Rustic23
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
I did a spreadsheet! It forced me to look at expenses, and income, think about future income etc. It was a 35 year model. I created a section for big stuff, I.e.roof, Cars, etc. I handled taxes by using after tax income, as I planned for small refunds each year.
It was a good exercise and, along with post on here, Firecalc, and all this showed me we would be OK, and 16 years later we are.
One major expense I dodged a bullet on, is a new roof. Hail damage and insurance paid for it. I also have not purchased new cars as often, don't go on as much, and don't save for retirement. One thing not in my spreadsheet was reduced spending.
All in all, it was a good exercise, and I should have done it 10 years earlier.
For the first three years of retirement, I updated the model. For the next 3 or 4 years I tracked spending with Quicken. I am at the point now that I know that I am spending the kids money and I won't spend all of it. I check the bank statements and credit card charges to make sure they are right, but I don't model anything. Oh, I lost my original spreadsheet, but I think it was close.
It was a good exercise and, along with post on here, Firecalc, and all this showed me we would be OK, and 16 years later we are.
One major expense I dodged a bullet on, is a new roof. Hail damage and insurance paid for it. I also have not purchased new cars as often, don't go on as much, and don't save for retirement. One thing not in my spreadsheet was reduced spending.
All in all, it was a good exercise, and I should have done it 10 years earlier.
For the first three years of retirement, I updated the model. For the next 3 or 4 years I tracked spending with Quicken. I am at the point now that I know that I am spending the kids money and I won't spend all of it. I check the bank statements and credit card charges to make sure they are right, but I don't model anything. Oh, I lost my original spreadsheet, but I think it was close.