Enjoying Retirement

[bennno]

Shnozz said:

bennno said:

Sorry yes, final sentence is what i'm planning. We moved west to pay off the mortgage and be near the beach, the suplus bought a couple of holiday lets to give income until we need to access pension. Morgan, Elise, Boxster and a 3L BMW all paid for to play with in retirement.

Surprised to read you are back in an S1 Elise bennno given your last experience!

Good memory if you can recall the one I bought from a northern sh***ter and took for the full Myles @ fibreglass services malarky. This ones a rather nicer early S2, must be getting old as my son likes it but I prefer the 4/4 morgan sport for a blast.

[bennno]

plenty said:

ray von said:

Which just proves the bonkers figures are relative to where you are sitting so to speak, and where I'm sitting I'd say your figures are bonkers but good luck to you you've obviously done well

Have to agree - I just can't see how a couple can live comfortably including Morgan, Elise, Boxster and a 3L BMW on £20-25k per annum.

Our core bills including medical insurance but no mortgage, food, motoring or discretionary spend already add up to £12k+

Insurance policies are now £120-£140 p.a. on each car...

[James6112]

My council tax / water / energy (fixed until 2023 when it will no doubt double!) add up to £330 a month
Plus say £400 on shopping.
So £750 a month odd essentials

[anonymous-user]

plenty said:

zj2016 said:

Have always compared myself to my FIL who has a police final salary pension and thought I would have been far worse off.

I'm relatively new to the entire concept of retirement planning (didn't start working in UK until 36 and before that lived in places where pensions aren't as much of a concept as your children are expected to look after you when you're old).

Didn't make my first pension contribution until into my 40s when I finally cottoned on that employer-matched contributions are a good thing.

Anyway, I literally found out just last year the meaning of defined benefit / final salary pensions and it the concept blows my mind. In my naivete I struggle to believe that such a thing exists. No wonder all those folks were willing to spend their entire careers on low salaries.

I know it’s crazy. He retired at 52 after 30 years service and has had various police related jobs meantime as he is bored. He protests that he paid in a lot over his 30 years but definitely not more than he will be taking out should he live till old age. Police pension not as attractive these days but he is definitely comfortable in retirement.

[timberman]

halo34 said:

Halitosis said:

okgo said:

Interesting, I suppose I was wondering how far behind the curve of having a decent pot I am with having circa 50k at 34. I know I'm a way off, but hope it isn't too far off.

I think you're in a far better position that 90% of your age group.

Relative to many you are likely way ahead - its an amount that will compound nicely with the right investments and be working for you passively whilst you continue to contribute.

I have drummed it into any sub 30 yr old around me that the earlier you start the earlier you might finish (and to balance pension with ISA).

we had no savings whatsoever, and didn't really even consider saving into a pension scheme till we reached our mid 30's,

I retired at age 54, so roughly 20 years from making the effort to join a pension scheme till retiring,

I should say that this was a final salary scheme, which I'm sure played a part in us managing to retire when we did and appreciate that they aren't really an option for most people nowadays.

[okgo]

zj2016 said:

Always thought I would be skint in retirement but feel a bit better having read this thread. Current pot is £100k at 37 and contributing £1000 a month and £750 to S&S isas.

Perhaps I might not be as poor as I was expecting. Have always compared myself to my FIL who has a police final salary pension and thought I would have been far worse off.

This is part of the problem I suppose, nobody on anything above average earnings can easily find out where they're at IMO. Everything is geared at the general populous with little else available beyond that. That is why threads like this can be useful IMO. Although even on PH you get "oh my god, how can you be asking about this , do you know how little some people have, you should be lucky etc" just censors people.

As Halitosis said, for the last ten years our main goal was to buy a house tbh.

[Derek Chevalier]

gotoPzero said:

Derek Chevalier said:

bogie said:

I'm planning to retire in the next 5 years, currently 51 and saving/investing more than ever. Don't really have a figure in mind yet, I could probably stop working now, downsize the house and live just fine but it wouldn't be a very exciting lifestyle. So hopefully another 5 years or so of investment will allow me to retire and keep a fancy car, bike and a few holidays per year too

Useful calculator here to model spending/investment post retirement

https://www.firecalc.com/

compares your withdrawal rate against market history, interesting to play around with the numbers

Does it have UK historical data (inflation and market returns)?

No its based on the S&P IIRC.

Interesting, so not really relevant to a UK retiree?

[Halitosis]

Derek Chevalier said:

Interesting, so not really relevant to a UK retiree?

It covers something like 150 years of market data, including world wars and the great depression - so its a reasonable measure. Also its only the "worst case scenarios" we should be interested in, to see if our savings would have seen us through even those worst years of bear markets.

I use it and simply think of everything being in £ instead of $ - a key tool in my opinion, and I pay no attention to the "top end" suggesting my pot could be worth 10m+ when I kick the bucket

Edited by Halitosis on Friday 21st January 13:09

[Phil.]

Halitosis said:

Despite being US market data, it covers something like 150 years of market data - including world wars and the great depression - so its a reasonable measure. Also its only the "worst case scenarios" we should be interested in, to see if our savings would have seen us through even those worst years of bear markets.

I use it and simply think of everything being in £ instead of $ - a key tool in my opinion (and pay no attention to the "top end" suggesting my pot could be worth 10m+ when I kick the bucket

Quite agree.

[andrewh]

Hol said:

I intend to do a similar thing when I retire in 6 years, but my winter location will be Florida.

I have the additional cost of health insurance and car purchase/storage factored in. It will cost more than staying in the UK, but I’ll get all that extra expense back when I eventually sell the property after 10 years.

If I time the journeys right I can cross the Atlantic to/from Miami on one of the relocation cruises out of Southampton. It might take longer, but it costs about the same as a flight and you have the time to burn.

Can a person from the uk retire to Florida? I thought you needed a visa of some kind like an investor visa etc, or you could only spend maybe six months a year at best over there?

[gotoPzero]

Derek Chevalier said:

Interesting, so not really relevant to a UK retiree?

Depends how much you put in the S&P500!

[BoRED S2upid]

Halitosis said:

I'm mid 50s and a spreadsheet saddo, having been financially modelling our retirement for years - sensitivity analysis for rates of inflation and investment returns, the full shebang.
Oldest is in uni and youngest is 16 with my wife and I hoping to stop working in 6 years time. We'll have no mortgage or debts by then, and intend to run 2 modest cars. She has her gym membership and I fancy joining the local golf club. We live in Scotland.
We reckon £41k (post tax in today's money) will give us a decent lifestyle by our standards - and this amount includes car depreciation, house repairs & maintenance, every expense we can think of, and includes £15k/year on holidays/weekenders and social spend.
Council tax and utilities are a concern - currently £6k/year for us - and rising - so I can see the appeal of retiring to a warmer climate but can't see us moving away from the kids when they may be starting families of their own. Then again, they may have emigrated to god knows where by then.

If climate change kicks in Scotland might be warmer! I doubt it very much but 1.5 degrees would be very nice.

[Derek Chevalier]

gotoPzero said:

Derek Chevalier said:

Interesting, so not really relevant to a UK retiree?

Depends how much you put in the S&P500!

And impacted by UK inflation. I wonder how hard it would be to import UK data.

[Stevil]

andrewh said:

Hol said:

I intend to do a similar thing when I retire in 6 years, but my winter location will be Florida.

I have the additional cost of health insurance and car purchase/storage factored in. It will cost more than staying in the UK, but I’ll get all that extra expense back when I eventually sell the property after 10 years.

If I time the journeys right I can cross the Atlantic to/from Miami on one of the relocation cruises out of Southampton. It might take longer, but it costs about the same as a flight and you have the time to burn.

Can a person from the uk retire to Florida? I thought you needed a visa of some kind like an investor visa etc, or you could only spend maybe six months a year at best over there?

I read it as Florida being his winter location, so only staying there for a few months each year.

[OzzyR1]

Friend of mine is retired at 55, he is married to a Thai lady.

For clarity, she is a similar age to him & they met 25 years ago while he was working there, not the usual story of an older bloke hooking up with a 20-something girl who is out to milk him.

He is out in Thailand at the moment for 6 months (October to March). Renting a 2-bed apartment in a nice complex with communal pool etc, on the coast around 100 miles south of Bangkok but not a typical tourist destination, 10mins from the beach.

Rent is £225/month...

Spends relative peanuts, as it's off the tourist routes eating out for him and his OH at a local place is around £10 total for a 3-course meal and a couple of beers each.

Sent me a WhatsApp earlier as they'd travelled out to an island, £1.75 on the ferry, beer in his hand cost around 30pence and it's around 30 degrees and sunny. I'm beginning to dislike him yet again!!

They have a house near Cambridge, but head to Thailand for 6 months of the year over the UK winter as it costs buttons.

Definitely a lifestyle I'll be considering when the time comes.

[LeoSayer]

OzzyR1 said:

Friend of mine is retired at 55, he is married to a Thai lady.

For clarity, she is a similar age to him & they met 25 years ago while he was working there, not the usual story of an older bloke hooking up with a 20-something girl who is out to milk him.

He is out in Thailand at the moment for 6 months (October to March). Renting a 2-bed apartment in a nice complex with communal pool etc, on the coast around 100 miles south of Bangkok but not a typical tourist destination, 10mins from the beach.

Rent is £225/month...

Spends relative peanuts, as it's off the tourist routes eating out for him and his OH at a local place is around £10 total for a 3-course meal and a couple of beers each.

Sent me a WhatsApp earlier as they'd travelled out to an island, £1.75 on the ferry, beer in his hand cost around 30pence and it's around 30 degrees and sunny. I'm beginning to dislike him yet again!!

They have a house near Cambridge, but head to Thailand for 6 months of the year over the UK winter as it costs buttons.

Definitely a lifestyle I'll be considering when the time comes.

But is he happy?

[OzzyR1]

LeoSayer said:

But is he happy?

Loving life, I'm a bit jealous.

[croyde]

What's the situation for an English passport holder going over to Thailand to live there for a few months?

Is it not restricted like going over to live in Europe since Brexit?

[Carbon Sasquatch]

croyde said:

What's the situation for an English passport holder going over to Thailand to live there for a few months?

Is it not restricted like going over to live in Europe since Brexit?

Over 30 days & you need a visa.

I have no idea how hard those are to obtain though......

https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/thailand/...

[plenty]

It's pretty easy to pop across the border, come back to Thailand and get another 30 days (or a fresh 3-month tourist visa). At least that was the case pre-Covid.