How old will you be when you can retire?

wotsthat

chucknorris wrote: »

I think this demonstrates how important it is to plan your retirement income, even more so now with the disappearance of the private sector final salary schemes.

What's the saying? Fail to plan - plan to fail. Never been more true.

gadgetmind

coastline wrote: »

Theres a handy table at the bottom of the link combining state and private pensions showing how much people will have as a percentage of working salary..

I'm putting in over 4x my recommended contribution and it alarms me that someone could think that an 8% contribution will gave a good outcome.

chucknorris

I'm also planning to build up my dividend income for retirement too.

lisyloo

[All of that's fine. But I still strongly recommend a 'plan' - or in other words a model. After all, it may inform you that you can afford to retire happily at 58.....?

Thanks.
I do and currently it shows 62 (I get state pension at 66 amnd rising).
We have advisors come to our company annually and put our individual situation into a graph. We can then decide what actions to take e.g. I've just upped my contributions from 15% to 20%.
I am quite aware that assumption on salary, inflation, returns make a massive difference.

This is partly as a plan to have the option to retire earlier but also as my DH had just had some time "between jobs" to cover any unexpected periods of unemployment during working life.

It's not ALL about the pension though. Having no debts, no mortgage and ISAs are all important aspects of financial planning too.
As you get older though (I'm 45) you worry less about having the money tied up.
Having it tied up until 55 is less scary when you're 45 than it is when you're 20.

coastline

gadgetmind wrote: »

I'm putting in over 4x my recommended contribution and it alarms me that someone could think that an 8% contribution will gave a good outcome.

Time and time again these surveys show that millions of people aren't saving enough....maybe it should be taught at school.
Think the article is being realistic with the 8% contribution considering half the population will be earning £25,000 or less.
I ran a rough savings calculation earlier in the thread using £200 a month...10% of £25,000...increasing it by 2.5% for inflation.
The pension pot came out at £440,000 over 40 years at a growth rate of 5%...inflation adjusted again using 2.5% it worked out at £160,000...annuity of under £10,000.
I'm sure the governments real aim is to keep people off benefits and hopefully just provide the basic state pension in the future.
Its the same with the retirement age near 70 yo....some will get there and some won't...again hoping there will be savings in it.

lisyloo

I could live on 30K a year
12K, not a chance even with a lump sum

Bear in mind that during retirement
a) You won't (ideally) be paying a mortgage
b) You won't be putting money into a pension.
c) You may have lower outgoings e.g. many couples may go from 2 cars to 1.

mortgage+pension could be a significant part of your income e.g. 50%?

chucknorris

lisyloo wrote: »

As you get older though (I'm 45) you worry less about having the money tied up.
Having it tied up until 55 is less scary when you're 45 than it is when you're 20.

I'm 56 in a few weeks so to me anything I put into a pension I can get back as soon as I want it, which as you say definitely removes barriers. But I am constantly surprised at how people just seem to avoid the issue of how they will cope financially in retirement.

michaels

chucknorris wrote: »

I'm 56 in a few weeks so to me anything I put into a pension I can get back as soon as I want it, which as you say definitely removes barriers. But I am constantly surprised at how people just seem to avoid the issue of how they will cope financially in retirement.

I don't know, a lot of people spend at the start of each month without considering whether the money will last unitl their next pay cheque so thinking that people may think up to 40(+) years a head is probably a bit hopeful.

gadgetmind

lisyloo wrote: »

mortgage+pension could be a significant part of your income e.g. 50%?

We don't have a mortgage (I've never been big on gearing) and the sum I look at is my take home after all deductions including pension. I'm then putting together a retirement plan that gives me the same sum after tax, with a little extra to derisk things, but without all that tiresome going to the office etc.

lisyloo

But I am constantly surprised at how people just seem to avoid the issue of how they will cope financially in retirement.

I agree, but the fact is people have other priorities when young and also have a sense that it's so far away it's almost infinite (which of course it isn't).
I was kind of lucky going into permanent employment with the kind of companies that had pension schemes and advisors.
I am not so sure I would have been so pro-active if I hadn't been in that rather traditional environement where I was "taken care of".
For example if I'd been self-employed.