just now entering ER in my mid 50s, so also don't entirely fit the criteria you mentioned - but FWIW, I had the exact same dilemma. If I kept working, ER would probably be more comfortable. We could travel more. Eat out more often. Do more things.

But when it really came down to deciding whether to sacrifice another year or two (I had serious OMY syndrome!), I thought long and hard about what I was giving up in ability to actually live my life. I also had more than a few friends, family members and acquaintances in their 40s, 50s and 60s that did not make it to their next birthday for a variety of different health reasons. My own health was (and still is) deteriorating because I was running completely ragged at work (regular 60-90 hour weeks, EVERY week without breaks and no ability to take vacation due to workload, responsibilities and expectations) plus totally unrealistic goals and politics so toxic and thick you could cut them with a knife. So, even though I could have "run up the number" to give an even better buffer and likely better quality of life in ER, I decided enough was enough and submitted my notice late Summer. I'm still working to transition out and will be done in early January, but if it helps thinking long and hard about the trade-offs of more time to live your life, maintain your health and enjoy things vs. just running up the number further to give you a larger buffer and potentially better quality of life is really what it will all ultimately come down to - and each of us has to ultimately make that decision..

Another interesting twist is that I "hit the number" earlier this year that made me comfortable in my decision to ER. I was feeling just great about things in late August, early Sept. Then, the market "corrected" starting early Oct and my once comfy number got hit by a huge cannonball to the broadside - and essentially all of the additional W-2 and RSU income I've earned since officially resigning end of Summer has been totally offset by the on-paper drop in portfolio value (yay - that's just great). I of course haven't sold anything in the downdraft, but if you are tracking to a number or range of numbers that you think will make you comfortable, just remember that the number can and will fluctuate all over the place during ER and your one, two or more OMYs may be totally offset by Mr. Market ANYWAY (just like it has for me)..

Best of luck..

Very interesting perspective. Especially the fact that we can’t predict how our health might change at any time—and that ER might actually be the change that makes the most difference!

 

[Austin704]

Then that's what you should do. Call it a "sabbatical" if that would be more comfortable.

Plan on a full year of "lazing around" before you make your decisions.

It would be hard to get better than 100% on Firecalc. So if you were accurate with your inputs, then you should be fine financially. But the year should give you a fresh perspective on your next stage and help you decide if you really want do be done with the working life completely or if you are willing to work more (either full or part time) to upscale your lifestyle some.

I retired a few years ago at 60. Six months later my former company asked if I would help them out. I agreed to consult 2 days per week (16 hours). We didn't need the money, but I did that for a year and really enjoyed it. I think the fact that I was completely able to avoid all the politics and administrivia that used to take up all my time made things far less stressful and far more pleasant. It allowed me to help them out yet didn't hinder my other activities at all. I'd do it again if the right opportunity came along, although I'm not actively pursuing it.

I like that approach—taking a break, or taking a sabbatical, whatever we call it is just a time to recharge and consider where we want to go next. I feel that a year is about right. And who knows what opportunities might come up during that time? Thanks for your perspective.

 

[Austin704]

I retired 5 years ago at 52. Definitely in the peak earning years. Left a lot of money on the table... mostly unvested options/RSUs and a pension bump at 55. But we had already exceeded "the number" I had been targeting for decades to support our lifestyle. We still spend 35% less than FIRECalc says we can at 95%. And we still plan to downsize the house. Working more would have served only to enrich the kids after we're gone.



Then there's the fact that my job sucked. In reality, the job was tolerable; the politics were toxic. But the stress was definitely taking a toll on my physical and mental health. So it was time. Money didn't really even matter that much in the decision. It was time for woodworking, writing music, and riding my bike in the woods. Life now is quite literally a dream come true.



So yeah... no regrets. Except that I probably worked 2-3 years longer than needed.

I’ve read many posts on this forum where people regret working as long as they did—they could have left sooner but for one reason or another decided to continue working. In fact that seems to be a more common regret expressed than of not working long enough. But then considering that folks on this forum are generally well-prepared for retirement that may not be so surprising.

 

[Austin704]

I'm only in to retirement 2.5 years so not sure I qualify to respond but I will.

I left a lot of money on the table when I left and a great benefit package. I always thought I would work till I dropped, never thought I would retire early. I did, once my wife said to me one day, you need to retire. LOL

I did every calculator on this planet run numbers this way and that way and then found this site. Here (ER) is where I got what I needed to throw in the towel. I had way more then we could ever spend. We spend 80% less then FIRECalc says we can. We also spend 60% less then what I expected our expenses would be in retirement per year. We buy what we want and do not hold back on anything and live well.

So, for me I wish I would have retired sooner, we have spent way less then I budgeted for a year of living. No regrets leaving when I left even at the highest wage of my career.

Just curious, at what age did you retire?

 

[tb001]

just remember that the number can and will fluctuate all over the place during ER and your one, two or more OMYs may be totally offset by Mr. Market ANYWAY (just like it has for me)..

Best of luck..

This is the part that we struggle with! The additional savings from working OMY (or in our case two) is dwarfed by whatever happens in the market. We're close to our number, but would like a bit more buffer. That said, it's depressing to think OMY turns into three or five as we wait out a downturn.

 

[brucethebroker]

This is the part that we struggle with! The additional savings from working OMY (or in our case two) is dwarfed by whatever happens in the market. We're close to our number, but would like a bit more buffer. That said, it's depressing to think OMY turns into three or five as we wait out a downturn.

OK, so retire from that job and start another PT job or hobby business. Does not take too much extra income to really pad your retirement. Find something low stress you would enjoy, with the flexibility you desire.

 

[tb001]

OK, so retire from that job and start another PT job or hobby business. Does not take too much extra income to really pad your retirement. Find something low stress you would enjoy, with the flexibility you desire.

We’re doing a version of that. I went to 75% working from home and we moved a few months ago. We’d like to be making enough to not have to draw down our savings and have healthcare covered. So far, the improvement in lifestyle is pretty major, but will see how long I can do this part time. My employer isn’t thrilled with it, for sure.

 

[FI_RElater]

....access to 401 k

one consideration you might want to have is that you have access to your 401k at 55, without penalty, so working two or three more years allows that access and also means no draw on your resources for that period (which may or may not turn out to have “challenges”)

beyond that, based on the conditions you have given, I think you will likely be good.
(we also had good savings, but waited for the health care in retirement and full pension; we figured that DW might only get through the next two to three years, based on the company politics, and sure enough, about three years after leaving there was massive downsizing so we felt fairly vindicated that our thinking was spot on. haven’t gotten to even 2% wr (haven’t started SS), despite replacing HVAC, new vehicle, surgery, etc... so clearly we should be good (even with a drop in equities))

 

[Koolau]

13 years in now and retired at 58. No regrets except maybe I didn't go soon enough. As far as the earnings during peak years, yeah, you leave some money on the table. You have to decide if the money is worth the free time.

As far as how it's worked out, I waited to 70 to take SS, my stash is larger (numerically) than when I started, big problem is dealing with/paying taxes on RMDs. We spend way more now than when we w*rked. So far, no regrets, even though I missed a "package" by a couple of years.

As always, YMMV.

 

[FreeBear]

My question is for those who retired early during their peak earning years and are more than 10 years into retirement: Do you regret not having worked longer to lay in more money and maximize SS benefits? Any other financial regrets of cutting it short and leaving money on the table?

We've been retired for "only" 4 years. DW and I made a comfortable living as DINKS (dual income, no kids) professionals. For the later part of our careers, we bought whatever toys we wanted, but we still saved tons because of modest tastes in housing and cars, and of course, no kids (no college savings!).


I bailed out just as we hit our middle of the road number. DW wanted me to do 2 or 3 more years, but I left within a year because I hated my j*b and was just burned out on the hustling since my early tean years. Just burned out on having to do and perform all the time for decades...


The biggest change for us is living on an actual budget. Before, while w*rking, we would say something like "that house seems to big for folks like us" or that car to much fancier than anything we've ever bought. Now, we need to stick with the numbers based on our SWR. This is a big mental change to both of us, but we are adapting. There is no way we've going back to w*rk, short of a black swan event, in which case it may not even matter what we do.


I think the biggest financial challenge before retiring is getting an accurate estimate of your budget. Some recommend living on your retirement budget for a few years while still w*rking to have confidence that it would not cause hardship. This is great advice, but we didn't follow it. I just had to get out! So we are making it w*rk, life is still good

 

[mexexpat]

I was at top of my career and DH owned a small successful contracting company when we retired at ages 50 and 51. Fifteen years ago. No regrets.

In hindsight we were too conservative in spending our first decade of retirement, but we always under-spent even in our peak earning years.

It is hard to go from squirreling away money to spending it.

 

[street]

Just curious, at what age did you retire?

At 57 did some PT stuff to get acclimated and been done now for 2.5 years. I was still having a lot of fun at my job when I pulled the pin. I thought it is better to leave at the top of my game then a decline and hate the place, where I worked for 35 years.

 

[oscar1]

I’m 1.5 years into ER which started at 54. Zero regrets so far. I do worry about health care, balancing income from investments, current 10 year bull market coming to an end at some point, etc. However, I was the money person in our marriage so I worried about those things anyway. Someone above said it perfectly, “you can’t get this time back once it is gone.” So take advantage of it while you can. If you struggle with what you might do with your new freedom, read the book “How To Retire Happy, Wild, and Free” by Earnie J. Zilinski. You only get one life. You should enjoy it with purpose.

 

[socca]

Do you regret not having worked longer to lay in more money...

Jumping off the corporate hamster wheel as a well-paid engineer 12 years ago at age 44 meant a huge reduction in earned income. Fortunately, I was able to join the family business as a manager and replace some of that earned income. The many people on this board who subscribe to the "safe withdrawal rate" model of retirement planning may say, "Who cares about income? It's only assets that matter." However, I stubbornly cling to the old-fashioned definition of 'financial independence' - 100% of expenses covered by passive income streams. According to this definition, I'm financially independent, but without much margin for error. Therefore, I continue to work in the family business and call myself 'only' semi-retired. BTW: I reject FIRECalc as an oracle for financial retirement planning. It seems rather risky to me to assume that the 21st century equity investing environment will be identical to the 20th century environment. I do have some equity exposure, but I definitely do not use the assumption of endless equity appreciation as the cornerstone of my retirement planning. YMMV.

Just my 2¢ from the chicken gallery.

 

[Austin704]

Jumping off the corporate hamster wheel as a well-paid engineer 12 years ago at age 44 meant a huge reduction in earned income. Fortunately, I was able to join the family business as a manager and replace some of that earned income. The many people on this board who subscribe to the "safe withdrawal rate" model of retirement planning may say, "Who cares about income? It's only assets that matter." However, I stubbornly cling to the old-fashioned definition of 'financial independence' - 100% of expenses covered by passive income streams. According to this definition, I'm financially independent, but without much margin for error. Therefore, I continue to work in the family business and call myself 'only' semi-retired. BTW: I reject FIRECalc as an oracle for financial retirement planning. It seems rather risky to me to assume that the 21st century equity investing environment will be identical to the 20th century environment. I do have some equity exposure, but I definitely do not use the assumption of endless equity appreciation as the cornerstone of my retirement planning. YMMV.



Just my 2¢ from the chicken gallery.

Thanks for the perspective.

 

[arch57]

I retired at 57 in 2015 and doing very well but the one thing not mentioned much in this thread is health insurance. When I was thinking about it in 2014 the ACA plans were about $600/month for my DW and myself. This year I'm paying $1272/month for a bronze plan with $6500 deductible and it increases to $1423/month next year. We have been able to absorb the costs but have 4 more years before I turn 65 for Medicare so going to collect my SS early at 62 which will more than cover our health insurance until then.

If you are 53 make sure you have a plan to stay insured.

 

[Teacher Terry]

HI is a huge expense.

 

[JustCurious]

A small PT job could also fill those holes.

Be careful suggesting work after retirement because the retirement police will show up. I'm a reserve deputy in the IRPF (Internet Retirement Police Force) so I have to point out that if you are working then you are not retired.