To not want to use DH's inheritance?

[AnnaQuayInTheUk]

Hi, I know this is a first world dilemma and we are in a very fortunate position.

DH is 63, work pension kicks in in just under 2 years time. He is 5 years older than me. For a while he's been suggesting that, when he retires, I should drop to PT or even give up work altogether. I've resisted this idea. My work pension doesn't kick in until I'm at state pension age, so 67 for me. I was thinking that maybe I'd go PT for the last 5 years of my working life.

However, two things have now happened. DH's mum died a couple of months ago, and my team at work are undergoing a consultation which will result in 50% of us being made redundant.

DH will inherit all his Mum's savings plus half the value of her house. It's just all been valued for Probate and he will inherit around £300k, maybe slightly more if house sells at more than expected

DH is talking again about me giving up work as, once the house sells, we will have a nest egg, but I'm really worried that (a) there are other things we could use the money for and (b) our standard of living will be much worse. DH thinks we will have much better quality of life as we won't have the stress/pressure of working.

I had thought that we could use some of the inheritance money to give to the DC for house deposits - they are in their late 20s and DS1 Iin particular is very unlikely to ever earn enough for a deposit. If we do that, what's left won't be enough to replace my salary for more than a few years.

So, AIBU to think that it would be better to keep on working - even if I'm made redundant I look for another FT job at a similar salary? Or should I be grateful that we will have some savings behind us, tighten our belts and - if I'm made redundant - accept that my career is over much sooner than anticipated?

Retirement needs very careful planning in my opinion.
I think the idea of retirement is better than the reality and financially I just cannot get my head around it, what is the point of being retired if you can't afford to do anything?
I have a job I like and the thought of giving it up feels me with dread to be quite honest, it will just mean more time to get involved in family dramas which work thankfully keeps me away from.
I have always been financially independent and I would never put myself in the position of being financially dependent on a man.
I am very fortunate as I have a workplace pension but I have got an estimate of the income and it is a third of what I am earning, cannot even begin to imagine how that would work!

All the money is joint, you will have a lower pension because you took time out to care for children. You should make this decision jointly as it will affect you both.
If you aren’t made redundant that takes the decision away as you would carry on for now. If you are let go I am afraid you may find it hard to get a new job at your age. In your shoes I would look but not rule out early retirement if the right job doesn’t come along.

I don’t really know many people who retired early and really enjoyed it. It turned them into moaners.

Peak in the sense that its unlikely that given her age and the job market that she's going to be able to take redundancy or retire and change her mind and then expect to pick up a job that pays the same as she's earning now.

So what she's earning is likely to be her peak unless she's actively pursuing a fresh challenge.

I think if you want to keep working, than that's your gut telling you what's best for you and to keep going. It would be different if you were completely burnt out, hated your job and wanted to find some other ways to use your time.

I would go and see a financial advisor to look at the options, and then you can have a look at different options (might be a halfway house). Good luck!

And I’m looking forward to working 50% of the time, rather than retiring early, although I would love a role I could do during 6 months of the year only and then not work for the nice weather!

May I ask if you work for the NHS? ( no problem if you don’t want to answer that one 😊). I work for an NHS ICB and we are told there is going to be approx 50% headcount reduction. You sound a lot like me if so ( same age) - although DH won’t be inheriting 300K ever! I’m considering retirement if I get redundancy.

I think your husband needs to think though what he might do day to day once he's 67. Does he want to pick up some voluntary work / join U3A or other local activities aimed at retired people/ play sport etc. I don't think it's sensible to plan for you spending every day together as newly retired people if that's not what you've done so far in life. You probably both get something out of interacting with friends / people doing similar activities.

Stopping work before you're ready isn't a good plan. Reducing your hours might be.

Taking an unpaid sabbatical for a year as he retires might be a plan that allows for you to travel together whilst knowing you have a job to come back to.

Arranging your work project style like 3 months on and a gap before the next contract is also worth considering if it works in your field.

Wait and see what happens with the redundancy. The decision may be taken out if your hands for this particular role.

I think it’s worth considering both your ages. A lot of people wait to do x in retirement but are to ill etc to do it. But could you do more together now if you retire. Sometimes life is short op.

We retired as soon as we could afford to, both aged 58. Whether you can afford to go now depends on whether your pensions and savings are enough to cover your lifestyle. That is completely variable. We have had 8 years of early retirement and SPs only just kicked in. We have travelled, taken up new hobbies and looked after grandchildren. Luckily our health is good. People who delayed retirement have found their health is not good enough to travel now so I am glad we left work when we did.

This 100%

I cannot stress enough doing the things you want to do while you're young, fit and healthy enough to do them.

I'm in my early 50s and remember walking down a ridiculously steep and rocky trail to a beautiful beach in Greece a few years ago, thinking I'm so glad I'm doing this now as it would be much harder, possibly impossible, in another 10+ years.

I'm also glad my Dad retired earlier than state pension age and was able to travel with my Mum to the places they always dreamed of going to (he took voluntary redundancy) as we lost him very unexpectedly at age 78.

Tomorrow isn't promised.

300k is not very much. It would only cover 3-4 years in a care home. Invest it, grow the fund, and take a small annual amount from it. See what happens with your job. Worth carrying on working for a bit if you can to contribute to your pension. But it’s possible the decision will be made for you at work.

It's 33k a year for 9 years. I often wonder if I'm living in a parallel universe.

I would not consider retirement until you are 100% sure you are ready for it and can afford it. Keeping occupied takes quite a bit of money. I've found more satisfaction giving spare money to my children to enable them to get onto the housing ladder, than any exotic holiday.

My dad was diagnosed with cancer and died a few months later (of a heart attack) at the age of 73. He has previously been 'young' and active. A long life is not guaranteed. Only a small percentage end up in a care home. I will not be squirelling away my money for that but then I guess the odds are against me anyway.

Are you part of the NHS restructuring? Look at whether you can capitalize your pension, especially if you’re in the 1995 section. Lots of my colleagues of around 55-60 are doing that!

Sorry for your loss.

I would still work, £300k is nice but not a huge amount nowadays, it will go quickly.

personally I would take the redundancy and add to this pot, look to give a slice to kids to go towards a house purchase and save the rest. Look for a job maybe an easier one / part time etc and still save but also enjoy life a little more. So a merge of the two options.

I think what I would do is this. Work part-time either in your preset job or another job if you get made redundant. The inheritance money would be best invested in a small property to rent out. And that will give an income. Money in the bank is a waste of time. (For larger sums.) IMHO.

I would continue to work. . Where I in your position I would give money to my children, make my house lovely and plan some lovely trips. If you enjoy working why stop? I too would struggle with being financially dependent on someone else. Hope whatever happens you and your family are able to enjoy this financial windfall x

@MrFluffyDogIsMyBestFriend what the parallel universe where people take home more than 33k a year…

@GasPanic £300k is a lot of money, I agree. But it's not enough for a person on NMW to get a mortgage on anything more than a 2-up 2-down terraced house in the South East. Which in my view is quite distressing.

You don't sound ready to retire at all. It is fine to not want to if you enjoy your work and your financial independence. Assuming you are in reasonable health and assuming you could find another job if you were made redundant, I don't see why you should stop working if that is what it suits you to do. Could you maybe find another role that is part time, so you and your husband have a first taste of retirement together, but it's not all day every day? Depending on what your job is, you may actually be able to negotiate with HR to reduce hours and stay part-time, if they are doing cost-savings. It doesn't usually hurt to ask if they are open to this, as they try to balance the books. Really depends on context, of course.

Also as others have said, 300k is a nice sum but it is not a life-changing one in this setting.

Going part time would be fine but I don’t think that’s a lot of money to fully retire on.