Financial position at age 50!!

suki1964

Aspen_Sky wrote: »

Many thanks for the replies...interesting to hear your thoughts.

I suppose the Pension is the area that concerns me most. As I mentioned, hubby and I have been following more of a "lifestyle" path for the last few years, and pension contributions are dire!

Our current position (for both of us) is this:

Own home (3 bed detached) owned...mortgage free
2 x small btl rental properties owned...mortgage free
Cash savings approx 35k
Other investments approx 45k
Personal pension Peanuts!!! Total joint pot of about 30k! + state pensions
Absolutely no debt of any kind

I have always been suspicious of pension schemes and so have not invested heavily (probably a bit stupid of me). Both myself and hubby have always worked in small private companies, and so no work pension to look forward to.

The properties are in the North, so not of the kind of value that you would have in Southern climes!

Any thoughts much appreciated

To me you are RICH

I'm the same age and we just own what we have, ie house, cars and no debt. We are both now earning a lot less, and there is no scope for improvement for the foreseeable

However we intend to downsize eventually and we don't live extravagantly so we will manage and we aren't planning to leave a fortune behind us for the kids to kill each other over

maman

There's obviously an element of 'jam today' in your lifestyle. That's not a problem as you're enjoying life but it could mean you can't keep living that way in retirement. That being said, some might consider you're already semi-retired so wouldn't as difficult as some to keep working longer and so continue with current lifestyle.


There might be a half way house in that you could retire and still live abroad fairly cheaply for parts of the year. I know someone who does much what you're doing and then lives in a caravan in Spain in the winter. It's really a case of whether your current projected income of state pension and BTL rents are enough to let you live the way you want. If not then perhaps consider upping the BTLs or find another income stream.

Aspen_Sky

Thanks folks.

Yes, in many ways it is a great life! We are both loving the travel, and certainly don't want to change that. The only downside is that we are now in much lesser paid jobs than before, and I worry that we may regret that drop in the future.

My DH pretty much leaves all finances to me...he agrees with my choices so far and is happy just to continue as is. We have both worked very hard to reach this point, and my concern is that we have now hit a plateau with our savings, and will not be able to top them up much further before retirement.

Everyone i know and talk to about the subject have seemingly vast work/public sector pensions to come, and that is one area that we are totally lacking! I find it very difficult to estimate how much money we will need in retirement, as there are so many variables (ie will we still be able and wanting to spend time abroad) etc. We do live fairly frugally, and are not in any way scattercash, so i am sure we would manage....but it still throws up many questions for me.

I think even if we were able to contribute more to private pensions, it would not be our chosen area of investment. Everything is risky, but I just think that pensions and stock investments are going to bite people in the you know what!! So I guess we may try to get a mortgage for another BTL...I know this is also a big risk, but I do prefer tangible things to paper assets. As my dear old Granpa used to say..."if you can't kiss it goodnight, then you can kiss it goodbye"! I do think that we are headed for another financial crash, and anything share based will suffer.

Anyway, thanks all for your comments so far...very much appreciated.

If anyone else would like to comment, discuss, or tell us about their own situation...please do...the more the merrier!

Have a great day,
Aspen Sky

Pooky

We've been looking at our pension income forecasts lately and know we will struggle. I don't have a pension at all and DH has a few very small pots that won't amount to much at all. We're 41 and 44 and currently have a very limited income due to our circumstances (DH is disabled and unable to work - I'm his full time carer and run a small business in what spare time I can find - it doesn't make much but it helps).

Our plan is to move next spring to a smaller property in a different area and be mortgage free (we've been plugging away at over paying the mortgage where we can and now have a decent equity built up) That will enable us to build up our savings towards the future.

We're unsure if DH will ever be able to go back to work or be well enough for me to leave him alone to go back to work myself so we're very much basing everything on worst case scenario.....but we'll cope. There won't be holidays (there hasn't been for years), there won't be new cars, new clothes, treating the family to fancy meals etc but there will always be a warm welcome and a feeling of gratitude that we've got what we have.

It's all relative - you can't miss what you've never had.

Aspen_Sky

Wise words Pooky....you are absolutely right.

Must be something about my almost 50 brain that just keeps me worrying!

I think having a plan is probably the most important part...good luck to you and yours, and thank you for that thought provoking post...much appreciated.

Susan1962

Aspen_Sky wrote: »

Thanks folks.

Everyone i know and talk to about the subject have seemingly vast work/public sector pensions to come, and that is one area that we are totally lacking! I find it very difficult to estimate how much money we will need in retirement, as there are so many variables (ie will we still be able and wanting to spend time abroad) etc. We do live fairly frugally, and are not in any way scattercash, so i am sure we would manage....but it still throws up many questions for me.

Aspen Sky

I'm 53 and work in the public sector and, unfortunately, will have nowhere near a "vast" pension. I've paid in for a total of 17 years and will need another 8 to get a decent return but, even with my State Pension will still need to cut my cloth accordingly.

I was on track to pay off my mortgage next year but an unexpected divorce and buying out the other half means that I'll probably still be paying off when I retire. I've an endowment policy which will, if lucky, pay off half the remaining mortgage next year.

Like you, at 50, I started to really think about all this and started chipping away at things. I've a stupid loan to pay off (all elderly and dysfunctional windows and doors needed replacing at the same time). The loan was necessary but stupid as I took on far too high a rate and far too long a payback period. Fixed today with a better loan and an option to overpay. Overpaying this has to take priority against overpaying the mortgage due to the interest rates but, barring unexpected unpleasantness, should have paid it off in two years. Three years ago I started paying AVCs to boost the pension - too late really but you work with what you have.

I've cut way back on lifestyle stuff. My car is being run into the ground until I can save enough for another one; no more holidays until the loan is paid; cancelled SKY (better late than never) and channeling the difference into the AVC; plus all the other tips I can find and use on here.

Sorry to be preachy, but from this perspective, you are already in a great position. It seems to me that you have two choices. Spend less now and put the money aside to let you spend more when you retire. Or, start changing your spending patterns now as a permanent choice, meaning that you'll be used to managing on less and your money will go further when you really need it to.

Best of luck!

Hard_Up_Hester

I started again at 50, got divorced, no home, no savings, no job, no pension, all lost in the divorce.
I found work, sometimes worked 3 jobs, provided a home for 2 of my children, the older 2 had already left home.
I bought a small house, met the love of my life, he was as skint as me, together we have worked hard & improved our situation, we have savings but no pension, too late to start paying in at over 50. But we are over paying our mortgage & we do live very frugally. My children are now all grown & flown with families of their own, I'm now 64 & still working though only 30 hours a week now instead of 37.
Life is good & hubby & I are very happy.
Hester

Aspen_Sky

Great posts....thank you all so much for your comments...very interesting.


Cheers,
Aspen Sky

calicocat

I will be 50 this year, and have been thinking about retirement and money for around the last two years almost on a daily basis.....:D. Just slightly obsessed. Mainly as I want to retire Asap but it will likely be nearer the 60 mark.

My house is practically paid off, so I now save what I was spending on that.

I have a work pension, but this will not give me the lifestyle I want, so....i'm saving extra each month now to contribute to the savings, and this is also getting me used to living on less each month.

I do use a credit card at the moment. The plan will be to ditch that a couple of years before retiring as I won't have the income any longer to keep paying it off.

The plan so far is to have all work done needed to the house before retirement too. I guess I can always sell it and downsize if I need to.

Then other days I say to myself I should be living more in the now and not worrying so much about down the road. .....i will be very annoyed if I pop my clogs before a get to spend my savings...:rotfl: I guess it's about finding a balance, and what works for you.

If I had two BTL though I wouldn't be worried at all as I would think of those as my pension.

[Deleted User]

I am now 67 and retired, my husband died suddenly just 4 months ago at age 68. At 50, our 3 children were grown and almost independent, we just had future weddings to cope with financially. I was at work and dh had become senior management. Our house was almost paid for and we had no debts and we had the most money coming in at this time

Suddenly at 50 the future loomed large and we saved everything we could, we managed to soon pay off the house and any extra money went into my dh`s pension, this money included bonuses from work. We had a couple of good holidays in the future years but all our saving was very much geared to dh retiring at 60, which was company policy

I left work at 55. Dh retired at 60 with a good pension pot, which I started to manage and transferred to a sipp and eventually drawdown. I also had a sipp albeit small and I started drawdown for myself at age 60. I mentioned my dh being deceased because having the drawdown sipp has been the best thing ever. While alive he paid tax on any benefits from his sipp, since his death and since april, the sipp has been transferred to me and under the new rules any cash from his sipp to me as his beneficiary, is completely tax free. He was only 68 hence the tax free status as he was under 75 when he died. The same will happen to my named beneficiaries if I die at under 75

We lived a careful and very happy life, holidays tended to be the camping or holiday cottage type apart from a luxury few abroad in later life, we also spent quite a bit on getting our lovely hobbies established, then all our spare money went into catering forward, to our old age. I have no money worries now. Own house and car, no debts and enough in the sipp to pay for care for quite a while, although most people will never need care. 50 was a very important time for us when we laid a very good financial foundation and between 50 and now, have moved house, changed furniture and generally prepared for the future, making things easier and also accommodating our wonderful hobbies and new way of life

I would hate to have money worries now at my age and on my own. Looking back I would do exactly the same at age 50