Can I throw in the towel now?

JoeEngland

AnotherJoe wrote: »

You need to check your maths .

If you have £450k, place £150k of it in various accounts leaving £300k, you cant then add that £300k to the £450k making £750k It doesn't work like that

Ah, good point. Seems I misread it in haste!

cfw1994

Apodemus wrote: »

Whoa there! Scary to see this written in this way without giving the OP the vital information that the “4% rule” presumes that the total sum is invested in the (US) stock market and that market returns are similar in the future to what they have been in the past.

It looks like the the OP has got 2x£50k in Premium Bonds, £50k in (cash?) ISAs and £300k in an NS&I account. That is very different from them working towards the 4% rule at this stage!

If they are happy to simply run their savings down to nothing, then yes, they can take 4% per year for the next 25 years, but it would not keep pace with inflation or leave anything left if they live longer.

Yeah, but in my defence, I gave more info than the OP did in the initial question!
*and* I did say "Sure" and "maybe not": think I covered myself well there ;-)

Some good follow-up replies whilst I've been away from the keyboard, sounds like retiring is the easy bit for the OP: deciding what to spend the time on is the trickier piece!

JoeEngland wrote: »

Ah, good point. Seems I misread it in haste!

Must admit, I initially read it like that!

Sallyforth

Thank you so much for all the really helpful replies. Lots to think about and to learn which I'm actually quite looking forward to. One thing I will say is there is no way I would repeat some of my past mistakes surrounding money and to be honest my whole attitude has changed dramatically as I have got older. Nice stuff just isn't as important as it once seemed and now I shop for clothes on eBay for example without a qualm. I enjoy cooking a lot so that is one area we would probably save money on as I would cook from scratch most days.
I do appreciate I am extremely fortunate to be in this position but I would still rather my Dad was alive and I didn't have to focus on this.
I hear what was said about a lodger and this is something I would consider if/when my husband dies (he is 15 years older than I) but not right now.

kidmugsy

Sallyforth wrote: »

I would still rather my Dad was alive and I didn't have to focus on this.

Many of us will know the feeling.

cfw1994

kidmugsy wrote: »

Many of us will know the feeling.

hear, hear.

Sallyforth, I would suggest 'splurging' a small amount (you chose if that is a few hundred or a few thousand) on something you know your Dad would have approved of.
A special holiday, a small work of art, a season ticket to something or a show, maybe even a car (not a Tesla-priced one!). I had a friend who's mum passed last year and who bought an Audi - she knew her mum would have thoroughly approved.

MK62

Sallyforth wrote: »

Unfortunately I made a stupid mistake drawing on a pension at 55 (to finally repay the mortgage) so my annual allowance dropped from £40k to £4K. Entirely my fault and can’t blame anyone else! So I have a “frozen” Money Purchase account with Standard Life worth c. £20k and have been paying 10% of my £29k gross salary into my works pension to benefit from their 18% contribution. Due to now being debt and mortgage free I can easily afford this but realise there is no point contributing more as I would be taxed on taxed income and know I will still have to declare this for tax next year. This pension is currently worth around £6k but increasing by c. £680 a month.

When they first introduced the MPAA back in 2015 it was £10k......they promptly moved the goalposts just two years later and reduced it to £4k......smacks of making policy on the hoof to me....so don't beat yourself up too much about it.

However, is your works pension a DB scheme (aka final salary)?
As the MPAA only covers money purchase schemes, is there any opportunity to purchase extra DB pension in your works scheme? Some schemes allow you to purchase extra index linked annual pension in return for a lump sum, and often it's a pretty good deal.....

I'm assuming your works scheme is DB, because if it's DC I think you'll have breached the MPAA already......

So, after that I take home about £1,700 (interest free travel loan and dental insurance deducted at source monthly). With my husbands state pensions we currently have c. £2,580 a month coming in. I have been saving at least £1,300 a month in easy access savings for the past two years and have various pots for annual bills, clothing, vet bills etc etc and £5k “emergency” fund.

So, I have become reasonably financially savvy but did not expect this inheritance now. To be honest I thought it would get eaten up by care fees over the coming years and little would remain.

So, we can live comfortably on say £15k net. I checked my state pension and I am 36p a week short of the maximum I can receive in 10 years when I turn 67. I guess that is sound?

You could look into getting that extra 36p a week, but I suspect it's not really worth it, especially if you need to buy a full year's NI to get it....:)

FatherAbraham

doingitanyway wrote: »

What would the person you inherited want you to do?

I don't think one should ask that. It's broadly an irrelevance, and in the general case, the testator may have had a completely different attitude towards money to the heir's.

Sallyforth

I don’t mind people suggesting I should indulge a little and will add that since my Mum died 4 years ago I helped Dad increase his wealth. Mum was controlling and did not trust me. Dad let me reduce his utility bills, insurance, water meter etc and invest money. When I say invest Mum had it sitting in bank accounts paying zero interest. We have booked and paid for a holiday next year - our first and perhaps last cruise. That is what Dad would have wanted.