Poll: Retirees, how adequate is your retirement income?

[Options]

Just back from Cancun, despising just about every last thing about Los
Angeles/"SoCal!" (took the usual lovely HOUR crawling through minefields otherwise referred to as traffic in other locales just to get from LAX to home last night), and am in a mood that would make Grumpy Cat look like Mary Poppins, so anything I say should be taken with a barrel of salt.

My first thought: crap, another stupid poll. How the hell do I know if I "have enough"? Does anyone? Ever? Probably, but that's only when they're shoveling the dirt on you (or putting the broiler on "high" in my case). I have much more than enough, but that's because I've always had more than enough, and I'll probably die with much more than enough. I've never cared less, don't care now, and won't care then, either (although my heirs sure will be ecstatic).

Quite frankly, I'm shocked at my net worth. But never. Not once. During the lowest points in my life have I ever not had "enough". Never. Sometimes, LYBM and general contentment with life buys what no fleeting thing, plastic "toy", or phony "bucket list" experience will ever be able to put a price on: peace of mind.*

*exception: people who live in LA/"SoCal!" who have absolutely no reason being there should probably use some of that cash to get the hell out (much) sooner than planned...

 

[Lsbcal]

...
*exception: people who live in LA/"SoCal!" who have absolutely no reason being there should probably use some of that cash to get the hell out (much) sooner than planned...

Must be a strong reason for being in LA. From above you are ER'd, have more then enough ... hmmm.

P.S. We pass through LA to get to San Diego to see our son occasionally. No fun. Last time we flew over it.

 

[Options]

Must be a strong reason for being in LA. From above you are ER'd, have more then enough ... hmmm.

P.S. We pass through LA to get to San Diego to see our son occasionally. No fun. Last time we flew over it.

Relationship (best in my life). Love conquers all (including sanity, it seems). Our agreement is to leave in a few years.

San Diego is still one of the few great cities (in a number of ways) for younger people establishing themselves and prospering.

 

[LuckyDog]

We have plenty. But like many here, we have always been conservative with our money. Our big thing (like Options said above) is peace of mind.

LuckyDog

 

[twobarkingdogs]

I didn't vote because I didn't like the choices.

I live very conservative. Tha'ts because I do not want to touch the principal on my investments even though the facts state that I could withdraw upper 5 digits every year and not outlive my money. Thus I live only on the income my investments generate.

So for me my retirement income is fine.

Its a little of me being cheap and also not having a desire to travel. Plus its hard to travel when you have a couple of dogs, a cat and 40 plus chickens.

 

[NW-Bound]

Yes, you have a problem there all right.

I have read blogs of RV'ers who have more dogs and cats than that, but never about someone pulling a trailer with chicken coops behind his motorhome.

 

[W2R]

This time YOU get to decide what to include in your income. SS? Pension? Investments? Cash? Inheritance? House? Rentals? I don't care. You decide.

All I want to know, is how you feel about it. Maybe your present retirement income isn't much but overall it's a lot because you don't have SS yet; then I'd suggest responding based on your overall feeling that it's a lot. But really, it's up to you because this time you get to pick.

The objective of this poll is FUN. It's a light-hearted poll, not intended to have deep meaning or import. I doubt anyone needs a definition of FUN, but if you do then you need to get out more.

I didn't vote because I didn't like the choices.

Uh.... OK? As long as that is what is FUN for you, then great.

 

[NW-Bound]

In all polls, there should be a default choice: "I don't vote in this dumb poll".

Hmmm... That would cause a paradox, wouldn't it?

See one of my polls earlier: http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f27/poll-yes-or-no-59734.html.

 

[M Paquette]

Quite adequate...



Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

 

[REWahoo]

Quite adequate...

+1

So far, so good...

 

[Music Lover]

Then at 62 I can start taking CPP (Canadian SS). At 67, old age security kicks in (or is it 65 now?).

Actually, CPP can be taken as early as 60. The new government has said they will lower the OAS age from 67 to 65, but I don't know if that's been done yet...or if it will be done.

 

[Music Lover]

I'm in the "I have a little more than I can spend, which is a nice security blanket" category. My pension is about 25% greater than my expenses plus I have a small nest egg.

 

[Mulligan]

I'm in the "I have a little more than I can spend, which is a nice security blanket" category. My pension is about 25% greater than my expenses plus I have a small nest egg.

Same here. I live off my pension which is about 40% above my usual monthly spend. My nest egg will never make me a 1% er unless my lineage is an unknown direct line to Methuselah. But...I will never spend it either. If I do, I will have serious budget problems that will need to be addressed.

 

[aja8888]

Same here. I live off my pension which is about 40% above my usual monthly spend. My nest egg will never make me a 1% er unless my lineage is an unknown direct line to Methuselah. But...I will never spend it either. If I do, I will have serious budget problems that will need to be addressed.

Budget problems or bad sports betting?

 

[Mulligan]

Budget problems or bad sports betting?

As of now that or Obamacare would be the prime candidates! I guess a third option would be reinstalling a landline becoming senile and donating to every cause that calls me.

 

[HadEnuff]

I struggled with the choices. I settled on "just what i need", but a more accurate choice would have been, "I have enough, but sure, I COULD spend more", but I'm so new into this game, I really don't know.

I wouldn't have retired if I didn't THINK I had enough. But that little voice says "do you really know?" And since i've made the decision to retire, everything keeps breaking.

And I'm one of those people who, when the retirement calculators say 95% chance of not running out of money, I immediately obsess over that 5%...
It's going to take some time for me to get used to this.

 

[Fedup]

I voted for number 2.

 

[foxfirev5]

A whopping 18 days into ER I voted having a little more. However today after returning home from a celebration trip I find the old desktop no longer will fire up. Also I'm waiting for the call from the marina that tomorrow's launch will be held up due to the boat needing new batteries (or something). I may have to drop down a notch in the poll if this keeps up. But the nice thing is that they're all wants and not needs. I'm very grateful.

 

[kcowan]

Way more then I can spend, but I do worry a bit for the young wife if she goes past 100.

If things get tight, she will find a way. I have 3 buddies from work years who all lost their wives to cancer and every one has remarried to an eligible widow.

 

[RobbieB]

I'm still living on SS and "unearned income" from investments, not drawing down on the "egg".

I had to increase my spending to get to that level. Nice problem to have -

 

[Cobra9777]

How adequate is your retirement income?

...All I want to know, is how you feel about it...

I'm feeling a lot better about our financial position compared to 3 years ago when I retired. DW decided to keep working. So the nestegg and, more significantly, her pension continue to grow. Once she retires (supposedly end of this year), our pensions and rentals will cover 75% of expenses, which is ~100% of non-discretionary. Dividends from the taxable account cover most discretionary. This is all pre-SS and pre-RMDs. However, we are still spending about 30-35% less than what i-ORP, FIRECalc, etc say we can safely spend. So, I guess I'm feeling better, but not enough to loosen the purse strings beyond current levels.

 

[GolfingDuo]

It has been a while since I have been here and one of the first threads I see is a great one. This one. My answer is I have a bit more than I actually need. Back when I first came here I didn't have a handle on what I had. It was here and in another forum that allowed me to come to grips with what I would have in retirement.

I came here worried about my job because every two years I go through what is called a qualitative retention board. I was a soldier in the national guard and worked full time for them as a FERS technician. I think somewhere on this thread is a post I did on FERS retirement that I hope people have found helpful.

Well last year while on vacation I got the call that I had been dreading that I would not be retained and my last day would be 30 September 2015. A few things ran across my mind. I had been thinking that I had done all I could do and that because I had letters written in my behalf for the retention board to consider in my behalf I would be okay. Well it happened that they decided that this nearly 58 year old man had served enough and they wanted my rank and position for someone younger.

You civilians can argue that it is age discrimination and it is except that I don't work for a private company. So I am put to the side. I had not even a leg to stand on because I reached MRA (minimum retirement age) and had 30+ years under my belt. In fact it turns out that I have just over 36 years. So with their obligations to me fulfilled and I can take a pension all be it small I could not argue even that part. My office did get me 6 months extra because of an important project I was involved in would be completed in that time and they needed me.

So here I am today. Unemployed and collecting a partial pension and drawing on my retirement account. I am 58.5 and have started periodic withdrawals in accordance to 72t IRSC. In 15 months I will get my entire pension and should be in good financial standing. My home will be paid off and every calculator tells me that my retirement plan has a near perfect outcome. I thank those here for that firecalc program that helped me develop my plan.

I am having a financial planner help us develop it more and put together a formal plan. I have a very good FP who is not advocating me move money from my accounts to his company's funds. In fact it is the opposite and his fee for advice is a whopping $500 annually. We will provide him with additional business and that is another story but we are very happy with him.

We are not wealthy by many standards but we are not poor either. We have income that both of us can live on above and beyond SS which we will take at different times. We are nearly the same age DW is 58 and I am 58.5. Our plan is for DW to file at 62 and I will file at FRA 66.5. If it is available at that time she may suspend and take spousal until 70 on the do over provision. We are not counting on that so......

I do feel good about being retired. I have applied for unemployment which in my state will be 30 weeks even though I have a pension I will just get a little less than I would otherwise.

 

[W2R]

GolfingDuo, welcome back to the forum and congratulations on your retirement! Even though it was somewhat forced upon you, in a sense, still I feel certain that with your great attitude you will find that this is the best possible turn of events. For most of us, retirement is so much fun and it sounds to me like you have the financial aspects figured out. I predict much golfing and happiness in your future.

 

[GolfingDuo]

With the way I golf I am not sure golfing and happiness go together

 

[RobbieB]

Don't matter. I suck at golf but the exercise is good, the course is nice and green and the aroma is wonderful.

Have fun!