Bold leap into retirement

grimsalve

Great thread, thankyou everyone. It's comforting to know I'm not alone!
I was hoping to retire a few years ago but then along came Ukraine, Truss, Cost Of Living crisis, etc. and I got cold feet.
I'm now thinking of retiring in maybe next year or 2027 - it's still a little bit scary though.

Smudgeismydog

Thanks for posting @grimsalve, once you are confident in your figures, please be wary of falling into the ‘one more year, trap.
It’s just one year less of owning your time

bjorn_toby_wilde

You’re bang on @Smudgeismydog. There will always be something happening in the world/economy that could make you hesitate but if your numbers are right and you have enough money in safe assets to ride out the storm, then you should still do it.

Some mindsets are hard to change when you’ve had them for a while I’ve found. The save to spend switch was a tough one for me when I first retired and we’ve covered it a lot in this thread.

You could view your time and health as assets too @grimsalve. I was determined not to waste those so went as early as I could make it work financially.

Wobble101

I’ve lurked on this thread for a while and found it so useful - thanks all. I’ve just told my boss that I’ll be retiring next June - so suddenly all our plans have become a little more real! (I know it’s a lot of notice but that’s rather the norm in my workplace at a senior level). Nine months seems a long time but I suspect it will pass quickly. There is a huge amount of change at work and I feel so relieved that I’m not going to have to engage with it much longer. 

I’ve got various ideas for how I’m going to use my time. The main challenge is that my husband has a long term illness that, though he’s fine at the moment, means we can’t plan anything major in advance like a holiday because the next three monthly scan might precipitate new treatment. We are going to need to be more flexible in any trips but of course me not working suddenly makes that much easier. If anyone has been in a similar position I’d love to know how you managed it - I’d like to celebrate the next year with some great trips so it’s hard not being able book them in advance. 

Storcko14

@Wobble101.  For different reasons we've had to be a bit more last minute with trips away and, if you are looking at city breaks you can sometimes get good deals on Airbnbs and flights if you go Mon/Tues and back say Fri/Sat.  You can sometimes get really good prices on flights if you are prepared to be really last minute.  What we've done is to have a short list of 3 or 4 city destinations and see what's available.  Recently Porto (accomm) and Madrid (flights with Iberia Express at 2 days' notice) came up trumps.  

dharm999

It’s been nearly a year now, 12 months in December, and am still getting used to not working.  Still have the occasional panic about not having checked emails, but that soon passes!

is taking time to fill my days, have just started volunteering for a local sports club, helping them to raise money - grant applications really are a pain in the proverbial.  Have been doing regular exercise, not quite got to 4-5 sessions a week, but getting there

Need to work on getting out and about more, as it’s easy to just do nothing.  Read an interesting article in the Guardian which has made me think about what I do, and has definitely given me a jolt to do more on that.  Link is below

https://www.theguardian.com/wellness/2025/oct/03/how-to-make-more-friends#:~:text=In%20a%20world%20where%20men,whom%20were%20around%20his%20age.

Financially things are fine, we live off OH’s state pension, small DB pension, interest from ISAs, interest, dividends.  It’s more than we need, so have been spending more ( am replacing two sheds, getting an art deco suite completely rebuilt, gifting, holidays).  It’s difficult getting used to spending more, but with the current stock market highs, even with spending a lot more, we still have more than we started with, we haven’t touched the capital yet.  

Aim to gift more over the next few years, as with pensions coming into scope of IHT, I’m taking the view that everything I spend or give away is costing me 40% less as we are saving the IHT.

Got to go, gym calling

Smudgeismydog

Thanks for dropping in @dharm999, the article was indeed very interesting. I know that I need social contact and I make a very conscientious choice to keep in touch with people. I arrange to go for a walk and cuppa or lunch, pop round to someone’s house for a catch up, I have my weekly Zumba class as well as regular WhatsApp messaging. 

We also volunteer for a local environment group where we undertake a range of activities once a month including dry stone walling, hedge planting, birch clearing etc. I can see that my partner finds socialising with the volunteer group much easier as it’s having a physical purpose, and you are kind of thrown together as you have to work side by side helping each other. I think that’s true for a lot of men, which might help explain the success of initiatives like Mens Shed.

Like you it has been a challenge at times to get used to spending, but I’m also adopting the mantra of 40% discount! My capital is at a higher value than when I left work (without factoring in inflation), and we’ve now finished the vast majority of refurb costs around the house. Mind you, I’ve just paid my daughter’s first rent payment for Uni, so that’s one way of effectively gifting it  🤷🏻‍♀️

grimsalve

I had a chat with an IFA yesterday and I was shocked at the prices he quoted (around £2,000 for their report and then a 3% charge if I decide to go ahead with their suggestions). I'm not sure what to do next.

MallyGirl

grimsalve said:

I had a chat with an IFA yesterday and I was shocked at the prices he quoted (around £2,000 for their report and then a 3% charge if I decide to go ahead with their suggestions). I'm not sure what to do next.

That will very much depend on your situation and your goals. If you have a nice solid DB pension and have qualified for the full state pension then there may not be much you need to do. You haven't given any information 

grimsalve

MallyGirl said:

grimsalve said:

I had a chat with an IFA yesterday and I was shocked at the prices he quoted (around £2,000 for their report and then a 3% charge if I decide to go ahead with their suggestions). I'm not sure what to do next.

That will very much depend on your situation and your goals. If you have a nice solid DB pension and have qualified for the full state pension then there may not be much you need to do. You haven't given any information 

I don't have a DB. I just want a nice comfortable retirement so I thought it would be straightforward to setup. I've got a couple more IFAs to talk to though so I'll see what they have to say.