Early-retirement wannabe

MallyGirl

We need to wait till DD is through the end of school and then university (5 or 6 year course) but will be very focused on making sure we can retire at that point if we want to. Both of our jobs can be quite stressful although DH’s has improved a lot since redundancy forced a change of employer- the number of former colleagues dying in their 40s and early 50s is shocking (heart attack and suicides mostly). Now we are working on money and health to be able to afford retirement and be in a fit state to enjoy it. I wish I had found this forum earlier but 49 yrs old was better than never and DH has always put quite a lot into pensions so we weren’t starting from a bad position thankfully.

OldMusicGuy

gadgetmind wrote: »

I'm now on gardening leave while various lawyers do the "elephant seals on a beach" bashing against each other to work out how much money I'll get to go quietly.

I'm effectively on gardening leave. Although I have a few weeks to go, my workload has decreased significantly but more importantly, no deadlines or "personal objectives" to worry about. I have found for the first time in years I am getting a decent night's sleep. The reduction in stress has been noticeable. So I'll endorse what Cat House said.

Best of luck gadegtmind :T

gadgetmind

Triumph13 wrote: »

many others will want to use S&S ISAs as a parking lot for money taken from pensions when most tax efficient to do so, but not yet needed for expenditure.

Absolutely. Money is fungible, so I'll be looking at our total spend but this is *very* different to what I'll initially take from pensions. My wife will be taking 10% pa to totally drain her SIPP before state pension age, and I'll be taking 6.5% ish to use personal allowance and full 20% band. We''ll then use CGT allowances (and dividend and interest allowances) on unwrapped assets so as to do max ISA subscriptions with the rest being what we'll spend, which will be around 4.3% of total of all pots.

Triumph13

Cat_House wrote: »

So, I took early retirement at the end of October 2017 at the age of 57...

Hi Cat House. Can I ask how you found going at that time of year? I had always planned to go in spring / summer for the better weather, but am now very seriously looking at October this year to avoid some stressful changes at work. Did the weather put a dampener on things or was being retired more than enough to offset the winter blues?

Snakey

Timing is an interesting issue. I'm a March baby, and when I used to plan I'd be basing it on literally finishing on my birthday. But the new tax year, with all its lovely new allowances, starts just a couple of weeks later. This is essentially the "One More Year" dilemma from a different angle - to what extent does it make sense to earn £12k/£46k and then stop?

On the one hand, a late spring departure gets you the weather and the ability to decompress at/around home without any big changes until you're suitably relaxed. On the other, with 6-7 months extra pay under your belt you could take yourself somewhere hot and sunny for two months in January and February (December may be dark but has its consolations - there's plenty to do) and then come back and enjoy the Spring and Summer.

I guess your situ is different Triumph as you're looking at six months early rather than six months late. How does it impact the finances? (Another consideration is that the changes might not be as stressful to somebody who knows s/he's leaving for good in a few months time. "So what if it's a complete disaster? I won't be here to deal with the fallout!" springs to mind.)

gadgetmind

Triumph13 wrote: »

Did the weather put a dampener on things or was being retired more than enough to offset the winter blues?

I can maybe also comment on this in a couple of weeks from I get back from Valencia. :-)

Bimbly

Snakey wrote: »

Timing is an interesting issue. I'm a March baby, and when I used to plan I'd be basing it on literally finishing on my birthday. But the new tax year, with all its lovely new allowances, starts just a couple of weeks later...

...you could take yourself somewhere hot and sunny for two months in January and February (December may be dark but has its consolations - there's plenty to do) and then come back and enjoy the Spring and Summer.
)

My birthday is two weeks before Christmas which is pretty much the worst time to stop work. One thing I would definitely want to do is retire not around my birthday. I'd definitely vote for spring with the prospect of getting used to having more free time as summer approaches, with the optimism longer days and a blooming garden brings.

I thought about a holiday in Jan/Feb, but I think that would be bad. For me, stopping work would put me into a new routine and I would like to start on that journey straight away. Coming back from holiday, especially after a long break, will leave you with no routine at all. You will have a lot of stuff to sort out, from getting the post-holiday washing done to sorting out all that admin you missed while away. I'd say, get settled in your new retired life first, then take a break so you have a routine to comeback to.

But everyone's different.

DancingBadger

Bimbly wrote: »

My birthday is two weeks before Christmas which is pretty much the worst time to stop work.

But everyone's different.

You’re right there; we’re all different.

I retired on 23 December 2015. Christmas and New Year were very enjoyable without the thought of returning to work in 2016.

Hating the British winter, we bought a place in the Cape winelands a few years ago and have been going there in January or February every year since. Coming back to the UK when Spring is just around the corner is wonderful.

Snakey

Bimbly wrote: »

For me, stopping work would put me into a new routine and I would like to start on that journey straight away. Coming back from holiday, especially after a long break, will leave you with no routine at all... I'd say, get settled in your new retired life first, then take a break so you have a routine to comeback to.

I'd be worried that if I didn't have a complete break to jolt me out of everything, then my new routine would be based too much on my old routine only with different things where the "going to work" part used to be, and that I wouldn't get the full benefit of my new freedom as a result. I'm thinking maybe it'd be better to force myself to start from a blank slate, and also to make those decisions with the perspective that distance would hopefully give me.

An additional/alternative consideration is that - money permitting - I would quite like being somewhere hot and sunny during January and February every year to be part of my new routine.

It's a long way off yet for me, but interesting to mull over.

Cat_House

I was offered a big bonus to stay on until the end of March, but I couldn’t wait to get out of there.

I was in, and still am, in Retirement Heaven. I have lots of plans for this year when the weather brightens up, so really wanted some chilling out time after working 42 years non stop.

Lots of things to sort out in the home and been selling bits and pieces on eBay to keep some money coming in and keep us busy/active.

I could not face another Company Christmas Party / Secret Santa for another year on the trot and I also got a nice tax rebate from HMRC.

December, January, February was the most stressful time for me at work and I definitely did not want to go through that again after nearly 20 years of doing it over and over.

October was perfect for me to enable me to be ready for the next year ahead.