How much is enough to retire ?

[bownutone]

I have a few years to go but have a pretty good idea on what my income will be from social security, pension and 401K. I have started paying myself that amount (and saving the rest) to see if I can make it. Medical insurance is the biggest problem now and will probably require working longer than I want to. Find a good advisor to assist in relatively safe investments as CD's will not be much help.

[Ronnie]

Depends how you want your retirement to look. This guy retired along time ago and he didn't have to save a dime.

If'n you had told me that you were gonna take my picture I would have looked up and smiled.

[boy wonder]

Like many have said, it depends. lots of good websites that will take your information and assumptions (spending, retirement income, investments, etc.) and you can figure it out pretty easily.

I've used a few of the more well-known calculators, some say I won't have enough, some say I'll have way more than I need....... Go see a competent adviser.

[critter69]

I believe I could retire on just what you could sell your " farm" for. I am a man of pretty simple means. But looks like I will work till I die.

[MLank]

No but after I retire I would assume I would need to pull it out of the market and put it somewhere safe.

How about a little article/post about the 4% rule:

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/...or-retirement/

[ken]

I've heard investing in exotic wildlife is very lucrative

Seriously, a financial planner can map out a plan for you.

[Voodoo]

Your answers are somewhere in these songs:

Better Class of Losers

Luckenbach Texas

Take this Job and shove it


I've been putting Axis, Black Buck, coati, and Aoudad to sleep and transporting them out of state. Purdy good money.

[one66stang]

You can retire when " Your money makes as much as you do"

[Killer]

You can retire when " Your money in savings makes as much as you do now in salary"

That is good advice!

[kumathebear]

You can invest all you want, but if you're still paying a monthly mortgage it will be rough! My wife just retired today at 56 after 32 years of teaching. She has insurance and retirement for the rest of her days that also covers me and just on her monthly retirement income we can cover all our expenses. I'm planning to retire in 6 months and with our "nest egg" and my income from different sources, we should be fine.

Get rid of the blasted credit cards, except for maybe ONE to use in emergencies. PAY OFF your mortgage...biggest drain on income except for unexpected cash draining medical expenses....our home is free and clear so only monthly expense is for insurance, utilities and paying taxes at the end of the year.

I really believe it takes a new "mind set" when you are planning or about to retire!! I've spent a fortune on toys over the years, bought anything I wanted and it cost me to an extent. Now, we are fortunate we have all we need and honestly all we want...so the rest is just icing on the cake.

Now I spend my time, unless out selling dirt, insulting classifieds with "low ball offers" and getting the nasty pm's. Just evaluate what's really important and plan when you retire to hopefully enjoy your remaining days...all the rest and worries don't matter!!!

Take it from someone who HAD it all, LOST it all, fought back and perhaps finally have it figured out 60+ years old. Lord, at least I hope we have it set and planned to finally enjoy and live!!

[flywise]

I still have another 5 or 6 years to work.
I can't seem to get a understanding of how folks are able to do it.
With what money I have put back and what I could get selling the farm I should have a pretty good nest egg in the bank.
With CDs paying 1% it will only generate a small amount a year.

I know a lot of fellows here have retired but I just cant figure how I can live without a income.

Retiring from my job just to take a lesser job seems kinda silly to me

I cant figure it out either, but, with what they pay me to come to work its probably going to be a while before i give it up.
My FIL is 75 and runs circles around most folks and he tried retirment about 20 years ago. Got bored and went back and now has 40 years with the same company.

[oktx]

You can invest all you want, but if you're still paying a monthly mortgage it will be rough! My wife just retired today at 56 after 32 years of teaching. She has insurance and retirement for the rest of her days that also covers me and just on her monthly retirement income we can cover all our expenses. I'm planning to retire in 6 months and with our "nest egg" and my income from different sources, we should be fine.

Get rid of the blasted credit cards, except for maybe ONE to use in emergencies. PAY OFF your mortgage...biggest drain on income except for unexpected cash draining medical expenses....our home is free and clear so only monthly expense is for insurance, utilities and paying taxes at the end of the year.

I really believe it takes a new "mind set" when you are planning or about to retire!! I've spent a fortune on toys over the years, bought anything I wanted and it cost me to an extent. Now, we are fortunate we have all we need and honestly all we want...so the rest is just icing on the cake.

Now I spend my time, unless out selling dirt, insulting classifieds with "low ball offers" and getting the nasty pm's. Just evaluate what's really important and plan when you retire to hopefully enjoy your remaining days...all the rest and worries don't matter!!!

Take it from someone who HAD it all, LOST it all, fought back and perhaps finally have it figured out 60+ years old. Lord, at least I hope we have it set and planned to finally enjoy and live!!

Congrats to your wife! Mine has 3 more to go. Still up in the air whether she will or not.

[Dakota7493]

I'm a teacher. One of the few professions to still have a pension. When I turn 54 I'll have enough years to retire with 62% of my highest five years average. I have a 403b that will be around 6 figures then too. I plan on having house paid off or downsizing when kids leave. My biggest problem will be health insurance, but my wife is younger and needs more years so I'll be able to keep on with her till I get at least a little closer to Medicare. I'm not to worried about it at this point but things always change.

[TKK]

I see this question over and over on forums. There is NO generic answer! If you do not have debt and only need X amount to live on then the amount you need to have saved is X. On the other hand if you have some debt and need a different amount of income to live on then you need X saved.

Either see a financial planner or go online to find a good calculator that lets you plug YOUR NUMBERS in. Firecalc is one of the easiest and best and it is free.

Again the amount of money you need saved to retire is totally based on each individuals situation

[BlackoutRam2500]

You gotta have a business that's earning for you when you retire. The old pay everything off and live off a nest egg approach is setting yourself up for disaster IMO. In reality you'll never be free and clear because the tax man cometh. He's never going to stop coming for your income and your property. With interest rates being so low and property values being so up and down it's kinda crazy to sink every dime you have into paying off a piece of land that you don't know what the value will be in 20 years. We've been saving a good portion of our income the last several years and we're going to get into a couple of franchises and build some storage units. I'll always have a job, but hopefully most of my time will be spent cashing checks