Age for retirement?

[JustEm]

7 minutes ago, Annie G said:

1. Mr. Money Mustache is primarily focused on FIRE, which is financially independent, retired early.  Lots of folks on there are retired in their 30’s and 40’s.  You know how this message board is full of super helpful people? Same there, just focused on finance. 
2. Keeping taxable income low has allowed me and dh to buy excellent medical insurance for under $100/month for both of us. Low deductible, low out of pocket max.  

Mr money mustache can be a great platform even if you don't want to retire early. People on there are pretty clever when it come to money

[Sneezyone]

1 hour ago, Carrie12345 said:

In my area, it’s no crappier than the few options (if any options, or coverage at all) employers offer, and it isn’t significantly more expensive except for the fact that an employer isn’t paying toward it (not that all do anyway.) But it could be difficult to be accepted for the marketplace without employment. That might depend on the state.

I’d expect that anyone retiring in their 30s or 40s would be doing so because they’re the kind of wealthy where health insurance ISN’T hard to fund!

Not really. The military still offers a cliff/vested retirement option so 38 is not uncommon for people who join out of high school (or do academies, their college time counts). Even DHs delayed entry time counts. DH, at 47 +/-, will be on the older side.

Edited May 30, 2022 by Sneezyone

[lewelma]

Now that my older boy is done with American university, DH and I both have moved to part time jobs that together pay the expenses and allow us to save.  We are not in the US, so don't have an insurance problem. We are 52, but plan to keep working part time into our 70s because we both do interesting work that we enjoy. We have low expenses because we live in a 600 sq ft apartment that we own and can walk everywhere in the city so no transport costs. 

Edited May 30, 2022 by lewelma

[Elizabeth86]

Dh has a mandatory retirement age of 57. I don't work. 

[Meriwether]

Dh could technically retire at 54, but it would not be in our best interests financially. We will still have a high schooler at that point. When Dd graduates, I hope to get a job for a few years. I'd like to encourage Dh to stick it out until 61 or 62 by helping build savings we could use until he can draw his pension at 65

[Carrie12345]

8 hours ago, Sneezyone said:

Not really. The military still offers a cliff/vested retirement option so 38 is not uncommon for people who join out of high school (or do academies, their college time counts). Even DHs delayed entry time counts. DH, at 47 +/-, will be on the older side.

True! That was kind of in the back of my mind, but I never really hear much about people who don’t go on to civilian jobs.

[Matryoshka]

11 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

Dh will retire around 62-63. His company tends to offer an early retirement package around then. We have good savings in our 401k, and the retirement plan continues medical insurance coverage for the employee until 65. I am four year younger than he so I have to get a job where I can buy insurance. I imagine that my entire salary will go to that given how fast insurance premiums are increasing, and I won't have any seniority wherever I am working so I expect the employer contribution to done quite small. But I need to do this. Dh is 58 and worn out. He has worked himself into the ground for his family, and now our elderly mothers. He has to slow down soon.

He loves woodworking and has a laser cutter, CNC, and all the tools needed to do custom cabinetry and sign making so he plans on doing some side work to stay busy. He really enjoys that kind of work.

My fantasy back-up plan if dh needs to retire before I make it to Medicare age is Trader Joe's,  as they offer Healthcare for part-time employees.  Pre-pandemic it seemed 90% of their in-store workforce were In their 50s and 60s.

[Lady Marmalade]

I voted 70 for both of us.  We always say that DH will never retire because puttering around the home drives him bonkers.  Physically, we'll see if he makes it that long.  Construction has a physical toll on the body.   He has a decent retirement plan through work that allows for earlier retirement at 62. 

For myself, after 18 years of being SAHM, I am loving being back in the workforce.  I love my job and find it incredibly fulfilling in so many ways.  I would love to be able to keep it up until I'm 70.  I turn 45 this year, so that's plenty of time for things to change.  Right now the SSA says I could retire with a full benefit at 67.   

 

[Beth S]

Chiming in with PPs, I highly recommend researching retirement options now.
I had always planned to head back to work when our youngest graduated (during the lockdown).
Instead, I began researching ACA (as other PPs suggested), IRA rules, Medicare thresholds, Spousal Social Security and the various amounts SS will pay out at various times in our life, etc.
Divorced individuals can still claim spousal social security within the rules.
The Covid Relief Bill indeed granted ACA subsidies to most everyone = maximum is 8.5% of your AGI.

I highly recommend organizing your financial info & consult with a CPA for 30 minutes, regardless of your situation.
It's one thing to PLAN to work full-time until you're 70yo . . . and then find that plan is impossible. 
There are lots of paths to retirement (part-time retirement work, side gigs, tightening the budget, launching kids, downsizing, less travel) that are more moderate approaches. 

My 61yo dh is still working full-time, but we now know that it's just to give us a little financial breathing room in the future.
If his company closes (not unlikely) we'll be OK (but will need to be frugal & downsize, no travel, no fancy cars . . . per our CPA's advice). 

[Sneezyone]

3 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

True! That was kind of in the back of my mind, but I never really hear much about people who don’t go on to civilian jobs.

Yeah, besides the extra money, most people would be bored out of their gourds.

[mommyoffive]

13 hours ago, Annie G said:

1. Mr. Money Mustache is primarily focused on FIRE, which is financially independent, retired early.  Lots of folks on there are retired in their 30’s and 40’s.  You know how this message board is full of super helpful people? Same there, just focused on finance. 
2. Keeping taxable income low has allowed me and dh to buy excellent medical insurance for under $100/month for both of us. Low deductible, low out of pocket max.  

Right the people in their 30s and 40s that retired did it because of FIRE, not because they came from money or anything.   A lot of smart investing, staying in your starter home, buying rental houses, working for really good companies, investing and so on and so on.  One has over 2.5 in investments but is keeping their income under 45k with 3 kids.  They are paying $0 for health insurance this year through the marketplace. 

[Pawz4me]

1 hour ago, Beth S said:

The Covid Relief Bill indeed granted ACA subsidies to most everyone = maximum is 8.5% of your AGI.

 

I believe the extra subsidies will go away if Congress doesn't approve more Covid funding, though (or perhaps some version of the proposed American Rescue Plan). I'm fuzzy on the specifics, but I know the extra subsidies were only temporary

[Jenny in Florida]

Neither of our employers have policies about retirement age. My husband has a tiny pension from before his current employer stopped offering that benefit, but it's not a significant factor in our retirement plans. We both have 401K accounts and some other savings. So, I answered with our full retirement ages according to the Social Security Administration (67).

Realistically, my husband is likely to retire as soon as he's able, while I expect to continue working full-time until there's a good reason not to do so. 

I'm 57 now and about to dive back into the second half of a master's degree program. I'd like to think I'll work long enough to put that to meaningful use.

[alysee]

Just curious, do most American companies provide disability and critical care insurance or is that something you also have to get on top of medical insurance?  My husband has a day job as a freelance Assistant Director, that job does not pay for any extra health, dental, critical care, retirement or disability insurance. He does have a very part time job as a an Army Reservist in the Canadian military in order to get the extra benefits for our family. He works 1-2 weekends a month and one evening a week unless there is a natural disaster like we had recently and then he is deployed until things are under control. Here in Canada you will get thr extra benefits if you work for a large corporation or the government but otherwise you have to pay out of pocket for those extra expenses. 

 

[heartlikealion]

48 minutes ago, alysee said:

Just curious, do most American companies provide disability and critical care insurance or is that something you also have to get on top of medical insurance?  My husband has a day job as a freelance Assistant Director, that job does not pay for any extra health, dental, critical care, retirement or disability insurance. He does have a very part time job as a an Army Reservist in the Canadian military in order to get the extra benefits for our family. He works 1-2 weekends a month and one evening a week unless there is a natural disaster like we had recently and then he is deployed until things are under control. Here in Canada you will get thr extra benefits if you work for a large corporation or the government but otherwise you have to pay out of pocket for those extra expenses. 

 

I live in the US and I’ve never even heard of critical care insurance— not to say it doesn’t exist. I think it depends on the company as far as disability but I think that’s more a short-term thing typically. If you cannot work then you apply for disability and that’s a whole ‘nother thing. I have been under the impression that disability here is for people unable to work whereas in Canada you can work a certain number of hours. Someone correct me if I’m wrong. 

I have some new Canadian friends and it sounded to me like their medical includes dental? I have to get dental separately but there are not enough FT employees at my job so I didn’t qualify. Now I’ll have to get the dental office plan if I want it ($25/month). 

[alysee]

9 minutes ago, heartlikealion said:

I live in the US and I’ve never even heard of critical care insurance— not to say it doesn’t exist. I think it depends on the company as far as disability but I think that’s more a short-term thing typically. If you cannot work then you apply for disability and that’s a whole ‘nother thing. I have been under the impression that disability here is for people unable to work whereas in Canada you can work a certain number of hours. Someone correct me if I’m wrong. 

I have some new Canadian friends and it sounded to me like their medical includes dental? I have to get dental separately but there are not enough FT employees at my job so I didn’t qualify. Now I’ll have to get the dental office plan if I want it ($25/month). 

Companies here in Canada do not have to give out medical insurance so usually the cost to companies are astronomical if you go with a separate company to give it to your employees so only large corporations will give out benefits which basically means Canadians healthcare without extra insurance will still have to pay out of pocket for dental, eye care and prescriptions. 

Employment insurance is given out by the government so if you can't find a job you can use that for a portion of money for certain amount of weeks. 

Critical care insurance is for when you might be sick in the short term(cancer, surgery)and can't work they will pay your wages. So technically if your company has critical care insurance you can get money through that along with the Govt will pay for you while you cant work. I hope that makes sense. It is quite confusing. 

 

[Beth S]

1 hour ago, Pawz4me said:

I believe the extra subsidies will go away if Congress doesn't approve more Covid funding, though (or perhaps some version of the proposed American Rescue Plan). I'm fuzzy on the specifics, but I know the extra subsidies were only temporary

Agreeing.  The extended subsidies expire Dec 2022.  But I guess I'm optimistic that during an election year, they will extend it, even if just for a few years.  This has become a lifeline for early retirees (aka those who retire a short time before Medicare starts at age 65yo).  Maybe they'll bridge those who are already enrolled, etc.  Lots of wiggle room, IMO.  (But I'm being optimistic, I know).

(My goal in posting up thread was to share the empowerment--and relief--I gained by doing Retirement Research.)

[jboo]

I have a pretty decent chunk in 401K/403B and IRAs, and tiny pension -- maybe $100/month by retirement age? I'm not very trusting of SS and Medicaid, so am assuming that the self-funded retirement is what's going to need to pay for most of it.

 

My plan is pretty much to retire as soon as the grandkids show up, assuming I can keep on plugging. I was an old parent, so I hope they get started on the younger side.

[katilac]

22 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

For those of you in US that plan to retire before 65, how are you funding medical insurance?  Do you have some kind of pension?

We are just saving for it, working it into the calculations. 

21 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

That's got to eat into the monthly expenses?  We also still have all the kids on dh's insurance, and plan to keep them there till 26 - that would be 5 more years (dh will be 68 by then).  I'm also thinking this is prime saving times to really top off the retirement accounts, now that kids are finally out of college and we're not paying for that.

Yes, you have to balance early retirement vs peak earning years for sure! I wouldn't have 'insurance for the kids until 26' as a huge factor in my plans, unless I had specific reasons to suspect one or more of them will have trouble finding a job with insurance.

20 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Depends.   I know of people getting it for free right now.

The “American Rescue Plan Act” passed in March 2021 makes the Affordable Care Act premiums even cheaper through 2022. Households with modified adjusted gross incomes (MAGI) below 150% of the federal poverty level get select silver-level health insurance plans completely free. 

It's great that it's available for people who need it, but planning to retire with income at 150% of the federal poverty level because you can get free insurance would be a terrible idea. Anyone whose income would dip that low if they retired should definitely not (willingly) retire. 

18 hours ago, Melissa in Australia said:

 Retirement age in Aus is currently 67. But i think it will rise  by the time I get there. 

In America, the ages are set ahead of time. Mine is 67 as well, but I know it will stay at 67. If you're not sure if yours can change or not, check into it. If it's not setup to where they can change it as they go, that would be a relief and good planning information. 

17 hours ago, SKL said:

 We've discussed ways of phasing it out so I am not without earned income before I am supposed to get my hard-won entitlements.  

Aren't you a lawyer? It's always been pretty easy for the lawyers in my life to switch jobs/career directions, in the sense of being able to get a decent-paying job even if it's not their ideal. 

How close is this to happening? If it's under ten years, it's time to start low-key making plans and networking. Whatever your actual field is, I would join a couple of professional organizations if you haven't already. 

If you don't want to keep the business going, can it or the client list be sold? 

16 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

  and the retirement plan continues medical insurance coverage for the employee until 65.  

Sweet! 

15 hours ago, lewelma said:

Now that my older boy is done with American university,  <snip> We have low expenses because we live in a 600 sq ft apartment that we own and can walk everywhere in the city so no transport costs. 

Two things; one, what is older boy up to? And two, walking everywhere sounds fabulous, but dh and I would kill each other if we lived in 600 square feet.

1 hour ago, alysee said:

Just curious, do most American companies provide disability and critical care insurance or is that something you also have to get on top of medical insurance?   

Short-term disability is usually included if they provide medical insurance, sometimes long-term disability is. I've never known a company to cover critical care insurance, but sometimes it's offered as an add-on to insurance benefits. 

[katilac]

We are trying to have the financial option to retire at 62, about 7 years from now. 

That would mean dh could retire from his full-time job, but he would almost certainly work part-time. I would be able to retire from my main part-time job but probably wouldn't so - I'd just let some of the smaller part-time stuff go instead. 

He's not sure he'll want to retire then, but we'd definitely like it to be an option. If his job continues to be fairly cool and interesting, we might increase our discretionary spending for a few years instead (take some nicer vacations, outsource some of the household work, make some household improvements, give some substantial charitable gifts). 

That's if everything goes according to plan, which we know might not happen! 

[lewelma]

52 minutes ago, katilac said:

Two things; one, what is older boy up to? And two, walking everywhere sounds fabulous, but dh and I would kill each other if we lived in 600 square feet.

LOL. We lived in 600sq ft with our two boys all the way through their teen years, so now it feels so spaaaacious. We are currently both working from home, which is lovely. 

Older boy has finished his degree in math and physics, and in the fall starts a PhD in theoretical condensed matter physics!  He sadly is staying in the USA for his PhD, but I'm seeing him in a month! hurray!

[Annie G]

1 hour ago, katilac said:

 

It's great that it's available for people who need it, but planning to retire with income at 150% of the federal poverty level because you can get free insurance would be a terrible idea. Anyone whose income would dip that low if they retired should definitely not (willingly) retire. 

 

I do understand what you mean- folks who are barely getting by shouldn’t count on insurance subsidies or put themselves in a position where they can’t absorb an unexpected expense.  Just wanted to mention that most of us keeping our income low just means taxable income.  In our case we planned for these few years before Medicare and use a combo of cash equivalent savings and withdrawals from investment accounts (where only the gains are taxable)

But then again, a lot of the folks on Mr. Money Mustache’s site are definitely low spenders and though they can well afford to spend a lot more, they don’t. 

[lmrich]

I think I will move from my current job into the role of a caregiver sooner than later. I might be able to continue teaching at the hybrid school if I teach fewer classes. 

Dh has started a business which is now very successful. He will likely sell it in the next 5 - 7 years but continue to work as a consultant. 

 

[Resilient]

Early retirement.  And we regret it.  Don’t retire.  Find something else to do.  

[Scarlett]

5 minutes ago, Resilient said:

Early retirement.  And we regret it.  Don’t retire.  Find something else to do.  

Can you go back to work?

[katilac]

10 minutes ago, Resilient said:

Early retirement.  And we regret it.  Don’t retire.  Find something else to do.  

Why do you regret it? 

And does "find something else to do" mean that you think switching jobs/careers would be a better idea? 

[Annie G]

20 minutes ago, Resilient said:

Early retirement.  And we regret it.  Don’t retire.  Find something else to do.  

Would love to hear why. 

[Resilient]

1 hour ago, Scarlett said:

Can you go back to work?

I have.

1 hour ago, katilac said:

Why do you regret it? 

And does "find something else to do" mean that you think switching jobs/careers would be a better idea? 

Finding something you love to do is brilliant. Even if it doesn't "pay you what you are worth." 

It is really hard to structure a 24 hour day, going from a career/job where a lot of time is structured for you. Some people can do it. Yay.

It is shockingly hard to anticipate a 10% increase in the cost of living, a 3x rise in property taxes, when you are preparing to live on a relatively fixed income. SO many people have been driven from their homes by property tax increases due entirely to rising real estate prices which no one in their right mind would have anticipated.  I retire in 2000. Property taxes are $4K.  2020: it's $20K. How do you plan for that?

Bankers screw you if you don't have an employer-supported income.  If you want to have a line of credit (which, yes, you might need even if you have $2M in investments), you can't get it without "steady employment." (You are technically rich, but if you take $100 out of your investments, it costs you $130 in withdrawal + penalties.) If you own your house free and clear, no mortgage, you can't GET a mortgage or take equity out of your house with a re-fi. 

You mess up your social security (given that anyone under 50 expects to get any).

Unless you have a driving passion that you can afford to support and liquid (LIQUID-not invested) assets that allow you to live on the interest...early retirement is just a bad idea.

 

[Resilient]

1 hour ago, Resilient said:

I have.

Finding something you love to do is brilliant. Even if it doesn't "pay you what you are worth." 

It is really hard to structure a 24 hour day, going from a career/job where a lot of time is structured for you. Some people can do it. Yay.

It is shockingly hard to anticipate a 10% increase in the cost of living, a 3x rise in property taxes, when you are preparing to live on a relatively fixed income. SO many people have been driven from their homes by property tax increases due entirely to rising real estate prices which no one in their right mind would have anticipated.  I retire in 2000. Property taxes are $4K.  2020: it's $20K. How do you plan for that?

Bankers screw you if you don't have an employer-supported income.  If you want to have a line of credit (which, yes, you might need even if you have $2M in investments), you can't get it without "steady employment." (You are technically rich, but if you take $100 out of your investments, it costs you $130 in withdrawal + penalties.) If you own your house free and clear, no mortgage, you can't GET a mortgage or take equity out of your house with a re-fi. 

You mess up your social security (given that anyone under 50 expects to get any).

Unless you have a driving passion that you can afford to support and liquid (LIQUID-not invested) assets that allow you to live on the interest...early retirement is just a bad idea.

 

Quoting my own self...to add...   

The biggest destruction is in the personal identity and sense of purpose. If someone has a plan, or interests to construct a meaningful life, or something engaging to get them out of bed every day, or a way to "give back"--early retirement can create financial distress without creating a lot of joy or purpose or meaning, and pretty soon, you're just a guy/gal hanging around in pajamas, doing crossword puzzles or watching TV.  It's happened to a lot of people I know.  Of 20 people I know who retired early, only one made much of the opportunity. He was That Guy--one in a thousand.  

[Laura Corin]

50 minutes ago, Resilient said:

Quoting my own self...to add...   

The biggest destruction is in the personal identity and sense of purpose. If someone has a plan, or interests to construct a meaningful life, or something engaging to get them out of bed every day, or a way to "give back"--early retirement can create financial distress without creating a lot of joy or purpose or meaning, and pretty soon, you're just a guy/gal hanging around in pajamas, doing crossword puzzles or watching TV.  It's happened to a lot of people I know.  Of 20 people I know who retired early, only one made much of the opportunity. He was That Guy--one in a thousand.  

That's salutary for me. I get a bit grumpy about work these days. 

We just sold our rental property in London, as it was hard to manage from a distance, among other issues. Husband suggests buying a nearby rental property that will provide opportunity for activity and interaction as well as income. That sounds preferable to computer-based investment - assuming decent returns,  of course.

Edited May 31, 2022 by Laura Corin

[lewelma]

2 hours ago, Resilient said:

Quoting my own self...to add...   

The biggest destruction is in the personal identity and sense of purpose. If someone has a plan, or interests to construct a meaningful life, or something engaging to get them out of bed every day, or a way to "give back"--early retirement can create financial distress without creating a lot of joy or purpose or meaning, and pretty soon, you're just a guy/gal hanging around in pajamas, doing crossword puzzles or watching TV.  It's happened to a lot of people I know.  Of 20 people I know who retired early, only one made much of the opportunity. He was That Guy--one in a thousand.  

This is why both my dh and I are continuing to work part time (20 hours per week), and plan to until mid 70s. Plus I'm going back to university to start a new career (a part time one even if it is with a nonprofit as a volunteer). We have enough money given our cheap living approach, but I want to remain interesting and interested. I've seen too many people retire early, and just wait to die. 

Edited May 31, 2022 by lewelma

[Faith-manor]

4 hours ago, lewelma said:

This is why both my dh and I are continuing to work part time (20 hours per week), and plan to until mid 70s. Plus I'm going back to university to start a new career (a part time one even if it is with a nonprofit as a volunteer). We have enough money given our cheap living approach, but I want to remain interesting and interested. I've seen too many people retire early, and just wait to die. 

In our case it had been the opposite. We see people dying all.the.time. because they have to keep working but have health issues and injuries and should not. There is very rarely any opportunity to change careers/fields/type of employment after 55 in America because age discrimination, though illegal, is rampant and not easy to prove. Stress kills. Continuing to work construction after rotary cuff injuries, knees that need to be replaced, back injuries, and the like is so common and among many, many problems with working 40+ hours a week beyond what the body can take.

Dh does not have a physically grueling job. He has a mentally grueling and very stressful one. I.T. workers in the U.S. typically work salary which means constant over time without pay or time off. A typical work week for him is 65 hours and has been for the last three decades. He is exhausted. He also at 58 will not find employment in another field because of discrimination in employment.

But, he plans to do woodworking for extra income in retirement, and we both will be volunteering as N.A.R. launch operations for The American Rocketry Challenge, NASA Student Launch, and Spaceport America Cup IREC plus we will be mentoring various college rocketry teams. It also looks like we will have a science club and rocket program for children through a homeschool group in Huntsville when we make the move. I suspect we will be busy.

Except for one uncle, we have not personally known anyone who "let the grass grow under their feet" during retirement unless their health had completely given out. Most have been super busy. Until my mother in law's health and hearing gave out, she was a volunteer with NICU babies, and ran the nurse's station at a youth camp on the lake in the summers, plus her gardening, knitting, and quilting. My mother makes baby clothes for non-profit organizations, gardens, and until the pandemic hit was tutoring young students in reading two days per week.

It is odd to me that people would retire without having a clear plan of what they are going to do with their new found time.

[Granny_Weatherwax]

I put 'other' as I am at the beginning of starting a new business and non-for profit. My hope is to be able to earn a steady income (the business) while also helping others (the non-for profit). If I can remain injury free, there are aspects of the business I can do until I become infirm. DH, after he retires from his current job, will join me in the business and we should be able to earn enough to pay our monthly expenses while banking his retirement pension (if the pension survives the government's attempts to assume it). We don't think we will ever be able to actually retire as most Americans view it. The cost of living is far outpacing what we can save and DH's company does not match his 401K.

Edited May 31, 2022 by Granny_Weatherwax

[SKL]

18 hours ago, katilac said:

…

Aren't you a lawyer? It's always been pretty easy for the lawyers in my life to switch jobs/career directions, in the sense of being able to get a decent-paying job even if it's not their ideal. 

How close is this to happening? If it's under ten years, it's time to start low-key making plans and networking. Whatever your actual field is, I would join a couple of professional organizations if you haven't already. 

I have zero desire or intention to go job seeking again.   I suppose I could if I had to. 

[Granny_Weatherwax]

Double post

Edited May 31, 2022 by Granny_Weatherwax

[Annie G]

8 hours ago, Resilient said:

 

Bankers screw you if you don't have an employer-supported income.  If you want to have a line of credit (which, yes, you might need even if you have $2M in investments), you can't get it without "steady employment." (You are technically rich, but if you take $100 out of your investments, it costs you $130 in withdrawal + penalties.) If you own your house free and clear, no mortgage, you can't GET a mortgage or take equity out of your house with a re-fi. 

Unless you have a driving passion that you can afford to support and liquid (LIQUID-not invested) assets that allow you to live on the interest...early retirement is just a bad idea.

 

We haven’t found this to be the case. We keep most of our investments in Fidelity and they provide a nifty little summary of our net worth that we can (and have) used to obtain a mortgage and line of credit.  However, all our money isn’t in 401k, which  sounds like it might be your case if you’re paying 30% in penalties to withdraw funds from your account. 

But anyway, just wanted to post to say that we haven’t had any issues with banking.

[Scarlett]

4 minutes ago, Faith-manor said:

In our case it had been the opposite. We see people dying all.the.time. because they have to keep working but have health issues and injuries and should not. There is very rarely any opportunity to change careers/fields/type of employment after 55 in America because age discrimination, though illegal, is rampant and not easy to prove. Stress kills. Continuing to work construction after rotary cuff injuries, knees that need to be replaced, back injuries, and the like is so common and among many, many problems with working 40+ hours a week beyond what the body can take.

Dh does not have a physically grueling job. He has a mentally grueling and very stressful one. I.T. workers in the U.S. typically work salary which means constant over time without pay or time off. A typical work week for him is 65 hours and has been for the last three decades. He is exhausted. He also at 58 will not find employment in another field because of discrimination in employment.

But, he plans to do woodworking for extra income in retirement, and we both will be volunteering as N.A.R. launch operations for The American Rocketry Challenge, NASA Student Launch, and Spaceport America Cup IREC plus we will be mentoring various college rocketry teams. It also looks like we will have a science club and rocket program for children through a homeschool group in Huntsville when we make the move. I suspect we will be busy.

Except for one uncle, we have not personally known anyone who "let the grass grow under their feet" during retirement unless their health had completely given out. Most have been super busy. Until my mother in law's health and hearing gave out, she was a volunteer with NICU babies, and ran the nurse's station at a youth camp on the lake in the summers, plus her gardening, knitting, and quilting. My mother makes baby clothes for non-profit organizations, gardens, and until the pandemic hit was tutoring young students in reading two days per week.

It is odd to me that people would retire without having a clear plan of what they are going to do with their new found time.

Same. My mom retired from teaching. at 58.  She was a year or two short of 20 years.  But she had just married my step dad and he had only been retired about 2 years and was 64.  They had so much fun.  They traveled.  They volunteered.  They gardened.  Remodeled. Flipped another house. Now at 78 and 84 they are slowing down.  I am thankful they did not have to work until now.  

[Meriwether]

7 hours ago, Resilient said:

Quoting my own self...to add...   

The biggest destruction is in the personal identity and sense of purpose. If someone has a plan, or interests to construct a meaningful life, or something engaging to get them out of bed every day, or a way to "give back"--early retirement can create financial distress without creating a lot of joy or purpose or meaning, and pretty soon, you're just a guy/gal hanging around in pajamas, doing crossword puzzles or watching TV.  It's happened to a lot of people I know.  Of 20 people I know who retired early, only one made much of the opportunity. He was That Guy--one in a thousand.  

This is the biggest reason I want Dh to stick it out longer. Neither of us is a self-starter. I will happily help with the grandkids as needed if they live close enough. If they don't, I might run a homeschool coop with a couple of friends. There are two possibilities that I could see my husband choosing in early retirement that would be active enough for him and fulfilling - he could run a TKD shool or have a hobby farm. What cannot happen is retiring early and just existing. It wouldn't go well for either of us.

[SKL]

I'm wondering if there is a concept of "de-working" like "de-schooling" after a too-intense school experience.

I get the idea that we shouldn't just stop working without something else to take its place.  But I don't see myself being especially busy when I don't have to be.  It is probably because I've never not had to be so far.  Before kids (up to age 41), I always worked at least 2 jobs while holding multiple nonprofit positions; and then, after becoming a single mom of 2, I gradually pared it down to just one full-time job with occasional additional emergencies.  So the thought of just switching from one kind of busy to another and calling it "retirement" doesn't appeal to me right now.

My visions of retirement tend to look like:  personal health and maintenance, systematically keeping my property clean and maintained, well-organized finances and personal records, helping my folks as needed, being in my kids' and siblings' lives as they want me, enjoying exercise in our national parks and rec center, enjoying arts programs that appeal to me, some travel, light volunteering that appeals to me, reading, playing and enjoying music, maybe writing some things, maybe having easy-to-care-for pet / useful plants.  I feel like I could fill my days like that and get good rest at night.  At least for some time.

My folks (ages 78 and 80) seem to have been mostly fine with cutting back ... partly because of health issues that required it.  They do spend some of their time taking care of each other.  I do think it was hard for my mom at first, because starting at age 60, cancer, scoliosis, and vision loss killed a dream she had been working on.  She kept wanting to go back to it, but it was one thing after another.  I don't know how things would have been had she been healthy past age 60.

Edited May 31, 2022 by SKL

[mom2scouts]

DH is almost 63 and I'm late 50's, we still have two kids at home, and I have been a SAH/homeschooling mom for decades. It's unlikely that dh will retire until he absolutely can't work anymore. When the kids leave home, I'll probably need to do something for money into my 70's at least.

[Lady Florida.]

I put other for me and 67-69 for dh. I accidentally "retired" well under 50. I had every intention of going back to teaching once ds started school. Before he reached school age we decided to homeschool so I never went back. Once he finished homeschooling I was of an age that I wasn't going to go back to work. I didn't actually start collecting my teacher's retirement checks however until I turned 62. If I started sooner I'd have to take a significant cut and it wasn't necessary to wait any later because it wouldn't grow once I reached 62.

Dh retired at the end of 2021. He's 68. We were waiting until both of us could get Social Security without taking a huge cut as well as both being Medicare eligible. He would have liked to retire sooner if not for those two things.

[Lady Florida.]

2 hours ago, SKL said:

I'm wondering if there is a concept of "de-working" like "de-schooling" after a too-intense school experience.

 

Funny, de-working it the exact term I used for dh and I also compared it to de-schooling.  I didn't quote your whole post but I was worried about him finding things to do. When I stopped working I had a baby to take care of, then a child to homeschool. When dh stopped working he had...nothing.

He spent the first month pretty much doing nothing so I guess de-working was necessary for him. Then he started asking me every day "What do you want to do today?" Um, clean the bathroom, do laundry lol. I did try to balance going with the flow and just doing things with him plus taking care of the house. I showed him my schedule and what needs to be done at home.

We've finally settled into something like a routine. Some days we get up and do fun stuff. He's begun taking on household chores. And he's found some projects he's been wanting to work on. We're 5 months into his retirement now and though it's been an adjustment for both of us we're working it out. I imagine some of our routine will change with time but at least he's keeping busy now. 

[Annie G]

11 minutes ago, Lady Florida. said:

 

We've finally settled into something like a routine. Some days we get up and do fun stuff. He's begun taking on household chores. And he's found some projects he's been wanting to work on. We're 5 months into his retirement now and though it's been an adjustment for both of us we're working it out. I imagine some of our routine will change with time but at least he's keeping busy now. 

It took dh almost an entire year to transition from his professional life to his retired life.  It felt very much like deschooling!

I love that he’s taken on chores that he only ‘helped’ with when he was working. He does most of the laundry, cleans the kitchen, keeps the floors clean. He doesn’t quite understand why I dislike those chores but I reminded him I’ve done them for 40 years. He’ll get it…

I can’t imagine ever being bored- we’re about to begin year 4 and though we aren’t overscheduled like when we worked, we’re definitely staying busy and still feel like we don’t have enough time to do everything we want to do. 

[SKL]

Yeah, most if not all of the things I plan to do in retirement are things that I do now ... but currently, either I do them half-assedly, or they add to my stress / cut into my sleep.  It struck me recently that I've been saying "once my house gets clean I'll ____" for 30 years.  I never feel the satisfaction of being caught up on all the things.  (Maybe that's too much to ask even in retirement?)  And then there's health - the shortcuts we take because preparing good food takes time and energy.  Skipping exercise in favor of this or that.  Daily flossing?  Ha!  How much time would all these things really take if we could take the time?

[Bootsie]

DH retired at about 69.  He would have probably continued working, but I had been in a miserable work situation.  I am more than a decade younger and I couldn't see myself continuing to work in the situation for 15 more years.  And, a much better opportunity came up about 5 hours away.  So, we commuted between the two locations for several years so that I could move into something that I could enjoy doing for another decade.  DH was ambivalent about retiring and probably would not have if we were not wanting to relocate to where my job was.  His retirement has been what we expected because it occurred not long before COVID--so the travel we had planned to do together, the classes he was going to take, etc. did not happen.  If he had foreseen COVID (and that he could have worked remotely), I don't know if he would have retired or not (although working remotely can come with a great deal of stress and may would have made him want to retire).  He has branched into writing fiction and developed several new interests.  

I am not sure when I will retire.  We could "afford" for me to retire, but I like my job and I carry our health insurance; I also have a good deal of flexibility with my job.  Much will probably depend upon where our children decide to settle and if/when we have grandchildren; only one of our four parents is still alive, I do not know what type of care responsibilities I might take on with that at some point. 

[wintermom]

In Canada, we can currently start collecting full Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) money and Old Age Security (OAS) at age 65 (partial earlier), but it's going to "gradually increase" to 67 starting 2023. You have to be paying into these federal pension plans for a certain number of years and to a certain amount to receive maximum payouts. People often have additional pensions through their work, and the age to start receiving full or partial pay-outs vary. 

Dh and I are in our mid 50's now, and won't be retiring for another 5 - 10 years. I've just re-entered the full-time workforce, and can really benefit from building up some retirement investments where my company matches my payments, as well as paying more into the CPP and OAS. 

[Arcadia]

5 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

Dh does not have a physically grueling job. He has a mentally grueling and very stressful one. I.T. workers in the U.S. typically work salary which means constant over time without pay or time off. A typical work week for him is 65 hours and has been for the last three decades.

That depends on the company and the division. I was paid OT by HP and Cisco, my colleagues in other departments were given PTO. I had PTO for some of my other tech jobs, the highest limit was 21 days (approx 168 hrs) and I was allowed to cash out my PTO and carry forward my annual leave. My husband’s PTO limit is 240hrs and he has been taking PTO whenever he would like to since he can carry forward annual leave.

3 hours ago, SKL said:

I'm wondering if there is a concept of "de-working" like "de-schooling" after a too-intense school experience.

My husband took two years off to try out starting a business after working like crazy for five years. His parents do not allow him to not work. 
I took a year off after the company I worked for was heading towards bankruptcy and retrenching staff every quarter. I worked on an off as a temp for low pay at an IT company who treats even temps well. It was a wonderful experience for me despite the 62.5% “pay cut”. 

[Selkie]

Dh and I retired early and we love it. We are so busy with other things - no time for boredom here. We both have always had purpose and passions in life that have absolutely nothing to do with work, so retirement has only been positive for us.

[lewelma]

6 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

In our case it had been the opposite. 

I think it must be a cultural thing between 2 different countries. First of all, We don't have to worry about health insurance, and both of us get paid by the hour.  There is no self employment tax, and the amount of social security is not tied to how long you worked. We have also not gone through covid hell for 2.5 years. 

Me: I can *help* kids and this really means something to me. And pay is good enough that by tutoring 15 hours a week, I can earn a teacher's salary. Easy. It leaves plenty of time for my part time university studies. And university is cheap here so no biggie.

DH: My dh can just sign up for a part time consulting job through any of the agencies. He is currently working about 20 per week from home doing a project he really loves with the Defence Force. Some times he gets to go onto the base, and meet up with people and feel like he can really help them. There are little IT jobs all over the place for him (he is a strategist/enterprise architect), he just signs up with a placement agency and they take a 10% cut for getting him the job. Looks like this year he will work with 5 different government ministries and state owned enterprises. He has so much to offer, and loves meeting new people.

Age discrimination is a thing here also, but he is high enough up it doesn't matter, and if I can't get a job in my new field of Environmental Management, I will simply work with one of the Nonprofits instead of a government agency.

Both of us are excited about the future. And I think that is the key. If retirement is exciting to you, then go for it. If it sounds dull, then decide a new path.

 

Edited May 31, 2022 by lewelma

[Faith-manor]

1 hour ago, Arcadia said:

That depends on the company and the division. I was paid OT by HP and Cisco, my colleagues in other departments were given PTO. I had PTO for some of my other tech jobs, the highest limit was 21 days (approx 168 hrs) and I was allowed to cash out my PTO and carry forward my annual leave. My husband’s PTO limit is 240hrs and he has been taking PTO whenever he would like to since he can carry forward annual leave.

My husband took two years off to try out starting a business after working like crazy for five years. His parents do not allow him to not work. 
I took a year off after the company I worked for was heading towards bankruptcy and retrenching staff every quarter. I worked on an off as a temp for low pay at an IT company who treats even temps well. It was a wonderful experience for me despite the 62.5% “pay cut”. 

My husband has worked for EDS, HP, and IBM before his current company. 30+ years in the IT business and has never worked less than 60 hour pets week, and never given comp time or overtime pay. Never. Occasionally a bonus. He does get regular pay raises. My brother the same.