i am considering retiring from work at 58 ..

fklup

I Have worked most of my life now ..over 40 years ..in that time i have had a life saving heart operation ..now have to take warfarin the rest of my life ..i am in fulltime employment as a delivery driver ..but the long hours [can be 11 hour shifts]and the stress its making my life a misery, i feel as though life is passing me by..no time to enjoy life ..i have worked shifts all my life ..never had a social life ..im single , no kids , never married , no partner ..own my own house , no mortgage ..no rent ..i am now 58 and just drawn my two company pensions off ..not a great deal ..£48,000 tax free lump sum and a weekly payments of £87.00 per week ...i could draw £100 per week of the £48,000 and it would last me till im 67 //therefore giving me £187 per week to live on  , might not even spend that much ..i can live on beans and toast , simple meal a day etc etc .....i don't really need a car ..happy to cycle everywhere ..

garmeg

We are only here once (as far as I know) so if you can afford to I would say go for it.

mark13

Go for it , have you thought about reduced hours ?, I only say that as going to straight to retirement can be difficult as you can loose a lot of your social contact and purpose. Having said that , the quicker you can get off the corporate tread mill the better in my opinion and £48K should be able supplement your income and grow as well if needed.

xylophone

You've had enough of the roving life - time for a rest I'd say.
It's hardly a happy time to commence retirement but the present misery can't last forever!

Stubod

..go go go...!!!.....or at the very least go part time! (It is a bit of a culture shock to go from full time to full stop unless you have some good hobbies? also you may miss the social side of work, particularly if you stop in the current environment).

tacpot12

Doing some part-time work could make the difference between being able to keep doing a hobby or having to give it up; or starting a hobby. 

I would always recommend making a budget, and don't forget to plan for the maintenance that the house is going need doing over the years. I put a bit away each month to cover the bigger bills that might arise on the house. If you budget shows you can live off your pensions, go for it. Not running a car will be a big saving, and might make an otherwise unfeasible plan workable.

Have you checked your State Pension Forecast online? It's quite easy do go once you have a Government Gateway Id. It's getting the Gateway ID that is the faff, but you only need to get it once, so I would check that you have a full state pension before handing your notice in at work.  

fklup

Stubod said:

..go go go...!!!.....or at the very least go part time! (It is a bit of a culture shock to go from full time to full stop unless you have some good hobbies? also you may miss the social side of work, particularly if you stop in the current environment).

I Play guitar ., read books , cycle ,.jog/run for 5 miles per day ...social side of work i wont miss as i work alone for 75% of the day  

Marcon

fklup said:

I Have worked most of my life now ..over 40 years ..in that time i have had a life saving heart operation ..now have to take warfarin the rest of my life ..i am in fulltime employment as a delivery driver ..but the long hours [can be 11 hour shifts]and the stress its making my life a misery, i feel as though life is passing me by..no time to enjoy life ..i have worked shifts all my life ..never had a social life ..im single , no kids , never married , no partner ..own my own house , no mortgage ..no rent ..i am now 58 and just drawn my two company pensions off ..not a great deal ..£48,000 tax free lump sum and a weekly payments of £87.00 per week ...i could draw £100 per week of the £48,000 and it would last me till im 67 //therefore giving me £187 per week to live on  , might not even spend that much ..i can live on beans and toast , simple meal a day etc etc .....i don't really need a car ..happy to cycle everywhere ..

So what's stopping you from changing your lifestyle by retiring or semi-retiring? If you worried about finances, then at the very least set your self a cut off age at which you will either substantially reduce your working hours, or quit completely.

DairyQueen

Do you know how much annual income you will need in retirement? It sounds like you do not have expensive hobbies or a big bucket list so don't need a big discretionary spends budget.

Knowing that you will have sufficient income will give you the confidence to make the jump into retirement (or into working part-time).

I agree with others. If you are able to meet your income needs then make the jump as soon as possible. Leisure time is long overdue for you.

ElephantBoy57

I drive a minibus for my local council, term time hours, school holidays and no weekend work.

Do you want to retire or do you want a job to give you more of social life. I like beans on toast, but wouldn't want to be poor.

Gary1984

If you can get by on the £187 a week then go for it. However check your state pension forecast. Where are you keeping your £48k? If it's not invested then remember it won't increase with inflation so your £100 won't increase either. Maybe consider a bond ladder approach with £5200 plus emergency cash in instant access or premium bonds then bundles of £5200 in a 1,2, 3, and 4 year fixed bonds? That way you'll be earning some interest and the money will be available when you need it at the start of each year. The excess could be put in a 5 year fixed bond and you can repeat the strategy after it matures.

Also have you considered equity release on your house? As you don't have any dependents this might be a decent way to get some extra cash before the state pension kicks in?