Can I retire?

[beowulf]

Friends and family are why we are still in this area. We have no desire to move to an area where we will not know anyone. Plus, everything I have read indicates that, prior to making a major permanent move in retirement, you should rent in that area for between 6 and 12 months to see if that’s where you want to spend the rest of your life. We have done that twice, and, each time, we decided they weren’t a good fit for us. OTOH, we know several people who basically picked out a place they had never been to and moved there. Maybe they like it and maybe they don’t. But I doubt they would ever say if they were unhappy there - it’s hard to admit you made a huge mistake.

As to not working for the government anymore, I had it both ways for a few years. I worked for a company that subbed me out to the government. That way I kept my full retirement and received what I would have made in my old job. You’re young enough that you could do that for a few years and then collect SS at 62 and retire fully. But, if you’re done with work, then you’re done. Enjoy retirement.

 

[jgman]

I've also read other posts from retirees who recommend renting first. Not an issue for me as I grew up in NoVa and dont plan to move.

I would consider consulting for a private firm, ideally on a part-time basis, if I could find something. I have a CPA so that's something I may look into down the road.

 

[beowulf]

We are not from NVA, but have lived here since 1976. I don’t know what you do in the government, but you should have no problem finding a full or part time gig working as a contractor for a company that consults with the federal agencies. Not only can it be lucrative, but it also gives you a glide path. Has the part time pre-retirement program been implemented? It’s been talked about for over 15 years, but I’ve not seen evidence that it exists. I would have preferred that, but it wasn’t an option. Put your resume out on LinkedIn, let friends you know in industry that you are thing of retirement and network. It’s worth a try.

 

[jgman]

We are not from NVA, but have lived here since 1976. I don’t know what you do in the government, but you should have no problem finding a full or part time gig working as a contractor for a company that consults with the federal agencies. Not only can it be lucrative, but it also gives you a glide path. Has the part time pre-retirement program been implemented? It’s been talked about for over 15 years, but I’ve not seen evidence that it exists. I would have preferred that, but it wasn’t an option. Put your resume out on LinkedIn, let friends you know in industry that you are thing of retirement and network. It’s worth a try.

I heard of the pre-retirement program but never heard of anyone taking advantage of it. If it does exist I don't think its widely used. I worked in the IG community performing audits. I know of several retirees from our organization that went with big consulting firms working with government agencies. I definitely need to update my resume and have it ready should I decide to reenter the work force.

BTW, I moved to NoVa in 1975 with my family...grew up in Vienna now live in Falls Church.

 

[JakeinChina]

Must be nice to work lifetime for the federal government. Pension plus social security and a fair amount of job security.

 

[beowulf]

Must be nice to work lifetime for the federal government. Pension plus social security and a fair amount of job security.

Anyone can do the same. It’s your choice. We each make our own decisions.

 

[troutnut1]

What kind of vehicles do you have and are they financed/leased?

 

[beowulf]

You should look at the thread Poll: Vehicle Habits. It’s getting longer by the hour and covers buying, leasing, vehicles obtained and why, etc. very comprehensive.

 

[2177V]

Hello everyone,
I am currently a Federal Employee looking to retire on December 31 2021. Wanted to get opinions on whether I am financially able or whether to wait a few more years.

Age 56 (turn 57 January 2022)
Single no kids (no heirs so want to spend it all before I pass
TSP $1.1 million
Roth 100k
taxable savings 100k
Debt 470k mortgage (house worth 750k)
no other debt
Federal Pension 5k/month (includes health and dental insurance premiums)
Rental income from home 1k a month

I would like to keep the house although I know I should probably sell it. I love the location and rent out part of it for 1K/month. Im in the process of refinancing to a low rate mortgage P&I of $2600/mth

Thoughts?

My thought: Do not make any major decisions until after one year into retirement. At that time, you have a better handle of your retirement cash flow versus expenses and you can make a better decision on the house. OK to carry the loan into retirement since interest rates are so low. The key point is your taxes. At $6K/mo is $72K/yr so you may not realize any tax benefits from the house but you may want to consult a Certified Public Accountant. I am assuming your $1.1m in your TSP is conservatively invested. This is because the S&P 500 PE ratio is relatively high.

See https://www.macrotrends.net/2577/sp-500-pe-ratio-price-to-earnings-chart

 

[beowulf]

Not sure what that means for the TSP - the only really conservative fund is the G fund, which yields about 1%. At the OPs age, that’s way to conservative. I’m retired, any my TSP is 60% and the rest split among the C, I and S. But I’m a lot older than the OP.

 

[2177V]

Not sure what that means for the TSP - the only really conservative fund is the G fund, which yields about 1%. At the OPs age, that’s way to conservative. I’m retired, any my TSP is 60% and the rest split among the C, I and S. But I’m a lot older than the OP.

I am also a federal retiree of 34 years and I rolled over my TSP into a Vanguard Traditional IRA which provide more investment options than the limited options at TSP. The Vanguard fees are fairly low for large accounts but I do not recall how the TSP fees compare to Vanguard fees. At that time, I did not like TSP because there is less transparency on the TSP fees.

Rolling over my TSP to Vanguard turned out to be a good decision for me during the bull market. Since the S&P500 P/E ratio is relatively high, this implies that the market is "over-valued" so the market is subject to a correction. I am now in a asset preservation mode which means more conservative bonds and less high risk equities.

 

[melijov]

I believe you are in good shape! Your reasonable needs should be covered without problems with what you have. And you should be able to indulge in reasonable wants as well! In bad times you should be OK by scaling down your expenses. And in good times you can scale up. You could work more if you want to feel more confident, but then you will have less time left to enjoy what you have built. But again it is up to you to decide how much is enough.

 

[beowulf]

Fees at the TSP are lower than just about any other fund companies except for the very few that have no fees. I would have rolled my TSP to VG, but reconsidered when the TSP made lots of changes last year that made the situation far more customer friendly. I’ll keep reevaluating every year to make sure things haven’t changed.

 

[plex]

I'm also going to retire from federal work a bit after in mid 2022. Your numbers look just fine (or even more) unless you expect to spend $135k+ per year. Your MRA is definitely 56 or younger so there is nothing complicated there either. I wouldn't move from TSP for now as the investment costs are a good bit lower than even Vanguard with similar broad options.

 

[cnocmmz]

I believe you qualify for the supplemental SS until 62 also, unless you were at the SES level and depending on the amount of years you did.

 

[jgman]

Just an update. I notified my agency this week of my plans to retire. Senior management asked me to work an extra few months to mentor my millennial boss who is 20+ years younger than me. He was just promoted over me for the position. Too funny. Definitely time to move on, although I agreed to stick around for a few extra months.

 

[RetireeRobert]

Just read your first post and was going to say--YES you can retire. But I see you got to it before I could give you my advice!

At any rate, congratulations, and enjoy your retirement!

 

[jgman]

Just read your first post and was going to say--YES you can retire. But I see you got to it before I could give you my advice!

At any rate, congratulations, and enjoy your retirement!

Thanks!

 

[Shinge1233]

Hello everyone,
I am currently a Federal Employee looking to retire on December 31 2021. Wanted to get opinions on whether I am financially able or whether to wait a few more years.

Age 56 (turn 57 January 2022)
Single no kids (no heirs so want to spend it all before I pass
TSP $1.1 million
Roth 100k
taxable savings 100k
Debt 470k mortgage (house worth 750k)
no other debt
Federal Pension 5k/month (includes health and dental insurance premiums)
Rental income from home 1k a month

I would like to keep the house although I know I should probably sell it. I love the location and rent out part of it for 1K/month. Im in the process of refinancing to a low rate mortgage P&I of $2600/mth

Thoughts?

Hi, jgman,
I have a little similar situation with you. But I got married and no rental income. Hope we can enjoy our retiring life....