Plotting for an early retirement - anyone want to join me?

barnstar2077

I have not been around much recently, but as there has been a development in my finances I wanted to add another quick update on my plans.

My claim for compensation (after an ankle injury caused by a careless driver) is finally done and dusted and I am now just shy of 40k better off than I was!  Which sounds great, but I have no idea how much of a problem the injury will be farther down the line.  Still, it is a very welcome injection of capital. 

I have split the funds between my ISA and pension, with the remainder being invested next April.  I was going to put it in premium bonds until then, but as I was gifted £5 worth when I was a kid I can't add any more without filling in a form first, and I can't be bothered :  )

I also plan on spending a couple of grand on a few jobs that need doing around the house and garden, and also a few slap up meals and days out when things start to open again next week.

The extra money has cemented my plans, so, eight years, ten months and counting until retirement!  :  )

How are others getting on?

Mrs_Z

Good to hear from you barnstar2077.  Glad your claim has been settled and hopefully the injury will not be a major issue in future.  Sounds like you also have a sensible plan for the money.
No major update from me... I'm now 8 months into my (unofficial) early retirement and I'm even further more convinced that this is the way to go for me.  I was jogging one morning and thinking whether I would regret (on my deathbed) not returning back to work and the answer was an instinctive 'Hell, no!' before I had even time to think about it.  That says something.  
In the meantime, a friend (in their late 50's) has just been diagnosed with terminal cancer which has spread and given a very bleak outlook of 'months rather than years'. News like that really do make you evaluate your own priorities, and appreciate the simple things in life.  'The wonderful everyday' - which we so often take for granted.

AlanP_2

Have my annual review with my manager at 2pm this afternoon where I will tell her that I intend to go at the end of August so the countdown commences - 71 working days to go.

Plan is to live off drawdown from my SIPP for 18-24 months and leave my LGPS DB whilst my wife carries on working and adds as much as she can to her LGPS AVC and her SIPP subject to AA limit.

MallyGirl

congratulations. I look forward to being able to have such a conversation. One of my colleagues has announced that she is retiring next May - she will be 60 with a DB pension (which had closed to new entrants before I joined). I am so jealous!

Anonymous101

AlanP_2 said:

Have my annual review with my manager at 2pm this afternoon where I will tell her that I intend to go at the end of August so the countdown commences - 71 working days to go.

Plan is to live off drawdown from my SIPP for 18-24 months and leave my LGPS DB whilst my wife carries on working and adds as much as she can to her LGPS AVC and her SIPP subject to AA limit.

Brilliant Alan, congratulations, please let us know how it goes this afternoon.

As I read your comment it occurred to me that its not uncommon for the businesses to come back to us with improved working offers, either money or improved roles / conditions etc, in an effort to keep us working their. This lead on to whether its worth trying to retire before we are actually ready to give up totally. So long as there's some sort of plan in place in the event they just accept the resignation of course.

savingmore

would love to join the thread, and enjoyed reading all yr plans.   dh and I due to retire in 2023 at sp age.   however been working on our figures daily for the last year, using fire calculators and wondering if possible to go earlier, or NOW.  some days I really want to jack it all in and just go, but other moments, like this morning, realise I am not ready yet....i think.  still not sure when ‘enough is enough’. it will be hard to start spending after being a saver for so long, even if saving is on small scale compared to so many.   lots to learn by being in these forums of others’ experiences. 

savingholmes

Congrats Alan and Barnstar on your plans. I am still aiming for 2025/26 or beyond depending on whether I manage to transfer a DB pension at that point or not - and depending how much we save into a SIPP for DH

AlanP_2

Thanks all.


Conversation went fine and we are now looking at the practicalities around leave entitlement and starting to think about handing over some of the larger projects I have underway which will not be completed before I leave.

68 Working Days to go but 11 days leave and 2 Bank Holidays in that so only 55 actual working days.

mark55man

so AlanP each week is 10% of your remaining working life, which is nice

annoy your co-workers by putting up a board (the week after next) with a 10 x 10 board and then tick one box every half day

pensionpawn

Me and the wife, having turned 55 in the last 9 months, could manage going now if struck with something like a double redundancy, especially as we've both secured our SP's from 67. However with our youngest at uni for another 2 years we're continuing to dump as much as we can spare into our pots, especially my wife's, so that we can both comfortably draw down our personal allowances pa from summer 2023. In fact, slightly more for her via UFPLS. Also, to smooth the path she's also dropped her week to 80% (just before Christmas) and will drop to 60% at the end of November. I'm plotting to go to 80% at the end of the financial year, giving us a significant jump in together time. It will be interesting to see if this entices me to delay retiring completely (many where I work are in their late 60's and some in their early 70's) by a couple of years (from 57 to say 59) however I can't see my wife wanting to continue past March 2023 as although a manager her job does requires some heavy lifting and shifting. We're not getting any younger and can easily fill our time with joint and individual interests (and holidays one day...) that we have. Not to mention our new (and unexpectedly enjoyable) pastime of (daughter's) puppy sitting. Life 2, not retirement and certainly not pensioners!