How did your pre-retirement calculations compare to reality once you had retired ?

Phossy

Contemplating retiring at the end of 2024 (aged 59) and I seem to be in an obsessive mode about calculating all my options again and again and again. The numbers really don't change that much, I think I just keep doing it in the vain hope I have some form of epiphany, that an inner calm will settle on me and an inner voice tell me it will all be Ok. Breathe...

So, how did your pre-retirement number crunching match-up once you had retired? All good/ missed the mark/  missed something obvious/ realised you worried about it all too much..

(I really don't think it will bring me inner calm, but you never know)

saucer

I can’t answer your question as I haven’t retired but I can say I feel your pain about the recalculation on recalculation on recalculation…. 

My other half just comments…’are you adding up your numbers?’

itsmecathy

Haha Saucer, mine too "are you doing your sums"

Bostonerimus1

I retired at age 52 with a DB pension and rental income to cover my living expenses. I'd always kept track of my budget as part of my personal finances and so I knew that I would have enough coming in to retire successfully. However, there was still an adjustment period of a few months until the routine of depositing cheques and outgoings sorted itself out. I left my DC pension and general investments aggressively invested and I'm now 10 years into retirement and have seen those grow significantly. So don't worry too much; planning and double checking is part of a successful retirement.

SouthCoastBoy

Seems like the daily checking of numbers is a common problem, I suffer from the same issue. Never too sure if I have enough. I'm 59 in March, hoping to retire somewhere between 59 and 60, but I'm not convinced I will

bownyboy

'Retired' April 2022 aged 50. Had been running the numbers for years and things looked good. 

Then we spent 3 months travelling and having a blast; spending way more than forecast (we deserved it right?) Meanwhile the markets were tanking and I got nervous. 

Come October 2022 and a previous consultancy reached out and offered me a 4 month contract gig, so I took it and used that income to top up the cash pile. By March 2023 I couldn't wait to leave. Work was doing my head in and I didn't have the patience to keep dealing with clients. Also the markets were tanking again. 

So we went on another 3 month 'bucket list' holiday to Central America. Had an amazing time and well, spent more than we should but life is for living as well right? Markets went up, then down, then down again.

So we're at October 2023 and I'm getting nervous again and have again been offered another contract to March which I think I will take even though every fibre of my being is groaning and eye rolling at having to deal with clients again. 

I guess a learning for me is the number I thought was right, is perhaps less than I need to keep me from getting nervous about the markets and needing to keep taking a 4 month contract once a year. No plan survives contact with the enemy and all that!

Interestingly our investments are actually higher than they were back in March 2022, despite selling off a couple of tranches of ISAs to part fund this years expenses. So a large part is understanding your own psychological make up and how you deal with volatility.  

SouthCoastBoy

Interesting bownyboy, your experience confirms my fears, thinking you have enough but don't. 

Pat38493

SouthCoastBoy said:

Interesting bownyboy, your experience confirms my fears, thinking you have enough but don't. 

We see what we want to see according to our own fears or bias - did you read the last sentence of what he wrote?

SouthCoastBoy

Pat38493 said:

SouthCoastBoy said:

Interesting bownyboy, your experience confirms my fears, thinking you have enough but don't. 

We see what we want to see according to our own fears or bias - did you read the last sentence of what he wrote?

Yes I read the complete post. 

Linton

We have now been retired for 18 years having planned on the basis of then current day to day expenditure rising with  3% inflation and investment returns of 4%, 1% above inflation. Our net assets have actually increased in £ terms since retiring despite spending far more on holidays than originally envisaged.

Kim1965

If your sitting on an indexed db pension and have a handle on your finances, your fine. If your dependent on dc and fear of a financial apocalypse there will always be some doubt. A guess scb would agree lol