Where are you in your retirement planning?

[bcwife76]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?
Dh and I are hoping to retire by 62, 65 at the latest.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?
As much as possible! No set dollar amount at the moment, but within the next 5-10 years we should really nail down that $ amount.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?
I was 23, dh started later, around 29.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?
In Canada you can start to draw from your CPP (Canadian Pension Plan) at 60 and OAS (Old Age Security) at 67. But we need to be realistic that those might not be in place in 25+ years when it comes time for us to retire.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?
Paid off for sure! Once the kids are grown and out will probably downsize to a smaller home as well (current home is approx 2700 sq ft)

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?
Just making sure there's enough in the coffers ;-)

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?
Contributing to our own RRSP's, plus dh has a good pension plan through his work.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)
Travel, spend time with any grandchildren that we may have

 

[AquaDame]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount? $ Amount - we are trying to retire early. Nay, nix that, positive energy! We WILL retire early.

How much are you trying to save for retirement? They suggest 3 million for us. I am unsure if thats reasonable... we don't have kids so there is no need for an estate to be left behind.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game? I started at 27, my husband at 25.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan? ...I did not realize you could qualify at different ages. I consider it a bonus on top of our own planning (I do think it will be around for us, though the plan will change in the meantime I'm sure.)

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird? we have every intention of owning our house when we retire. We will move somewhere better by that time - single level, possibly a condo, easier yard (more patio & planters, less grass).

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement? Having another recession or something similar hit when we are ready. My parents lost half their 401K (they have recovered since... well, enough.)

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster? Paying off our house early, and aggressively pushing money into retirement accounts. We hope to retire early - the earlier the better. Someone above mentioned driving a 10 year old civic... my Impreza is still going strong at 19 years young! We bought 1/3 less house than we "could afford" because we just don't need more and can think of better things to do with the money.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc) I want to never work again unless I choose to. I'll always want to do some level of work, but I want it to be more 'volunteer here' than 'need this paycheck, I will put up with whatever I have to.' We're traveling a bunch now, while we are young, so I am not sure what we'll want to do when we are older and more tired. I tend to mentally "save" lower energy trips for later (fishing in Manitoba, weeks in Cabo, that sort of thing! )

 

[tvguy]

I think a lot goes into that tvguy. for example both dh and I started working during a period when people didn't save for retirement. there was NO such thing as IRA's, 401k's and investing in stocks were not as easy as it is now. The first IRA came round the mid 70's, did you know people would live to 90 in 1975??? would you have forecasted that pension were going to be eradicated??? people didn't plan on living until they were 90 and my dh did not, he didn't even make it to 60. it's very hard to plan for what you can't envision. Now 1/2 way through our working years the rules changed.
So no, a seventy year old guy may not have had 40 years.

now I'm going to assume if you collected survivors benefits it was because you lost your dad while you were very young?? but if you think about it, it was designed at a time when mom's did not work, so it prevented a widow with young children from becoming destitute. BUT it was still based on someone's work record.

Without a doubt it as to be revamped but it is a simply not true that the system is failing because folks are somehow "gaming" the system or that we are all relying on it because we didn't save.

Lol, I think folks complain about the cost of stuff no matter what. 40 years ägo would you have believed some one if they said gas would be 3.00 bucks a gallon?? I remember my dad quit smoking when cigarettes rose to a dollar a pack. I can't believe that folks are paying close to 7.00 bucks!!!

You bring up a great point. People's mindset. My dad had no pension....changed jobs too often......and died in 1967 at age 56. He opened in first "retirement" savings account in 1935 at Bank of America at age 25. (found the paperwork in my mom's papers, account book said "retirement account" in my dad's handwriting.) So some people thought about retirement. So clearly our family history would play a role in my mind set. My mom had a fixed pension, big lure in 1946 when she took the job, set at her salary when she was hired! Not much money when she retired in 1985 and certainly even less in 2013 when she passed away.
I do remember my employer in 1979 offering a week's pay to put in our IRA's.....or they would take taxes out and consider it a bonus. I was only 22 , but I put it in an IRA, and a lot of my co-workers thought I was nuts. I considered the money a windfall, didn't expect it, didn't have a pressing need to spend it, so I put it in an IRA where it remains to this day.

 

[Katy Belle]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?
I am a SAHM, have been for 20 years. DH hopes to retire at 58 or 59.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?
A lot . We are well on our way.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?
Both of us started with our first jobs out of college.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?
We don't count SS in our calculations.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?
We haven't decided where we want to be once we retire. Kind of depends where are kids are.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?
Health care costs

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?
We've always been thrifty. DH likes investing, it's one of his hobbies.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)
DH plans to fully retire. I might substitute teach if I need to get out of the house. We hope to travel.

 

[natfrac]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount? I do not plan on fully retiring until at least 67, probably closer to 70. I need to work for health benefits.

How much are you trying to save for retirement? My employer contributes 12% of my salary and we're beefing up our post-tax savings.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game? I was late to the game--late thirties. I was a single parent getting an education before that.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan? 67 is my full retirement age and yes, it factors into my retirement plan.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird? We downsized a few years ago and it will be paid off.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement? Health care--DH has health issues.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster? Our immediate goal isn't to save more, but to become debt free. Pay off cars, my student loans, etc.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc) I want to cut back to part time at 60 and fully retire by no later than 70.

 

[Golf4food]

I'm not focusing on retirement. We are targeting Financial Independence. Roughly 25x your average annual spending. Get to that number and you have enough "F-you" money to walk away from your employer if you want to and do something you like more and don't have to worry about money. We have insurance, we have an emergency fund, and we both meet our employer match 5% for our 401ks, and I also max mine out going forward. Target freedom date is age 55 for me, 50 for DW, at which point we could "retire" and do whatever we want - lots of travel, lots of volunteer work, etc.

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?

Well, I certainly wouldn't want to work past 65. Though I suppose I will if I have to.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?

Enough to allow me to live my life at my current annual expenditure level (I want to continue to vacation and the like).

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?

21. I don't know if that's early or late. It's when I got my first job that offered retirement benefits.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?

I'm not sure, actually. I believe my finance guy calculates it, but I never have.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?

Well, I plan to pay off THIS house (give me a decade or so, we just bought the thing last year), but you never know, I still might buy a smaller one or just choose to move again. I can't imagine becoming a snowbird. Not my thing.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?

DH not having put away as much as he could have early on.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?

Well, I've got a number of different means of savings, which diversifies my options, but nothing too fancy (401Ks, 403b, 457, life insurance, etc.). One thing you could say I'm doing is that I'm putting lots of money into DD's college fund now (she's 2), so that once she graduates high school, I won't be paying for her anymore. Then I can start putting everything into retirement. To me, her education is slightly more important than my post-work plans.

Someone else mentioned something about inheritance. I don't plan to have one, as my parents have always maintained they will work hard to spend it all, but in all honesty I don't expect they'll be able to do so. As their only child, I expect I will come into something sizeable once they are no longer with us. I certainly don't take it into account for my retirement plans, but I guess you could say I tend not to worry about the future, and that having well off parents might be a part of that.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)

If I worked in retirement it would be doing something I loved and I wouldn't care to be paid for it. I think I'd prefer full retirement, though.

 

[aprilchem]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount? Probably around 65 for DH. That's how old he'll be when our last kid leaves college.

How much are you trying to save for retirement? Goal is $3 Million

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game? We were a little late because we both finished graduate school. We both started around 26 years old.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan? Yes we're eligible, no we don't plan on collecting. We are 40 and 45.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird? Our house will be paid off 3 years from now.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement? Nothing in particular - we're right on goal for $3 million by our target age.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster? We save ~20% of our salaries.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc) we will sell our house and get a small apartment, then travel!

 

[Alexle2007]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount? NO, just when we are tired of working. DH says he is retiring at 55 which is 5 years away. I say he's not since DS will only be in 8th grader.
How much are you trying to save for retirement? As much as we can. We are currently close to $2M without the equity in our house.
What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game? Early contributor to max amount we are allowed to contribute to the TSP (we are federal employees) plus we have a large investment in the stock market.
What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan? 67. As an SSA employee, I believe it will still be solvent, in some manner but there may be added requirements such as means testing.
Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird? Yes. And we'll probably move to warmer weather and closer to wherever DS goes to college.
What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement? Nothing really. Just DH not driving me crazy.
Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster? No. DH is now doing accelerated contributions since he hit the big 5-0.
What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc) Travel and enjoy warmer weather. I am tired of being cold during the weather!

 

[Minnesota!]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount? Planning on 55..
How much are you trying to save for retirement? As much as I can save. Up it each time I get a raise, or another bill is paid off. (Medical bills and bathroom renos right now...as soon as those are done, tacking on another 1/2% to my savings!).

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game? I started working in finance at the age of 19...so as soon as I began, I started saving.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan? Not counting on it. I will receive a pension, so I do factor that in.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird? Our house will be paid off, and we will probably sell for a small condo.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement? Health?

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster? Just tacking on more to savings when finances allow. We have a few different methods - stocks, 401's, etc.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc) we want to live super small, travel, work on a cruise ship or Amtrak, volunteer, sleep in past dawn, etc. We intend to live on about 20-30% of what we do now, so we will have to get creative

 

[FINFAN]

Where are we in retirement planning? At LEAST about 5 or 6 WDW trips off goal~ lol...worth it tho

 

[NY Pirate Princess]

This conversation fascinates me.

I am amazed by how everyone started saving at 18 or so and expects to have 3 million at retirement. Congratulations to all of you! I was working poor until after 30 and had nothing, literally nothing, to save before then. My retirement account balance is very small, just over $25k, and I have been saving diligently for over 10 years.

So the rest. I have run our numbers and we can meet our needs with our service based pension when I am 57 and the husband is 58 (same year). We will have health care in retirement which will go secondary to Medicare at 65, which enables us to retire early on less that other people. The home we bought last year on a 15 year note will be paid off before I go or I won't go until it is. Making considerable prepayments for the last year, and I might just make it. Mortgage is our only debt, no consumer debt, no car loans, no credit card balances. I don't know when we will take social security. Our full age is 67 now but I expect changes to those laws with the next president to secure the health of the trust fund. While I don't budget in SS since we don't know how much we will get, I have full faith that something will be there.

I also have been saving a small amount for college for the girl since she was 2. I feel that giving her a hand up is critical, but funding our old age is more important. Doesn't matter how much money I give her for college if she has to turn around and support us through an unfunded old age. She can get loans for college, although I hope she does not. I can't borrow for food.

Keep up the posting. This is awesome!

 

[lurkernj]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount? Hoping for 55, but will probably be closer to 59. Just to leave our full time jobs, I would probably want to work part time doing something I like

How much are you trying to save for retirement? No specific amount

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game? DH started when he was 19, so he has a pretty good amount, I started when I was 28 and was part time for a while so it took a while for it to add up to anything

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan? Not sure, but I haven't really considered SS in my plan since I'm not sure it will be there.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird? House is already paid off, we will sell it and buy something smaller (probably a condo or something with no maintenance). Snowbird status is possible, depends on where our kids land (I plan to stalk them at least part of the year)

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement? Health insurance costs

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster? No, just plugging along for now. We have one kid in college and another heading there next year so all money is tied up in that. Once we are done with that, we will put everything away for retirement to speed up the process.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc) Probably work part time for cash. I plan to travel alot and would want some extra to suppliment that.

 

[A W Reezy]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?
I am eligible to retire through my job when I get turn 45 (I'm 27 right now). I'll probably retire from my job now and find employment elsewhere.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?
By the time we're both retired, I'm hoping our retirement accounts are worth over $1,000,000. I get a continuation of checks until my spouse passes away, and she gets a lump sum from her work.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?
My retirement account started when I was 19. My wife's when she was 19 as well.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?
Honestly, I have no clue. I figure by the time I become of age SS won't be much of a factor.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?
House will be about 10 years from being paid off. My wife and I are considering taking a lump sum from her account and paying it off when she retires. It's a modest home and we plan on traveling quite a bit.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?
That the retirement system that I'm apart of doesn't fall apart before I get around to retiring. I came in about 3 years before they changed the retirement qualifications. I have to work 27 years, where as now folks that enter into the system have to work so many years and hit a certain age to hit a "magic" number.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?
Not really. We try to pay cash with everything (minus vehicles and home mortgage), that way we have little to no debt as we grow older.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)
I'll be 45 when I'm eligible to retire. Depending on my work situation, I might continue working full time, or I might grab a part time job somewhere to keep me busy. My wife is wanting to purchase a RV and travel. It all depends if we have any more children and what our daughter is doing at that time.

 

[ScottOKW2K]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount? Probably 65

How much are you trying to save for retirement? I'm going to try the government plan - steal $10M from everyone else and then blow all but $2M <Just Kidding>

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game? 21

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan? 67. I hope to be able to live on our SS or the income from our savings, but not need both.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird? House will be paid off this time next year.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement? Nothing, really. We've always lived within our means.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster? Not at this time. My wife will return to the workforce shortly, and we will likely save all of her earnings.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc) Get an RV, and spend years seeing the country. Start each day withing nothing to do, rinse and repeat.

 

[cedricandsophie]

I'm retired and have been for 10 years. My husband will retire next year. Get s financial planner one that charges fee for service and works for s private firm. We have had our guy for over 10 years and we pay his firm 8000 a year plus 1% of our portfolio and meet 4 times a year. We look at our spending vs income, taxes, investments, when to take social security, etc. We are in excellent shape financially although we spend too much money on vacations and upkeep for an old huge house. But he has done numerous retirement projections to see how long our money will last. And we have discussed when to sell the house which has been paid off a long time, how much to spend on the next one and so on. He has helped us enormously with planning and investment advice. His firm also does our taxes. We have a disabled adult daughter and our most important goal is to ensure she has enough to live on when we are gone.

I retired at age 55 becsuse I could get my stock out of my firm and it made sense. I hVe never regretted one second. I do stuff with the kids and grandkids, I'm on a couple of boards, I've tsken up tennis, I go to movies in the afternoon, read a lot, lunch and walk with friends and plan our travel. My husband is s lawyer and will have a harder time when he retires but he is ready. He enjoys adult learning classes, seeing plays and travel too. We plan on being active and spending too much on travel for probably another 10 years before we will need to cutback because of Age. We have a lot of DVC points as well as another timeshare and use them very effectively or give points to our kids.

 

[KennesawNemo]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?

Goal is 55-60 for me, later for DH. He works in academia which allows for a very flexible schedule and summer time off. Many of his colleagues don't retire until they are in their 70's/80's.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?

Really not sure. We are still relatively young (late 30s) and still trying to figure this out. We need $2M-$3M according to retirement calculator. I don't really think so because while we will have higher health care cost, the savings we will have once we are done with kids are more significant.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?

We started late. I started at 32, that's when I had my first job that contributes to retirement. DH started at 27, that's when he had his first job. We both spend more years in school to get graduate degrees and I stayed home for couple years right after I got my degrees.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?
Not sure. Not counting on SS for retirement. It'll be my fun money.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?
If we stay in our current house and not making any extra payment, we would have couple years left on our mortgage. I do plan downgrade when both kids are in college. Right now we live in the best school district. We could get a same house for $200k less in other areas.


What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?
End of life care. I think I will look into buying long term care insurance at some point in the future. Don't want to be a burden to my kids.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?
Not really to retire faster, but to be better prepared, we started to max out HSA this year.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)
I want to fully retire, maybe volunteer. DH wants to work indefinitely. Believe it or not, he loves what he does.

 

[CalDisneyMomof2]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?
DH and myself are 8 years apart. I think he'll retire at normal retirement age (67) and myself at 59. I can't do my job forever (massage therapist) but I hope to stay in the industry.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?
Right now it's pretty minimal. My company got bought out and the new company does not offer a 401k. His income has fluctuated greatly over the last 4 years so we're trying to get a hold of finances. I'm thinking 2 million minimum.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?
I started early but only contributed a little bit. Started at 21. DH didn't start until 34 which was last year. It was the first year we started having a consistent income.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?
I'm just not counting on it. I guess it'll be better Christmas and birthday presents for our grandkids should we get any.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?
Paid off when DH is 64 so a few years before retirement.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?
Our health to enjoy it. Market crashing. Cost of health care.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?
Nothing different than anyone else. We have to start being a little more proactive however since MLB did away with their pension (kind of). We will be utilizing a financial advisor here soon to figure it all out.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)
Travel, work part time at Disneyland and watch my grandkids. I noticed an older lady taking tickets at Disneyland one day from the same city we live in. I asked her whereabouts she lived and turned out we're in the same HOA. It was then I realized I wanted to be like her when I grow up

 

[Pesky]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?
Hmmm, probably dollar amount. I'd like to retire on the earlier side but need to see how that would affect the kids given we had our 2 later in life.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?
a LOT! LOL! Not a fixed amount yet. I'm actually going to meet with a financial planner soon to try and get that figure firm so I know what I'm aiming for.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?
Sort of late -- late 20s is when I started, after grad school. DH probably started around that time.

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?
You know, I have zero idea! I don't factor it in so haven't figured that out. Kind of that "hope for the best, expect the worst" scenario.

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?
It should be paid off before DS finishes high school. After the kids are really gone, we'll likely sell and downsize when we retire.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?
Not having enough for major health care crises.

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?
Not really. Lot of it is auto savings so out of sight, out of mind.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)
Probably a lot of volunteer work -- local schools, libraries, and senior centers. Travel. Enjoy our hobbies. If we need the income, I would likely work part-time.

 

[jen7233]

Are you waiting to hit a certain age or a certain dollar amount?

-No set dollar amount. Age, yes. Waiting for DH to retire from active duty. Maybe in 5-10 years. He'll get his retirement pay right away. I'm waiting for age 60 for my military reserve non-regular retirement for 20 years service. I also want to be hired again and work another 5-10 years in federal civilian service under FERS to earn a retirement eligibility with that. We are hoping to retire completely except for part time or just fun at age 60.

How much are you trying to save for retirement?

-as much as possible until that time. We are contributing monthly to Roth IRAs we've had for some time. But that's it.

What age did you start saving for retirement, where you an early planner or late to the game?

-I think age 26 form me, 27 DH

What age are you eligible for full Social Security and do you calculate SS in your retirement plan?

-62. Yes I do. (Edit..age 67!)

Will your house be paid off or do you plan to move to a smaller home or become a snowbird?

-nope, and we probably will have to purchase one.

What do you worry the most about when it comes to retirement?

-something terrible happening to the economy and government that will cut military retirements or social security, and also being unhealthy where medical needs preclude enjoyment of retirement years

Are you doing anything special to save for retirement faster?

-No. If I do get a job as a GS again I will have money to contribute again to my TSP I've left alone since I don't make enough to keep contributing.

What do you want to be able to do in your retirement? (fully retire or work part time for extra cash etc)

-live in warm weather. That's it. As for as working, maybe part time. I'd like to volunteer time to an organization.