To ask how much your retirement pot will be

[Futurama1]

Off the back of some threads today, how much are you aiming to have in a retirement pot?

I’m going for 600k at today’s value which seems an insane amount but 20k per year for 30 years + state pension. What are you aiming for?

I put 2k per month in currently (inc employer contribution)

@Embroidery

What if you die before 65. Live for now ffs.

I am 49 and have 5000 in pension. Im hoping to pay off mortgage by age 60.

Well - so long as OP lives until 55, she can take out the whole bloody lot if she wants!

@MrsRusselBrand

OP I earn the same as you . How is Gods name are you able to put away 1/3 of your take home monthly pay to a pension?? Don't you have a mortgage , outgoings , kids , etc .... Seriously .. how are you doing it ???

I’m broadly similar to OP. I have a mortgage, outgoings, kids. Let’s say £60K and £3600 take home. £1200 mortgage and fixed bills £1200 pension £1200 food + discretionary (that’s plenty, though I could burn through more ☺️)

It’s possible because:

• mortgage is low (£600)
• no childcare costs any more
• no debt to service except mortgage
• no need to save as have done that before switching to pension prioritisation
• “sensible” with money - I have plenty of treats but I’m not on the latest phone contract, don’t have an expensive lease car, or generally have expensive tastes in clothes, food, holidays
• get £160 topped back up in CB that I would otherwise have lost

It’s quite hard to just “lose” £1200 from £3600, but if you’ve never had it (in that for me it was in savings, then childcare, then pension) then living on £2400 is far more than a lot of people and very do-able, if that’s your priority.

@MyrtlethePurpleTurtle more likely 57 - the rules for access are set to change in 2028. The legislation hasn’t been enacted yet but it’s been widely publicised and planned.

But I’m with you on your general point!

I never understand the “but you might die!” brigade.

1. Actually, statistically most of us won’t die that soon. Yay!
2. My plans involve early retirement
3. I don’t think it’s a waste to leave something to my family
4. Even if I drop down dead tomorrow and never see a penny of my savings, I’ve had 20 years of not worrying about funding my retirement- which in itself is valuable

I think it would be more helpful to discuss this very important topic by stating what % of your income you are saving. People are focusing unfairly on OP's personal situation and the reality is, we all need to save, according to our own circumstances.

I'm starting late with my pension so I am saving 22% of my income (employer adds 10% additional by law on top - Australia) It's all done pre-tax so it's tax efficient. To do this, I am cutting all household spends as far as I can - watching the pennies. Any bonuses or pay increases will go in as well, so I don't get used to the extra money.

In addition I am filling in gaps in my NI record (and contributing going forward) to ensure I get the 35 years for the UK pension.

I am not a particularly high earner but I'm just about divorced, so it's likely that I will have to face retirement as a single person.

@XingMing had it re defined contribution schemes... you can pay in as much as you like but if the investment goes to fuck, so do you. different schemes may guarantee a minimum amount in this case (think some third party steps in) but it could be very little in comparison to what was paid in

[quote FatJan]@XingMing had it re defined contribution schemes... you can pay in as much as you like but if the investment goes to fuck, so do you. different schemes may guarantee a minimum amount in this case (think some third party steps in) but it could be very little in comparison to what was paid in[/quote]
This is part of the problem, in my opinion - such low understanding generally.

Different schemes and third parties…

So you mean the Pension Protection Fund which was created in 2005 to protect DB schemes. Which currently manages £36bn assets, and generally the compensation level is 90%, CPI linked.

Not only is 90% far from “very little”, DB schemes are generally such good value compared to contributions that even a 90% pay out is usually very good in comparison to what was paid in.

DC schemes are far riskier, it’s true. But you don’t just chuck your money in one random company’s shares and wait for something like a .com bubble to burst. You choose your fund groups (spreading the risk) according to your own risk level. Pension providers make it very easy to do this, giving various risk categories to the funds they offer. You make your own decision on how much risk you’ll take - typically more when young, and a lot less when you’re about to retire. There are fixed return options without risk, though the return is very low. You track your performance regularly, easily, through an app. You can get an IFA to help you, but you don’t have to. Remember that you get tax relief added back in. Basic rate is 20%, so if you put £100 into a pension and that is increased on your behalf by the pension provider and HMRC doing the legwork to £125. So you could have a 24.9% drop in your fund and still have made money.

People should get educated - join thread like these, go look at the really clear websites like the Pensions Advisory Service. Make decisions on real information, not internet scaremongering.

Sorry, 19.9% drop - but the point is the same - tax relief added gives you a buffer against market drops immediately!

Well done OP on such a great income, and being frugal with it.

what pension?

After mortgage was paid at 45 i was advised to up my payment to 3000 per month my whole earnings. Dh has a public service pension. At 60 i can now drawn his equivalent. Any additional payments post 60 has no benefits for us. Have no mortgage and get approx 4000 per mth after tax.

This month I can't do a grocery shop until I get paid in five days. I don't even earn the 1.2k that Op can merrily pop in a pension. I'm fucked now nevermind retirement.

@coldwarenigma

£20 a month, on top of employer contributions.. I'm expecting to be skint..and OP ..2k a month?? Look up minimum wage..thats most peoples ordinary wages...

While I agree the OP is being antagonistic, I don't believe most people are on NMW.....

I'm not going to answer the question, btw. It's personal.

Median monthly Household (not individual) salary is £2491 BEFORE TAX and NI

No idea. Probably about £30k by the time I retire. Not enough to see me through anyway. I'll have no choice but to rely on state pension and hope it still exists then!

I’m only half way through the thread.
I think for some reason the OP got far more grief than others who post about expensive houses, cars, holidays, earnings, private school etc. Not sure why it’s any different discussing the high pension to some of the above. Plenty on here have money.

I say this as NHS HCP who earns less than half of the op. But do pay into a pension!

Fuck me, you pay IN 2k each month? So basically you earn shit loads and thought you would start a thread about it?

Yup - my sentiments exactly.

And yes - you have upset a lot of people.

Your monthly take home pay is £3620. Minus the £1200 is £2400.

So yes, you're loaded and that's plenty of money.

Any NHS staff previously posting that don’t know how to access their pension. Use ESR and the Total Reward system as that breaks down your yearly contributions/ totals etc. All available online.

The NHS pension has changed twice maybe three times since I joined 16 years ago. It’s not as good as it was but I’m still running up a nice pot that even if I left now I’d have money to top up a state pension and live more comfortably. We are lucky with the employer contributions. I never understood why people opted out: I’m not on about those struggling financially but those that just didn’t want to pay it.

@hotmeatymilk

I think it depends on what you think you need to live on. I would suggest also stocks and shares plus maybe as you get older look for income from another source like property because 20k ain't going to get you that far
Please join OP in the corner

The OP asked a question - I answered it. Just because you happen to be bitter that she earns more money than you doesn't mean we all are. On a salary of 60k with another 30 years or more to work she will need more money that 20k a year and she will be able to afford it as her salary grows. I don't see why she can't ask a question in a forum like this without getting a pile on. Sorry you aren't in the same position but that's not OPs issue or mine. People that have money are allowed to worry about their pensions

Last time I looked my current pension will be worth £18,000 per year in todays money and I have another small pension from a previous job that I think will be worth £3,000 ish in todays money.

My husband should also have a similar pension so we should be ok. It all depends on how long we can physically work for of course.

What happens to the pension pot if I die? Does it get cashed out and given to family or is it lost?

I've got approximately £15 in my change jar. This is it. We'll done OP, hopefully you'll chuck me the occasional crust of bread during our old age (retirement will be extinct by then and I fully expect to be worked to death).

I don’t think a pot of £600000 only gives you £20000 per year. I think it is more than that.

I'll say it again - the opening post does come across as a bit if a pointless boast.

There is little point in everyone simply posting what their pension pots are as that isn't financial discussion but group comparison, which is meaningless, and mostly painful as most won't get anywhere near me what the OP has been able to accrue.

If the OP is genuinely concerned whether they will have enough, they should talk to an IFA/read around and join financial chat groups which are widely available, and be looking at a more imaginative plan than simply signing up for an annuity - depending on her overall financial position at retirement. Comparing what she has with others? Why? Only seems to be to feel more secure in her own position? Is that unfair to say?

Some wondering what the point of the thread might be could be in a better position than OP, and still be critical of the thread.

My parents died at 52 and 56...no way am i going to make life even harder than it is now for an old age that might not happen.

@Waxonwaxoff0

No idea. Probably about £30k by the time I retire. Not enough to see me through anyway. I'll have no choice but to rely on state pension and hope it still exists then!

This is the thing.

I've no beef with the OP, but we are as a society facing a bit of a pickle, and it won't be good for anyone.

Many, many people (lots of women, especially) cannot pay into a pension. It's not (usually) a question of choice, or willpower, or not having stuck in at school. It's a question of unfeasibly high living expenses, low wages, and the burden of having and raising children falling to women and scuppering their career (and often their NI payments, too).

What happens when all of these people get to the age they can't work? I don't expect there to be a state pension by the time I retire.

So what's going to happen? Ageing population, fewer people paying into the pot.