I am 54 and I have no pension

[WhyAmIGluingGemsOnThisDress]

I've worked in hospitality all my life, low paid, long hours. I'm exhausted. Putting money aside for a pension has always felt impossible. Ive been self employed part time for 10 years for reasons of childcare, disability, illness, redundancy. Suddenly I realise I'm facing old age with nothing, and the tiny consultancy niche I've had is about to dry up. My skills are out of date, my memory is terrible, my surgical menopause has given me such horrible anxiety I can't seem to function. I'm doing a course to try and reboot my career, but I can't keep up. How do I sort this mess of my life out?

About 1 in 6 over 55s have no private pension and I bet there's a HUGE number that don't have sufficient in whatever private pensions they've managed to accrue.

Obviously not great, but you're no alone OP.

This! Don’t take a guess, get yourself on govt gateway and you can see exactly all your NI contributions over the years and whether you’re on track to be fully paid up or whether you have missing years to make up.

The reality is that anyone who has lengthy periods of time out of work or only working part time is likely to be underprepared financially for older age. I’ve drummed into my kids that paying into a pension is a real priority. Better to forego other things that not contribute to an occupational pension.

in your case it sounds like you’ll have the option to either downsize and stay in your local community, or you could probably buy in a cheaper area if you’re keen to retain the same size house.

also many people now continue working beyond state pension age. It’s worth thinking about the type of job you can manage at that age.

pensions are a hot topic, it’s so important to think about from the moment you enter the workplace.

Check your state pension. I’m a similar age I’ve checked mine and I’ve made enough contributions to get the full state pension. That’s the only thing I have going for me as well. I have zero private pension and no longer work due to my health. It’s a constant worry.

Have you considered getting a lodger? Either now or during retirement (or both)? If you have space etc, i think you are allowed to earn up to (something like) £7.5k a year, tax-free (rent a room scheme?) - which works out at £156.25 a week, which will be a good contribution towards food / bills or leisure spends…

you'll own your home and have a state pension so be in an ok position tbh. Its renters who are in trouble. You can start a SIPP immediately when the mortgage is done, pay in what you paid to the mortgage. That's assuming you can keep working. Good luck with it all OP.

'Get help' where is this help?

don't bother saying GP, because it's not hiding there.

Some renters will be eligible for housing benefit which covers their rent. Having only a state pension coming in when you have bills to pay and a house to maintain won’t be OK.

It would be very risky to assume rents will be paid in the future. The welfare system is very bloated and housing is a key area where future cuts would be made.

OP owning your home puts you in a stronger position. Once the mortgage is paid depending on your work situation I would look at downsizing.

That’s what I did.

If you don't have a full pension, the state will top it up with pension credit, so it matches a full pension.

This is not such a bad thing, as pension credit opens access to other benefits that regular pensioners cannot get, like free prescriptions, council tax reduction, free dentist, extra payments towards heating. You can also access some charitable benefits, like PDSA for reduced vets bills.

The state pension is manageable and if you use your free bus pass and are good at budgeting, you can have a good lifestyle.

I think you sound a little overwhelmed right now, with getting to and then living in your pensioner years as you are not at optimal health right now. As PP has suggested, see your GP and ensure that you are receiving support with medications and any mental health issues. Are you on HRT?

You also need to future-proof your home, as well as your body and try to hit pension age with a good roof, boiler and insulation.

I’m 51 and don’t have one either.

Thanks to this thread I've just set up a Govt Gateway ID thing - which was surprisingly quick and easy - and accessed my state pension forecast. There are a few gaps in recent years - I'm now wondering whether it's worth paying now to fill in those gaps! It would give me an extra £23 a week WHEN I eventually retire. It still seems so far off (I'm 54) that it all feels really hypothetical...

If you’ve nearly paid off your mortgage on (presumably) a single modest income then you are MUCH more resourceful than you give yourself credit for, so well done for doing that.

In the light of that, “I don’t have the talent for side hustles” sounds like brain fog and anxiety talking rather than a reflection of what you are capable of. There are all sorts of side hustles out there.

With no pension other than the state, your retirement won’t be sunlit uplands, but you’ll manage. Good luck OP.

What kind of thing? I would love a side hustle but can't think of any I could do

That would depend on what your forecast actually says. If you plan to continue to work between now and retirement age you may not need to fill any gaps. You may even have enough years. It should tell you on your forecast exactly howm many years you need to still contribute, if any at all.

Well, I appreciate that this is a bit out there, but I did my Door Supervisor license at 56 and work as a bouncer. If you live in a big city there’s loads of work and companies increasingly like women DS as we’re good talkers (better at de-escalation), and older workers are seen as more reliable, better with people, punctual, compliant with dress codes etc etc.

I also do Airbnb and mystery shopping. Most towns and cities have local networks where people with PIPs advertise for regular small (<10 hrs/week) support roles for people with disabilities for support at home or with activities.

None of these jobs are pensionable or will make you rich, but as make-ends-meet side gigs they’re great. You do really need to live in a city for the event-based stuff though.

Sorry, that was meant to be a reply to @CleanOurWater

Your forecast is subject to you paying contributions up to your retirement age.

No it's not. It's once you've paid the requisite number of years of NI. I'm 49 and will have paid my full number of years come April 2027. I'll still have to pay NI, but those years won't count towards state pension qualification.

I'm in the same position. I paid into private pensions when I was younger but only for around ten years, if that. I've been self employed most of my life and I'm now unemployed and a carer for a family member. I do qualify for a full state pension and I'm married and DH has a private pension. I'm relying mainly on inheriting. We only have a small mortgage so that helps, but it's not a great position to be in.

Thats not correct. You still have to pay NI if working and earning enough but once you have met the required number of years for the New State Pension you could stop working and never pay another penny in NI and still get your pension at SRA.
For someone OPs age the required number of years could be anything from 28 to 49 years.

OP I am in a similar position although I will have a very modest private pension in addition to the state pension. I'm mulling over doing either small dog sitting, gardening and personal assistant/companion to the elderly or a few hours in a shop to supplement my income if needs be. I'd prefer to do bugger all though.

Since you will own a property you can utilise equity release if downsizing/moving away isn't an option for you so all is not lost. But as a home owner you ideally need some savings of some kind (whether in a pension, ISA, cash under the mattress) as you will be responsible for maintenance of your property.

You have over a decade until state retirement age, so as others say, i would be looking at trying to find a public sector job as the pension will probably be better than you can now accrue in the private sector.

What’s with all these ‘I should have full state pension’ comments? Why don’t folks know?

Possible options are GP, private tests, access to help via work schemes and self help. I did get help and it has made a massive difference. It took me a while to get it, but that was down to me not seeking it or reading up and taking action.

That in part would be down to the brain fog I was suffering, hence wanting to encourage others to take steps and if one way doesn't work, try others.