Can you live solely off state pension?

pseudodox

Due to Personal Tax Allowances being frozen until 2026 (unless a new government revokes that plan) keep in mind that those who may currently defer the SP to gain a higher amount may find they cross the tax threshold when they do start to claim.  A friend advised me to defer my SP as she had benefitted from doing so a few years previously (older than me and with a private pension that was more than adequate for her needs).  She did not have the answer to my question "if I defer for 5 years what do I live on?".  Not everyone has that choice to defer or wishes to work beyond retirement age.  I could not wait to retire & be free to continue a life that now had an extra 30+ hours per week in which to do even more enjoyable living!

I suppose some of us live for today while others just get through today hoping they can live tomorrow.  An aquaintance of mine went out shopping last month - she never came home as a short distance from home she had a massive heart attack at the wheel, ran off a country road and was dead by the time someone passing found her.  Living every day as if it was the last rather than just planning for an active retirement is a personal choice of course.  I have seen too many people I know die before or early into retirement years.  

Pollycat

pseudodox said:

Due to Personal Tax Allowances being frozen until 2026 (unless a new government revokes that plan) keep in mind that those who may currently defer the SP to gain a higher amount may find they cross the tax threshold when they do start to claim.  A friend advised me to defer my SP as she had benefitted from doing so a few years previously (older than me and with a private pension that was more than adequate for her needs).  She did not have the answer to my question "if I defer for 5 years what do I live on?".  Not everyone has that choice to defer or wishes to work beyond retirement age.  I could not wait to retire & be free to continue a life that now had an extra 30+ hours per week in which to do even more enjoyable living!

I suppose some of us live for today while others just get through today hoping they can live tomorrow.  An aquaintance of mine went out shopping last month - she never came home as a short distance from home she had a massive heart attack at the wheel, ran off a country road and was dead by the time someone passing found her.  Living every day as if it was the last rather than just planning for an active retirement is a personal choice of course.  I have seen too many people I know die before or early into retirement years.  

If you can afford it, it's possible to do both.

When we were working we had holidays abroad but didn't go for the 5* spa hotels.
We were - and still are - happy with self catering accommodation.

We had new cars but not the Mercs, BMWs and even Porsches.
We still have a Toyota Yaris.

We worked and lived well.
We lived within our means and invested sensibly.
We now have a good income in our retirement.

Cus

People can adapt to outside conditions and attitude is 90% of happiness.
You can convince yourself that what you have is what you want.
You can see other people buying toys and assume they are not happy with that, but maybe that is more of a defensive stance to reassure yourself.

I have never flown to Paris for the weekend on a private jet. I think it's a waste of money (if I had it) and that those people are not really happy, but if I could do it I think I would do it.

zagfles

Cus said:

People can adapt to outside conditions and attitude is 90% of happiness.
You can convince yourself that what you have is what you want.
You can see other people buying toys and assume they are not happy with that, but maybe that is more of a defensive stance to reassure yourself.

I have never flown to Paris for the weekend on a private jet. I think it's a waste of money (if I had it) and that those people are not really happy, but if I could do it I think I would do it.

This thread was about "can you live on the state pension". Not "are there luxuries you might like to buy if you were filthy rich". People on a £50k pension couldn't afford a private jet!

Those who are rich enough to afford a private jet may be jealous of those who can afford a luxury yacht. Those with a luxury yacht may be jealous of those who can afford space tourism. There's always someone who's richer than you who can afford luxuries you can't, unless you are actually are the richest person on the planet. 

You don't need to convince yourself that people with more luxuries than you aren't happy with them. You just need to be happy with what you have without feeling jealous of those with more.

Stubod

For budgeting purposes I also split our expenditure into essential and other. Looks like we need about £16k to cover our basic costs, (includes car)....so 2 SP's would cover it, but not one...

Altior

Perhaps a point worth making is that there are many millions of people around the world that would perceive living in England, on guaranteed full state pension, owning their own home, free healthcare scripts etc and associated benefits of living in a comparatively safe democratic country past the age of 66, a luxury existence. There is always context. 

RG2015

Altior said:

Perhaps a point worth making is that there are many millions of people around the world that would perceive living in England, on guaranteed full state pension, owning their own home, free healthcare scripts etc and associated benefits of living in a comparatively safe democratic country past the age of 66, a luxury existence. There is always context. 

And quite a few living in the UK that would think the same thing.

Altior

RG2015 said:

Altior said:

Perhaps a point worth making is that there are many millions of people around the world that would perceive living in England, on guaranteed full state pension, owning their own home, free healthcare scripts etc and associated benefits of living in a comparatively safe democratic country past the age of 66, a luxury existence. There is always context. 

And quite a few living in the UK that would think the same thing.

I'm personally hoping/planning for more, but if I do get to that position by that age, in good health I will be more than satisfied. I'll have spent the majority of my adult life pushing buttons on a computer for a living, when my dad grafted his butt off in a factory as a machine setter, earning for the family and didn't live long enough to enjoy any kind of retirement.

pseudodox

Altior said:

RG2015 said:

Altior said:

Perhaps a point worth making is that there are many millions of people around the world that would perceive living in England, on guaranteed full state pension, owning their own home, free healthcare scripts etc and associated benefits of living in a comparatively safe democratic country past the age of 66, a luxury existence. There is always context. 

And quite a few living in the UK that would think the same thing.

I'm personally hoping/planning for more, but if I do get to that position by that age, in good health I will be more than satisfied. I'll have spent the majority of my adult life pushing buttons on a computer for a living, when my dad grafted his butt off in a factory as a machine setter, earning for the family and didn't live long enough to enjoy any kind of retirement.

Sadly that happens all too often.  But a proportion of early deaths are a factor is ensuring there is money in the pot for us survivors.  I am very grateful to your Dad even though he maybe never realised he was grafting to ensure I for one got a decent SP.  I hope his hard work gave your family some joy to remember him by, despite the sadness of losing him early.

xylophone

didn't live long enough to enjoy any kind of retirement.

My own dear father died aged 59 leaving a grief stricken newly retired widow.

However, at least she was able to benefit from some inherited provision and his DB pension.