Financially comfortable, health improving, still working – am I solving the wrong problem?

barnstar2077

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6672491/financially-comfortable-health-improving-still-working-am-i-solving-the-wrong-problem

I went part time in my mid forties, best decision I ever made! I have not worked a Wednesday in years, and it has helped me both physically and mentally. So much so that I strongly believe that the world would be a better place if everyone did it! (with some emergency services staff swapping a Wednesday for a Thursday etc.)

I normally work on a DIY project, or meet friends in town for lunch etc. I could never go back to a five day week now.

Personally, it looks like you have the funds to stop now if you wanted to, but if you are unsure then drop down in days (even just one day, to dip your toe in the water.)

Once you have filled up those days and found a new rhythm (and are wishing you had more time to do things), then full retirement will be a natural progression.

You have won at life, don't be the richest person in the graveyard. Go make some memories!

mrklaw

without knowing your income its hard to say. Also I’d be curious to your asset allocation and what you consider a high amount of cash buffer (too much can create drag).

One option for high cash vs equities could be an annuity. with your health issues you may get a favourable rate to cover essentials - and then equities for discretionary spend?

Rdwill

Thanks for all the replies so far. A common theme seems to be that the finances look broadly adequate and that the bigger question is whether additional years of work are buying anything that I genuinely need.

To answer a couple of recurring questions, my modelling currently assumes spending of around £55k p.a. in today's money from age 60 (wife age 57), reducing to around £47k from age 70 onwards, largely through lower transport costs. The model appears sustainable under a range of growth assumptions, which is one reason I am increasingly questioning whether this is really a financial decision.

My DC pensions are invested almost entirely in global equity funds, with a substantial cash reserve acting as my shock absorber rather than reducing equity exposure.

What I find interesting is that the thread seems to have split into two camps.

One camp is essentially saying that I appear to have enough and should place a higher value on time and flexibility while health is reasonably good.

The other camp is saying that a few additional years of work can move someone from "I think I have enough" to "I know I have enough", and that the additional certainty is valuable in itself.

I suspect that is the real decision I am wrestling with.

For those who carried on working despite being financially capable of retiring, did the extra years genuinely improve your retirement, or did they simply make you feel more comfortable about it?

NoMore

I don't see anybody in this thread in the second camp, how do you come to that conclusion, as far as I can see everybody has said either retire now or at least drop to part time, nobody has said work a few more years full time to make sure you have enough!

Rdwill

That's a fair challenge.

Perhaps I wasn't clear. You're right that the majority of replies so far are broadly saying some variation of "you appear to have enough" and that I should place a higher value on time and flexibility.

The "additional certainty" argument is probably coming more from my own thinking, and from people I've spoken to outside the thread, rather than from the replies here.

One poster mentioned that a few extra years took them from "I think I have enough" to "I know I have enough", and I admit I find that quite appealing. I've spent most of my working life building financial resilience, so it is probably unsurprising that part of me still values additional margin even if the modelling suggests I may not need it.

That's why I find the responses interesting. The thread seems to be challenging my assumption that the default answer should be to keep working.

NoMore

The one more year syndrome is a common trope in retirement planning, and it can be a difficult idea to break for some people, they just keep on working that extra year and then never get round to retiring.

If you ignore lifespan, then mathematically it will always be better to work one more year because you will continue to add to your assets rather than drawdown, but life isn't like that, there is an end point, and one more year of working is one less year of your remaining life.

fuzzzzy

I retired at 60 having worked the last 10 years on half hours due to health problems. I realise now I could have retired at 55 and enjoyed 5 extra years of retirement.

In your shoes I would retire now, or if that is too much of a leap start dropping hours now and see how it feels.

FIREDreamer

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82034870#Comment_82034870

Same here, went at 60 but could have gone at 55. Was part time 80% from 54 and 60% from 57.

However 55 year old me was unable to predict that global equity markets were going to have such strong performance and that annuity rates did the same.

PropertyGuru_Wannabe

Healthy life expectancy at birth in the UK is 60.7 years for males and 60.9 years for females. This marks a drop of about two years over the past decade. In more than 90% of UK areas, healthy life expectancy has now fallen below the state pension age.

Healthy life expectancy, UK - Office for National Statistics

At a Glance: Key Statistics Males: 60.7 years in good health (approx. 77% of their total lifespan).Females: 60.9 years in good health (approx. 73% of their total lifespan).

Life Expectancy Comparison: While healthy years have declined, overall UK life expectancy has remained broadly stable at around 79.1 years for males and 83.0 years for females.

Regional Variations and Inequality Health outcomes vary significantly depending on where you live and socioeconomic status:

Highest Rates: The South East of England records the highest rates in the UK (63.0 years for men, 64.3 years for women).

Lowest Rates: The North East of England and regions in Scotland and Wales have the lowest, with the most deprived areas like Blackpool seeing men's healthy life expectancy drop to just 51 years.

The Gap: The gap in healthy life expectancy between the most and least deprived areas in England stretches to roughly 19.4 years for males and 20.3 years for females.

International Standing Compared to other high-income nations, the UK ranks poorly for healthy life expectancy. Out of 21 similar countries, the UK ranks 20th, with only the United States recording a lower healthy life expectancy.

For more details on your specific local area or demographic, you can explore the interactive Office for National Statistics Health State Life Expectancies bulletin.

DRS1

I think I read somewhere (on here probably) that no-one dies wishing they had spent more time at work.

Many people work in order to be able to afford not to work.

Some people love what they do and can't imagine their life without it. If you are in that camp you are very lucky.

If you are thinking about retirement consider what you will do with all that spare time - that is one reason why the gradual glide path into retirement mentioned by many posters on this thread is such a good idea. It gets you used to the spare time and allows you to fill it with the things that interest you.

I don't know about your health prospects but having a scare is often a prompt to do something different with your life. You get to thinking that "time is fleeting" and maybe there are better things to be doing with it. That doesn't mean it is necessarily a good idea to quit work straight away but starting to plan for it and getting on the glide path would be no bad thing.