To ask when realistically your will retire?

[SleepDreamThinkHuge]

Do you think you can retire before 65?

And if you cannot retire before 65 do you think you will be able to work less hours (part time) topped up with your state pension and still afford life?

Anyone else think retirement will be a myth especially if you retire in the 2050s where the projection is that the retirement age will easily be 70 plus. The thought of people having to work at 70 is quite a sad sight.

Hoping between 55 and 60 but so many variables. Not least a massive mortgage that runs until I’m 70. My husband and I have both prioritised pension savings and started early so hoping growth over time will enable us to retire much earlier than state pension age.

Thanks Missisipihallelujah.

I am so looking forward to it and apart from holidays most things I want to do in retirement are free or cost very little. We have wonderful walks around us but am just too tired to do them when working full time.

Retired at 55 from teaching. I love it. I had to take a 20% cut in my pension but have been teaching for 32 years so it's perfectly doable. I have no mortgage and won't be going on any round the world cruises but will live modestly. I wouldn't ever set foot in a classroom again, which I tell the people who suggest that I can always do some supply to earn a little extra. I invested my lump sum and also have a small 0rivate pension which will keep me going until the state pension kicks in. I never got bored and am so glad I was able to free myself from the shackles of work early.

You enjoy. You will have earned it x

I retire from teaching on Friday at 59. Technically on 31st August.
Headteacher pension and lump sum are generous due to early promotions and the final salary scheme. Will miss out on the pay rise ( and impact on pension) but looking forwards, not back. Will travel for as long as possible: adventure before dementia etc.

55 for both DH and I. I am currently 52, so 3 years to go and DH has 5 yrs left.

We both started paying into our pensions aged 16.

I think that my generation won't ever be able to retire. It keeps getting pushed back and back, and there will be a point where retirement will become obsolete unless you're super rich. I'm 38, and I honestly believe that this will be the reality for a lot of people, to have to work and work until you are very old and then die.

I'm 61, and fortunate enough to have no mortgage. Won't get a state pension until I'm 67, and have a reasonable but not incredible pension pot. I'm self-employed and still getting work, but increasingly feeling that I'd be happy with the work tailing off a bit and being replaced by a small amount of money from the pension pot. I'm lucky enough to live in a town with an enormous amount of voluntary/community activity and once I'm doing less paid work I'd do more of this to keep me busy and engaged. As well as walking/cycling more, and some cheap and cheerful travelling. I'm thinking long distance rail travel in Europe and so on..

We should have paid off our mortgage when I'm 50 so hoping to retire at 60

55 for DH, 51 for me but in another, cheaper country where money goes a long way.

I don't think there will be anything left in my pension by the time I hit 68. That's unless I get managed out by then. Realistically though, I can't imagine teaching in my 60s, certainly not doing another 25 years of it. However, mortgage should be paid by the time I'm 60, so we'll see.

No one in my family retired past 60. Yes, they started 'proper' work 6 years before I did, but as many retired at 55, I'll still be working longer than them overall, without any of the perks they had. And they had v basic jobs.

But it could be worse: I could be the same age as my dc and fuck knows what their working lives will be.

Current forecast: never.

If things stay the same and DH can retire at 68, I’ll retire at the same time at 60. If I continue working, we won’t be able to enjoy retirement together as by the time I get to retire he’ll be closer to 80!

Realistically though, I think the age of retirement will have gone up to over 70 and there won’t be a state pension so we’re lucky we have work pensions.

I work with mainly people who are over 60 and I hear them say, “I’m just waiting for retirement”. I feel for them massively as they thought all their lives they’d be retired by now and they won’t. But at the same time, the service can’t move forward while there are so many people who don’t want/ can’t to get on board with changes.

Aiming for 62/63, so 4 or 5 years earlier than our retirement age. Later than we planned, which was about 58.We both teach and started paying into additional pensions before the age of 25 so the planning will have been a long time in the making.

We only have DS, who will be well out of university by that point and bought a simple 70s house in an unfashionable rural area. Therefore mortgage will be paid off in 5 years time.

I realise that I’ve been lucky to be able to put these plans in place.

For those in their 30s thinking they wouldn't be able to retire early I think that's a very common feeling.

I certainly thought I would be working longer than I plan but if you keep contributing to pensions when younger and understand the differences between DB/DC pensions and how drawdown works for DC rather than relying on the annuity figure they give you as an example of your projected income it doesn't seem an unrealistic prospect.

It's only really in the last 5 years have we prioritised pensions but that is because we were overpaying the mortgage. I have also seen people at work scared to retire as they read in an article they need a certain figure each year to be comfortable rather than looking at their own expenses and expectations in retirement which can be a lot less.

Once mortgage is paid off. I’m 54 this year. Probably pay off my share in 4 years. Have occupational pension, a house I rent out and savings and state pension. Husband has pensions, savings and kids off hands. He loves work, I would give up tomorrow without a backwards glance.

i want to be able to travel while we’ll and fit. My mum was effectively housebound by 67…

I love all the story’s of people retiring early, with maybe not a huge amount of money but having a lovely life.

When I started work in 1980, I couldn't join the pension scheme until I was 24!
Despite that and 8nyears off have about 2/3s of a final salary (mostly) occupational pension scheme. I started work at 20. I'm 62 and DH is 60 and we both like work very much.

My grandparents were farmers. Grannie worked until she became ill with Alzheimers, about 74 and grandad continued until he was 84 when the farm was sold. My step sold his business aged about 72.

DH's side were public sector and were retired at 55 and 60. FIL however started working at 16 and did all his quals at technical college. He was made redundant by the CEGB. DH's grandad went down the mine on his 14th birthday and retired in 1975 (different job) and took on a part-time job for his employer at that time which he did until he was 90.

Our DC are 24 and 27. DD has had a couple of gap years, three years at uni and has worked since September. She plans to do this job for two years (teacher training) and then do a Masters in SaLT. She is contributing to a pension. DS has also had a gap year and a cpl year part-time work/post grad educ. He has just submitted his PhD. He will start full-time work in the Autumn. He has contributed used to a pension when working.

Neither of the DC have rendered the graft that DH and I had by age 25; we hadn't done as much as our grandparents and parents had by the time.we were 21.

In practical terms people live far longer than they used to and it has to be funded somehow. DH and I are fit and healthy and perfectly happy to work. Our only issue is what to spend the money on - probably the grown up DC.

Yes I hope so.
Abroad, high pension contributions so will both retire on 90% full pay from 60. Mortgage will be paid off by 45/50. Probably will both keep up part time work to some extent self employed

Today 😁 at 64. Was a Nanny and last charge will keave primary school today and I have ill health so that is it.

@choirmumoftwo other side of the country - NW. our temp registrations end in September- yippee!

We don't have much in the way of private pension as we both have quite low paid jobs and tend to live hand to month each month but are lucky that we got on the housing ladder young and made a fair bit on our last house move so have c.£650k equity. Plan is to downsize by 60 when kids will have left home and both reduce hours /do something less stressful but continue to work PT.

I am likely to receive a significant inheritance in the next 10-20 years (parents late 70's) in which case we will be able to enjoy a far more extravagant retirement and would be able to stop working earlier.

I am early 50s and will need to work full time until I qualify for state pension at 67 and a bit, I will downsize and move to a cheaper area. Once I hit state retirement age I will probably go part time until I am 70. I have to hope my health is good enough.

@RosesAndHellebores my dad died 58, no pension. My d mum died at 63. My dsis died aged 60. Some of us are living longer, some not. I’m just glad I’m getting a retirement.

Your state pension can be found on the government web site using the government gateway portal. Simple to log on. That will show you exactly what you are predicted to have and how many qualifying years you still need and any gaps in credits you have. (Eg if you’ve not claimed for NI credits while on not working due to child care.

Everyone should be looking at this by time they’re 40.
the state pension is worth around £10k currently. It is set to rise massively this year due to triple lock

you are 43, currently you can estimate in todays money you will likely receive around £20k per year then. You estimate that your essentials are currently £24 so not massively different and you will make savings once retired anyway,
I comfortably live on around £22k as an individual in retirement. Ok, I don’t have holidays away but I do a lot of courses and craft stuff and still have money to do that and go out with friends for lunches, coffee etc . I live alone and therefore that pension covers all my bills and outgoings on my own too. I’m not 60 yet so my outgoings will also come down when I’m 60 due to various government support like free prescription, fuel allowances. When I do get to state pension age they’ll come down more with free buses and I can ditch the car.

based on that if you continue to pay as much as you can into your pension you will have enough to live comfortably. Most people aren’t able to seriously save excess amounts into pensions until late 40s and early 50s anyway due to still having kids to support. It’s after they become independent that there is a little more “spare” cash to be able to start heavy pension savings.

Imho you’d be better to stop being so pessimistic about things that you’re clearly not actually informing yourself on. If you do your homework and actually find out about it, you may be more positive and be able to think constructively about how to close the gap on what you project now vs where you will actually be,