If you are retired and have a good life, can I ask how much pension you draw?

[User5512]

I tried some calculators and they all gave me vastly different numbers.

I’d like to know (roughly) how much money does a couple need to have a good life in retirement.

If you are retired, would you be kind enough to give me a rough idea of your lifestyle and how much pension you get?

thanks :)

I didn’t know you could add to the TPS, I’ll have to look into this.

The 800 is what it goes up by from my contributions as every year as it goes up by an additional 1/57th of my salary.
You opt to have it go up more by choosing faster accrual but it seems very expensive to me and I havent been able to work out whether it's better to keep the avc I also have or to up my contributions.

@ZsaZsaTheCat I think your outgoings for power and mine just highlight that we all have different outgoings and what one person needs for retirement differs from everyone else. 2000 net a month is plenty for us but it wouldn’t be for everyone. It’s only plenty for us as we have savings as a safety net and now interest rates are higher our savings actually grew last year rather than getting dipped into. We have a really good life and went abroad 5 times last year (used a bit of the interest) but cheap ryanair flights and basic but nice accommodation in off peak times

The last amount I saw quoted on a financial site was £28k for a comfortable retirement.

This thread has been fascinating and terrifying in equal measure.

You have to work out your own level of being comfortable and try to give yourself the best chance of achieving that whilst working.

Covid, menopause and my husband’s ill health have changed me and my outlook. 5 years ago I would have told you my retirement would be all far flung travel and doing an OU degree. Now I will settle for a warm home, good food and contentment.

I think it can be terrifying particularly for single women.

We don’t know what the future holds but we know we have the present. So I never believed in living an unduly restricted life now in order to save for a future I may not live to enjoy. In my 30s, 40s and 50s I literally never thought about retirement income or capital, I just stashed a small, regular, affordable amount (£210 per month) then focused on the here and now - paying the mortgage, raising the kids, extricating myself from XH who would definitely have sunk my boat financially, and building my career. It was only when I hit 60 that I started really modelling how retirement might look.

Is that gross or net?

ZsaZsaTheCat thats amazing that you managed to go away x5 last year.
we are on a similar income and must be bad at money because we have not managed that so far.
we have started to be really mindful of money and have allocated - literal - pots of money for things like social events now . Its really helped us focus.
we too have just now booked a holiday abroad for less than 1k ( flights £574 plus parking and accom £345) .
the accom is really basic and outside the resort - this suits us better anyway as we wdnt like to be based round a pool with anyone else .
please tell me about yr holiday s - id love to pick up tips on how to manage it more ! Enjoy!

The only people I have known who really thought about retirement in their 20s were people who were planning to retire at the earliest possible moment.

My DB was one such. He followed a career which he didn't particularly like purely for the pension at the end. He retired at the earliest possible moment (mid 50s) and instantly turned into a grumpy old man. Thankfully he never married and has no children.

DH and I are hoping for a modestly comfortable retirement in our mid 60s: warm, fed, SC holiday every couple of years, inexpensive hobbies, generous hosts at Christmas. At the moment (late 50s) we are on track to achieve this.

As PPs have said 'comfortable' means different things to different people. And it also means different things at different ages.

@Getonwithitplease it was me not Zsa that said about going away 5 times. As an eg we are going away next month, booked flights ages ago and booked accom direct with the apartment owner (we’ve been several times and its 25% cheaper than on booking.com as they take 25%). It’s cost 348 each with flights and accom, then taxi to and from airport will be 15 each way. We travel light so not paying Ryanair for loads of luggage, there is a washer in the apartment if needs be. Apartment is really good, home from home.

We did the same last feb and November at approximately same cost.
Did a last minute all inclusive in April for 400 each and barely spent anything whilst we were there.
Did two other trips in June and September costing 400 each, staying in several hotels/apartments each trip, city and coast and moving about. All booked well in advance, my hobby is shopping around for best deals.
So before spends about 4K on holidays, as I said some of that is from savings interest, spends tend to come from the 1500 after bills we have spare each month. Loads of my friends spend that on one holiday but staying in a luxury hotel wouldn’t be any good for us as we are always out exploring. We did it a few times whilst we were working and agreed that it was a waste.

We live quite frugally on a day to day basis apart from eating well

I took out my avc (small one, 5% of salary) when I was maybe 22. But it wasn't really because I was particularly planning for retirement as they came to work and presented the info to all the new staff and I thought 'why not?'

Hopefully it will make up a tiny bit for all my years part time (70%) as well as going at 60 not 67. A big chunk of my pension does mature at 60 and that has increased now after the adjustment they had to make after the mccloud judgement. So I get a larger lump sum too.

I'll be ok. Dh has a small private pension as well as a small newish work one. I imagine he will carry on working if he can to 67.

I get the feeling that these official figures factor in top dollar for everything. We are fairly low budget, get most clothes etc from eBay and charity shops, and lunch out maybe once a week with a £25 budget for two. Quite happy with this. As for holidays, once you have the flexibility of not having to go out to work (I'm not there yet) it is much easier to pick up cheap lady minute breaks. We do get the odd weekend break by shopping around for deals, and have a second hand caravan which we got for a very reasonable price if we wanted to have a change of scenery.
I always think you can look at ways to make a lot of money (and frequently pay through the nose) or look at what you want to do, then figure how to do that within your budget.

As a single person no kids I am not terrified becuase I've planned for my retirement. What's terrifying to me is marrying someone and then running the risk they divorce you later in life taking half of everything and I only found out that includes your pension too (someone going through a divorce now)....that to me is utterly terrifying.

So bring in my 40s if I met someone and in my 60s we divorced they could walk away with some of my.pension pot that I'd been saving up pre marriage. Fuck that.

My concern is making sure DH is well provided for. He has had what is normally the woman's problem: SAHP then working round school hours. He hasn't been able to build up much of a pension pot though will get full state pension.

We will opt for a drawdown pension so that DH will inherit the pot assuming I predecease him. I have a small DB pension and he will get 50% of that as well.

It's certainly much more expensive to be single than one half of a couple. That said everyone should plan so that they will be OK if they are single. It's too important to leave to chance.

@Spectre8 that’s why each relationship needs to be weighed up for marriage. Especially when older.

Two women friends of mine are a great comparison. One never married and has three children but out earns her partner and has a decent pension. He is self employed and has not paid in to one.

Other friend is married to a low level cocklodger, what a mistake that was and she out earns him by about three times.

Yeah, if I do meet someone maybe ill do the religious ceremony so we are married but not legally lol it's quite scary to think after paying into my house on my own and building up my pensions and savings that one day imhalf of it could just go to someone else. Shame pre nups are more commonly accepted in the uk

Net.

You have the wrong person !

Retiredearly61-
you sound very like us !
we always explore / walk on holidays .
I didnt know that you could book directly with owners ? Thats fab ! Please may you tell me how to do this . ?! We want to be more creative with our money to maximise holdidays! - thanks! Inspired! .

@Getonwithitplease the first time I booked this complex was something I found on Facebook and it was a bit of a leap and I was scared it was a scam, but I only paid 50 euro deposit and the rest on arrival. I figured they’d want it all upfront if it was a scam. Then when we stayed all the owners who rented out had their business cards by the bar so now I have several phone numbers to call, availability is scarce tho. That’s our winter holiday sorted each year.
Mainly I book via ebookers on a cancelable basis, but I find discount codes. Every booking earns you money towards your next booking too. I also get discounts for being a long standing customer. I always email the apartments I choose and several times they’ve beaten ebookers. I book cancelable as sometimes prices come down then I cancel and rebook. I saved a couple of hundred quid on a USA holiday doing that back when we did luxury

Retiredearly61 · thanks so much - you have really inspired me to try to have more holiday.
for eg we have found an apartment outside a resort for much much less than in centre - which we actually prefer as its attayched to the owners home up a valley .

@Getonwithitplease yep apartments on the outskirts are always good if you don’t mind a walk. Only time it backfired was in Tarragona (fantastic Roman City by the sea) as the taxis were extortionate (most expensive taxis in Spain by all accounts) and the walk was longer than I thought! Thank goodness the service buses were cheap

I do agree but sometimes things don’t go according to plan, through things like illness, divorce, etc.