Retired!!

[averagebum]

Hi everyone. Finally retired at 64 going on 65 in December. Thank you to all the board members who gave me the encouragement to my previous posts. I must agree: it is glorious on this side! I love the leisurely pace of life. Still working part time but work I can manage from home and in 2 to 3 hours a day max. No more meetings and no more need to deal with characters without much character--some vomit inducing. If it sounds harsh, so be it; I am merely being honest. I am in a position now to tell the rest of the world to piss off if I wish.
I must say though the psychology of going from saving and investing to spending takes some getting used to. I am sitting on 4.1 million portfolio, generating $104,000 in dividends a year, but I find myself reluctant to spend down any of it. So far I am planning to spend only about 40,000 a year to supplement my pension and part-time work. I won't be drawing on social security till I hit 66 so my part time work doesn't impact the amount I receive from social security. I have no dependents. How am I going to spend all this money? So why am I so reluctant to spend almost any of it?
Thank you again for all the encouragement I have received from this board.

 

[MarieIG]

Congratulations of pulling the trigger! It sounds as if you really needed it.

Don't worry about the spending part - it will come.

 

[Katiek]

Congratulations! Enjoy your freedom. Sounds lilke you have a solid base for income and you can take more from the portfolio once you get more comfortable with spending in retirement or if you have an unexpected expense. It never hurts to be conservative until you're ready.

 

[Healthy Lifestyle]

Congrats and welcome to the retirement club. I am also recently retired and still hesitant to spend down savings.

 

[Luvtoride]

Congratulations averagebum,
I’m also recently retired and enjoying it immensely.

Spending money is not something I have an issue with. I feel confident in the plan we put together and the sources of income we have. We are fortunate to have a close family of two daughters, their husbands and 4 grandchildren and enjoying doing things with them all is our main “spend” of discretionary funds.

I’m sure you will be fine. Enjoy what you have worked so hard all your life to achieve!

 

[DrRoy]

It does feel good, doesn't it? Go ahead and BTD! That's what it is for.

 

[Time2]

At 68, we have no option but to spend down our portfolio as we have no pensions. The good thing is, the portfolio is higher now than when we retired 5 years ago.. We may start SS in either 4 or 16 months, waffling on the date, once we start collecting our withdrawal rate will be under 1%. We need to learn to spend, rather than saving it for the kids.

 

[averagebum]

Congratulations and thank you everyone!

Let's all enjoy our retirement!! This really is like a second beginning in life.

 

[yakers]

Come on in, the waters fine ��

 

[pacergal]

averagebum--congratulations on your retirement!
Over time, you will most likely relax a bit about spending. Having a pension and SS eventually, certainly helps. Going from savings mode to spend mode will come on its own time. If you are interested in travel, that's a great way to increase spending--try first class and luxury accommodations!
Enjoy your day, it is all your time to have.

 

[HI Bill]

Figure out what you want/need then buy it. I bought a $5K pair of speakers just before I ER'd. They were supposed to be my end-game speakers. Two and a half years later, I just bought a pair of $22K speakers. Just remember, you don't get a reward for being the richest person in the cemetary! Enjoy the rewards of your work and sacrifices, and smart decisions!

 

[averagebum]

Thank you everyone!

Indeed, the shroud has no pockets. And as old man Clint Eastwood said in the last scene in The Mule, you can buy anything with money except time. How to maximize the joy of each day, how to squeeze the most out of it, ought to be the guide of how I should spend my retirement. Happy retirement everyone!

 

[Alex The Great]

averagebum, congratulations with the new chapter in your life!
I'm on track to retire in a couple of months, but I'm almost 10 years younger and feel guilty

 

[Koolau]

Congratulations and welcome to the FIRE club. I think you'll really enjoy it.

 

[averagebum]

Congratulations, Alex!

averagebum, congratulations with the new chapter in your life!
I'm on track to retire in a couple of months, but I'm almost 10 years younger and feel guilty

Good for you!! You will have that much more time to enjoy your life. I started thinking about retiring when I hit 60 but got into the one more year rut. Now I have a higher portfolio value but 4 1/2 years less in time to indulge in the joys of being free. Congratulations!

 

[MikeInDC]

Spend it. You have no dependents? Why do you want to die with money? That always confuses me.

 

[Koolau]

Spend it. You have no dependents? Why do you want to die with money? That always confuses me.

Several folks here on the Forum had replied to this question over the years. I think it's primarily to leave an inheritance. Other of us wish to help the charities we supported during our years on the planet.

And, of course, spending the last dollar (or bouncing the proverbial last check) as you die means if you calculate wrong (and live OMY - one more year) you are in trouble. SO leaving at least a buffer - maybe even a substantial buffer - makes sense to a lot of us. I think that's especially true as we age, though it's not universal.

Personally, I have retained many of my frugal ways and don't think too much about what I will leave behind (at least not numerically.) I think more in terms about the fact that (barring black swans) I have "enough" and I can spend whatever I like. I am restrained (mentally) from blowing it all. By now, its habit and not a bad one IMHO - because I'm financially and BTD happy as well.

 

[Unpaintedhuffhines]

Retired about 9 months ago. I too, initially struggled with spending my hard-earned savings; after all, I've spent my entire life focused on accumulating wealth, not overspending. But even with spending about $50K on various home improvement projects (new AC, tankless hot water heater, landscaping, house painting), I still have about $1M more than when I retired. I've gone from checking my account balances daily to maybe once every 4-5 days, and hopefully I'll wean myself down to once a month or longer. Then I did the math and saw that our WD rate is in the 1.5% range, and we have SS in a few years which won't be a small number.

Huge congratulations on your retirement.

 

[Dtail]

Congrats. You are on target, as many folks on this site spend less than 3%WR but frequently talk about BTD, but don't do it.
Hopefully you will relax about spending.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

Congrats. You are on target, as many folks on this site spend less than 3%WR but frequently talk about BTD, but don't do it.
Hopefully you will relax about spending.

Somewhat guilty of that (don't talk too much about BTD other than as an aspiration). I'm sub 3% but have a long draw period, am close to 100% equities, and still getting used to selling while watching MAGI. I'm not feeling deprived at all but do have a few splurges I might blow money on when I feel I've won the game... even then, I dread the shopping so I may procrastinate!

 

[street]

I wish you a long and happy retirement. Very well done.

 

[Harris4crna]

Figure out what you want/need then buy it. I bought a $5K pair of speakers just before I ER'd. They were supposed to be my end-game speakers. Two and a half years later, I just bought a pair of $22K speakers. Just remember, you don't get a reward for being the richest person in the cemetary! Enjoy the rewards of your work and sacrifices, and smart decisions!

I thought I was the only one that buys 22k speakers...good to know there are others.

I have no trouble spending my hard earned money on life.....why not. I am only 50 years old.