Can you do your current job until 68?

[CrystalVision]

Me and DH are trying to work out plans for the future. I'm 44, he's 48. I'm high up in an office based professional role (think Head of HR) and he's a builder. I'm trying to get to a Director position as I think I'll be better protected against younger (cheaper) whippersnappers doing my job but I feel like this will be completely exhausting in even 15 years time, never mind 25. It's even worse for DH as building is a young persons game (his words). The reason we're worrying is that we've recently moved and to afford it, the term is currently running til we're 73. Obviously we're trying to overpay and will reduce the term when the five year rate ends, but it's got us worried that we won't be able to work at the same rate we do now when we start to approach retirement. Two kids (4&6) so at the point we might be looking to drop hours, we'll be part funding university! Are we the only ones in this position??

@dreamersdown I'm going to pm you for further info if that's ok!

I work with a couple of women who are in their early 60s and in senior, office based roles and seem to be doing them brilliantly, I think it does make a difference not having childcare logistics and so on as you can stay late when needed and that sort of thing. I am conscious, though, that they are early 60s. My parents are early 70s and seem much more than a decade older than my colleagues.
My bigger fear isn't so much about whether I can still do my job in 20yrs but whether it will exist. It is niche & specialist but AI is getting so good that I can see it taking over. It might not be perfect the money saved on mine & my team's salaries could be spent on sorting out any problems the AI causes!

I can
I don't think I'll want to
I will probably have to

Dont think I'll be able to carry on in my job much past 60. Its physical and menopause has made it harder.

Other problems with aging, accidents/damage takes much longer to heal from. I broke my leg at 18, all healed in 10 weeks, I did similar a few years ago, still have problems. I'm limping around, in pain often, yet no choice but to carry on.

I've paid off the mortgage and plan to lob that same money into savings and maybe have enough to quit at 60 or so. DP will be able to retire before me. I do wonder if we will still be ok together when its just me getting up and working. I can see potential issues. But I will cross that bridge some other time.

DH and I are both in healthcare. On our feet a lot. I'm 36, he's 42. We have a 5yr old and are expecting our 2nd. I worry a lot about if we'll manage these jobs for another 30yrs. My health is OK but DH has had a few nasty scares recently. We're trying to overpay the mortgage while our rate is reasonably low

I certainly can’t stay in this job until 68. I don’t quite know what I’ll do. The housing crisis which has been ongoing for 20 years now absolutely crippled us. My sympathies op.

I will have to keep going until i get my state pension and even after that will gave to work part time - rubbish private pension as did not pay much into it as was paying for school fees!

No & I'm planning to retire at 57. I’ve been saving in an ISA to bridge the gap between 57 and 67 when I can draw my pensions.

I have recently been giving this a lot of thought. I'm 51 and the thought of still teaching at 55 fills me with dread, never mind working until 67. Our mortgage has crept up over the years and now ends when we are 61. I wish we had kept it at 55! The pressure to work as I do now for the next 9 years feels overwhelming. It doesn't help that my pensions all can be claimed at different ages ( NHS was 55 now 60, teachers pension is 67, together with the state pension). In order to take them (not state) at 60, I will have to lose part of them - so annoying as it has changed a lot over the years.
I would say to younger posters, get your ducks in a row ASAP re finances. Overpay your mortgage if you can. I think I've totally underestimated how the years make you feel. Working a full on day totally drains me now, but 5 years ago I was fine. Mentally & physically I feel so different & far less able and I think the menopause has had an effect. Even doing an academic course recently nearly broke me - I'm lacking the mental sharpness I once had. I might have to start doing the lottery 🙃

I definitely don't intend to. I contribute a lot to my pension as does my husband and we've set up a passive income stream to continue in to retirement so that we can very comfortably retire early. However, our planning to date has been with the intention of retiring at 60, lately I've been thinking that it would be better to have the option in our mid to late 50's so I need to revisit the numbers.

I'm 45 & the thought of doing my job even for another 5 years is horrific.
I'm a nurse working in quite a high risk area, regularly assaulted & often have to use restrictive interventions.
No idea what I'm going to do.

Yes I could do my current job til I was 68 but intend to retire at 60.

The mortgage will be paid off by the time we're 50 and 52. And by the time I'm 60 the kids will be 39 and 34, so fingers crossed it'll be possible. But if the worst comes to the worst, my job is easy if a bit boring.

Well my predecessor was 71 when she retired so yes theoretically I could. 1 of my coworkers is coming up 70 too. Says he will wait for his wife to retire in 2 years then will go too.

I work in retirement..

Nearly made it to 68!

Retired from teaching at 67. The last year was 3 days a week, the penultimate 4. Mortgage paid off before this. So many seem too have mentioned this, I will too - menopause very easy.

Not at all sure I would have made it so long had I been teaching in the UK though. In all the 15+ years I worked in Au, I was observed once and no-one asked to look at my lesson planner ever.

Bloody autocorrect! to, not too. Too seems to be the default now.

Yes I could, but I don't plan to.

We live in London so the plan is to sell and move out and not have a mortgage in about 5 years.

I'll be early fifties and DH will be late fifties. We will carry on working as our pensions are terrible, but there won't be the same pressure. I would like to leave paid work in my early sixties. My father died in his seventies and my mother will sadly be the same. I don't want to work until I drop.

Definitely can't keep doing my job til age 68! But DH and I plan to downsize and move to a cheaper area in our 50s (once all the kids are through uni) so we will be mortgage free and we will get nice part time jobs like in a bookshop or a library or something 😀

Hell no. However my mortgage runs until I’m 70….

Basically I think there needs to be a big campaign re options for saving to plug the gap between say 60 and state pension age including what people would need in pensions to manage an earlier retirement.

Yes, I think so, and probably will have to make it last until I'm about 70 unless my husband makes a real success of a current business venture!

My in-laws are in their mid 70s and both still working (self employed); DH reckons they don't have great pensions arranged, although they do have a house that is now worth a lot so could probably downsize and retire nicely. But also I think they're quite workaholic and don't want to stop yet, and both in good health.

Yes, I can do this at 68, so long as I still have my marbles. Equivalent of a 'head of' office-based job.

Do I want to? Probably not. I am as senior as I plan to be. At 60, dcs will have graduated and I will take one step-down and semi-retire into an easier job. By 65, probably go part time into my sunset non-job. Paying off my mortgage is a big factor that enables this.

Could you downsize in your 60s and reduce the burden?

You're also going to hit the menopause soon-ish which will affect your body and mind, maybe quite a lot which may also impact your working life.

I'm late 50s and feel ready to retire now...

Letmesail, you make good points. Women do get second wind in their careers once their children no longer need childcare, probably earlier than 60, even 50s. So there is still time for OP to gear up, indeed she is looking for a Director job.

When did your parents retire? I wonder why you think they seem more than a decade older than your colleagues?

As for how my job will look in 13 years when I am 68, technology will play a big part. I am currently part of the business team implementing new technology in the department and training people to use it. ChatGPT might replace some of it, but in my job accuracy is very important so I am not sure the tech is quite there yet. If ChatGPT were to replace my job, that I would be the one tasked with digging my own grave and then throwing the soil over myself. That should see me out to retirement (early, if necessary).

Nope- retail and back and knees are already fecked!!!

I could. Physically and mentally. But I hope i won't have to, hopefully I'll be working somewhere else by this time next year.