Have we got our sums right?? Appraise our plan.

bluenose1

Sea_Shell wrote: »

Am I a bad person for not wanting to tell my family the news of my ER?? (parents/sibling).

We want to be able to enjoy our freedom and spontaneity for a while before we become the family chauffeur service now that we'll "have time on our hands".

I just know the first thing they'd say is "Ooh good, that means you can take me shopping next week". Cue 80 mile round trip!!!

Obviously I don't want to lie to them...just want some breathing space to settle into it and find our feet. That's not so unreasonable is it??

A bad person, most certainly not. I imagine some people have actually worked longer than necessary to avoid that obligation.
Plus if I was expected to do an 80 mile shopping trip I would never disclose my ER;)
Think when you do tell them you should set clear parameters on what you want to do for family members so your life is your own, as don't see the point of giving up an income to run around unpaid after others.
Give yourself some time out to enjoy and appreciate not working, I am sure you have more than deserved it. I honestly wouldn't tell them yet myself. Good luck.

BabyStepper

I'm really enjoying your thread - it's very inspiring and you have done so well - congratulations! :beer:

Just wondering how long you have been saving for and why you made a decision to go for early retirement? It seems living frugally is key.

You have me hooked - I'll be following.

kangoora

BabyStepper wrote: »

I'm really enjoying your thread - it's very inspiring and you have done so well - congratulations! :beer:

Just wondering how long you have been saving for and why you made a decision to go for early retirement? It seems living frugally is key.

You have me hooked - I'll be following.

You are correct about being frugal and your lifestyle has a massive effect on how early you can retire. But you have to be comfortable with what limits you set. No point living so frugally (and retiring early, still living fugally) if you aren't enjoying life.

There is a blog in USA Mr Money Moustache who has calculated how soon you can retire if you save a percentage of your wage. For those people lucky enough to be able to save 50% of their wage then retirement after 17 years work is a real possibility. Of course, you can't do this on minimum wage and having a well paid job is virtually a prequisite for this level of saving.

Simply put, if you never save (pensions, ISA's etc) you will never retire or you will get a huge shock in your 50's when you realise that £50k salary will be replaced by an £8.5k pension but presumably on a £50k salary you will at least a decent pension provision.

https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/01/13/the-shockingly-simple-math-behind-early-retirement/

crv1963

I second kangoora's view. It is all about balance, making sure that you enjoy life alongside saving for the future. Find a level of life style expenditure that is comfortable to you, save into the various options available, to reach the point that the savings can then be used to fund the life style.

Obviously the earlier the start the sooner the retirement option becomes possible.

DT2001

Anonymous101 wrote: »

This might sound counter intuitive but my reasoning is that as a spender psychologically I'm still spending all my pay cheque each month. Only during accumulation I'm "buying" something completely different to the usual stuff people buy, my freedom. Mentally I think I still treat it very similarly. I'm very goal driven and if anything put more pressure on myself now to save than I ever did when I was accumulating other stuff.


My OH on the other hand isn't quite so diven with it all and is happy to spend frugally and invest whatever remains at the end of the month.


When it comes to drawdown I don't think mind set will need to change but mine most certainly will.

Just catching up with this thread and this post made a particular impact. My OH and I would consider ourselves as following a ‘careful’ approach. We both saved hard when young to get on the housing ladder, converted properties to build equity and more recently to build up SIPP’s and ISA’s. We might be spenders by your definition, I’m not sure, as we had about 10 weeks holiday last year mainly by home swapping (is that frugal as you have minimal accommodation costs) and flying unsocial hours.
I am unsure if we will find the change from saving to drawdown mentally challenging. As I’m unsure when my OH will retire as she enjoys her self employed work the time before SPA and 2 small DB’s kicking in is reducing. The less time between retiring and SPA will mean less capital in OH’s SIPP being used.
Planning is the key and being flexible. I think we have margin for error i.e. market corrections and theoretically would be OK with capital reduction before SPA but thereafter as it is not in the plan who knows.
Thank you for thought provoking comment.

Sea_Shell

BabyStepper wrote: »

I'm really enjoying your thread - it's very inspiring and you have done so well - congratulations! :beer:

Just wondering how long you have been saving for and why you made a decision to go for early retirement? It seems living frugally is key.

You have me hooked - I'll be following.

Wow, thanks. I've never been called inspirational before!!

We've both always been savers, even since getting birthday money as kids! It's just in our nature's, which has made saving easy.

I'll admit that not having kids has made a huge difference to our position, as they reckon each kid costs over £200k over the course of their lifetime.

We don't feel we actually go without much... we're currently sipping prosecco in the sunshine!! Which suits me fine!!

With £500k behind us, why wouldn't we want to early retire, whilst we're fit and healthy. Who knows what the future holds.

Sea_Shell

bluenose1 wrote: »

A bad person, most certainly not. I imagine some people have actually worked longer than necessary to avoid that obligation.
Plus if I was expected to do an 80 mile shopping trip I would never disclose my ER;)
Think when you do tell them you should set clear parameters on what you want to do for family members so your life is your own, as don't see the point of giving up an income to run around unpaid after others.
Give yourself some time out to enjoy and appreciate not working, I am sure you have more than deserved it. I honestly wouldn't tell them yet myself. Good luck.

Thanks. I've been beating myself up a bit about this. Yes, 80 miles!! Basically one parent ( who doesn't drive) lives 25 miles from us and the nearest big (shops) town is 15 miles further on. I think because they don't drive, they don't see it as an issue, it's "only down the road!!!":eek:

Sea_Shell

How I feel today...:(:(

I feel like I am being eroded, like an exposed coastline.
With every gift given, and no thanks received,
With every favour done, and no appreciation shown,
With every assumption made of me, and every obligation placed on me,
A little bit of the soft, sandy top-soil that is my Kindness and Generosity, is being washed away,
Gradually exposing the hard, cold Granite beneath.


Families eh...?


Sorry to take my own thread off topic!! I just want to vent, but I know I'd just be judged, or told how lucky I am!!! One must never diss ones parents is an unwritten rule it would seem.

I need more wine....waiter, another bottle of Sauvignon Blanc over here!!!!!:beer:

shinytop

Sea Shell, very well put. Remember that kindness and generosity never run out for some people; there's always a bit left.

bluenose1

Sea_Shell wrote: »

How I feel today...:(:(

I feel like I am being eroded, like an exposed coastline.
With every gift given, and no thanks received,
With every favour done, and no appreciation shown,
With every assumption made of me, and every obligation placed on me,
A little bit of the soft, sandy top-soil that is my Kindness and Generosity, is being washed away,
Gradually exposing the hard, cold Granite beneath.
Families eh...?
Sorry to take my own thread off topic!! I just want to vent, but I know I'd just be judged, or told how lucky I am!!! One must never diss ones parents is an unwritten rule it would seem.

I need more wine....waiter, another bottle of Sauvignon Blanc over here!!!!!:beer:

No worries, diss away.
I personally feel quite resentful of all the care that I feel obliged to give my dad who is in his late 70s. He wasn't the greatest father to us growing up, has always put himself first and is quite happy for me to come in and do everything for him after working all day. His health isn't great cos he has been a heavy drinker and smoker most of his life.
Though guilt and my own perceived obligation makes me continue to do it.
I will join you in the glass of wine, though mines a red.:)