52 and dreaming of palm trees

[Emerson11]

Health insurance IS THE THING. When I retired in 2005, I paid approx $350/mo for myself and my two teenage children (high deductible, HSA compatible policy with a $3000 deductible). In 2022, I'll pay $891/mo for a high deductible, HSA compatible policy with a $7000 deductible and that's just for myself and no dental, no vison.
I have healthy teeth, and have always had regular dental care; yet, for the last few years, I've spent at least $2000/year for dental care.
Make sure you plan for health & dental expenses exceeding inflation by a huge amount.

 

[arch57]

IF - and only IF the plan allows it. The IRS rule 'allows' but does not 'require' 401k plans to support the rule of 55. And plans vary... some require a 1 time lump withdrawal, others require periodic withdrawals. Read the 401k plan summary doc's and consult HR.

So true. My wife’s megacorp 401k only allowed an all or nothing withdraw at 55 while my megacorp allowed partial withdrawals with no penalty. I discovered that feature and it opened the magic door to ER at 57 instead of 59 1/2 for me.

 

[catii]

When we bought out home here in Hawaii, the first thing I did was to plant three coconut palms in our front yard. Thirty years later, two of them still survive, & give us all the tasty coconuts we want. Just don't plant them where people walk.

 

[NW-Bound]

When coconut palms are 40 feet tall and were planted in clusters years ago, they certainly do provide shade. Also, literal, actual tons of coconuts (according to our tree guy, 1 to 2 tons per mature tree per year).

Also, it's expensive to have them trimmed, but you have to do it, lest you be overwhelmed with bowling-ball-size coconuts and volunteer coconut trees.

Of course there are other kinds of palms than coconut palms, but even those need yearly trims.

I still like them.

In order to prevent getting bombed by aforementioned bowling-ball-size coconuts, do you have to climb the trees to pick the fruits before they fall on your head?

 

[PointBreeze]

IF - and only IF the plan allows it. The IRS rule 'allows' but does not 'require' 401k plans to support the rule of 55. And plans vary... some require a 1 time lump withdrawal, others require periodic withdrawals. Read the 401k plan summary doc's and consult HR.

Yes, unfortunately my plan did not support the rule of 55, which delayed my early retirement a few years, as I didn’t have enough saved in outside of 401(k) and Roth.

 

[pacergal]

Welcome to the forum
I would suggest tracking actual expenses for the next few years prior to retirement, make sure your budget is covered.

 

[Steeler75]

Yes Mexican Palms are messy and need regular maintenance (plus squirrels use them to nest in).

A good alternative is to plant jelly palms. I have two in huge pots for the two trees I have and make jelly from the sweet fruits they provide. Seem to give fruit every other year so far.

 

[NW-Bound]

Yes, unfortunately my plan did not support the rule of 55, which delayed my early retirement a few years, as I didn’t have enough saved in outside of 401(k) and Roth.

My wife and I are of the same age. She quit work at 50, and I thought about joining her. However, with two children in college, I did not think we had enough in our stash to feel comfortable. I kept working part time until 55, and that helped a lot, particularly as we went through the scary Great Recession.

And I discovered how fast we depleted the after-tax accounts between the age of 55 to 59-1/2 when we could tap the 401k.

Ironically, what helped was my facing a life-threatening disease (which I overcame), which took my attention away from the less important money aspect of life. If you have no life, all that money does not matter.

 

[RetirementNinja]

You are not crazy at all! I just pulled the trigger on retirement in November and am 52 years old and my overall #s are somewhat similar. Your calculated expenses (with buffer for me) are right on my own calculations - and I live in upstate NY. I targeted $1.35M for retirement savings based on running models through Firecalc. I wound up retiring with about $1.45M by time I pulled the trigger. I have yet to turn on SEPP because the federal rate updates in November and December have meant waiting would give me much larger payout for the next 7 1/2 year bridge period. At this point I intend to turn on SEPP in January, which will provide about $52K/year of income. I will have oodles of extra cash buffer for any contingencies as well.

I wish you luck and recommend retiring when you feel comfortable. Don't wait until you have "way too much". Life is short. I have no regrets and am now a regular rock climber! I recommend you look into it - a wonderful retirement hobby and workout, and also a great social activity with others.

Hi,
I'm happy to find this group and have been eagerly reading and learning! It's clear I have lots to learn.

My spouse and I hope to retire in a couple years. No date set, but I'm eyeing Jan. 2024. We'll both turn 55 that year. We have one child in college, living at home. And about 25K more in college expenses that we'll be covering.

Financials
770K in 401K
300K in Roths
185K in a pension that I need to figure out what to do with (lump sum or monthly)
40K in taxable

Also have about 300K in equity in our home; 50K mortgage. No other debts.
Eventually, we'd sell this and buy another home where the palm trees sway, likely spending slightly more.

We'll save 45k/year in 2022 and a bit more the year after.

I'm guessing 55-60K in annual expenses, but a big chunk of that is healthcare and I don't know what to expect there.

Based on the numbers, I think SS should cover most if not all are expenses if we take at/near full retirement age.

Am I crazy to buy us a retirement countdown clock for Christmas?
We're both eager to escape the corporate world.