I plan on retiring at 60, which is longer than I planned on working. This should put me in good shape financially, or at least I hope so. I was reading online that the average american retirement income is at $48,000 anually, with an average of $46,000 spent. To me, that seems like a slim margin of error, for unseen problems, sickness, etc!
I was planning on retiring at 57-58 but have decided to go 5 more years, to 60. I guess my question is, for you folks whom retired early, do you have any regrets? Do you wish you would have worked longer?

Here are some things to think about:

inflation - what if there is 3% inflation over the next 30 years?

Stock market - what if there is another crash like 2008

How much do you currently owe?

How much do you have saved?

What do you plan to do in retirement? Travel, Hunt, fish...

Do you have money to draw on besides social security?

My financial guy talks about having $1.6 million in assets before retiring.

The people who retire early enjoy more years of good health which is also a big consideration.

Good luck on making your decision.

Our current plan is to turn our house (3000 sq ft 5 bed 4 bath Victorian) into a bed and breakfast once the kids move out. I'm 31 now and can retire when I'm fifty from my job with full pension, kids will be out of the house when I'm 48, like it or not. There are currently none in town, of course that can change in the next 20 years. Running a bed and breakfast isn't exactly retirement, but it's income that allows me more freedom. But there's a lot of time and a lot to do between now and then, so we'll see how it all goes.

Read the book "Rich Dad Poor Dad"

Good luck with your plan. I hope it works for you!

When it comes down to the brass tax.

The only things you will worry about are the utilities and health care.

Me

I'm not playing life to retire at an age where I can't enjoy anything. I'm playing life to furnish a mansion for eternity!

Here

My goal is to build a financial empire that will support missions, Buid churches, build schools, build orphanages, and fund pastor's. In such a way that will keep on going long after I'm called home.

But I'm just a greedy man that wants to make sure I'm not moving into an empty mansion when I am.

Lol

When I die you probably wouldn't even know I had money. But you will be asking to live with me if we ever meet in eternity!

I don't see how one can save half of their wages, plus run a family life and have enough to even think about retiring.

If one bad accident happens or a calamity, even your insurance can't be trusted to cover it any more. Life insurance helps the family but is still a bill going out while your alive. Until your to old to have it, then look at all the funds you spent on it you don't get back, legalized gambling, like health insurance is. Only one winner in either.

People have to work two jobs today to help keep anything theirs, plus get the kids through school unless your the sort of parents who just tell the kids see ya, which is another thing I can't understand, but a different thread.

I don't plan on retiring, I can't afford to and don't want to live off the street either !

At 60, I will still do something to suplement my income. It will be a tough decision for sure. I do know people that retired early, and I don't know how they get by, and that will only get worse.

Insurance is the biggest killer for draining your income, my wife works and I pay her for the insurance, most people wait until 65 to get on Medicare for coverage to retire. State pension and SS and good health goes a long way if you retire early if sickly keep the insurance you have.

How much ?

You can't have too much or even enough .
You just decide you've had enough and live with it the best you can .

One of the very first things you need to do is get a very exact number of your expenses. Then pad that number for incidental/unexpected things that come up.

When you know that number then you should have 30X the expense number you come up with. That would be for 30 more years of living from that money. You will gain SS and gains from the money you have as time goes on but that should be your cushion. I would advise that you have NO debt when you plan to exit.

I retired early (5 to 6 years before the start of SS) and had a lot of mixed feelings about it but I kept telling myself I can't buy back time. My health is good and time was worth more then to me then a pay check.

You will never hear someone say lying in their death bed, that they wished they had worked one more year or stayed at the office after hours doing work. I didn't want to be one of those.

I can say for myself it was the best choice I ever made. I have never had so much fun doing what I want and when I want and healthy so far to do it my way.

I spend many pleasant days in paradise at the ranch just living life simple and one step at a time. LOL

I wish you well and hope it works out for you. I'm no financial expert this is just my opinion.

I was fortunate in that I started saving for retirement and items like insurance the same year I started my job that I held for 31 years. I did the same for the 5.5 years I worked 60% until I was 65. By starting early I was able to accomplish my goals. The real benefit of saving money for retirement is not as much about amassing wealth as it is doing a good job managing expenses the 37 years I was saving money. It is amazing what one can learn to do without or how to find lower cost ways to entertain, live and still be charitable. By the time one reaches retirement age the lifestyle is pretty much set. We are able to live on and spend more in retirement than we did while I worked. My wife worked 7 out of the 37 years I worked. One thing we were able to do was I had a basic contract and the college challenged my one year to increase enrollments if we wanted to keep our jobs and 22 out of the next 23 years I had an additional income due to higher enrollments. Those extra dollars after tax allowed us to assist greatly in our two children's weddings and more than half of their two college educations and putting money into our savings accounts.

Retirement or more exactly financial independence is a state of mind more so than a dollar amount. I am so grateful that I understood the need to save for increased Health insurance premiums at a young age. That is really a nice fund to have. Way more important to me than a home worth 100K more than the one I live in.

Bryce

Before I retired, at 61 and 6 months, for a two year time period, I kept track of every cent, and I mean every cent, I spent. I wanted to know exactly what I was spending. Once I knew what I was spending, and then adding in for unexpected things, I knew just what I needed.

The genius Mike Tyson once said, everybody has a game plan until they get hit in the mouth one time.

I retired in 2002 and the wife a few years later. I am now 72. A rule of thumb is to use 4% of your savings each year. We violate that rule every year, but fortunately the financial markets have provided excellent returns. That is bound to end someday and we may have to tighten our belts.

Hurts to pay more taxes now than I ever did while working.

I quit working for the company when I turned 55, they agreed to pay me to stay home! Invested in the stock market took some lumps and learned from it, when we moved 12 years ago got out of debt and have enough to do what we want. One regret was we should of left NY the day I quit and will never buy an annuity or life insurance---you lose control of your money with the annuity with the life insurance you're betting that your going to die and the life insurance is betting your going to live! If it all works out it will be a cash bar at my wake!

I am 62 reading this n taking it all in. Agree in knowing what u spend, 2 very good friends told me same thing,write down everything you spend for 2 years prior , add 10% then u have a really good idea of what u need.

Have more coming in than when you were working.

I plan on retiring at age 55 I started saving for retirement when I was 19, I work for 31 years for a big company. we had good retirement every year they took something away final we had no retirement . at age 51 I had cancer an a stroke was planning on going back to work 1 year later . they told me I didn't have a job anymore that I was a liability . so they retire me I have had 2 more cancers since but still going strong I got ss when I turn 57 .one think I no is you can only spend what you have coming in . I found out the hard way it don't take much to live a good life on if you don't have any major monthly bills ,retire when you can saw to many guy wait till they get to 62-65 ,and were in to bad of shape[wore out] to do what they like get out when you can

Yep..Make no mistake about it..Each step you take is a step to the last step in your life..And in the end nothing matters..no matter how rich nor how poor..done is done....