Will you retire at 65 or will you keep working - til 100 : 0. This lady did it...

[Frugalbigmama]

With no mortgage, we would easily be able to live on $2000 per month - and that includes giving away 10% to charity. We rarely eat out, grow a lot of our food, and opt for walks by the river rather than a night on the town

Darn right! And still travel!

[momof5boys]

Yes, it certainly is possible, but like I mentioned earlier, it's all about life-style and expectations...

...even retired folks can have their needs and wants confused.... I would rather give away extra funds to those in need but that's just the way I was raised and hope that some of it has rubbed off on our children as well. We live in such an affluent society and it sickens me how much money is wasted.

[blueeyetea]

but I also fear (although I've been assured it would never happen) that government pensions may go the way of the dodo-bird, too...no matter what tax bracket you're in,

What do you base your opinion on? With the reforms the Government made in the late 90s, they changed the way that CPP is administered. They upped contribution rates and created an investment fund. It's no longer money in from contributors and money out to retirees. There's a pot of money there, which, right now, is valued at $201 billion. There's enough money in the fund to pay pensions for the next 75 years.

I really do encourage you to speak with a financial advisor at your bank (it's a free service)...voice your concerns and arm yourself with more information. Even putting $20 a month away now, perhaps $50 later will accumulate into a very fat portfolio..if not for you, then for your children.

I agree that a financial advisor might be a good idea, but don't go to your bank, exactly for the reason that they are paid by the bank. All they'll do is sell you products that make money for the bank. Your financial future comes second. Find a fee only advisor if you have to.

Having said that, with a little bit of education, you can look after your own personal finances. It's not that complicated.

[blueeyetea]

I don't think I want a traditional retirement. I am 30 right now and working like a dog for 20-40 years to pay off the mortgage and save does not interest me at all. I would rather get to a point as soon as possible that I can work part time and take 1-3 months worth of vacation a year....probably starting with 25 hours a week of work and 1 month worth of vacation and increasing over time...as soon as I can afford it. I don't think I would know what to do with myself with a traditional retirement and I also think it is better to have more time with my child and husband when we are younger.

Well, from my point of view, what you want is exactly what retirement is, although you want it sooner.

What is your plan to fund that early retirement? How much of your income are you saving now? Are you able to predict how much of your income you'll be spending for a roof over your house? Renting a home or paying down a mortgage may influence how early you can leave work.

It's not impossible for people to stop working early, but it demands a lot of self-control and sacrifices at the beginning of their working career in an environment where we're being led to spend money day in day out.

In today's market, if we assume a conservative 5% return on investment - it will take 14 1/2 years to double your money. Flip this around and expect to stop working in 14 years and live on $40,000/year, assuming the same 5% as investment income, and you need to invest $400,000 today, so that it doubles to $800,000. That's a lot of money to save for quite a modest income.

[blueeyetea]

Lynn49 the only problem with that is that I don't know anyone who has a traditional pension in my age range. I think traditional pensions will die out with the baby boomers.

You're thinking of defined benefit pensions - where the pension equals a certain percentage of the salary at retirement, usually calculated as 2%/year X the number of years the person worked at the company. It's true those pensions are on the way out. They've been replaced by defined contribution pension plans - where the company will give you a pot of money that will be invested until you retire. I don't know much about them, but it has one advantage over a defined benefit pension plan: you don't have to stay with the company until you retire, you quit your job today, you take your pension money with you. It makes sense in today's environment of short employment.

So no, today's thirty year olds won't retire with a fixed pension, but it doesn't mean they won't be well off by the time they do retire.

[frugal50]

i know two women over the age of 65 who were forced to go back to work, just to make ends meet.

[Frugalbigmama]

i know two women over the age of 65 who were forced to go back to work, just to make ends meet.

That's sad

[blueeyetea]

i know two women over the age of 65 who were forced to go back to work, just to make ends meet.

It is sad, but how come? Were they in debt?

[frugal50]

It is sad, but how come? Were they in debt?

i didn't ask..... but i know they are both divorced long ago and probably didn't save much?
they're just working part time though.

[endi2000]

So - my question is - what is it that makes it retirement? What do you plan on doing? DH 'retired' last November - but doesn't really do anything. The odd time he putters in the garden. But basically he spends a LOT of time on the computer (transferring his music collection into a different format). We have been working part time (Very part time - a few hours a day - one day a week) for the past year. Sure we would like to travel - but if that is all his plans are for retirement - we won't be doing a lot of it because the costs just don't fit into the budget we have. I volunteer at a couple of places, go swimming once a week and go for short walks (for exercise) - DH doesn't participate in any of that -so I see it as rather an empty retirement.

[walkonby]

So - my question is - what is it that makes it retirement? What do you plan on doing? DH 'retired' last November - but doesn't really do anything. The odd time he putters in the garden. But basically he spends a LOT of time on the computer (transferring his music collection into a different format). We have been working part time (Very part time - a few hours a day - one day a week) for the past year. Sure we would like to travel - but if that is all his plans are for retirement - we won't be doing a lot of it because the costs just don't fit into the budget we have. I volunteer at a couple of places, go swimming once a week and go for short walks (for exercise) - DH doesn't participate in any of that -so I see it as rather an empty retirement.

Not sure what type of work you and your DH did previous to retiring, but IF it was a very physically demanding job and it lasted 30+ yrs, initially I would think that retirement might consist of doing exactly what you said your DH does....NOTHING, or very close to it. He may be in the honeymoon phase. He might start organizing things that he meant to get around to many years ago, but just could never find the time. He putters possibly because he is out of his normal routine ( whatever his daily work routine was ) so he is temporarily filling a void.
Is travel a big priority for you or just something you wish you could do? If so, as you said the costs might mean working more than 1 day a week PT, but that sort of contradicts the whole retiring thing maybe??
I am still trying to sift through this whole not working thing too, I am young-ish and just retired in Dec of 2013.
What makes retirement for me at this point is it was an amazing option that was available to me, so I took it. Setting that alarm clock, fighting traffic and all the other physical and mental stresses that came with my employment are but a memory! Yahoo!!
If you have a good communicative relationship with your DH, just toss your concerns out to him about what the two of you will " do " for your remaining " golden years ?". He may not volunteer or swim/walk with you but you just might find that there is a common interest lurking somewhere for you two. Good luck in your search.

[Retiree]

After spending the last 10 years of my working life running a very busy bed and breakfast, we retired at the end of 2010. We immediately sold the house so that kept me busy for a couple of months. We moved to an apartment, which was a brand new experience for me.

I had been working since I was 13 so wasn't sure how easy it would be to settle into retirement. I decided that I would give myself 6 months to settle into retirement before I went looking for a part-time job.

In September 2011, my DH and I took a 2 week trip to Ireland to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. When I came home I was going to decide about the part time job. While in Ireland, my DH experienced a health problem that resulted in him not being able to drive, when we got home. That put my part-time job decision on hold because my DH has a number of health issues that require him to see a number of specialists on a regular basis so my part-time "job" was going to be running a taxi service. Long story short.....by the time my DH got his wings back in January 2012, I was well settled into retirement so didn't feel the need for part time work.

We live a modest life style so I feel fortunate to be able to live comfortably without a part-time job. We made a concerted effort to retired debt-free, which really helps and we invested most of the proceeds from the house to help support us in retirement.

My DH and I don't do everything together but we have each worked ourselves into a pleasant routine, which doesn't make us feel as if we have too much time on our hands. We both try to get out for a walk most days. He plays cards and reads. I quilt, bake, read and do some photography and we try to have a movie date once a week. We travel a bit but some of my husbands health issues mean that we can't plan too far ahead or be away for too long.

We don't set an alarm but both are awake between 6am and 7am. This means that we are ready for our hot meal at lunch time. We share in the cooking and clean up. We share the household chores so neither of us feel as if we are at the others beck and call.

As I re-read all of this, it makes me wonder why I didn't think of retiring sooner. Life is pretty good.

[momof5boys]

After spending the last 10 years of my working life running a very busy bed and breakfast, we retired at the end of 2010. We immediately sold the house so that kept me busy for a couple of months. We moved to an apartment, which was a brand new experience for me.

I had been working since I was 13 so wasn't sure how easy it would be to settle into retirement. I decided that I would give myself 6 months to settle into retirement before I went looking for a part-time job.

In September 2011, my DH and I took a 2 week trip to Ireland to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. When I came home I was going to decide about the part time job. While in Ireland, my DH experienced a health problem that resulted in him not being able to drive, when we got home. That put my part-time job decision on hold because my DH has a number of health issues that require him to see a number of specialists on a regular basis so my part-time "job" was going to be running a taxi service. Long story short.....by the time my DH got his wings back in January 2012, I was well settled into retirement so didn't feel the need for part time work.

We live a modest life style so I feel fortunate to be able to live comfortably without a part-time job. We made a concerted effort to retired debt-free, which really helps and we invested most of the proceeds from the house to help support us in retirement.

My DH and I don't do everything together but we have each worked ourselves into a pleasant routine, which doesn't make us feel as if we have too much time on our hands. We both try to get out for a walk most days. He plays cards and reads. I quilt, bake, read and do some photography and we try to have a movie date once a week. We travel a bit but some of my husbands health issues mean that we can't plan too far ahead or be away for too long.

We don't set an alarm but both are awake between 6am and 7am. This means that we are ready for our hot meal at lunch time. We share in the cooking and clean up. We share the household chores so neither of us feel as if we are at the others beck and call.

As I re-read all of this, it makes me wonder why I didn't think of retiring sooner. Life is pretty good.

I sense when reading this that you are both just enjoying each others company That is certainly our goal as well when my hubby decides to retire. We purposely moved to an area within a short walking distance to many trails along the river and dike since we both enjoy walking. This past weekend I also relearned how to ride a bike (had brain surgery 12 years ago with resulting major balance issues for years). I'm so incredibly excited and thankful for this opportunity and my hubby is also thrilled. My Mom gave me her bike when she heard of my biking victory. She is no longer able to bike and was thinking of selling or donating it.

Our dreams for when hubby decides to retire is to travel on some mission trips and lend a helping hand where ever possible. We do have a 'son' in Kenya whom we have sponsored for years. He is now married, has one child, and is a pastor so our dream is to visit him and his family but we would have to travel with a group that knows the area well.

In the meantime, I remain a work at home mom and love it!

[Retiree]

Momof5boys, you "sense" correctly. I think it really makes a difference if you enjoy each other's company. You can have all the money in the world to be able to travel and do what you like, but if you don't enjoy each others company, while you are doing these things, I think the experience would feel a little empty.

I think that having a similar value systems helps a lot, too. That doesn't mean that your value system needs to be the same as mine, but sharing a similar value system, what ever that might be, with our partners makes life a whole lot pleasanter.

(Congratulations, BTW, on relearning to ride that bike.)

[Shwa Girl]

For those that are retired, do you work at the municipal, provincial or federal elections?
For those who are not retired, do you work at election polling stations to make extra money?