What are your retirement plans?

[NuclearNed]

Most of the people I know don't have a real retirement plan other than "maybe quit working if I can afford it." Not much of a plan, if you ask me. Most of the people I know who have lived out that plan seem pretty miserable - and maybe its my imagination, but seems like many of them die young & bored.

So I'm only 50 and can't retire for a few years, but here's what Mrs. Ned & I are going to do, health & other factors permitting:

Sell everything in TN, & move to Driggs, Idaho (right outside Yellowstone & Grand Teton). We recently bought a vacant lot there. We're going to build a house & buy a travel trailer. We are planning on RVing January - March/April in the warmer states, then spend the other months in Driggs hiking/climbing/fishing/etc.

 

[Scarpozzi]

I have lake property with 2 cabins on this lake that had a dam malfunction....they just filled the lake up for the first time in years, but it's a seasonal reservoir that they draw down in the Winter. I'm going to lightly renovate one cabin and gut the other and just share time between living there, keeping the property up, doing projects.....and spend the rest of the time out of my house in the city and traveling. I plan on keeping my timeshare in Hilton Head, but maybe going more often in the Fall as the temps cool.

I'm going to get my pilot's license and maybe buy a relatively inexpensive airplane under $100k, fix it up....then travel more regionally on extended weekends. I think it'd be nice to hit the coast in a few hours time vs driving through traffic at 6+. I could also make longer distance trips that wouldn't be possible in 2 or 3 day weekend. I'm currently saving up for those dreams now, but waiting to start progress as I get more free time when the seasons change.

I have 19 years of savings, but another 20-25 before I call it quits. I plan on retiring as early as it makes sense. Quality of life can degrade quickly for a number of reasons on the other side.


Idaho sounds pretty awesome, but that country can be rough through the seasons and isn't as sheltered as TN. I remember flying into SLC back in like 2005 and dealing with 105 degree heat. Probably much like what they were dealing with weeks back. Another time I was out there, they had some bad fires up on the ridges with lots of smoke lingering in the air.

 

[NuclearNed]

@Scarpozzi
So you're saying you haven’t given this much thought, huh? 😀

yeah Idaho will be real different from Tn, but I’m ready to leave summer humidity far behind

 

[herm0016]

not sure where we will live, may be in the house we are moving to in a couple weeks. 5 acers in the foothills of the Rockies, but still close to town. we are targeting like 55 to retire. we should have that house paid off by then, and already have 8x salary saved with 20 years to go. ill build my steel building/shop next year. we will have a large green house. we will be raising our chickens, turkeys, and more animals on that 5 acers. at least that's the plan for now. ill have a 30-35 hp tractor with a cab, hopefully we will also own the parcels of pasture next door. maybe ill be the Hay guy in the valley, the current guy is about 90 and has been cutting all the hay in the area for decades.

that is the fairly easily attainable goal / global economic meltdown goal.

the moonshot is living an a dashew offshore FPB inspired custom boat of around 100 feet, and being able to explore most of the earth. an expensive purchase, but maybe the most stable, best sea handling and best ocean crossing power boat ever designed.

 

[K1052]

Move west (likely San Diego or Tucson) and travel a lot. We're not going to be content sitting at home for months on end.

 

[ponyo]

I officially retired last year but I was on sabbatical before I decided to officially call it quits so it's more close to 2 years. To be honest, I still don't really know what I want to do with rest of my life as I'm in my 40s and still could work. I do want to travel but covid messed up lot of our travel plans. So our travel plans are still on hold so my retirement feels like it's on hold. My wife and I are trying to take care our health and bodies. We walk about 5 miles a day and try to eat "healthy." But we love food so that's kind of hard. We cook together and spend lot of time reading and watching shows. Live pretty boring lives. But I like it. But once Asia opens up, we plan to do lot of traveling. Maybe learn how to surf and scuba in Asia. Then figure out what I want to do next.

 

[IronWing]

Forming a visual and performing arts commune with Highland and lxskllr.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Likely move to door county WI assuming i still have family alive there. (otherwise, UP of Michigan seems very attractive)
snowmobile in winter, boat in summer
get an RV, travel the country spring and fall.

 

[ch33zw1z]

No real "plan" yet, just burying money in a 401k and hoping the time is right later on.

 

[Scarpozzi]

@Scarpozzi
So you're saying you haven’t given this much thought, huh? 😀

yeah Idaho will be real different from Tn, but I’m ready to leave summer humidity far behind

Humidity where you are is nothing compared to river valleys and areas around the coast. You can hide in the arid regions around Idaho and Utah and Arizona.....but like I said, you pay the price when it comes to top-end temperature.

I've been working full time for 21 years and like I said have 20+ to go before I'm out.....maybe. The reason they call it retirement planning is because if you don't plan for it, you end up getting stuck working until you die. I want to continue working, but on my projects and not someone else's.

 

[soulcougher73]

Hopefully retired aboard. Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro perhaps. I don't like the path the US is headed down.

 

[IronWing]

We're looking for land. If/where we find what we're looking for will determine our retirement lifestyle to a great extent. We'll try our hand at eco-tour guiding. I can make the sandwiches and my wife is really smart and knows lots of stuff.

 

[highland145]

Spent 20 years making $ for other people so I figure that I'm 20 behind on retirement...that puts me at just about dead anyway so...

 

[brianmanahan]

i got 7 years left to go, if all goes well

i'll probably live in a cheap house near where i grew up and do the same boring stuff i do now

maybe i'll finally have time, energy and money to exercise, travel and meet people

(or maybe i'll just post more on ATOT

)

 

[dullard]

Good thread. It is important to know that you are not just retiring from a job, but you are also retiring to something. I've seen far too many people sit on couches for a couple years after retirement and just fade away.

I probably will jet set while I am able. I'd like to see all the countries that I didn't have time to see while working. After that, I don't really know. If I'm not physically capable of travelling, then I'm not really capable of doing much. Maybe set up and run a small philanthropic organization if I have money left over.

 

[GrumpyMan]

Recently retired, I want to save the world. Currently negotiating with aliens on this at my favorite neighborhood bar.

 

[brianmanahan]

I have 19 years of savings, but another 20-25 before I call it quits. I plan on retiring as early as it makes sense. Quality of life can degrade quickly for a number of reasons on the other side.

same here

a lot of people on financial sites aim to get their investments to 25 times their current spending, and use that as the point where they can retire.

but i won't feel safe until i get to about 40-50 times my theoretical maximum spending.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I have a pension through my work, but reality is I don't want to work until I'm too old to enjoy retirement. With costs of living constantly going up, there's little to no money left at the end of the month to save or buy much fun stuff (still got to live) either and by the time I retire who knows if the pension will even be enough as costs will be even more high than they are now, I'll probably still need a side job.

So my plan is to look at living off grid so I can just eliminate most costs of living so whatever money I have/make will go much further than if I'm in the city. WAY lower property taxes, no hydro or gas or water bill etc and more land and freedom and just more room to have fun and be in nature. I will still want a source of income for toys and fun stuff and pay for any repairs etc that come up so it perhaps won't be exactly retirement, but not having to work full time living pay cheque to pay cheque is basically retirement I guess. I can just make money whenever I want via random sources at my own pace and most of it will be for things I want to buy rather than living expenses. Pickup a remote job or random gigs etc.

I'm in the process of buying a 40 acre plot actually, just pending lawyer stuff and actual payment. Going on credit but I do have a company ESPP which will help pay for it. Just need to figure out the smartest way to do that. I will get royally raped without lube by capital gains taxes if I just take it all out at once. I'll probably want to talk to my tax accountant to see how to approach it. The property is an hour from town so too far to live there and keep my current job, but at least I can start building a bit at a time when I get stretches of time off where it's worth doing the drive. I specifically wanted something in an unorganized township as that's what makes the costs so low but that does put me further out. Trade offs.

Ideally I'd really like to be able to retire by like 45. 40 would be better but when I consider how fast the years go by I don't think that's happening. I can't believe I'll be 40 in 5 years. Getting old. I should have started this plan like 10 years ago. Though I did not exactly have enough buying power (with the bank's money lol) to buy the land back then either. I highly doubt I will be in a position to move there in only 5 years from now though but that's what I want to at least try for. It took me like a year just to build a freaking shed. Having to work and juggle days off and the weather makes outdoor projects tricky.

 

[BoomerD]

Know how to make God (or the gods) laugh?

Make plans for long term...

I didn't EXPECT to retire until I was at least 65...but thought I'd probably work in my trade until I was 70.
Hah!
Blew up my knee and back...got "retired" by the doctors just before my 50th b-day.

Work comp insurance company fucked me around for several years...drained our retirement savings trying to stay afloat...finally got that shit settled, got my SSDI, and my pension, now, we're a long way from rich...but we're comfortable.

 

[dank69]

I'll golf even more than I do now.

 

[Ajay]

Rob a bank. What could go wrong.

 

[NuclearNed]

Move west (likely San Diego or Tucson) and travel a lot. We're not going to be content sitting at home for months on end.

amen, preach it brother

 

[biostud]

I pay for a pension so I will have 70% of my current salary. The pension age in Denmark will be around 70 When I retire, but I will be able to to retire earlier since I'm still paying for "efterløn" (after salary)

 

[NuclearNed]

not sure where we will live, may be in the house we are moving to in a couple weeks. 5 acers in the foothills of the Rockies, but still close to town. we are targeting like 55 to retire. we should have that house paid off by then, and already have 8x salary saved with 20 years to go. ill build my steel building/shop next year. we will have a large green house. we will be raising our chickens, turkeys, and more animals on that 5 acers. at least that's the plan for now. ill have a 30-35 hp tractor with a cab, hopefully we will also own the parcels of pasture next door. maybe ill be the Hay guy in the valley, the current guy is about 90 and has been cutting all the hay in the area for decades.

that is the fairly easily attainable goal / global economic meltdown goal.

the moonshot is living an a dashew offshore FPB inspired custom boat of around 100 feet, and being able to explore most of the earth. an expensive purchase, but maybe the most stable, best sea handling and best ocean crossing power boat ever designed.

we looked at the front range & Estes park for properties before we decided on Idaho. That’s a great area - your retirement dream sounds really nice

 

[NuclearNed]

Know how to make God (or the gods) laugh?

Make plans for long term...

I didn't EXPECT to retire until I was at least 65...but thought I'd probably work in my trade until I was 70.
Hah!
Blew up my knee and back...got "retired" by the doctors just before my 50th b-day.

Work comp insurance company fucked me around for several years...drained our retirement savings trying to stay afloat...finally got that shit settled, got my SSDI, and my pension, now, we're a long way from rich...but we're comfortable.

Not rich but comfy is all I need