Anyone else slightly obsessed with retirement?

[LittleBoost]

I've got about 10 years left until I take early retirement.

I can scale down in those 10 years moving to doing the absolute bare minimum for the last few years (still full-time though).

I'm conscious to not wish my life away but I'm also ever so slightly obsessed with retirement, and very very much looking forward to it.

I track finances each month and model different scenarios. I have plans for my retirement including just doing absolutely nothing.

DP's also excited about retirement but not quite as obsessed as I am, so I try not to wang on about it too much to him 😂

Anyone else slightly obsessed with retirement? Please help me feel less alone in this!

Think I was about 44 when my obsession with quitting began; started to seriously contribute to a pension and created dozens of spreadsheets over the years to plan the dream..... retired at 52 and spent a couple of years in a hazy cloud of not believing my luck in what felt like an alternative universe compared to my previous work life, I've now settled down to some serious pottering for the last 5 years. Not having a boss (or layers of bosses) and taking complete control of your own time is the definition of freedom in my view.

I’m 62 and would retire tomorrow if I could afford to. However, still paying a small mortgage means I must stay at my post until official retirement age. DH is a low earner with no pension over the state pension so we are where we are.
I do find that other professional friends my age are retired and surprised/horrified when I say that I’m still working full time and will have to continue for another 5 years. One even said that I should be ashamed of myself for making such bad life choices! It’s a bit embarrassing to know that’s what people think of you.

most colleagues of mine in nhs do not retire at 60
they sometimes retire and then return.
60 seems so young.

Me! 4 years I’m hoping until early retirement, 3 if I’m lucky

I do have a lot of spreadsheets but what they reveal is that I probably won’t be able to retire until I’m 70 or so. I only work PT so I suppose that’s fair enough. Mind you my parents died at 65 so maybe I just won’t get to retire at all 😂

I'm kind of avoiding it because I don't really want to know. I'm 47, DH hasn't worked a non-self employed job for over a decade and hasn't put any money into his pension in that time, I'm probably OKish but we'll basically be relying on downsizing our home on retirement to release a lot of money but I'm presuming I'd better keep working until I'm 70 to be on the safe side. I don't actually mind that, I'm not sure what I'd do in retirement unless I had lots of money, which it doesn't look like we will have. But am aware I could have to stop working before then for health reasons or losing a job past my mid 60s might just force the point as I imagine it'll be hard to get a new one then.

I expect we'll muddle through and we're helped by having a mortgage free property that is worth quite a lot so we're still in a better position than many.

OP I wasn't exactly obsessed with retirement, until we paid off our mortgage the day that Covid hit london.

From then on, every penny earnt [and we both worked full time through the lockdowns] went to our retirement pot. We got pension calcs and estimates and basically, in 2021 I took the redundancy offered to me, my Oh had drawn down his pension and had put it into a SIPP, and we bought a house in France, moved there, rented out our UK house [just in case it didn't work out] and basically both took early retirement [me at 53] and moved permanently to France.

I grew down my pension at 55, and it is in a fund and the income from both of ours plus the rent funds our living expenses and the improvements to our French house.

We are are due to be here for 5 years in 2026 and so will be selling our UK house, and using that to buy a more suitable house here, and move the herd of semi cats we have tamed and adopted to then sell this one.

I thoroughly recommend taking early retirement if you can, it gives you a new lease of life and then if you want to work, you can do so and have the freedom to walk away if needs be.

Im 41 so I assume I'll be working until 70.
My working assumption is that governments will make private/company pensions follow the same ages at state pension at some point in the next 20 years as they'll all run out funds if they don't.

Yes. Am always on the Civil Service retirement modelling tool. Trying to work out all the options so I can throw that laptop in the office and run away.
67 feels too old to retire. We’re genetically the same as all the people who felt 60 was about right. It still seems about right to me even if the pension providers don’t agree.
Being single is great but not so much when it comes to retirement. I think leaving my DH has added on 5 years to how long I have to work to survive. Still worth it!
I’ll probably go to 4 days at 60 then 3 days at 62 then start taking CS pension early and be frugal until state pension kicks in.
I do wonder what everyone else is doing to be able to retire early. I thought my DB pension would be one of the better ones but it’s still not enough after 28 years.

I’m desperate to retire but have a tiny pension. Bit looking for jobs with no responsibilities and part time hours so I can feel more retired.

I think this is a really good way to think of it. Not living like a total pauper now to go to the other extreme of a luxury retirement. But moderate the need to “waste” money but stilll enjoy yourself now and in the future

Balance is needed. You might be saving for an old age you never get. I know too many people who have died young. Enjoy the now too and don’t wish your life away

Personally like a pp can take a large chunk of my pension in a few years at 60 (1995 NHS) still wondering whether to take that and carry on working reduced hours, partial retirement, or to stop completely. Love my job but it is getting more wearisome as the system continues to buckle under the strain

I don’t know FIRE but think I’m doing it anyway to allow me to retire at 55 (saving extra, lots into AVCs)

just wanted to comment though that sometimes life’s “comforts” are just keeping up with the Jones’s and rampant consumerism- lots of unnecessary things that marketing tells you you need. Those are definitely things to ditch in life early, and that’s how early retirement can be affordable for more people.

Are you and your partner planning to marry before you start claiming your pensions. Some pensions are hugely affected by not being married BEFORE one or other party starts claiming. The law may have changed since but my mums friend married a police superintendent after he had started claiming his police pension. He told her she'd be fine after he died because he had a very large pension. He did , but it didn't pass to her after he died because they had married after he started claiming it . It may be different now but it's hugely important to check before. My mum was a Registrar. She did lots of weddings on a Friday afternoon for people who had spent years avoiding marriage and had seen a financial advisor and realised they were about to be absolutely up shit creek .

I'm 55 and doing a gradual wind down over the next 10 years. I have a wfh role which is very low stress (after many years of a high stress out of home role). I'm lucky in that I can basically pick and choose my own hours. Sometimes I'll have a spurt of doing extra and stick some money away. Sometimes I take it more easy. I see myself as semi retired really. Largely in part due to the huge flexibility of my work. I don't need to set an alarm (although naturally wake up early!) as I can do the hours when I want. Likewise it means I can go out and do things during the week, spend time on hobbies etc. I can take time off at short notice. I have a lot of the "perks" of retirement while still earning money. Ideally I'll keep doing this until I become full time retired.

My health is on the decline, in ways I can't do much about. So I've prioritised long haul travel these past few years as I don't know how long I'll be able to, or want to, do it for. I think by 67, if not before, I'll be done with all that. That's what I spend the most money on now. For various other reasons my expenses will be low in retirement so I'm not worried about money. It will be nice to reach the day when I can hand the laptop back for good! But what I'm doing now is a nice compromise.

It’s nice to hear some posters here saying early retirement gave them a new lease of life. I’m set to retire at 55-57 but do worry I’ll become listless and just waste the days on mumsnet. Esp reading the active thread yesterday on the poster who can’t motivate herself to do the things she thinks she could / should be doing. I can see me becoming like that.

I have a little part time/self employed role that I shall start in September. I plan to do about 15-18 hours a week over 3 days and leave Mondays and Fridays for my days off. It's very flexible though and I can do more or less if I want to.

I've also signed up to a charity to help adults who can't read so I've got an informal interview for that soon. My parents are in their 80's, very fit and able so I'm hoping to see more of them, plus I have a few friends who are retired and a couple who only work part time so I shall try and fit in coffee and walks with them.

I could go and volunteer at my job and hear children read, they're always after people to do that, but I have no great desire to go back into schools really.

I swim 3 times a week, read, love a jigsaw, have recently taken up Nordic walking, enjoy a good film or TV program so I doubt I'll be bored.

So many spreadsheets modelling so many possible retirements. I am late 40s hoping to retire at 53-54. We are on track so far but it does rely on pretty good returns as I don't want to be short of cash as a pensioner. Honestly I do a new spreadsheet every day (or that's how it feels) modelling different asset allocations etc. I'm like a modern Silas Marner, instead of counting my gold I'm endlessly looking at my investment apps.

I agree with this - I find people are very quick to jump to negativity when discussing early retirement. It's wonderful to read stories of people with positive experiences and new leases of life.

I have a handful of books and games that I'm deliberately saving up for retirement 😂

@AngelinaFibres Thanks for flagging this up. We're already married.

Another one here frequently checking their pension projection and updating a spreadsheet!

I’m 45 and would love to retire at 55, but as the pension age is moving to 57, I either need to save enough money to plug that 2-year gap or work to 57. The latter will probably be easier, to be honest. I think retirement at 57 is realistic and achievable for me. It’ll probably only be earlier in the unfortunate event that we receive an inheritance at some point. This is reasonably likely, but we don’t include it in our projections.

I’m paying a good wedge of AVCs each month, which look to be having a decent impact. We recently paid off the mortgage and are thinking of potentially downsizing at some point to take advantage of the equity.

I don’t hate my job per se, though it is stressful. I hate that my time is not my own and I especially hate having to ask permission to take a holiday! I absolutely will not be bored in retirement. Some friends have indicated that they’re also intending to retire in the 55-60 range, so it’d be lovely to have some chums in the same boat!

I talk to DH about retirement most days. Probably an unhealthy amount!

I'm in my 50s and have no plans to retire.
I don't think I will ever retire.

It's not going to be black on white....more like colourful ....don't get too excited. Life happens

I have already started planning things to do when ai retire.
I have started volunteering with a local wildlife conservation group, i can only do a few hours a week atm but I will do more when I stop work.
I plan to help at the local Riding for the Disabled.
DH and I will walk more (we live in Northumberland) and I will exercise more.
I love cooking and good food so will spend time doing that and perhaps shopping locally rather than the supermarket but that is ££ dependant.
We will have more holidays too.