should i retire? 8 February 2011 at 9:58PM in How much have you saved? 12 replies 3.2K views

ratraceout

ok so i have trawled the web and seen the calculations etc on how and when to retire. none seem to make much clear sense to me.

im currently working in a sales job which pays very well and has huge commission potential! lucky me right???

but.... i can't stand it anymore. i have been doing it for 20 years, set up and sold a business and then came back into the industry working for another firm. i have suffered with anxiety and depression over the years and most have been linked to the job i think.

im 41 years old and have managed to buy a house in the uk which is worth about £650k and has 150,000 mortgage. i also have a holiday home which i bought for cash and is worth about £1.25m. savings wise im sitting on about 800,000 of which about 400,000 is invested in funds / stocks etc.

the way i see it the holiday home can probably net me about 50-60 k a year in rental. im still young so i wouldnt stop work but just want to get out of the 8-7 daily slog.

problem is i dont know if i can do it and am worried about inflation and many years of retirement. im married but we dont have any kids yet although we will want to have 1 or 2....

any thoughts on what you all believe i should / could do? can i just quit? i have nothing lined up work wise but as i said would want to do something so as not to just fade away... but not high stress work, just something i enjoy...

thanks for reading and looking forward to all your sensible thoughts!!!!

:idea:

System

Well done on your success, I think you are in a great position.

Why don't you live off the holiday home rental income and keep your savings. 50-60k plus say 15-25k in a more peaceful job, would be more than enough. I would discuss it with your friends/family though.

twiga_2

So, what do you plan on doing once you retire?

Lesley_Gaye

might be an idea to pay off the outstanding mortgage on your own home with any liquid savings, you're prob not getting as much return on it as the interest on the mortgage

your projected income that you mention gives you flexibility to really do what you like

I think you are in a lovely place to decide what to do with the rest of your life, without HAVING to produce an income each month using your time. The only caveat I would have is that the holiday home is 1 egg in the basket, although of course, most people only ever have the 1 egg, their job

have you ever heard of Myers-Briggs? It is a personality test that may bring into focus aspects of yourself that haven't had a chance to be noticed yet. You could probably get enough info from the info on Wiki about it, 'proper' versions are available and cost quite a bit

If you don't need to produce an income, but you still want to work, are there any altruistic projects that appeal?

maybe using your sales training to visualise your life in the future may help to pull out what you would like

good luck you lucky boy

Joan49

I'm older than you but only have a fraction of your assets. I retired early a few months ago, lifes never been so carefree and laid back. I knew what I wanted to do, I knew how much money I'd need to do it and I finished work as soon as i was able. BUT it's all about expectations. What do you want to do with your time? What type of life do you really want? Until you know what you want there's no point changing it.

ratraceout

thaqnks for the reply... i want to start up a business in the caribbean!

partist

Yes and no: leave your current job if you really don;t want to be doing it but start earning money in a way and in a place you will enjoy. Not so much retirement more a way of life.

ziesha

no i don't feel like that you should need retirement

charactereducation

Yeah its more than enough, you should retire from work now and you can start any part time work if you want to do, otherwise take rest for sometime and then start again.

ratraceout

why? do u think i shouldnt? out of interest.

snookey

Why waste your life being unhappy. As my dad says there are no pockets in shrouds.:D