Can I retire....carefully

sjp999

If "a couple of years" is less than 3 you might be able to kick start your pension with that years earnings. Careful research would have to be done if you're thinking of doing it DIY to ensure you're not overdoing it in terms of timescale (up to 3 years, possibly 2 x 2880 plus that earning year prior to stopping work) and the allowed limit of, iirc, £40000 if you actually earned that much 3 years ago.

Peter314

sjp999 wrote: »

... the allowed limit of, iirc, £40000 if you actually earned that much 3 years ago.

You can't put in more than you earn in this tax year.

AnotherJoe

Is that £25k income or profit ?
How much income after tax?
How much equity is there in the properties ?

And
How much income do you need / want to live on ?

sjp999

Peter314 wrote: »

You can't put in more than you earn in this tax year.

I was in 2 minds about that but a phone call with an HMRC Pensions advisor suggested otherwise. I overfunded last year's SIPP by one months payment so called them to see what the score was. Admittedly it was a fairly minor sum in the whole scheme of things but their thoughts were I could use the previous years allowance to cover that over payment. They were well aware of my non earning status this tax year and last but not 3 years ago.

Thanks for putting me straight.

YSRL

bostonerimus wrote: »

What annual income do you need? Without knowing that your question cannot be answered.

That's were I will have to trim my spending to suit my income I have no debt fortunately so don't need a specific amount.

YSRL

p00hsticks wrote: »

Have you got a State Pension forecast ?
https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

The retirement planning board can discuss further, but as bostonerimus says, more info on the kind of income / lifestyle you are aiming for is needed

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=19

I did get a forecast a couple of years ago and I'll dig it out again. From memory I think I was about 3 years short for full entitlement.

YSRL

DiggerUK wrote: »

The only thing you can do is screw up, as things stand you seem to be in a secure place.
You sat down a couple of years back and made your plans, and it looks like you are reviewing. You made safe decisions then, and I suspect you will now........apart from the p2p, very high risk in my view.

I believe your rental is a business rental, going forward do you see this is a sound and secure income stream. It appears to be your main income stream. Consider selling and reallocating.

For retirement savings I’m a huge advocate of gold. May not be something you ever considered, read here..._ http://moneyweek.com/a-beginners-guide-to-investing-in-gold/

I'm pretty comfortable with commercial letting to be honest. I have a building trade background and experience of residential letting for a few years.

Compared to residential letting, Commercial is an absolute doddle

YSRL

AnotherJoe wrote: »

Is that £25k income or profit ?
How much income after tax?
How much equity is there in the properties ?

And
How much income do you need / want to live on ?

£25K is income but doesn't include interest on other investments, P2P etc.

The properties have about £350K equity in total

bostonerimus

YSRL wrote: »

That's were I will have to trim my spending to suit my income I have no debt fortunately so don't need a specific amount.

That answer tells me you are not ready to retire yet. You need to have a detailed budget and a contingency plan. Things you have going for you are the rental income and real estate equity, but your savings are not that large. You need to tell us your budget and age and all sources of income (ie state pension etc) to have any hope of a real answer.

bigadaj

sjp999 wrote: »

I was in 2 minds about that but a phone call with an HMRC Pensions advisor suggested otherwise. I overfunded last year's SIPP by one months payment so called them to see what the score was. Admittedly it was a fairly minor sum in the whole scheme of things but their thoughts were I could use the previous years allowance to cover that over payment. They were well aware of my non earning status this tax year and last but not 3 years ago.

Thanks for putting me straight.

Hope you've got a good record of that conversation as it is patently wrong.