Early-retirement wannabe

MallyGirl · 10 May 2018 at 12:32PM

Chickereeeee wrote: »

I do not know if it has been covered in the depths of this thread, but I recommend moving house when taking early retirement, especially if you have been in the same place for a while.

You are no longer resticted in finding a place by commuting restictions, and have a whole new area to explore, new people to meet and challenges to overcome.

C

I expect we will do that eventually but in ER we think that the proximity to London will enable us to go to shows/museums/etc that we always seem to miss at the moment. Access to Heathrow also handy. My Dad retired from Surrey to the depths of Dorset and he and his culture vulture wife spends quite a lot of time in hotels as they just cannot get home from events.

OldMusicGuy · 10 May 2018 at 12:50PM

Chickereeeee wrote: »

I do not know if it has been covered in the depths of this thread, but I recommend moving house when taking early retirement, especially if you have been in the same place for a while.

You are no longer resticted in finding a place by commuting restictions, and have a whole new area to explore, new people to meet and challenges to overcome.

Not specifically in this thread, but it has been discussed in others. Some people (me included) have always included property as part of our longer term financial and retirement planning, while others exclude it. I have just retired and our plan was always to downsize within one to two years of my retirement, move to a smaller house in a cheaper part of the country and find a renovation/improvement project that we can complete together while we are still young enough.

I think it depends on two things, where you live and your pension arrangements. We live in a very expensive part of the SE, so if we go anywhere (apart from London), it will be relatively much cheaper than where we are now. But if you already live in a "cheaper" part of the country, you will release less equity by downsizing. Also, unlike most people on here, I have no DB pension so apart from SP, I have no regular income floor. So I really do want to release equity from the house now because we will need it.

kidmugsy · 10 May 2018 at 7:05PM

Chickereeeee wrote: »

I recommend moving house when taking early retirement, especially if you have been in the same place for a while.

You ... have ... new challenges to overcome.

Mmmm. New challenges. One might have had a belly full of "challenges", its being an absurd euphemism for problems.

atush · 11 May 2018 at 3:38PM

Deneb wrote: »

Not at all. Much rather be outdoors in the countryside, walking across to a valley where I watch kites soaring overhead and deer, than sitting indoors. And the exercise makes me feel good too!

I take it you've never been up to your waist walking through peat bog either :rotfl:

I avoid peat bogs if I can. In fact, i avoid bogs of all kinds.

I have no desire to become the next person mummified in peat

Mind you avoiding is hard to do here, it is so wet I have a bog garden.

Angry_kittens · 11 May 2018 at 3:41PM

After coming across this thread several months ago I have slowly been making my way through it and have now read all 204 pages!

I would like to say a massive thank you to Marine_life and all other contributors, it has made me think massively about what I want to reach in life (financially). I have always been more inclined to save money than spend it - which enabled me to buy my own house at 23 with a 25% deposit (I live in the North West)

I am now reconsidering how and where to save money efficiently - currently I am mostly over paying my mortgage and making P2P investments. As I want to move again soon I will probably maintain this in the short term to enable me to make the (hopefully final) step to a detached house.

After that though I will be looking to pay at least 30% of my salary into my work pension via Salary Sacrifice, continue P2P investment and start looking at S&S ISA's. Stocks have generally always terrified me as my father got burnt by the 2009 crash just as he commenced his pension, but I am now more comfortable with the risks and have changed the portfolio blend on my work Pension - bigger risk while I am young.

At only 26 I have a long way to go, but am aiming for 55 as my Early Retirement date; or whatever the minimum age is then - early 60's wouldn't surprise me with the number of governments and budget announcements I have to get through until then!

Most of my peers and colleagues consider me a little mad to be thinking about and planning retirement at 26, but I expect I'll have the last laugh at some point in the future...

I found all the references to office politics and Dilbert worthy management decisions particularly amusing, I work in IT for a major US investment bank and I am already unsure how I'm going to stomach the next 3 decades!

mgdavid · 11 May 2018 at 8:25PM

Angry_kittens wrote: »

.....

I found all the references to office politics and Dilbert worthy management decisions particularly amusing, I work in IT for a major US investment bank and I am already unsure how I'm going to stomach the next 3 decades!

Don't worry too much; in my experience (40 years in IT, recently retired) we IT types can usually cope with management BS very well. The realisation that they can have it easy or have it hard depending on how they treat the IT guys and gals works wonders!
It also helps to view getting one over on management as a sport ;-)

atush · 11 May 2018 at 9:45PM

I am now reconsidering how and where to save money efficiently - currently I am mostly over paying my mortgage and making P2P investments

Overpaying a mtg is an inefficient way to save, at least with the rates available now. Are you at least paying in enough to your pension to get the max the employer will pay in?

Do you realise SS means that you get 32% tax relief? Ie 100 into your pension costs you only 68?

With P2P have you looked at which ones can be put in an ISA? Some can.

gallygirl · 11 May 2018 at 9:58PM

atush wrote: »

Overpaying a mtg is an inefficient way to save, at least with the rates available now.

On the other hand if the OP is looking to get a better LTV on their mortgage when they move then it maybe is the best short-term answer.

AK - why are you tying your retirement age to when the govt. say you can access your pensions? Investing in S&S or P2P ISA's means you can fund the gap between when you choose to retire and when the govt. let you get at your money

. You're very young to be planning so far ahead - keep it up and you could easily be FI in your 40's :T.

kidmugsy · 11 May 2018 at 10:41PM

Angry_kittens wrote: »

Stocks have generally always terrified me as my father got burnt by the 2009 crash just as he commenced his pension

Someone like you who would be buying S&S monthly would be much less at risk than your father who was exposed to serious risk on a capital sum at one instant. That's why there is still a case for moving some capital into low risk investments as one approaches retirement. Though what constitutes "low risk" is hard to identify at the moment: possibly not government bonds. Anyway, later in life be sure to diversify.

It might be wise to open a LISA at some point - perhaps for only a modest amount - to keep open the option of subscribing until you are fifty. After all you may not always have access to a salary sacrifice pension scheme.

crv1963 · 12 May 2018 at 12:23AM

Angry_kittens wrote: »

After coming across this thread several months ago I have slowly been making my way through it and have now read all 204 pages.

I am now reconsidering how and where to save money efficiently - currently I am mostly over paying my mortgage and making P2P investments. As I want to move again soon I will probably maintain this in the short term to enable me to make the (hopefully final) step to a detached house.

At only 26 I have a long way to go, but am aiming for 55 as my Early Retirement date; or whatever the minimum age is then - early 60's wouldn't surprise me with the number of governments and budget announcements I have to get through until then!

Most of my peers and colleagues consider me a little mad to be thinking about and planning retirement at 26, but I expect I'll have the last laugh at some point in the future...

I found all the references to office politics and Dilbert worthy management decisions particularly amusing, I work in IT for a major US investment bank and I am already unsure how I'm going to stomach the next 3 decades!

Good for you, at the very least you've a head start on your peers! Given current interest rates, over paying mortgage makes sense if you're building capital to gain a lower LTV for your next property, I'd advise as someone who had a mortgage under the Major/ Lamont years to be wary of always thinking interest rates will never go to silly levels so having the lowest rate you can get is a good way forwards.

Once you've sorted housing, do look at pensions, even if it may take you until you're 57/ 58 to access a SIPP, maximise employer contributions and don't look at State Pension age as retirement age, but look to use other investments to fund the gaps between each age.

For example I'm 54, can access DB at 55, SP at 67, so having been much, much later to the party than you, Mrs CRV and I are realistically looking at going at 57/ 58 for me and 54/ 55 for her so saving the "gap years" of 57- 67 when SP kicks in. Had we been able to by choice we'd have saved so we could go me 53 her 50.

Also remember at 26 life is a moveable feast so do spend a bit ie live for now, save a bit ie holidays/ treats/ cars, gamble a bit ie investments/ pensions/ ISA/ P2P! Be wise don't sacrifice todays happiness for tomorrows future but don't sacrifice tomorrows future for todays gratification, keep a balance and don't ever borrow against a depreciating asset like a car or a sofa!

As for office politics, they're in every workplace with 3 or more people. Keep your powder dry and don't join the gossip, accept that you never please anyone let alone everyone! If someone moans I listen but don't repeat, I only advise if I'm sure and I plough my own way forward!

Good luck

Early-retirement wannabe

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