How much to live on

Kim1965

There are some huge
numbers spoken about on  the pension board, this can be off putting for folk with limited means. The advice however is often spot on and is  relevant to this thread.
 Many contributers to "how much to live on" show it is possible to retire on modest savings. Statistically there are not too many with 1mill pension pots. 

RoysV

Short time lurker first time poster as they don't say. I've read through quite a few of the pages on here, not all obviously and found it really interesting so thought I'd put my budgets up. Here goes, be gentle

Mortgage free
TV, broadband, dual fuel, water, c/tax £425/mth

Credit card which is virtually everything  house/car ins, car tax, servicing, food, clothes, eating out  £600 paid in full every month

Maybe £100 cash, if that

DC/SIPP £160k
DB @ 60 approx £6.5K
Stocks and shares ISA   £85K
Premium bonds £50k
Cash ISA £15k
Company share scheme £11k

State pension forecast £10.6k

I'm 56 later in the year and thinking of packing in sooner rather than later, I'm single and have no dependents so not bothered at all if my 'pots' become empty. I've put details into guiide and on paper looks like I could draw £1800 until about 81. I've no idea how good guiide is but it's a starting point I suppose.


Any thoughts?

I realise I should have been filling my SIPP instead of ISA and premium bond but, to use a phrase I dont like, it is what it is so no point beating myself up over it.

Albermarle

RoysV said:

Short time lurker first time poster as they don't say. I've read through quite a few of the pages on here, not all obviously and found it really interesting so thought I'd put my budgets up. Here goes, be gentle

Mortgage free
TV, broadband, dual fuel, water, c/tax £425/mth

Credit card which is virtually everything  house/car ins, car tax, servicing, food, clothes, eating out  £600 paid in full every month

Maybe £100 cash, if that

DC/SIPP £160k
DB @ 60 approx £6.5K
Stocks and shares ISA   £85K
Premium bonds £50k
Cash ISA £15k
Company share scheme £11k

State pension forecast £10.6k

I'm 56 later in the year and thinking of packing in sooner rather than later, I'm single and have no dependents so not bothered at all if my 'pots' become empty. I've put details into guiide and on paper looks like I could draw £1800 until about 81. I've no idea how good guiide is but it's a starting point I suppose.


Any thoughts?

I realise I should have been filling my SIPP instead of ISA and premium bond but, to use a phrase I dont like, it is what it is so no point beating myself up over it.

In financial terms, Premium Bonds and Cash ISA ( if it is easy access) count as cash. So you have plenty in case of emergencies/capital expenditure ( new boiler/heat pump , replacement car etc ) and hopefully a couple of holidays a year,
Otherwise your monthly expenditure is on the lower side, which helps. Will this stay the same when retired, or might it go up or down?
Assuming no major changes your DB pension will cover about half your expenditure from 60 and then with the state pension , once you reach 67, you will have enough guaranteed income to easily cover all expenditure
So you need to fund say 3 years at 13K pa and 7 years at £7Kpa from your assets = approx £90K , and you have over £250K .
So you can retire and increase your modest expenditure at the same time.

One thing that could affect things is a long period of  high inflation & low investment growth, but you seem to have plenty of leeway to cope with that if it happens. It could just as well go the other way and you might fund that your funds do not drop very much at all, even after you have started withdrawing from them.

FYI, there are a number of similar threads around, mainly on the pensions board.
This is a long one.  It's time to start digging up those Squirrelled Nuts!!!! — MoneySavingExpert Forum
What made you 'pull the trigger'? — MoneySavingExpert Forum
The art of spending money — MoneySavingExpert Forum

RoysV

Thanks for the reply @Albermarle.
I don't think my spending will change much. I have virtually no commute to work so won't be saving on petrol etc, though having just typed that my petrol costs may actually increase a bit. 
On my spreadsheet I appear to have spent about on average £1300/ month over the last 9 yrs so £1800/ month would be more than enough, if that is achievable with my figures.
Thanks for the links to the other threads, always interesting to see what other people have/need/want

Frugaliza

Thanks @[Deleted User] for your feedback on my post I think partial retirement at 58 could be the way forward - it's nice to have my hunch confirmed.  Also thanks @Savvy_Sue for the helpful thoughts of what to save up for in a rainy day fund.   I have a lot to save up to get all those items covered!  

Frugaliza

FYI, there are a number of similar threads around, mainly on the pensions board.
This is a long one.  It's time to start digging up those Squirrelled Nuts!!!! — MoneySavingExpert Forum
What made you 'pull the trigger'? — MoneySavingExpert Forum
The art of spending money — MoneySavingExpert Forum

Great links thanks @Albermarle I've been casting around for more of these threads - now I have more meaty ones to feed on!

[Deleted User]

Just a little update, although to be honest little has been happening! Still working part-time and it has been tougher getting up in the mornings. I am so pleased January is over. Looking forward to the Spring and the sun having some warmth in it. January was mostly about going to work, the usual household chores a little bit of garden tidying and a few meals out.

On a more positive note my car insurance renewal came in over £40 less than last year which surprised me, but I’m going with it!

Have a few days off from next Friday so will plan a couple of days out plus hopefully some gardening. Also need to book car service and MOT for late March or early April. House insurance also due in March. Money for all these saved in annual bills account.

Gas and Electricity on track but DD is now £170 and I can see it going up a little more. Water DD is now down to about £15 a month which surprised me. There again my relative and myself have one shower a day, use the washing machine maybe 3 times a week and the dishwasher daily. It will rise again in the summer with garden watering. 

Apparently there has been some interest in the post I am helping to cover for, but have to be realistic that even if they are appointed it will be a September start. I will definitely finish completely at the end of this academic year. I am feeling tired and have other things I want to do. I could go sooner but have some exam groups that I feel I must see through to the summer! (unless new person can start sooner!)

Savings are looking better after a few spendy  months! I managed to save about £1500 this month and even I am  impressed.

I am having second thoughts about my 4/5 day trip to Vancouver in May.  The flight is paid for but accommodation is looking very expensive. Add to that trips etc… and I could be looking at having to spend another £1700 or so 😳. I may lose some money if I cancel the flight but I am just not sure I really want to go.

Woke up early this morning and intend to get a few chores done as well as  a decent forest walk. 

Best wishes to all.

blue.peter

[Deleted User] said:

On a more positive note my car insurance renewal came in over £40 less than last year which surprised me, but I’m going with it!

I wish!

As it happens, I received the renewal notice for mine a few days ago.

Last year, the premium was £232.73.

The renewal premium this year was £291.58 - nearly £60 higher.

Half an hour spent online (starting with the MSE Compare + tool) showed me that by switching insurer I could get it back down to £232.94. Not as good as your reduction, but still a significant improvement on the cost of simply renewing the existing policy.

This shows that a bit of time spent checking prices can yield worthwhile results, even now that the FCA has banned dual pricing. But it's still a pain having to do it twice a year, every year (February for motor insurance, August for home insurance).

hugheskevi

I am having second thoughts about my 4/5 day trip to Vancouver in May.  The flight is paid for but accommodation is looking very expensive. Add to that trips etc… and I could be looking at having to spend another £1700 or so 😳. I may lose some money if I cancel the flight but I am just not sure I really want to go.

We found accommodation in Vancouver to be extremely expensive, second only to San Francisco on the west coast. We ended up staying in the cheapest place we could find back in September, which was £117 for 2 nights and I wouldn't recommend it in the slightest (it was in a very rough area of town, with many homeless people openly taking drugs on the street).

You will probably also want to hire a car for some of the period to see things out of Vancouver - but that was more reasonable (we used Turo). I guess you may be planning to go out to see Vancouver Island too, which is a bit pricy and time consuming.

It is a very long way to go for such a short period - the 8 hour time difference will give some nasty jet lag for the first day or two. Personally I didn't see why so many people love Vancouver, I found it at best unremarkable, and the big homelessness and drug issues they have being very evident on the street was very unattractive.

They do have a nice parkrun though!

[Deleted User]

hugheskevi. Many thanks for your comments. I have decided to cancel. would have been on my own and I am not the adventurous type and was looking at some rather pricey downtown hotels. Something like 1200 to 1400 for 4 nights! As for hiring a car, being risk averse I have never driven abroad apart from Cyprus where the road system is the same as here. I am someone who nearly had a meltdown at the airport because I was offered an automatic car rather than the manual I had ordered lol!  .
Thanks again.