I am a housing association tenant and I'm 60 years old. I have a pension pot of £86000. According to best forecasts it would pay out an annuity of £6000 a year which wouldn't even cover my rent. I would then have to pay the remainder of my rent plus council tax from my state pension plus all my living expenses. I have looked into part ownership but that's even worse as the leasehold charges plus rent are around £800 a month.
If I have only £16000 at the point I claim state pension, I will be able to claim housing benefit and council tax benefit too. Day to day living expenses wise I will be no worse off under this scenario. Possibly even better off as there are other benefits that housing benefit is a passport to.
Plus, if I took the money now, I'd quite like to cut down on work over the next few years, give a bit of money to my kids (after all, there won't be anything much to inherit when I die), have a few nice sun holidays in winter, get a decent car, kit my kitchen out with white goods that will last me.
Running down money before retirement is the opposite of what we're told to do, so it feels weird. But I think in my circumstances it's sensible. AIBU?